Louis L. McAllister Photographs

Louis L. McAllister photographed people and places near Burlington, Vermont for 60 years. He was born in Columbus, Nebraska on October 16, 1876, the son of Julius S. McAllister (born 1841 in Lincoln, VT) and Rosette Gould (born in Vermont in 1851). Julius McAllister worked as a photographer and dentist in Washington D.C., Bristol, Vermont and Columbus, Nebraska. Around 1895, Julius, his third wife Amy, and their children left Nebraska for the Union Soldiers’ Colony in Fitzgerald, Georgia. By 1900, Julius and Amy were divorced, and Amy and her stepson Louis were working as photographers in Thomasville, Georgia. In 1907 Louis McAllister married Cora Shepard (born about 1872 in Vermont) in Holland, Michigan. By 1910, they were living in Queen City Park in South Burlington, Vermont, where Louis established a photography studio. The McAllisters moved to Burlington, and by 1919 they lived at 47 N. Winooski Avenue. They continued to occupy a summer cottage at Queen City Park, and were active in the Queen City Park Association, which held spiritualist camp meetings annually. McAllister conducted his photography business from home until his death in 1963. McAllister’s “trademark” was his panorama camera which made him familiar to all sorts of groups ranging from graduating classes to state police to summer camp groups. In addition he did print 8 x 10 photos, many of which document building construction and Burlington Street Department projects, as well as group and individual portraits. The L.L. McAllister Collection includes portraits, construction projects, buildings, businesses and events in the Burlington area covering the period ca. 1920-1960. The collection also includes photos of street, bridge, airport and sewer construction and repair, as well as group portraits of clubs, schools, etc. Revised April, 2010

Showing 11 - 20 of 105 Records

Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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    • Date Created: 1945
    • Description: 1945 photo of a large group of men and women gathered at a restaurant (with the "Music by Wurlitzer" wall mounting). Occasion and venue unknown.
    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


    Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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      • Date Created: 1951-1952
      • Description: 1951 or 1952 portrait photo of young people with several adults gathered at a rustic restaurant. Knotty pine walls, wooden log chandelier. Photo #1.
      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


      Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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        • Date Created: 1958
        • Description: 1958 photo of group of young people and a few adults gathered at a rustic interior restaurant. Photo #2.
        • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


        Black Cat Cafe
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          • Date Created: 1935/1937
          • Description: 1935/37 Black Cat Cafe & Sea Grill at 160 Bank St, Burlington, Vermont. Interior photo showing booths, several padded chairs, coat rack and stairs in the back. Charles Chantis, proprietor. The restaurant burned in the 1970s along with the rest of the block. Photo #8.
          • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


          Black Cat Cafe
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            • Description: 1935/37 Black Cat Cafe & Sea Grill at 160 Bank St, Burlington, Vermont. Interior photo. Employees and management stand for a group photo. Charles Chantis, proprietor. The restaurant burned in the 1970s along with the rest of the block.
            • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


            Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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              • Date Created: 1947-1948
              • Description: Ca. 1947 photo of restaurant scene, with perhaps a family celebration in progress. Identity of persons, venue, occasion unknown.
              • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


              Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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                • Date Created: circa 1946
                • Description: Ca. 1946 photo of large group of men dressed in suits, gathered in a restaurant or other dining facility for a portrait. Identity of group, location, and occasion are unknown.
                • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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                  • Date Created: 1949
                  • Description: 1949 photo printed from a damaged negative. A group of older men and women sit at dining tables in a restaurant. Stage with piano seen center background. Walls are knotty pine, floor hard wood, drop panel ceiling. Photo #5.
                  • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                  Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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                    • Date Created: 1949-1950
                    • Description: 1949 or 1950 group portrait of women and four men at dining tables at a restaurant.
                    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                    Portraits - Unidentified Groups
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                      • Date Created: 1952
                      • Description: 1952 group portrait of men and women (including the chef) gathered around several dining tables in a restaurant or other public or commercial space. Photo #2. The seated woman in print dress seen also in mcalB16F05i01, i03, i04 and i05 images
                      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs