Louis L. McAllister Photographs
Collection Overview
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)...
Show moreLouis 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
Show less
Related Archival Collection
Pages
- Title
- Burlington Lakefront
- Description
-
December 20, 1932. This photograph of the Burlington lake front is captioned: "Outfall end of new trunk line sewer. Old sewer shown on extreme right," Picture also shows brick building with smokestacks, automobiles, and railroad cars.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1945 photo of campers lining the dock boarding a small cabin cruiser while at Camp Abnaki. Photo #6.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
July 1944. Young campers on the dock. The swim and canoe in Lake Champlain while at Camp Abnaki. Photo #8.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
circa 1944-1950 photo of Camp Abnaki counselors standing in Lake Champlain. They may also be swimming instructors. Photo #33.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1951 photo of a camp counselor on the dock and young boys nearby in the waters of Lake Champlain. Diving platform seen in the background. Photo #11.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
July 1944. Young campers gather on the dock while others swim and canoe in Lake Champlain at Camp Abnaki. Photo #7.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
July 1944. Young campers gather on the dock while others swim and canoe in Lake Champlain at Camp Abnaki. Photo #9.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1943 photo of young campers swimming, diving, canoeing in Lake Champlain while camping at Camp Abnaki. Photo #15.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1943 photo of young campers swimming, diving, boating in Lake Champlain while at Camp Abnaki. Photo #14.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1951 photo of campers at Camp Abnaki in sail boats that are tied to the dock in Lake Champlain. Photo #9.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1943 photo of boys on the dock near a sailboat. Other campers are swimming, canoeing and diving in Lake Champlain while at Camp Abnaki. Photo #16.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
July 1944. Campers learn swimming techniques in Lake Champlain. Each boy holds the head of a companion above water. Photo #34.
- Title
- Camp Abnaki - Waterfront
- Description
-
1943 photo of boys on the dock near a sailboat. Other campers are swimming, canoeing and diving in Lake Champlain while at Camp Abnaki. Photo #13.
- Title
- Camp Birchcliffe
- Description
-
July 1945 photo of adult campers on the rocky shore of Lake Champlain while at Camp Birchcliffe, Grand Isle, Vermont.
- Title
- Camp Birchcliffe
- Description
-
July 1945 Adult campers sit on the rocky shore of Lake Champlain while at Camp Birchcliffe, Grand Isle, Vermont. Photo #31.
- Title
- Camp Birchcliffe Activities
- Description
-
July 1945 Adult campers boat, dive, swim and sit on the dock while at Camp Birchcliffe in Grand Isle, Vermont. Photo #21.
- Title
- Camp Birchcliffe Activities
- Description
-
1946/1947 Some men and women relax on a dock by the shore while at Camp Birchcliffe, Grand Isle, Vermont. Photo #4.
- Title
- Camp Birchcliffe Activities
- Description
-
July 1945 Sun bathers and boaters enjoy the sunshine and the lake while at Camp Birchcliffe in Grand Isle, Vermont. Photo #22.
- Title
- Camp Marycrest (Grand Isle, VT)
- Description
-
Girls at Camp Marycrest partake in a tennis lesson. The camp was for girls and operated from 1957 to 1993 by the Sisters of Mercy located in Grand Isle, Vermont. Beyond the open court is seen Lake Champlain. Undated but may be 1950s or 1960s. Photo #41.
- Title
- Camp Marycrest (Grand Isle, VT)
- Description
-
A group of campers participate in what appears to be synchronized swimming in Lake Champlain at Camp Marycrest in Grand Isle; probably taken in the 1950s or 1960s. Camp operated by the Sisters of Mercy from 1957 to 1993. Photo #24.