Snoqualmie Falls Real Photo Postcard by Ellis – Number 104

For more than a century, Snoqualmie Falls, a sacred place of the Snoqualmie Tribe in Snoqualmie, Washington, has served as the subject of countless photographs. In the early 1900s, Iowa-born John Boyd Ellis captured the majesty of the 268-foot waterfall in a real photo postcard (RPPC) that includes a look at the Snoqualmie Falls Lodge. Here’s a closer look at one of those postcards recently acquired via an online auction

WHO WAS JOHN BOYD ELLIS (J. BOYD ELLIS)?

John Boyd Ellis, or J. Boyd Ellis, was born July 25, 1894 in Perry, Iowa. He moved to Olympia, Washington around 1903, where he attended University of Washington and Western Washington University. Upon earning a teaching degree, Ellis became principal of Marysville High School until 1921 when he moved his family to Arlington, Washington. He became an Eastman Kodak dealer in a small shop on Main Street in the small Snohomish County town.

At the suggestion of a salesman in 1923, Ellis started making black-and-white photographs of the Pacific Northwest and turning them into postcards. He shot most of his photographs using a 4-by- 5 format Crown Graphic camera. Through his eyes, he captured beautiful scenery found throughout Washington, Oregon, Montana, British Columbia and Alaska.

His photography skills led to the creation of Ellis Post Card Co. which produced around 5,000 real photograph post cards. When Ellis, Sr. retired in 1959, his son Clifford B., who was born in 1919, assumed ownership of the family business.

Decades later in 1990, a longtime competitor, Tacoma-based Smith-Western Co., would purchase the then oldest postcard company in the state.

“When I first got into the business, Mr. Ellis was the pioneer,” Kyle S. Smith, head of operations for Smith-Western Co. said. “I had no other competitor but him. He was a wonderful man – gentle and compassionate – and a giant in our field. His black-and-white photography is art.”

“Mr. Smith was always a stiff competitor, but my dad didn’t have the desire to cover the state and beyond like he did,” said Clifford Ellis. “I’ve had some health problems in the past few years, so when I decided to sell the business, I wanted to sell to Kyle Smith. My dad would have wanted it that way.”

J. Boyd Ellis continued to take photographs around Western Washington until he died in 1983. Clifford died in 1992.

SNOQUALMIE FALLS REAL PHOTO POST CARD BY ELLIS – NUMBER 104 | FRONT

The front of the real photo postcard features a black and white image taken by J. Boyd Ellis. It’s numbered 104 and has a description that reads, “Snoqualmie Falls – Wash – Height – 268 ft. / Snoqualmie Falls Lodge at Left.”

The former lodge, known today as Salish Lodge & Spa, originally opened 1916 as an eight-room roadside stop. The lodge’s dining room was well known for its hearty breakfasts and “honey from Heaven” tradition where servers standing on ladders would pour honey onto biscuits to represent the magnificent waterfall.

The Snoqualmie Valley Historical Museum has a copy of the same image which is slightly uncropped and has a different inscription for for the falls and lodge. Their online description reads: “The picture shows the Snoqualmie Falls lodge on the cliff above the Falls. The power house can be seen across the river and the bridge for pedestrians. The water over the Falls is full flow. The mountains can be seen in the background.”

The museum states the photograph may have been taken between 1917 to 1950 by Clifford Ellis. To me, it seems unlikely since Clifford was born in 1919. The image is number 104 so I’m assuming lower numbers are from photographs captured early in J. Boyd Ellis’ career. Son Clifford would be 40 when he took over the business so one assumes he had been taking photographs for years, learning tips and tricks from his dad.

A similar sepia-toned image is also found in the museum’s archive. This one states it was taken by J. Boyd Ellis between 1920 to 1970. The description reads, “Falls at full flow with much spray at bottom. Snoqualmie Falls Lodge at top of cliff at left. Electric power station across river and foot bridge spans river. Mountains in background.”

WaterArchives.org shared this similar real photo postcard on their Flickr page which they date it from 1940.

The image also appears at CarterMuseum.org where they date the card from 1947 based on the cancel mark on the back. This card contains less information than the original card I presented but still uses the number 104.

There was a printed description on the back of this card that read, “SNOQUALMIE FALLS \ A sheer drop of 268 feet makes these falls \ one of the many inspiring sights which greet \ the tourist. A short drive from Metropolitan \ Seattle, they are the mecca of visitors from \ far and near.”

SNOQUALMIE FALLS REAL PHOTO POST CARD BY ELLIS – NUMBER 104 | BACK

The back of the postcard offers one key clue about when it may have been manufactured – the “EKC / Place Stamp Here.” EKC stands for Eastman Kodak Company, something Ellis, Sr. would have known due to his photography store in Arlington.

According to Dan Cherry’s article for the Daily Telegram on Nov. 22, 2022 titled, “Clues can help place dates on old pictures, postcards,”  Kodak’s ‘EKC’ postcards were published between 1939 and 1950.

It’s very likely that Ellis, Sr. took the original photo (the Snoqualmie Valley Historical Museum image) after 1921 when he moved to Arlington and it was later used on a postcard for the Ellis Post Card Company beginning after 1939. Without specific dates or more details on the post card’s back, it’s difficult to provide a definitive answer.

You can see this and many other Twin Peaks-related postcards on my Flickr account.