Vintage Photo: South Main Street

Every Monday we share a vintage image on the Essex on Lake Champlain Facebook page and invite our viewers to play some Vintage Essex Trivia. The photo above we shared last Monday.

It’s another old postcard of Main Street in Essex, NY. When do you think the photo was taken? The view has changed some since whenever that was. Do you recognize the section of street captured in the photo? It’s titled “South Main Street, Looking North, Essex, NY.” That should help orient you. Do you know where it is now? What do you recognize?

Here’s what the community has already had to share:

Christine Herrmann: Back in the 1950s (probably before and after, too!) 1st house on the left (only part of the porch is visible) was Jim & Helen Morse’s, next was the Albee’s, and the stone house belonged to Warren Cross. I don’t know who lived in the houses visible on the other side of the street.

Barbara Kunzi: The authority is Shirley LaForest. I think she used the picture in one of the calendars and the time was 1940s.

Sabrina Smith: Barbara Kunzi—is that your old front porch in the far right corner?

Barbara Kunzi: You’re right, it is. Except you mean the left, right?

Sabrina Smith: …yes ma’m. sometimes I forget which is which…but I always know which house is yours!

Gretel H. Schueller: I see a sliver of our home. And the trees are now about three times bigger.

What changes do you notice compared with how the area appears today? The first difference that I notice, since it’s the focus in the center of the photo, is the dirt road — it’s a paved one today.

Please share your thoughts in the comments.

Share Your Essex Artifacts

If you want to share your old photos of Essex (or brochures; postcards; menus; tickets; any artifact) on the blog please email us at editor [AT] essexonlakechamplain [DOT] com.

Vintage Artwork: Split Rock Paintings (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
Vintage Photo: Essex Diner & Movie Theater (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
Vintage Postcard: Main Street Essex (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
Vintage Postcard: Essex Main Street Looking North (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)
Vintage Postcard: Sherwood Inn Waterfront (www.essexonlakechamplain.com)

About Katie Shepard

Passionate about reading and writing stories, Katie Shepard enjoys discovering more about her home while writing and editing for Essex on Lake Champlain. Katie graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh in 2011 where she studied English literature, philosophy, and Asian studies. Her first book Essex, New York Architecture: A Doodler's Field Guide was published in 2015. Connect with her on Twitter, Facebook, or at Linked.in. Or email her at katie [@] essexeditions [dot] com.