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 848 Records

Camps: Unidentified
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    • Description: Dining tables await those hungry for a meal. Camp staff at an unknown location gather for a group photo as they stand near cloth covered wooden tables set with plain white dinnerware and silverware. The setting suggests a camp building. Undated. Photo #5.
    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


    Circus People
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      • Description: Portrait photo of a lady looking to the side dressed in a polka-dot skirt wearing a pearl necklace sitting outside. Date and location unknown. See also mcalA09F08i17, mcalA09F09i09, mcalA09F09i13.
      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


      Circus People
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        • Description: Portrait photo of a lady of the circus with flowers in her hair and wearing a dressy off the shoulder dress standing outside a tent. Same lady as seen in photos mcalA09F08i05 through 12. May be 1940s-50s? at the Champlain Valley Fair.
        • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


        Portraits, families, unidentified
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          • Description: A man and woman pose for their portrait. She sits in an elaborate high back wooden throne like chair with arms. He stands beside her in formal suit wearing a cloth cap. A large basket of flowers seen to the right.
          • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


          Portraits, families, unidentified
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            • Description: A multi generation family group with mother holding infant twins. See same family members in mcalA15F02i18 and i26
            • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


            Portraits, groups, unidentified
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              • Description: A large group of men and two women are assembled in front of a curtained stage for a photo portrait.
              • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


              Portraits, groups, unidentified
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                • Description: Adult church choir at First Congregational Church in balcony. See mcalA09F11i03 for balcony. Photo #4?
                • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                Portraits, individuals, unidentified
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                  • Description: A woman wears a long dress and sits in a wooden chair in the corner of a living room in front of a curtained window with potted plants; perhaps her home. A fireplace is seen to the left. See the same woman in a different dress also in mcalA16F01i05, i06, i08
                  • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                  McAllister Memorabilia
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                    • Description: Photo of a woman with pearl necklace and may be a Shriner's or Masonic pin. Undated but may be 1920s or earlier. Same woman as in mcalA12F12i12. Is this Cora May McAllister?
                    • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs


                    Portraits, families, unidentified
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                      • Description: A multi generation family photo with young mothers holding their sons and daughters. Infant twins among the children present. See also mcalA15F02i27
                      • Parent Collections: Louis L. McAllister Photographs