Franklin Paul Rogers (3rd from the right in the photo above) was born in 1905 in North Carolina. Paul started his tattoo career in 1928 and for the next 61 years, Paul pursued this art form. He not only was a tattoo artist but he also built tattoo machines and was a mentor and friend to tattooers both young and old. When Paul died in 1990, he donated his extensive tattoo collection to the Tattoo Archive.

In 1993, C.W. Eldridge, Alan Govenar, D. E. Hardy, and Henk Schiffmacher formed a nonprofit corporation, The Paul Rogers Tattoo Research Center ("PRTRC"), where they serve on the Board of Directors. The primary goal of the PRTRC is to preserve tattoo history. To this end, the PRTRC works with other tattoo organizations and individuals worldwide to document and promote tattoo history and is working toward establishing a national landmark for the art of tattooing.

As with many nonprofits, the PRTRC depends on volunteers and donations for its continued existence.

GET INVOLVED!

For your $30.00 donation you will receive the book Stewed, Screwed and Tattooed, Madam Chinchilla's reader-friendly collection of stories, experiences and photographs of being a 20th Century tattooed woman, artist and writer.

For your $50.00 donation you will receive a used copy of the book Flash From the Past by D. E. Hardy, which is a collection of classic American tattoo designs from 1890-1965. This book was published in 1994. This book is out of print and what we have left are used copies in good condition.

For your $100.00 donation you will receive a fantastic set of line drawing flash by the Swiss tattooist Filip Leu. Filip visited Paul Rogers in the 1980s and drew this flash from Paul’s classic designs.

All donations will be used for the sole purpose and benefit of the PRTRC.

Making a donation is easy! Click on the button below to use your VISA or MasterCard. (The transaction is processed through PayPal but you don't need to have a PayPal account.) Or send a check or money order to us.

We are grateful for donations of any amount which are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law.

We thank you in advance for your generous support of tattoo history!