As the Northeast prepares for the impending Nor’easter as though snow were an altogether new phenomenon, it begins to feel as though many people have let Frozen go a little too much to their heads. The panic is not entirely unfounded—it never hurts to reinforce your rations of Swiss Miss and chicken soup—but this is certainly not Snowmageddon’s first rodeo.
The several feet of snow predicted to blanket the Northeast over the next few days pale in comparison to the 6½ feet that pummeled upstate New York in December 1958. That storm—meteorogically speaking a snowburst as opposed to a blizzard, as it was not accompanied by high winds—left the city of Oswego frozen in time for days. After four days of snowfall, LIFE reported:
Traffic, business and mail had come to a standstill. Police were running milk to snowbound families. In the big digout that followed, the price of snow shovels skyrocketed and the mayor took to dog sled and team to get around town.
The magazine dispatched photographer Carl Mydans to capture the scene. Mydans’ photos, several of which appear above, didn’t end up running. Instead, LIFE ran four pages of reader-submitted photos, describing Oswegians’ response to the storm as one that employed snapping shutters as much as scooping shovels. So avid were the citizens in their documentation that the film supply ran out. “Processing shops were swamped with exposed rolls,” LIFE reported, “as snow scenes began to appear cheek by jowl with last summer’s undeveloped beach pictures.”
The only difference between their response and ours, then, is a hashtag—#Snowmageddon2015 and #blizzardof2015, in case you’re keeping track.
Liz Ronk, who edited this gallery, is the Photo Editor for LIFE.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizabethRonk.
Scene from a snow storm in Oswego, New York, in December 1958, that dropped over 6 feet of snow.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesResidents of Oswego, New York, walk in the streets downtown after the storm.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA man stands beside a buried vehicle, Oswego, New York, 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesOswegians walk down a street in December 1958. Behind them, the snow nearly reaches the top of a stop sign.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesOswego residents shovel a city sidewalk, 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA local barber shop peeks out from behind six feet of snow.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA man shovels between two banks of snow as tall as he is.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesOswego residents remove snow from a rooftop.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesStreets are impassable after a snowburst dropped six feet of snow.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesAlong with several feet of snow, gigantic icicles form at a local store.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA man stands in front of a PSA in Oswego, New York.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesMen attempt to dig out a buried car.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSpudnuts advertises air conditioning, likely not in use on this wintry day.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesParking meters peek out from within a snowbank in Oswego, New York, 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesAn ambulance in Oswego, New York, 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA handmade sign advertising shovels is partially obscured by snow.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA view of Oswego from above, December 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesPeople walk in the streets after a storm dumped six feet of snow on Oswego, New York.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesA car with several feet of snow on it drives down the street as a dog scurries out of the way.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesSnow-covered trees provide a canopy for this Oswego street, December 1958.Carl Mydans—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
