Well-researched and insightful tattoo history
Templeton Crocker & Brooklyn Blackie: A Tattoo Tale with a TwistOr Charles Templeton Crocker’s Curious Connections with Tattooing Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen Bohemian playwright, art deco enthusiast, cultural benefactor, heir to millions, and world explorer, Charles Templeton Crocker […]
The Loryeas: A Jewish Immigrant Family’s Curious Connections with Tattooing Researched & Written by Carmen Forquer Nyssen What do tattooed heiress Aimee Crocker, Japanese tattoo masters Hori Chiyo and Hori Toyo, the blue chin-tattooed Olive Oatman, and tattooer Apache Harry […]
Barnum & Bunnell’s Tattooed Humbugs: Manifesting a Tattoo Trade Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen The tattoo trade in America, as we know it today, resides with a diversity of talented tattoo artists and a broad range of customers who […]
A Tattooed Affair: Earliest Tattooed Attractions Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen The wondrous dime museum phenomenon built by circus magnate Phineas T. Barnum and his trusty protégé George Burr Bunnell manifested an extravaganza of never-before-seen tattooed attractions that brought […]
Grand Lineages of TattooingBy Carmen Nyssen A year ago, or so, a very “loud” thought popped into my head, while I was dozing: “The sum of the whole is the trump of the whole.” Since that day, the ideal of […]
Wortham’s Shows Web of Tattooed Attractions By Carmen Nyssen During the 1910s and early 1920s, Clarence Augustin Wortham’s “wonderful ability and tireless efforts” took him to the top of the carnival circuit, earning him a multi-show enterprise, complete with a […]
Prof. Jacob Londella: Tattooer of San Francisco’s Old Chinatown Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen At the turn of the century in San Francisco’s old Chinatown (c. 1899-1906), a visitor seeking the thrill of a tattoo wouldn’t have to look […]
Pacific Northwest Tattooers: Oregon Ben & Friends Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen The Pacific Northwest was home to an interesting line-up of tattoo characters throughout history, and tattooed man-tattooer, “Oregon Ben,” ranks among them. Although little detail is known about Oregon Ben’s career, […]
Portland, Oregon’s Early Tattoo Traditions Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen As with many a tattoo hub throughout history, Portland Oregon’s tattooing traditions hearken back to the city’s seafaring foundations—pioneered by expert navigator and merchant speculator, Captain John H. Couch. […]
Tattoo Magic on Main Street Original Research/Writing by Carmen Forquer Nyssen Los Angeles’ Main Street was homebase to an A-list of tattooers in the early part of the 20th Century. Within a several block stretch, the talented bunch—including Bert Grimm, […]
Tattoos: Magical Iterations of the Past By Carmen Forquer Nyssen Tattoos are magical iterations of the past in that the process of making a tattoo holds their very history: That first mark hearkens back to an ancient moment in time […]
Al G. Barnes Tattooed Men: Frank Martin & Bert Price Written & Researched by Carmen Nyssen Circus biographer Dave Robeson asserted that “No half measures ever satisfied…” the great showman, Al G. Barnes. And so it was with Barnes’ sideshow […]
Snakes in the Tattoo Biz: The X-Factor Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen For a minute, put aside tattoo history’s themes of global culture, sailor traditions, and such. Consider snakes. They have a place. In my book, specifics in tattoo history are […]
Dick Hyland: The Human Autograph Original Research by Carmen Nyssen Among the colorful tattoo characters in history who graced the infamous New York Bowery was Dick Hyland, also known as, the ‘Human Autograph.’ During the 1940s, Hyland became a regular […]
A Tattoo Journey Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen The ‘Tattoo Journey’ ahead is a sampling of the early twentieth-century tattoo artist travels that so significantly shaped the craft and trade of tattooing. In an era when sailing vessels were […]
Wagner, Tattooer, Quips with Fred Allen Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen As one of the most widely recognized tattoo artists of the twentieth century, New York Bowery’s Charlie Wagner enjoyed his share of publicity. From the earliest days of […]
Charlie Wagner’s ‘Chatham Electric Tattooing’ Enterprise Original Research by Carmen Nyssen, including indepth genealogical study in foreign archives (Though Charlie Wagner was said to be of Jewish ethnicity, records confirm he was German. See my research on Find-a-Grave and the […]
Saloon-Tattoo Shops of New York City’s 4th Ward Researched & Written By Tattoo Historian Carmen Forquer Nyssen Although most notorious for its numerous boardinghouses, brothels, and drinking-holes, New York City’s wicked 4th Ward—set along the East River port—was also home […]
New York Tattoo Shops: 5 & 11 Chatham Square Researched & Written by Carmen Nyssen Today’s post is a short visual history illustrating the early New York tattoo shops at No. 5 & 11 Chatham Square. Although Sam O’Reilly is […]
1943 S. Main Street Tattooers: Harry Lawson, Pat Dimidies, Duffy By Carmen Nyssen 1943 South Main Street Los Angeles Tattooers Because 1940s and 1950s Los Angeles City Directories rarely listed tattoo shops, investigating local tattoo history for this period is a […]
