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(c) Pocumtuck Valley Memorial Association, Deerfield MA. All rights reserved.
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The deliberately distanced and romantic air of this photograph was part of Frances and Mary Allen's commitment to the romantic movement and its emphasis on ethereal beauty. The Fort River is a small stream near the Allen sisters' home, and although its proximity would have led some in Deerfield, Massachusetts, to call it ordinary, the photographic techniques of the sisters gave it an air of mystery and romance. The sisters' photographic techniques owed a great deal to the popular photography of the day, particularly that of Julia Margaret Cameron, a highly popular and widely reproduced British photographer.

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