A camera positioned near the intersection of 2nd Street and 5th Avenue captured this remarkable view looking north through New Glarus, preserving far more than a collection of old buildings and automobiles. The photograph offers a nearly uninterrupted look from the heart of the downtown business district toward the industrial edge of the village.

On the right, the large brick Citizens Bank building dominates the corner, its decorative masonry and distinctive roofline making it one of the most imposing structures in the scene. It is now home to The Alpine. Across the street is the building long associated with Four Corners, Tofflers, and now Ohana Kitchen, while the next brick building north was connected to the Strickler family’s meat business.

The street itself tells another part of the story. Automobiles line both sides of 2nd Street, but there are no painted parking spaces or traffic lanes. A suspended streetlight hangs from cables over the roadway, while a web of electrical and telephone lines crosses overhead. In the middle of the intersection is an unusual low, rounded metal fixture whose exact purpose is not immediately clear.