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
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1951 or 1952 group photo of men and women gathered at a rustic restaurant. Knotty pine walls. A large gift wrapped present rests on the table in front of one man. Photo #3.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1948 photo of the same group in maclB15F23i03 but a different view showing a group of 9 men and women. Posters on the wall may support the following scenario: General Home Equipment may be an in-home sales enterprise similar to Amway, and the people at the head of the table (the "pilots" referred...
Show more1948 photo of the same group in maclB15F23i03 but a different view showing a group of 9 men and women. Posters on the wall may support the following scenario: General Home Equipment may be an in-home sales enterprise similar to Amway, and the people at the head of the table (the "pilots" referred to int the poster) may be the top salespeople in their region. (The airplane imagery may allude to the Berlin Airlift, which started in June, 1948.) The poster on the right would certainly be appropriate for a sales campaign involving numerous independent salespeople.
Show less
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1945 photo of a group of men and women, very likely co-workers. Business and location are unknown. The sign in the back says, possibly, Lennox air conditioning, but there was no business in Burlington by that name.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
Summer camp staff? Several small cottages seen in the background. One woman poses with a baseball bat. Photo #3.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1949 portrait photo of a group of people along with two young boys gathered outside a home. Several baskets of flowers are lined up in front of them. Photo #1.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1953 indoor photo of four older men seated on a sofa with four older women standing directly behind them. Photo #2.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1945 photo of a group of men and women, very likely co-workers. Business and location are unknown but a sign off to the left side in the back may provide some clues.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1945 photo of a private gathering of men and women, very likely business associates. Venue and occasion unknown.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1952 group portrait photo of men and women (including chef) gathered around dining tables in a restaurant or other public or commercial space. The seated woman in print dress seen also in mcalB16F05i01, 04 and 05 images. Photo #3.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1959 photo of men and women gathered in a room with knotty pine wall paneling. Identified in front row, right side Bea and Bob Earnshaw, Burlington residents. He was employed by the Burlington Rendering Company. Photo #2.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
Ca. 1946 photo of an elderly couple relaxing at home: the man reading The Corenco News; the woman sewing. Corenco apparently is a business but remains difficult to document in other standard sources.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1952 photo of four men and one woman standing near restaurant tables.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1952 group portrait of men and women gathered around several dining tables in a rustic restaurant or other public or commercial space.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1953 photo of men and women gathered at the end of a long narrow room in a restaurant that has bold patterned wallpaper and printed curtains. A television has been added as seen in the upper right corner. See mcalB16F07i11 for another exposure of same group. Photo #3.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- 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.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1957 / 1958. This rustic wooden paneled room (perhaps a restaurant) is where a group of men and women gather for a group portrait. Burlington residents, Bob and Bea Earnshaw in second row seated left side. Photo #1. See also mcalA15F05i12, i13 and mcalA15F08i01, mcalA15F05i11
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
Large group of young people and some adults in a restaurant, perhaps students and teachers. Location, occasion, date unknown.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- 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.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
Ca. 1948 photo of a large group of men and women, of varying ages, dressed for a social function. Identity of persons, venue, and occasion unknown.
- Title
- Portraits - Unidentified Groups
- Description
-
1947 photo of a meeting of men and women affiliated with the Nash bed company. (See also mcalB15F22i07.) Identity of persons, venue, occasion unknown.