McAllister took this view of Church Street after a snowstorm on January 29 and 30, 1925.  The photograph illustrates the inefficiency with which the street department tackled the task of snow removal.  Snow was removed from the downtown business district by hand, loading snow into the backs of truck and horse-drawn wagons.  This single storm costs the Street Department more than half of its appropriated funds for the year.  In response to this storm and public demand for passable streets, the Street Department purchased a Baker truck plow to be attached to their five-ton Elgin Auto Eductor.  The purchase of this plow brought the Street Department’s snow plow fleet to a total of two truck plows and one grader plow, which was mounted on a Fordson tractor.(1)

The most clearly recognizable buildings in this photo are those of the Union Block between #57 and #75, at the northwest corner of the intersection of Church and Bank Street.  These buildings are of the Italianate bracketed style with cast iron lintels over all twenty-four bays on the second and third stories.  The center section of the Union Block, between #61 and #69, was built in 1860 by Edward Loomis and A.W. Allen.  In the spring of 1863 the remaining sections of the block on were constructed on either side.(2)

(1) 61st Report, 162-163.

(2) Blow, 154-155.