The photograph was taken on Maple Street facing east at the intersection of South Prospect Street. At 216 South Prospect Street, the Alpha Gamma Rho House, built c. 1871, is visible in the immediate background.[1] The Italianate structure is 3.5 stories and constructed of load-bearing brick with a stone foundation and a large cupola resting on the roof.[2] The main entrance in view consists of a large portico with unadorned columns supporting the entablature; a smaller entrance is placed on the northerly-facing façade.[3] The 1938 Burlington City Directory connects the home to a Harry. A. Way.[4] Harry Way past away on September 12, 1940 and his son, Henry Way, moved into the home.[5] In 1961, the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity moved into the structure; in 1964, Alpha Gamma Rho became the sole occupant of the estate.[6] The fraternity is still the occupant of the home.

Occurring in the photograph is a replacement of the road surface. The project, numbered 465-12-1-16, was conducted as part of the Works Progress Administration. The Works Progress Administration implemented numerous programs aimed at alleviating unemployment caused by the Great Depression.[7] The project, which was relatively small in scope, cost $1,679.41.[8] On the right-hand side of the photograph, a truck is filled with broken stone that is layered on top of the foundation layer. Men can be seen with pickaxes, sledgehammers and shovels used to form and move the stone.

[1] David J. Blow, Historical Guide to Burlington Neighborhoods: Volume II, ed. Lilian Baker Carlisle (Burlington, VT: Queen City Printers Inc., 1997), 141.

[2] Vermont Division for Historic Preservation, Vermont Historic Sites and Structures Survey. Burlington: South Prospect Street, 1979. (Found at the University of Vermont Library, Special Collections.)

[3] Ibid.

[4] 1938 Burlington City Directory (Springfield, MA: H.A. Manning Company, 1938), 224.

[5] David J. Blow, Historical Guide to Burlington Neighborhoods: Volume II, ed. Lilian Baker Carlisle (Burlington, VT: Queen City Printers Inc., 1997), 142.

[6] 1964-65 Burlington City Directory (Springfield, MA: H.A. Manning Company, 1965), 739.

[7] William W. Bremer, “Along the ‘American Way’: The New Deal’s Work Relief Programs for the Unemployed,” The Journal of American History 42, no. 3. (1975): 636.

[8] City of Burlington, Vermont, Seventy-third Annual Report of the City of Burlington, Vermont: For the Year Ended June 30, 1938 (Burlington, VT: Lane Press Inc, 1938) ,  224.

As evident by the poster advertising rush week and the large, green sign containing Greek letters, 216 South Prospect Street is still the of the Alpha Gamma Rho fraternity. On the exterior, the structure remains remarkably similar. In the immediate foreground, a red crosswalk can be seen. It is unclear whether it is indeed brick or faux brick made of asphalt. The large trees near the house are gone, replaced by smaller bushes and trees lining the street. Power lines are still evident but gone is the roadside mailbox.