207-210 Manhattan Drive; 246 North Champlain; 103 Rose, Photo by Louis McAllister in 1938

Coordinates: 18T 0641669 UTM 4927582

This image is another photo from McAllister’s October 19th, 1938 series. The dirt road looks disheveled with puddles and debris. The greenbelts lining the sidewalks look bare with only a few patches of greenery. The telephone pole in the left foreground is severely leaning to the right. This image clearly shows 207-209 and 210 North Bend, 246 North Champlain, and 103 Rose Street.

            In 1923, Ernest M. Rubado was listed as barber at 56 Cedar Street, and as a grocer from his home on at 207 North Bend.[1]  At that time, it was a single unit dwelling. When McAllister captured the home in 1938, it was a front gabled, two-story structure, with a lean-to style one story covered porch. The entire home was covered in shingles and had a composite roof. Rubado resided there for another year, and in 1926, the house found a new owner in Edward Kirby. Kirby lived there well past the time the photo was taken.[2]

            209 Manhattan was one of the oldest homes on North Bend. The house first appeared on the 1889 Sanborn map as 202 North Bend.[3] When the house was built, there were homes on either side of it (198 and 210), but there were not any homes on the other side of the street until the intersection of La fountain Street. The home was a tall two story front gabled structure, covered in clabbord. On both sides of the home, one story front gabled additions were added, giving the home the profile of a simple basilica. In 1900, the address changed to 210 North Bend.[4] Mrs. Mary O’Neil moved to the property in 1902, and lived there until 1922. Mrs. O’Neil was employed at Bushell L. Kent, a fine confectionery & ice cream store, located at 101 Church Street. When the McAllister photo was taken, the only change was that roof was covered in slate, replacing the earlier shingles. Note the barrels placed beside the house.

            246 North Champlain first appeared on the 1900 Sanborn Map.[5] At that time, it was a two bay by two bay, two story flat roof house with decorative brackets on the frieze supporting the cornice. The house also had a porch on the south side of the building. The 1912 Sanborn showed that the house doubled in size by adding another two-story block to the back corner of the house.[6] Also at this time, (2) separate, small out buildings have been added to the back corner of the property. The 1926 Sanborn shows more changes for this building with the addition of a second porch, this one on the east side of the building.[7] The outhouses from the 1912 Sanborn had disappeared and been replaced with one out building, attached to the 1912 house addition. This is how the building was captured in the 1938 McAllister image. While most of the building is cropped out by the edge of the photo, one can still clearly see the decorative detailing from the original building.

            103 Rose is interesting in its choice of building materials. It was constructed in the mid 1920’s using rough-faced concrete block. Edward D. Dufresne was listed first at this address in 1927, and was still there when the McAllister photo was ten in 1938.[8] Although the earlier Burlington City Directories list him as a carpenter, the 1938 Directory does not list him as employed.[9] Further evidence of those hit hard by the depression can be seen in the decay of his fence posts. McAllister actually captures the house from the back, showing off the hip roof, and enclosed second story sun porch, the only part of the house to have wood shingles.

1. Burlington and Winooski, Vermont Directory (Springfield, Mass: H.A. Manning Co., 1923).

2. Burlington and Winooski, Vermont Directory (Springfield, Mass: H.A. Manning Co., 1939).

3. Sanborn Map, 1889. Special Collections, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.

4. Burlington City Directory Including Winooski & South Burlington (Burlington: L.P. Waite & Co., 1902).

5. Sanborn Map, 1900. Special Collections, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.

6. Sanborn Map, 1912. Special Collections, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.

7. Sanborn Map, 1926. Special Collections, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.

8. Burlington and Winooski, Vermont Directory (Springfield, Mass: H.A. Manning Co., 1938).

9. Burlington and Winooski, Vermont Directory (Springfield, Mass: H.A. Manning Co., 1928).

207-210 Manhattan Drive; 246 North Champlain; 130 Rose, Photo by Julie Weisgerber in 2005

The street has been widened since McAllister took his photo. Also a traffic light has been added at this intersection. There are other changes, mainly to the houses. 207-209 Manhattan Drive only recently became a two-unit dwelling. In order do this with a small house, the porch was enclosed, and a new entry door added in its place. A second floor was also added above the porch, and the entire house was covered in siding. 210 Manhattan Drive was demolished sometime between 1964 and 1965, after nearly ten years of being vacant. To this day it remains an empty area of grass directly across from 246 North Champlain. 246 North Champlain went through one more addition, and is evident in the 1960 Sanborn map.[10] At that time, a garage replaced the 1926 outbuilding. Like so many other buildings on this street, this structure now contains several apartments.  103 Rose, on the other hand, has not seen very mainly revisions. Today, an exterior staircase hints that the second floor might be a separate apartment, but otherwise, the house has virtually been left untouched.

10. Sanborn Map, 1960. Special Collections, University of Vermont, Burlington, Vermont.