Cole, Allen E.

Allen E. Cole (l883-l970) was a professional photographer in the Cleveland, Ohio, African American community. His years of photographing the working and middle-class community in Cleveland produced a collection of some 50,000 negatives at the time of his death; the negatives were acquired in l980 by the Western Reserve Historical Society. The motto of his business, "Somebody, Somewhere, Wants Your Photograph," was used as title for a collection of his photographs published by the society in l980. After graduating from Storer College in Harper's Ferry, West Virginia, Cole worked as a waiter, railroad porter, cook, and a real estate businessman. When that business proved to be slower than expected, Cole moved to Cleveland, where he worked as a waiter at the Cleveland Athletic Club, eventually becoming headwaiter, a position he held for ten years. At the Athletic Club, Cole met Joseph Opet, manager of the Frank Moore Studios, who introduced him to photography and hired him as a part-time assistant. After six years, Cole decided to leave the Athletic Club to make his living as a photographer. In 1922, he opened his own studio at his home on East 103rd Street, later moving to 9909 Cedar Road. During the Depression when individual orders declined, he began doing commercial work and commission work for eight white-owned studios. Cole's work earned prizes and praise at state and local exhibitions, and was frequently published in The Call and Post.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Allen E. Cole

From the guide to the Allen E. Cole Papers, 1887-1972, (Western Reserve Historical Society)

biographical sketch courtesy of the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History

Allen E. Cole (1883-1970) was a professional photographer in the African American community of Cleveland, Ohio. He generated over 27,000 negatives during his life, a collection acquired by the Western Reserve Historical Society and selectively published in a book entitled Somebody, Somewhere, Wants Your Photograph (1980), which was Cole's business motto. The son of Allen and Sara Cole, he was born in Kearneysville, West Virginia. Cole graduated from Storer College and worked as a waiter in Atlantic City, New Jersey, and a railroad porter and cook in Cincinnati, Ohio, until he was injured in a train accident. He moved to Cleveland, worked as a waiter at the Cleveland Athletic Club, and eventually became head waiter there for over 10 years.

At the Athletic Club, Cole met Joseph Opet, manager of Frank Moore Studios, who introduced him to photography. He assisted at Opet's studios for six years, and then opened a studio in his home in 1922. When individual orders declined during the Great Depression, Cole did commercial work and commission work for eight white studios. Cole contributed photographs to the Cleveland Call and Post, and his work earned prizes at state and local exhibitions. Cole also was a founder and treasurer of the Progressive Business League, an officer of the Dunbar Life Insurance Company, a member of St. James African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, and was active in the Elks and Masons. For years he was the only African American member of the Cleveland Society of Professional Photographers. His wife, Frances T. Cole (1889-1979), was his assistant and business manager. Cole was buried in Highland Park Cemetery.

click here to view the Encyclopedia of Cleveland History entry for Allen E. Cole

From the guide to the Allen E. Cole Photographs, 1870-1970, 1920-1970, (Western Reserve Historical Society)