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Who was St. Louisâ first professional tattoo artist?
In 1947, the Post reported that he was considered one of the six best tattoo artists in the world.
Illustration by Britt Spencer
The first to officially set up shop, on Market Street in the 1920s, was Bert Grimm. Born in Springfield, Missouri, Grimm left home at age 15 with one goal: to become a master tattoo artist. In the summer, he traveled with carnivals, inking tattoos; in the winter, he haunted Chicagoâs penny arcades, inking tattoos. âThereâs two kinds of tattooists,â he told the
St. Louis Post-Dispatch in 1942. âThose who can face the guy a second time and those that donât dare, the drifters, in other words.â