Frank B. Clench

Frank B. Clench established his first photographic studio in Lockport, New York in 1863. In addition to portraits, he produced stereographs, including a “Pastoral view of Lockport, N.Y.” in The J. Paul Getty Museum. He operated in Fairport, New York between 1889 and 1902; moved to Madison, Georgia, and returned in Fairport in 1914. He was known for inventing and patenting “The Plaque,” described as having dimensions “the same as the cabinet picture. The vignette portrait is made, printed within a circle nearly four inches in diameter, and then depressed by means of an embossing or ‘Cameo’ machine. The borders are tinted a beautiful gray or cream color, and the picture is mounted on a card with peculiar designs upon it, which may vary to suit the tastes of the artists using them. Other sizes with doubtless follow.”