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Born in Prussia in April 1842, Louis de Planque immigrated to Mexico during the American Civil War era. By 1864 he was working in Matamoros and soon opened a photography studio in Brownsville, Texas. During the American Civil War, the confederate cotton trade transformed Brownsville and Matamoros into boomtowns, which helped de Planque’s business. In addition to photographing both union and confederate troops stationed in the area, de Planque also sold tintypes, Cartes de Visite, frames and stereoptic equipment and slides. Despite sustaining heavy damage to both his studios and losing valuable equipment in the 1867 hurricane, he managed to photograph the storm damage. In the two years after the storm, he opened studios in Indianola and Corpus Christi. As de Planque prepared to close his Indianola studio, the 1875 hurricane struck there and he and his wife barely survived. Using a lantern show to raise money, de Planque purchased new equipment and revived his Corpus Christi studio, where he spent the rest of his career. Called “Don Luis” in Corpus Christi, the six-foot, 200-pound de Planque was known to love parties and cut a striking figure by attending many events dressed in eccentric costumes, such as leather leggings and a serape topped with a feathered tyrolean hat. Local lore stated that no local or visiting celebrity could escape a session in de Planque’s studio. He died of a stroke in Corpus Christi on May 1, 1898. He married twice and trained his second wife, Frenchwoman Eugenie J. Robert, as a photographer. She continued to operate his photography business for a number of years after his death. (2014) |
