Larkin Company Scrapbook

Due to a renewed interest in the demolished Larkin Company Administration Building, designed by famed architect Frank Lloyd Wright, we decided to revisit an old scrapbook collection of photographs of the Larkin Soap Company from roughly 1913 to 1918.  John D. Larkin’s hugely-successful mail order company was founded in Buffalo in 1875 and saw a continued growth throughout the latter 19th century and well into the 20th century, until Mr. Larkin’s death and the growing popularity of automobiles and department stores.  The Great Depression didn’t help either.

A catalog from the early 1900’s depicts the building before completion on its cover.  This unique little treasure was discovered between the plaster and lathe walls of an old home in Dunkirk, N.Y. , and despite its obvious condition issues, presents some excellent images of Larkin buildings and products.

Larkin Factory to Family Soaps and Premiums, c. 1904

The photographs, all re-housed using archival materials, primarily show interiors of the building, as well as various activities of the staff.  We even get an image of early electric hair dryers being used in the YWCA facilities within the factory.

YWCA in factory, women using hair dryers