Robert Benecke (January 25, 1835 – November 3, 1903) was a German-born American photographer, operating primarily out of St. Louis in the latter half of the 19th century.

He received considerable acclaim for his exhibit at the 1869 St. Louis Fair, and was among the earliest Americans to experiment with the artotype process in the early 1870s.

[1] Due to their pro-democracy activities, the Beneckes were forced to flee to the United States,[2] arriving in Brunswick, Missouri, on August 1, 1856.

[1] Robert worked variously as a farmer, cooper, and piano tuner, and briefly taught German, French, and Latin at the Brunswick Seminary.

[1] In April 1859, Benecke and his partners announced they were relocating to Pike's Peak Country in Colorado, where gold had recently been discovered, though there is no evidence they ever actually made the move.

Later that year, Benecke moved briefly to Knoxville, Tennessee, where with publisher Henry Hunt Snelling's help he had obtained temporary work as a photographer.

[1] In early 1872, Benecke began working with the artotype process, which involved the application of printer's ink to a photograph to prevent fading.

[7] Benecke photographed numerous places in St. Louis and its vicinity throughout his career, including steamboats, bridges, streets, and panoramic views.

[7][10] As an editor for the St. Louis and Canadian Photographer, Benecke wrote a column, "Echoes from Europe," which provided a summary of articles translated from German and French photography journals.

[11] Benecke's photographs are now part of the collections of the New York Public Library,[12] the J. Paul Getty Museum,[13] and Southern Methodist University.

Louis's son Ruby Benecke (1884–1973) was a prominent attorney and politician who held a string of lower political offices during the mid-20th century.