Alfred Gagnon: Discovering a New Hampshire Tattoo Artist

Researched and written by Derin Bray

Business card for Prof. Alfred Gagnon, Electric Tattoo Artist, 596 Montgomery Street, Manchester, New Hampshire, ca. 1925.

Alfred Gagnon spent decades painting, cartooning, and tattooing from the first floor of his parents’ triple-decker in Manchester, New Hampshire. He was prolific and well-known in the Queen City, but his story, like so many others, nearly faded into obscurity. During a recent visit with a West Ender from the old neighborhood, I was led to a kitchen table covered with a spectacular assortment of Alfred’s original work. These items, ranging in date from 1916 to 1941, provide fresh perspective on the life and career of a little-known artist.

Native Americans, by Alfred Gagnon, ca. 1930.

Head of Christ, by Alfred Gagnon, 1941.

Arthritic hands and limited mobility prevented Alfred Gagnon (1891-1954) from ever taking a traditional job. While his brothers and sisters toiled away in Manchester’s cotton mills, Alfred stayed behind at the family house at 596 Montgomery Street, where he got around in a wooden wheelchair ornamented with a greyhound.

Alfred “Fred” Gagnon holding a rose at a family wedding, 1928.

Alfred poured himself into his work, quickly transitioning a hobby into a career as a commercial artist. By the mid-1920s, he offered services as a painter, cartoonist, and designer. Several caricatures and custom letterheads from this early period survive in one of his portfolios.

Cartoon by Alfred Gagnon, Manchester, New Hampshire, ca. 1925.

Alfred Gagnon stamp, ca. 1925.

Sacred Hearts by Alfred Gagnon, ca. 1925.

Letterhead for Acrobats, by Alfred Gagnon, ca. 1925.

Soldier and Sailor, by Alfred Gagnon, ca. 1925.

How and when Alfred learned to tattoo is unknown, but he was probably active by the mid-1920s. From 1930 until 1947, he was the only professional tattoo artist listed in the Manchester City Directory. In fact, he was the first professional tattoo artist to advertised in any New Hampshire directory. In addition to several sheets of his stylized tattoo designs, a set of miniature mimeographed tattoo flash and two business cards are known.

Alfred Gagnon, Tattooing, 596 Montgomery Street. Manchester City Directory, 1930.

Tattoo Designs by Alfred Gagnon, ca. 1925.

Alfred Gagnon stopped advertising as a tattoo artist in 1948, probably because of declining health. According to family tradition, severe arthritis prevented him from holding a brush. He pressed on, though, and continued to paint with his mouth. A few years later, in 1954, he passed away in the family home on Montgomery Street, where he had worked for nearly forty years.

Mermaid, by Alfred Gagnon, 1941.

Pinup by Alfred Gagnon, 1938.

Sampson’s Youth, by Alfred Gagnon, 1937.