No. 1159 — Snow Gang at Work, 1881

An Elmer & Tenney stereoview captioned “Southern Minnesota Division, C. M. & St. P. R’y” and “Snow Blockade, March 29, 1881.” The mount credits Elmer & Tenney of Winona, Minnesota, as photographers and publishers and identifies the card as part of their Minnesota Snow View Series of 1881.

A long line of men works in a narrow trench through deep snow, receding diagonally from the foreground toward an open horizon. Several bend over shovels; others stand within the cut, where the banks rise above their heads. A man in a long coat stands higher on the right bank, beside a ridge of broken snow blocks.

The number 1159 appears near the foot of the right-hand image and matches the reverse listing, “Snow gang at work,” designated an instantaneous view. The printed caption establishes the railway division and date, but neither the exact site along the line nor the men are identified. Winona is the photographer-publisher’s address, not an established location for the scene.

Two round-topped photographic images are mounted side by side on a pale green card with rounded corners. The reverse carries a printed list of snow views grouped under three railway divisions, together with unidentified pencil notations.