Captain Jack Howard

Life & Work

The Art of Captain Jack Howard

Captain Jack Howard traveled with Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show before settling on the Barbary Coast in San Francisco, where he ran a tattoo parlor in one of the most notorious districts in American urban history. Pacific Avenue ran directly from the docks to the heart of the city, and Howard’s clientele reflected that geography.

Sailors, showmen, workers, and travelers who had money in their pocket and wanted something to show for their time in port passed through his shop. He created flash sheets featuring Buffalo Bill Cody and Annie Oakley, images that placed him squarely at the intersection of American spectacle and American tattooing.

The Barbary Coast was bounded by Montgomery Street, Washington Street, Stockton Street, and Broadway, nine blocks that concentrated more entertainment per square foot than almost anywhere else in the country. Howard practiced his trade at the center of it. He died in 1921.

From Wild West Show to Barbary Coast. Howard followed the crowd.