Stereo analysis
AnalyzedVerdict
Inconclusive40%
The scan does not contain enough reliable detail for a firm classification.
- Depth spread
- 1px
- The range of horizontal difference between the two views. More spread generally means more depth; 0–1 px usually indicates a monoview.
- Match
- 100%
- 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
- 2px
- Vertical drift between matched details. Lower is better; 4 px or more can indicate camera movement, scan skew, or poor alignment.
A yellow-mount stereoview of the Highland Institute in Petersham, Massachusetts, identified by the handwritten caption on the reverse. The photographer’s imprint names J. L. Lovell of Amherst, Massachusetts.
The three-storey clapboard building is photographed across an unpaved road, showing two adjoining elevations. Stacked verandas, ornamental brackets and continuous balustrades wrap around the exterior; tall chimneys and a square, windowed cupola rise above the roof. Adults and children stand or sit along the lower veranda, while leafless saplings with wooden braces line the foreground.
The ink caption reads “Highland Institute - / Petersham.” A separate inscription records the card as coming “From Cousin Mary,” followed by an uncertain initial, and is dated “March 15, 1871.” This dates the inscription rather than necessarily the exposure. Neither the recipient nor the people in the photograph are identified. The photographer’s printed “No.” line remains blank.
The photographs are clean and intact. Localized dark smudging appears on the reverse; the card is otherwise sound.
- Title on card
- Highland Institute - / Petersham (inscribed)
- Medium
- Stereoview
- Subject
- Children, Massachusetts, Outdoor Scene, Yellow Mount
- Dimensions
- 6.87 × 3.45 in (174.5 × 87.7 mm)
- Condition
- Photographs clean and intact, with localized dark smudging on the reverse; card otherwise sound.
- Provenance
- Verso gift inscription: “From Cousin Mary [?]. / March 15, 1871.” The final initial is uncertain and the recipient is not named; no further ownership history is supplied.
- Catalogue no.
- MSV1818
Catalogue details
Location
Highland Institute, Petersham Centre, Massachusetts · Petersham, Massachusetts, United States
Photographed subject · Street / district · 60% confidence
Reverse ink inscription: "Highland Institute – Petersham", "From Cousin Mary F., March 16, 1871"; printed "Photographed by J. L. Lovell, Amherst, Mass." The Highland Institute was a school founded by Rev. John Shepardson, run 1866–1872 (History of Royalston). Lippincott's Gazetteer lists it in Petersham post-village (the Centre). The pin is on Petersham Common; I could not find a source that fixes the building's exact lot.
Source: Card reverse inscription + Lippincott Gazetteer + History of Royalston
