Waite, Alvin H. (Alvin Henry), 1862-1929

Alvin H. Waite (also known as A.H. Waite) was born in Iowa in 1862. He worked as a piano tuner in Tacoma and later Seattle. Waite was an outdoorsman and traveler, and many of his photographs were made on trips between the West Coast and the Midwest. His photographs of the Mount Rainier area, made in 1893, may be among the first ever made of the region. In fact, Waite may have been the first photographer to carry a camera on an ascent of the mountain. Along with his friends and associates, Albert Barnes and Henry M. Sarvant, Waite was one of the area's most important landscape photographers during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He died in Seattle in 1929.

From the description of Alvin H. Waite photographs, 1890-1920 [graphic]. (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 70186997

Alvin Henry (A.H.) Waite was born in Iowa in 1862. He was the oldest son of Henry C. Waite, a well known and respected piano salesman. The family moved around in the early years of Waite's life, living in Illinois and Ohio before settling in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1869. Waite had four younger half-siblings from his father's second marriage, brothers Roy, Clair, and Ralph and a sister, Mabel. Like his father, Alvin also worked in the music business in Cedar Rapids, and is listed in directories in the late 1880s and 1890 as a "dealer in sheet music and musical merchandise" and as a piano tuner. Waite's brothers Roy and Ralph also became involved in the piano trade in Chicago and Milwaukee, respectively. Waite moved to Tacoma in 1892, where he continued to work in piano tuning and repair for various companies, including the D.S. Johnston Company. Waite moved to Seattle around 1902, working as a piano tuner and salesman at the D.S. Johnston Company's Seattle store and at its successor company, Eiler's Music House. In 1915, Waite established his own piano company, a successor to the piano business of A.W. Meyer. He had one daughter, Helen, from his first marriage, and had married his second wife, Donna Gates, sometime before 1900. Waite's continued in his piano business until his death in 1929. Despite a lifelong passion for photography, Waite never worked professionally as a photographer. An avid outdoorsman and traveller, Waite began to photograph scenes in the Midwest, mostly in Iowa and Illinois, around 1890; he also took pictures on trips he made to Colorado, Utah, and California. Upon his move to Washington in 1892, he began to photograph extensively in Tacoma, documenting the town and waterfront in detail. Waite documented the landscape on his numerous bicycling and hiking trips in Washington and elsewhere. Shortly after arriving in Tacoma, Waite made the first of several ascents of Mount Rainier, photographing its peaks and glaciers, various camps, and his hiking companions. Waite created some of the earliest photographs of the summit, along with friend and fellow photographer Henry M. Sarvant, with whom Waite climbed Mount Rainier in 1897.

From the description of Alvin H. Waite photographs and other material, 1892-1926 (bulk 1892-1901). (Unknown). WorldCat record id: 191746413

Alvin Henry (A.H.) Waite was born in Iowa in 1862. He was the oldest son of Henry C. Waite, a well known and respected piano salesman. The family moved around in the early years of Waite's life, living in Illinois and Ohio before settling in Cedar Rapids, Iowa in 1869. Waite had four younger half-siblings from his father's second marriage, brothers Roy, Clair and Ralph and a sister, Mabel. Like his father, Alvin also worked in the music business in Cedar Rapids, and is listed in directories in the late 1880s and 1890 as a "dealer in sheet music and musical merchandise" and as a piano tuner. Waite's brothers Roy and Ralph also became involved in the piano trade in Chicago and Milwaukee, respectively.

Waite moved to Tacoma in 1892, where he continued to work in piano tuning and repair for various companies, including the D.S. Johnston Company. Waite moved to Seattle around 1902, working as a piano tuner and salesman at the D.S. Johnston Company's Seattle store and at its successor company, Eiler's Music House. In 1915, Waite established his own piano company, a successor to the piano business of A.W. Meyer. He had one daughter, Helen, from his first marriage, and had married his second wife, Donna Gates, sometime before 1900. Waite's continued in his piano business until his death in 1929.

Despite a lifelong passion for photography, Waite never worked professionally as a photographer. An avid outdoorsman and traveller, Waite began to photograph scenes in the Midwest, mostly in Iowa and Illinois, around 1890; he also took pictures on trips he made to Colorado, Utah and California. Upon his move to Washington in 1892, he began to photograph extensively in Tacoma, documenting the town and waterfront in detail. Waite documented the landscape on his numerous bicycling and hiking trips in Washington and elsewhere. Shortly after arriving in Tacoma, Waite made the first of several ascents of Mount Rainier, photographing its peaks and glaciers, various camps and his hiking companions. Waite created some of the earliest photographs of the summit, along with friend and fellow photographer Henry M. Sarvant, with whom Waite climbed Mount Rainier in 1897.

From the guide to the Alvin H. Waite photographs and other material, 1892-1926, 1892-1901, (Museum of History & Industry Sophie Frye Bass Library)

Alvin H. Waite (also known as A.H. Waite) was born in Iowa in 1862. He had one daughter, Helen, from his first marriage, and had married his second wife, Donna Gates, by 1900. During the 1890s Waite worked as a piano tuner in Tacoma. By 1902 he had moved to Seattle, where he continued working with pianos at the D.S. Johnston Company. Despite his keen interest in recording his surroundings with his camera, Waite never made a career out of photography. He continued as a piano tuner and salesman and in 1915 established a business of his own, the Alvin H. Waite Piano Company. Alvin H. Waite died in Seattle in 1929.

Waite was an outdoorsman and traveler, and many of his photographs were made on trips between the West Coast and the Midwest. His photographs of the Mount Rainier area, made in 1893, may be among the first ever made of the region. In fact, Waite may have been the first photographer to carry a camera on an ascent of the mountain. Along with his friends and associates, Albert Barnes and Henry M. Sarvant, Waite was one of the area's most important landscape photographers during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.

From the guide to the Alvin H. Waite photographs, 1890-1920, (University of Washington Libraries Special Collections)