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 1 - 10 of 36 Records

Mount St. Mary's Academy - Classrooms
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    • Date Created: 1941
    • Description: 1941 typing class Mount St. Mary's Academy, Burlington, Vt. Students use manual typewriters. Machine covers have been placed on the back to the chairs. Photo #23.
    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


    Mount St. Mary's Academy - Groups
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      • Date Created: 1941
      • Description: 1941 class portrait of four Mount St. Mary's Academy students standing outside in a wooden gazebo. Photo #15.
      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


      Burlington Airport (4X5's)
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        • Date Created: 1941-09-27 00:00:00
        • Description: September 27, 1941. Burlington Municipal Airport, WPA (Work Projects Administration) Project. This view is taken from the extreme southerly end of the diagonal runway looking in a northwesterly direction across the intersection of the easterly end of the east-west runway. This entire area has just been completed with the three inch cold plant mix pavement. The ten ton tandem roller can be seen at the left rolling the newly laid pavement while the construction crew are laying similar mixtures at the northerly end of the runway shown in the background.
        • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


        Mt. St. Mary's - Theatricals
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          • Date Created: 1941
          • Description: 1941 theatrical performance of a biblical theme on stage of Mount St. Mary's Academy. This may be the Lamentation with Mary, the mother of Jesus, grieving at the base of the cross. Other actors portray a Roman soldier, men and women in outfits during the time of the New Testament.
          • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


          Burlington Airport (4X5's)
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            • Date Created: 1941-09-27 00:00:00
            • Description: September 27, 1941. Burlington Municipal Airport, WPA (Work Projects Administration) Project. This view is looking in a northwesterly direction near the intersection of the northerly end of the north-south runway. In the foreground at the right can be seen the cold plant mix asphalt pavement being constructed three inches in thickness on top of the asphalt emulsion soil stabilization base shown in the left half of the picture. Note the six wheel power graders used in spreading the plant mix.
            • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


            Burlington Street Department Buildings - Equipment
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              • Date Created: 1941-01-07
              • Description: Photograph dated Jan. 7, 1941. Original caption reads: "This view shows all of the Street Department sanding units consisting of four sidewalk sanding sleds, hauled by the sidewalk tractors, and three Superior Sand spreaders mounted on our dump-body trucks. These units are kept very busy during and after every sleet storm. With this equipment the Street Department handled more than 2500 cubic yards of sand mixed with approximately 100 tons of rock salt, during the past winter."
              • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


              Burlington Streets: Barrett Street
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                • Date Created: 1941-06-19
                • Description: Photograph dated June 19, 1941. Original caption reads: Barrett Street Improvements: This view shows Barrett Street looking westerly from the intersection of Chase Street before any of the improvements were made. Note the condition of the old pavement and the absence of any curbing and gutters or sidewalks also note the guardrail in front of the Rossetti residence at the right opposite the truck in the picture which extended nearly ten feet into the street also note the elevation of the street grade as compared with the elevation of the second floor of the Rossetti residence. This house had to be raised approximately ten feet in elevation and moved approximately sixteen feet to the north and set on a new reinforced concrete foundation two stories in height at the northerly half of the basement and one story for the southerly half of the basement. A new chimney was also constructed and a fill was placed including more than three thousand cubic yards of filling. The other improvements to the street include the following: New concrete integral curbing and gutters on both sides, concrete sidewalk on the northerly side and telford stone base with asphalt penetration binder course and asphalt hot plant mix wearing course.
                • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                Burlington Airport
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                  • Date Created: 1941-10-11 00:00:00
                  • Description: City of Burlington, Vermont - Municipal Airport Photo dated Oct 11, 1944. This view shows the completed foundation walls with grading inside and outside of the foundation walls nearly completed ready to receive the metal hangar shown in position where it has been moved from its original location. This view was taken from the roof of the transformer building just westerly of the new location of the metal hangar. Note the truck dumping filling in the foreground, also the bulldozer leveling filling and 2 ton tandem roller compacting filling inside of walls.
                  • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                  Mount St. Mary's Academy - Classrooms
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                    • Date Created: 1941
                    • Description: 1941 high school art class with some younger students in attendance at Mount St. Mary's Academy, Burlington, Vt.
                    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                    Mount St. Mary's Academy - Graduates
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                      • Date Created: 1941
                      • Description: 1941 Mount St. Mary's Academy Graduates. Photo #7.
                      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs