Louise Rosskam (born Louise Rosenbaum) (March 27, 1910 – April 1, 2003) was a photographer for the

Farm Security Administration The Farm Security Administration (FSA) was a New Deal agency created in 1937 to combat rural poverty during the Great Depression in the United States. It succeeded the Resettlement Administration (1935–1937). The FSA is famous for its small but ...

(FSA) and the Standard Oil Company during the mid-20th century. Together with her husband, Edwin Rosskam (1903–1985), the pair documented American life during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

. The Rosskams were part of a group of talented photographers hired by

Roy Stryker Roy Emerson Stryker (November 5, 1893 – September 27, 1975) was an American economist, government official, and photographer. He headed the Information Division of the Farm Security Administration (FSA) during the Great Depression, and launch ...

, the head of the FSA between 1935 and 1944, during what is often called the "Golden Age of Documentary Photography".

Early life

Louise Rosskam was born into a large Jewish family, the youngest of eight children in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1910. Her father was Morris Rosenbaum, who had emigrated from Hungary at age fourteen. Her mother was Hannah Rottenberg from New York. In 1929, Louise met Edwin Rosskam, an artist and aspiring photographer who would help Louise develop her talent. In 1933, Louise graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Biology.

Career

During their careers, Louise and her husband Edwin worked as photographers for the

, the Office of War Information, the Standard Oil Company of New Jersey, the Puerto Rico Office of Information, and the New Jersey Department of Education. Many of their photos taken while working for the Government agencies are now in the archives of the Library of Congress, and are part of the public domain. In 1948, the Rosskams published ''Towboat River'', a photographic book detailing life on the Mississippi River. Residents of Roosevelt, New Jersey, the Rosskams had two daughters, Anita and Susan.Staff
"Roosevelt featured in new exhibit"
, ''Allentown Examiner'', August 27, 2009. Accessed February 14, 2011. "On Oct. 7, photo-historian and Monmouth County Archivist Gary Saretzky will give a lecture on the late Edwin and Louise Rosskam, who lived in Roosevelt for many years." Louise Rosskam died in New Jersey in 2003.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rosskam, Louise 1910 births 2003 deaths American photojournalists American women photographers People from Roosevelt, New Jersey University of Pennsylvania alumni People of the United States Office of War Information 20th-century American women artists 21st-century American women Women photojournalists