Stereo analysis
AnalyzedVerdict
Genuine stereo pair97%
The two photographs contain the viewpoint difference needed to produce genuine depth.
- Depth spread
- 10px
- The range of horizontal difference between the two views. More spread generally means more depth; 0–1 px usually indicates a monoview.
- Match
- 92%
- The share of usable picture detail that can be matched between the left and right views. A higher number means a more reliable comparison.
- Vertical
- 3px
- Vertical drift between matched details. Lower is better; 4 px or more can indicate camera movement, scan skew, or poor alignment.
Elmer & Tenney stereoview of men cutting through a deep snowdrift on the Southern Minnesota Division of the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railway. The mount credits the Winona, Minnesota firm as photographer and publisher and carries the heading “E. & T. Minnesota Snow View Series of 1881.”
A narrow trench runs from the foreground into the distance, its near-vertical walls rising above the men working below. A man holding a shovel stands on the left bank, with cut blocks and loose snow around him. Further workers stand along the excavation and on the higher snow, giving a clear measure of the drift’s depth.
The right-hand image bears the number 1154. On the printed “Snow Blockade Views” list verso, a hand-drawn arrow points to the matching entry, “1154—Cutting snow blocks,” under the Southern Minnesota Division heading dated March 29, 1881. These markings identify the view within the series; the precise site and individual workers are not named. The paired photographs are mounted on a pale green card with rounded corners.
A small cluster of dark spots is visible in the lower portion of the left image; otherwise clean and sound, with no visible cracks or significant losses.
- Title on card
- No. 1154. Cutting snow blocks.
- Medium
- Stereoview
- Subject
- Minnesota, Occupational, Outdoor Scene, Railroad
- Dimensions
- 7.04 × 4.01 in (178.9 × 101.8 mm)
- Condition
- A small cluster of dark spots in the lower portion of the left image; otherwise clean and sound, with no visible cracks or significant losses.
- Provenance
- The printed mount imprint credits Elmer & Tenney of Winona, Minnesota as photographers and publishers. No ownership history is established.
- Catalogue no.
- MSV1766
Catalogue details
Location
Southern Minnesota Division grade between Fairmont and Sherburn, Minnesota · Minnesota, United States
General area · Region · 40% confidence
Card names no place. Same Elmer & Tenney Minnesota snow blockade series as No. 1158 (Temperance Lake cut) and No. 1161 (cut three miles west of Fairmont), both on the Southern Minnesota Division. Placed on that stretch of track by the series, not by this card.
Source: Elmer & Tenney series context (Nos. 1158 and 1161)
