Title:
Paulu Toivo Saari, Ketchikan Daily News Staff, 1967
Photographer:
Ketchikan Daily News staff
Description:
Paulu Saari's lifelong love of photography began when he was 11 or 12. Armed with a Kodak Box Brownie, he chased a robin around the neighborhood until he finally captured its image as it perched on a fencepost. After shooting the entire roll of film, he found he had only two images of the elusive bird - and both were double-exposed!
Paulu first came to Alaska in 1939, with the Civilian Conservation Corps. That fall, he enrolled at Washington State University in Pullman. When World War II broke out, he enlisted in the Coast Guard and was assigned to duty in Ketchikan. After the war, he returned to Pullman and completed his degree. He then completed two years of study in photography at the University of Houston, in Texas.
In 1950, he returned to Ketchikan. Over the next five years he freelanced, photographing major construction projects such as the tunnel and the Ketchikan Pulp Mill; taking group photos for organizations and sports teams; and documenting the fishing industry. In 1955, Saari landed a job as staff photographer at the Ketchikan Daily News. He stayed with the newspaper until 1966, then worked at the Ketchikan Pulp Mill before retiring in 1982.
In 2003, Paulu donated his vast collection of photographs and negatives to the Museum. Numbered in the thousands, the images document a half-century of Ketchikan's history.
For several years, Paulu has spent every Thursday morning at the Museum with curator Richard Van Cleave, helping to identify and catalog this invaluable resource.
Paulu first came to Alaska in 1939, with the Civilian Conservation Corps. That fall, he enrolled at Washington State University in Pullman. When World War II broke out, he enlisted in the Coast Guard and was assigned to duty in Ketchikan. After the war, he returned to Pullman and completed his degree. He then completed two years of study in photography at the University of Houston, in Texas.
In 1950, he returned to Ketchikan. Over the next five years he freelanced, photographing major construction projects such as the tunnel and the Ketchikan Pulp Mill; taking group photos for organizations and sports teams; and documenting the fishing industry. In 1955, Saari landed a job as staff photographer at the Ketchikan Daily News. He stayed with the newspaper until 1966, then worked at the Ketchikan Pulp Mill before retiring in 1982.
In 2003, Paulu donated his vast collection of photographs and negatives to the Museum. Numbered in the thousands, the images document a half-century of Ketchikan's history.
For several years, Paulu has spent every Thursday morning at the Museum with curator Richard Van Cleave, helping to identify and catalog this invaluable resource.
Collection:
Ketchikan Museums: Ketchikan Daily News Collection, KM 93.2.15.476
Click to Enlarge
Paulu Toivo Saari
Paulu Toivo Saari