Theodore E. Peiser (1853 - 1922) was an early photographer in

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

, Washington and the

Pacific Northwest The Pacific Northwest (sometimes Cascadia, or simply abbreviated as PNW) is a geographic region in western North America bounded by its coastal waters of the Pacific Ocean to the west and, loosely, by the Rocky Mountains to the east. Though ...

. His studio and many of his photographs were lost in the Great Seattle Fire of 1889. His surviving photographs include one of the few photographs of the Seattle skyline from

Beacon Hill Beacon Hill may refer to: Places Canada * Beacon Hill, Ottawa, Ontario, a neighbourhood * Beacon Hill Park, a park in Victoria, British Columbia * Beacon Hill, Saskatchewan * Beacon Hill, Montreal, a neighbourhood in Beaconsfield, Quebec United ...

before the fire as well as the

Yesler-Leary Building William Boone (3 September 1830, in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania – 29 October 1921, in Seattle, Washington) was an American architect who practiced mainly in Seattle, Washington from 1882 until 1905. He was one of the founders of the Washingt ...

in 1885, several years before it burned in the fire. He also captured the first and second Occidental Hotel buildings that preceded the

Seattle Hotel Hotel Seattle, also known as Seattle Hotel and the Collins Block, was located in Pioneer Square in a triangular block bound by James Street to the north, Yesler Way to the south, and 2nd Avenue to the east, just steps away from the Pioneer Buildi ...

and

Sinking Ship The Sinking Ship is a multi-story parking garage in Pioneer Square, Seattle bound by James Street to the north, Yesler Way to the south, and 2nd Avenue to the east, and just steps away from the Pioneer Building on the site of the former Occi ...

. He also documented the debut of the first Seattle Street Railway horse-drawn streetcar in 1884 with mayor John Leary. Peiser's photography studio called the Theo E Peiser's Art Studio, Seattle, 1884 (PEISER 17)

Peiser's photography studio called the Theo E Peiser's Art Studio, Seattle, 1884 (PEISER 17)

Peiser photographed the memorial service for assassinated U.S. president

James Garfield James Abram Garfield (November 19, 1831 – September 19, 1881) was the 20th president of the United States, serving from March 4, 1881 until Assassination of James A. Garfield, his death six months latertwo months after he was shot by an as ...

held in

Occidental Square Occidental Park, also referred to as Occidental Square (north of S. Main Street) and Occidental Mall (south of S. Main Street), is a 0.6 acre (2,400 m²) public park located in the Pioneer Square district of Seattle, Washington. Description and ...

in front of the Occidental Hotel on September 27, 1881. He also captured the territory's legislators in 1883. Peiser photographed the

Washington Husky football The Washington Huskies football team represents the University of Washington in college football. Washington competes in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) as a member of the Pac-12 Conference. Husky Stadium, located on cam ...

team in 1900, not long after statehood and the school's transition from being Territorial University of Washington. He also photographed Arthur A. Denny and a then elderly pioneer

Carson D. Boren Carson Dobbins Boren (December 12, 1824 – August 19, 1912) was an early founder of Seattle, Washington (see Denny Party). His sister Mary Ann was married to Arthur Denny, and his sister Louisa to David Denny. Boren was the first King County ...

. He captured images of the area's legislators, such as

Samuel H. Piles Samuel Henry Piles (December 28, 1858March 11, 1940) was an American politician, attorney, and diplomat who served as a United States senator from Washington. Early life Piles was born near Smithland, Kentucky, the son of Samuel Henry Piles (d. ...

addressing a crowd at the dedication of the Alki Point Monument. He also photographed Henry Yesler and his wife Sarah. Peiser photographed groups of students and faculty at the Territorial University (predecessor of

University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seat ...

). His images also included

Soapy Smith Jefferson Randolph "Soapy" Smith II (November 2, 1860 – July 8, 1898) was an American con artist and gangster in the American frontier. Smith operated confidence schemes across the Western United States, and had a large hand in organized cri ...

Washington Territory legislators, probably in Seattle, 1883 (PEISER 90)

Territorial University faculty group portrait, Seattle, 1883 (PEISER 111)

Peiser photographed sights at

Alki Point Alki Point is a point jutting into Puget Sound, the westernmost landform in the West Seattle district of Seattle, Washington. Alki is the peninsular neighborhood on Alki Point. Alki was the original settlement in what was to become the city of ...

including bathers at Alki Beach and the Stockade Hotel on the day a pioneer monument ( Alki Point Monument) was being dedicated. He also photographed firemen and community leaders such as businessmen. Peiser lived at 7543 Sunnyside Avenue in Seattle. After the fire and its devastation to his business he fell ill. His doctor advised him to move to California and he planned to sell off his remaining photographic works and equipment. Peiser moved to California in 1907. He died there in 1922.

Writings and testimony

Peiser included poetry in his newspaper advertisement. He wrote a July 1, 1919 column in '' The Evening News (San Jose)'' about Emerson P. Harris' book ''Cooperation and the hope of the consumer'' about combatting high prices. Peiser testified about the immigration of Japanese people to San Francisco in a congressional committee hearing in 1921. He recalled his time in Hawaii from 1879 until 1880 during the hearing and expressed fears about the immigration of Japanese people.

Work

His work includes

cabinet photo The cabinet card was a style of photograph which was widely used for photographic portraiture after 1870. It consisted of a thin photograph mounted on a card typically measuring 108 by 165 mm ( by inches). History The ''carte de visite'' ...

Territorial University students, Seattle, 1864 (PEISER 89)

A collection of his photographs is held by the

Gallery

File:Soldiers taking a break, Fort Lawton, August 1900 (PEISER 64).jpeg, Soldiers at Fort Lawton File:Seattle baseball team portrait taken in Seattle, 1886 (PEISER 110).jpeg, Seattle Bank baseball team File:Seattle, bird's eye view looking east, ca1884 (PEISER 137).jpeg, Bird's eye view of Seattle looking east File:Looking southwest from Denny Hill over Seattle, 1882 (PEISER 69).jpeg, View of Seattle from Denny Hill in 1882 File:Restaurant workers in front of business with Owl sign in window, Seattle, nd (PEISER 15).jpeg, In front of The Owl File:Fourth of July parade, 1888, Seattle (CURTIS 1279).jpeg, 1888 Fourth of July Parade on First Avenue File:US soldiers from Company A, 7th Regiment, in Seattle about to leave for China, August 1900 (PEISER 59).jpeg, Soldiers preparing to go to China in 1900 (

Boxer Rebellion The Boxer Rebellion, also known as the Boxer Uprising, the Boxer Insurrection, or the Yihetuan Movement, was an anti-foreign, anti-colonial, and anti-Christian uprising in China between 1899 and 1901, towards the end of the Qing dynasty, b ...

) File:Seattle waterfront north from King St from Elliott Bay, ca 1884 (PEISER 24).jpeg, Seattle waterfront north from King St from

Elliott Bay Elliott Bay is a part of the Central Basin region of Puget Sound. It is in the U.S. state of Washington, extending southeastward between West Point in the north and Alki Point in the south. Seattle was founded on this body of water in the 1850s ...

File:Central School showing students posed in front, Seattle, 1884 (PEISER 100).jpeg, Central School and students in 1884 File:Looking northeast from King St and Western Ave, Seattle, 1881 (PEISER 42).jpeg, Looking northeast from King Street and Western Avenue (1881) File:Yesler-Leary Building viewed from the intersection of 1st Ave and Yesler Way, Seattle, ca 1885 (PEISER 16).jpeg,

File:Seattle Volunteer Fire Co engine Number 1 in 1883 at Seattle engine house on Columbia St (CURTIS 48).jpeg, Seattle Volunteer Fire Company engine Number 1 in 1883 at the engine house on Columbia Street

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Peiser, Theodore 1853 births Photographers from Washington (state) People from Seattle 1922 deaths

Writings and testimony

Work

Gallery

See also

Further reading

References