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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Related Archival Collection
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- Military Groups
- Description
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1940s Recruiting Service (front of Memorial Auditorium)
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- Portraits - Family
- Description
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1944 photo of multi-generational family, taken outdoors in winter at McAllister's home at 47 No. Winooski Ave., Burlington. Two men are in uniform.
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- Portraits - Individuals
- Description
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1944 of a soldier in military uniform standing outside 47 No. Winooski Ave., Burlington; McAllister's home.
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- Portraits - Individuals
- Description
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1945 or 1946 photo of a portrait photo. Shown is a young man in a military uniform. Photo has been set up on a rough plank board surface with shelves behind containing rolls of paper. Appears to be McAllister's cellar studio with some of his panoramic photos rolled up. Upper left can be seen an...
Show more1945 or 1946 photo of a portrait photo. Shown is a young man in a military uniform. Photo has been set up on a rough plank board surface with shelves behind containing rolls of paper. Appears to be McAllister's cellar studio with some of his panoramic photos rolled up. Upper left can be seen an upside down group portrait photo of several girls. Similar surface appears in mcalB10F21i10. A calendar hangs to the left reading "November."
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- Title
- Portraits - Individuals
- Description
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1944 of a soldier in military uniform standing outside 47 No. Winooski Ave., Burlington; McAllister's home.
- Title
- Portraits - Individuals
- Description
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1945 photo of a member of McAllister's family in military uniform standing outside in McAllister's driveway at his home. The trademark wooden lattice fence seen behind.
- Title
- Portraits - Individuals
- Description
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1945 or 1946 photo of a portrait photo. Shown is a young man in a military uniform. Photo has been set up on a rough plank board surface with shelves behind containing rolls of paper. Appears to be McAllister's cellar studio with some of his panoramic photos rolled up. Similar surface appears in...
Show more1945 or 1946 photo of a portrait photo. Shown is a young man in a military uniform. Photo has been set up on a rough plank board surface with shelves behind containing rolls of paper. Appears to be McAllister's cellar studio with some of his panoramic photos rolled up. Similar surface appears in mcalB10F21i10.
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- Title
- Veterans of Foreign Wars
- Description
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1957 photo of a veterans ceremony in Battery Park, Burlington, Vt. Occasion may be Veterans Day and/or the dedication of a small monument to the memory of Howard William Plant, first Burlington serviceman to die in World War I. A soldier in uniform looks pensively at the memorial as others look...
Show more1957 photo of a veterans ceremony in Battery Park, Burlington, Vt. Occasion may be Veterans Day and/or the dedication of a small monument to the memory of Howard William Plant, first Burlington serviceman to die in World War I. A soldier in uniform looks pensively at the memorial as others look on, notably several women veterans holding American flags.
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- Title
- Veterans of Foreign Wars
- Description
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1959 photo of a ceremony at Battery Park, very likely on Veterans Day. An honor guard stands ready to fire one or more volleys--very likely the customary three--in honor of deceased veterans. (Three volleys from seven rifles does not constitute a 21-gun salute, however.) A number of citizens are...
Show more1959 photo of a ceremony at Battery Park, very likely on Veterans Day. An honor guard stands ready to fire one or more volleys--very likely the customary three--in honor of deceased veterans. (Three volleys from seven rifles does not constitute a 21-gun salute, however.) A number of citizens are present. The veterans memorial in Battery Park is dedicated to the memory of Howard W. Plant, first Burlington casualty of World War I.
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- Title
- Veterans of Foreign Wars
- Description
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Another view of Veterans Day (1957) at Battery Park, Burlington, Vt. Veterans, one soldier in uniform, and children from the neighborhood are present. The speaker at the microphone is as yet unidentified but could easily be a veteran of World War I (see also mcalB21F12i01-mcalB21F12i02).
- Title
- Veterans of Foreign Wars
- Description
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1945 photo of several men--local dignitaries, servicemen, clergy, and veterans--gathered in downtown Burlington, Vt. (First Baptist Church and auto dealer Charles P. Smith Jr. are in background), very likely for the Armistice (now Veterans) Day parade, the first after the end of World War II. A...
Show more1945 photo of several men--local dignitaries, servicemen, clergy, and veterans--gathered in downtown Burlington, Vt. (First Baptist Church and auto dealer Charles P. Smith Jr. are in background), very likely for the Armistice (now Veterans) Day parade, the first after the end of World War II. A few women and children can be seen in the background. On the far left, in light fedora and overcoat, is Arthur W. Dow, state editor of the Burlington Free Press, a determined impresario of the performing arts who brought legendary musicians to Burlington, and editor of a column "Vermonters Serving under the U.S. Flag." Tragically, Dow suffered a heart attack and died just two weeks after this photo was taken.
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- Title
- Weddings
- Description
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1945 photo of young couple in the backyard of McAllister's Burlington home, 47 No. Winooski Ave. She wears corsage and he is in military uniform (staff sargeant?).
- Title
- Winooski and Burlington Mills (from Pontoon Bridge)
- Description
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Undated but part of May 5, 1928 panorama. Seen here are men of Company D, 1st U.S. Engineers, 2nd Corps standing on the pontoon bridge they helped build that spanned the Winooski River between Burlington and Winooski. Behind is the old mill that was a branch of the American Woolen Company.