Domino Danzero

Domino Danzero was a talented amateur photographer in the late 19th and early 20th century. He was born in Italy in 1871. His father, Jack Danzero, was a painter and decorator. In 1890, Domino immigrated to the United States at the age of nineteen. After he arrived, Domino worked in Chicago at a bakery and then for the St. Louis and San Francisco “Frisco” Railroad as a Harvey House chef. 

In his work for Harvey House, he was an overseer of the dining cars on the railroad. The railroad knew about his interest in photography, so they commissioned him to take photographs that documented life in the communities along the railroad. He had permission to stop the train to take photographs for public relations purposes. The earliest images Domino made date between 1891 and 1895. Many of these photos were made into postcards as advertising.

Domino invented a panoramic shutter for his camera that enabled him to take a panoramic view. He sold this invention to Kodak in 1901 for $200. He also hand-tinted his photographs.

In 1907, Domino and his wife moved to Springfield, Missouri, where they started Domino’s Cafe in 1908, Domino’s Bakery in 1910, and Domino’s Macaroni Factory in 1917. In 1923, Danzero was told by his doctor that his work was affecting his health, so he and his family liquidated their businesses so they could travel. In this period, Danzero focused on photography, so many of his images date from this time.

Domino Danzero died on December 18, 1952, at the age of eighty-one.