Ed Andrews was born in Norway in 1872. According to a note from donor Carolyn Brown, he changed his name from Edvard Engrebretsen to Ed Andrews when he immigrated. Later he moved to South Dakota where he lived on the family farm. In 1897, he came to Douglas and worked as a clerk in the Treadwell Store. After owning and operating a restaurant he opened the Ed Andrews photography studio.

On November 24, 1935, the Alaska Daily Press wrote that “Ed Andrews specialized in 12 x 20 photographs made from negatives of that size”. As a prominent Douglas photographer, Andrews distributed images to dealers all over Alaska. He also served as the official photographer for the Admiral Line, the Alaska Steamship Line, Copper River Railroad, White Pass and Yukon Railway and for Captain Sid Barrington, Stikine River navigator.

On December 2, 1937, The Daily Alaska Empire reported that Andrews’ negatives were lost in one of the Douglas fires. Andrews lived in Douglas until his reported death on November 30, 1937 at the age of 65. He was a member of the Alaska Pioneers and Masonic Lodge and was survived by three sisters in the Seattle area.