Theodore F. Chase
(1842–1921)
Theodore F. Chase was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, on February 5, 1842, to Edward Sisson Chase and Mary Chase (nÄ—e Child). At the time of his retirement in 1918, Chase was the oldest continually-operating professional photographer in Providence. He opened his first studio in 1863 and persisted in the rapidly developing field of photography for more than fifty years. The corpus of Chase’s existing work consists of portraits of Providence’s upper echelons—men and women who, in the latter part of the 1800s, could afford to have their likenesses documented for posterity. Despite the abundance of portraits such as the one pictured in the full biography below, Chase’s portfolio was also known to include landscape photography.
According to the 1864 Providence directory, Chase owned one of seven photography studios in operation in the city at the time. On June 11, 1893, at 1:30 P.M. a fire erupted at Chase’s studio at 19 Westminster Street when a kerosene stove exploded. Chase, who self-identified as a landscape photographer at the time, declared damages of approximately $10.00 had been done to the contents of his studio.
Theodore Jr. Chase became ill in the late 1910s, and he remained sick for several years, retiring in 1918. On August 8, 1921, he finally succumbed to his illness. Theodore Chase’s remains were interred at the North Burial Ground and are marked with a small monument that also memorializes his wife and their daughter, both called Emma.
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Jessica Rieman, student at Rhode Island College
Gallery
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Theodore F. Chase (1842-1921)
Theodore F. Chase was born in Fall River, Massachusetts, on February 5, 1842, to Edward Sisson Chase and Mary Chase (nÄ—e Child). At the time of his retirement in 1918, Chase was the oldest continually-operating professional photographer in Providence. He opened his first studio in 1863 and persisted in the rapidly developing field of photography for more than fifty years. The corpus of Chase’s existing work consists of portraits of Providence’s upper echelons—men and women who, in the latter part of the 1800s, could afford to have their likenesses documented for posterity (see examples of his work here). Despite the abundance of portraits such as the one pictured here, Chase’s portfolio was also known to include landscape photography.
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Chase married Emma F. Horton in 1865. Between 1866 and 1875, the couple had four children. Clarence E. Chase was born in 1866 followed by his sister, Frannie Estelle Chase, who was born in 1870 but died at the age of 15. Theodore F. Chase Jr. was born in 1872, and Emma Mabel Chase joined the family in 1875.
According to the 1864 Providence directory, Chase owned one of seven photography studios in operation in the city at the time. His first studio was located at 69 Westminster Street. Throughout the subsequent decades, he operated his business from various addresses including 249 1/2 Westminster. During the late nineteenth century, most of the city’s photography studios were located in the bustling area around Westminster and Weybosset Streets.
On June 11, 1893, at 1:30 P.M. a fire erupted at Chase’s studio at 19 Westminster Street when a kerosene stove exploded. The building, owned by John N. A. Griswold, claimed $5.00 in damages. Chase, who self-identified as as a landscape photographer at the time, declared double that amount of damage (approximately $10.00) had been done to the contents of his studio.
Jessica Rieman, student at Rhode Island College
Further Reading
Trachtenberg, Alan. Reading American Photographs: Images as History, from Matthew Brady to Walker Evans. New York: Hill and Wang, 1989.
Gustavson, Todd. Camera: A History of Photography from Daguerreotype to Digital. New York: Sterling, 2009.
