Robert Benecke

Robert Benecke (January 25, 1835 – November 3, 1903) was a German-born American photographer, operating primarily out of St. Louis in the latter half of the 19th century. Along with portraits, his works included photographs of railroads, bridges, buildings, and steamboats. He received considerable acclaim for his exhibit at the 1869 St. Louis Fair, and was among the earliest Americans to experiment with the artotype process in the early 1870s. He later turned to dry plate manufacturing, and worked as an editor for the St. Louis and Canadian Photographer in the 1890s. On a visit to the town of Nordhausen in 1855, he had his picture taken at an ambrotype studio. Impressed, he returned to the studio shortly afterward to work as an assistant and learn the photography trade. His first camera utilized a Lebrun lens and a plate holder he had constructed himself.

Due to their pro-democracy activities, the Beneckes were forced to flee to the United States, After the war, the duo captured several prizes at the 1867 and 1868 St. Louis Fairs. Sometime around 1869, Benecke dissolved his partnership with Hoelke, and continued alone. After a trip to Germany in 1883, Benecke began manufacturing dry plates. In 1886, he was hired by fellow German immigrant Gustav Cramer to supervise the Cramer Dry Plate Works in St. Louis, a position he held for the rest of his life. Beginning in the 1890s, Benecke began working as an editor for the St. Louis and Canadian Photographer, a magazine that had been established by his friend John Fitzgibbon (1817–1882), and published by Fitzgibbon's widow, Maria.

After suffering from a stomach-related illness for several weeks, Benecke died at his home on Armand Avenue in St. Louis on November 3, 1903. He is interred with his family at the Bellefontaine Cemetery in St. Louis.

Works Early in his career, Benecke was inspired by Charles Waldack's Treatise of Photography on Collodion. Benecke's studio in the late 1850s advertised ambrotypes and daguerreotypes, and offered copying and enlargement services. By late 1860, he was offering melainotypes and photo coloring services (namely coloring photos using water colors or oils).

Benecke photographed numerous places in St. Louis and its vicinity throughout his career, including steamboats, bridges, streets, and panoramic views. One of his most popular stereo card collections featured the Eads Bridge in its various phases of construction. A panoramic view of St. Louis exhibited by Benecke at the 1870 St. Louis Fair was widely praised.

Benecke was writing articles on photography as early as the late 1850s, when he was submitting articles to Snelling's Photographic and Fine-Art Journal. As an editor for the St. Louis and Canadian Photographer, Benecke wrote a column, "Echoes from Europe," which provided a summary of articles translated from German and French photography journals.

Benecke's photographs are now part of the collections of the New York Public Library, the J. Paul Getty Museum, and Southern Methodist University.

Family Benecke married Mary Koenig on November 22, 1865. They had four children: Olga, Anna, Josephine, and Theodore. Benecke's younger brother, Louis Benecke (1843–1919), was a prominent politician, entrepreneur and inventor who served in the Missouri Senate from 1869 to 1875. Louis's son Ruby Benecke (1884–1973) was a prominent attorney and politician who held a string of lower political offices during the mid-20th century.

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