Group of Eskimos, Nome, Alaska, cica 1912 (AL+CA 5842)

The University of Washington has his work in their collection. He was born near Marshall, Missouri. He moved with his family to Lincoln, Nebraska when he was eight. In 1888, Dobbs moved to Bellingham, Washington, and partnered with F. F. Fleming at Dobbs & Fleming between 1890 and 1891. Dobbs had a photography studio in Bellingham for 12 years until 1900 when he moved to Nome, Alaska. He took a small schooner from Seattle to try and film the emergence of islands in the Bogoslof group. In Nome he photographed the town, the Seward Peninsula, and Inuit. He also reportedly prospected for gold. He partnered with A. B. Kinne to form Dobbs & Kinne in Nome.