Roger Cunningham, 33°
(Mar 23, 1853-Apr 30, 1938)
Past Master, Rural Lodge #316

1903 - 32° Consistory of Western MO, Kansas City
Life Member, Valley of Kansas City
1907 - Knight Commander of the Court of Honour
1909-10 - Venerable Master, Adoniram Lodge of Perfection
1909 - Coroneted 33° Inspector General Honorary

Member, Orient Chapter RAM
Member, Oriental Commandery KT
Member, Shekina Council
Member, Red Cross of Constantine

Member, Ararat Shrine Temple

Occupation: Engraver, Photo-Engraver, Journalist, Entrepreneur
Interred: Mt. Washington Cemetery, Independence, MO
Recommended: Wm. W. Halzmark, C.T. Murray

Roger Cunningham was born in Greene, Chenango County, New York in 1853, the son of a former school teacher who home schooled him during his younger years. He came west with his parents in 1867 to Leavenworth, Kansas, then to central Kansas and finally to Kansas City when he was fourteen. His education was in business, he took his first plunge into journalism before he was 21 and by 22 years of age he was the proprietor of a country newspaper in Wemago and the youngest editor in the state. Finding that fulfilling the positions on a small newspaper were more entertaining than remunerative he turned his attentions to his first passion, being an illustrator. He journeyed to Chicago and after a brief encounter with journalism there he settled in with the only job of the time for his illustrative talents, that of drawing on wood for engravers. In 1879-80 his attention was drawn to the newer medium of wax engravings and making pen drawings and then plunged into the time little known art of photo engraving. The little plant created by him was sold in 1884 to Blongen Brothers and was the nucleus of an extensive engraving business conducted by that firm. In 1885 he traveled to Canada to provide instruction in relief line wax engraving, photo-electrotype process and zinc etching. In 1888 he was engaged by the A.N. Kellog Newspaper Company to take charge of their artistic department in Kansas City. In 1893 he became partner to R.B. Teachenor and Bartberger doing business as Teachenor-Bartberger Engraving Company and the company bought out the Kellog plant using the plant as a nucleus for their present plant. In his spare time he studied art as an oil and watercolor painter. The museums at the Smithsonian Institute, the Pratt Institute of Technology and Boston Museum of Fine Arts display his work in their graphic arts departments. He also authored articles on art, general and applied, in a number of artistic and technical periodicals.