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
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1945 indoor photo of a woman holding a young girl.
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 indoor photo of family with decorated Christmas tree in living room. Probable: Husband and wife (standing), with daughter or daughter-in-law (seated), who is married to serviceman in the portrait next to the tree. See also mcalB16F13i30 for just the young woman.
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 indoor photo of mother and daughter who holds a large composition doll with sleep eyes. (Photo apparently damaged.) See also mcalB14F16i03
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 outdoor photo of young family--husband, wife, two sons, possibly twins, and a daughter who holds a mask face cloth doll. See also mcalB14F15i01.
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- Portraits - Family
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1945 outdoor photo of family, with father and sons (two in uniform) in the back row; mother and daughters in front.
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- Portraits - Family
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Ca. 1957 outdoor photo of the family seen in mcalB15F08i02, but this time with the children lined up in order by height. This family is seen also in: mcalA09F12i34 and mcalA15F02i30-i35.
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- Portraits - Family
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1945 indoor photo of mother and young son sitting near the Christmas tree. See also mcalB14F22i07. A toy lawn mower seen to the right.
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- Portraits - Family
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1952 indoor Christmas photo of couple with their 2 young children.
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- Portraits - Family
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1949 - 1950 family portrait. Same family as seen in mcalB15F02i15 and mcalB15F02i16. Seen here inside home with painting on the wall.
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 indoor photo of 8 family members.
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- Portraits - Family
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1957 or 1958 family photo of a man, woman and four children.
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- Portraits - Family
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Same grown children as seen in mcalB15F02i07. Pictured here just the three siblings. One brother in military uniform. Dated 1949.
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- Portraits - Family
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1945 indoor photo of 2 men and 3 women, middle-aged and elderly, gathered in the dining room amid some elegant decor and furnishings. The elderly couple seated are the same as seen in mcalB14F21i05 on a velvet sofa.
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- Portraits - Family
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1953 portrait photo taken indoors of a family; perhaps a mother, father, their grown children or in-laws. One woman holds an infant.
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- Portraits - Family
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1945 indoor photo of a young woman seated on a very large (Art Deco style?) upholstered chair with wide arms and two young men, perhaps her brothers, one of whom is wearing a military uniform. See also mcalB15F02i07 for same young woman in same setting.
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 outdoor photo of a young couple and child taken in McAllister's backyard at 47 No. Winooski Ave., Burlington. See also mcalA12F12i03 for later family photo with other members.
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- Portraits - Family
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Ca. 1945 indoor photo of two couples, perhaps a husband (left), his wife, and her parents (right). Ubiquitous radio (far right) is also quite large. Photo #4.
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- Portraits - Family
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1945 outdoor photo of a mother with twin sons.
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- Portraits - Family
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1952 indoor photo of family seen in mcalB15F05i09, this time smiling a bit more. Singer sewing machine on the left. The younger boy wears a leg brace.
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- Portraits - Family
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1944 indoor photo of a mother holding her child, with other family members present. See also mcalB14F16i04.