1892_6-21-J Osgood Nichols Cambridge001 copy.jpg

J. Osgood Nichols Correspondence, June 1892

PI

Version: 4 (current) | Updated: 12/9/2025, 9:43:29 PM | Created: 12/9/2025, 7:29:20 PM

Added description

Description

J. Osgood Nichols Correspondence to Alice Austen, June 1892

Overview

This digital collection preserves a single handwritten letter written by J. Lloyd (J.) Osgood Nichols to Elizabeth Alice Austen on 21 June 1892. The collection consists of two scanned JPEG images of the letter’s pages, each accompanied by OCR‑derived text. It is part of the Alice Austen House Museum’s Austen Family Papers (MS 1) and is hosted on the PINAX platform.

Background

J. Lloyd Osgood Nichols was a contemporary and friend of Alice Austen, a pioneering American photographer from Staten Island. The letter was composed in Cambridge, New England, and reflects the social milieu of the late‑Victorian upper‑middle class. It was digitized for the museum’s online archive to provide researchers with access to the original manuscript and its transcribed content.

Contents

  • Page 1 (1892‑06‑21‑Cambridge‑001.jpg) – The first half of the letter, beginning with a greeting and a discussion of “cards for the Gymnasium spread.”
  • Page 2 (1892‑06‑21‑Cambridge‑002.jpg) – The second half, detailing plans to meet at Beck, references to friends from Harshill and Matthews, and a mention of “tall tickets.”
  • OCR Text – Machine‑readable transcriptions of both pages, capturing the letter’s key themes: social events (Gymnasium spread, Pudding spread), family matters, and logistical arrangements for upcoming gatherings.

Scope

The collection covers a single date (21 June 1892) and a single correspondence item. It documents Nichols’ social planning and familial concerns, offering insight into Victorian‑era social networks, card‑sending customs, and the logistical coordination of gatherings among friends and relatives. The material is limited to the two pages of the original letter; no additional related documents (e.g., envelopes, calling cards) are included in this subset. The collection is available in English and is part of the broader Austen Family Papers, which collectively span 1883‑1898.

Raw Cheimarros Data

@file_pinax:document {title: "J. Osgood Nichols Correspondence, June 1892", creator: @j_osgood_nichols, institution: "Alice Austen House", created: @date_1892_06_21, language: "en", subjects: ["Correspondence","Social events","Gymnasium spread","Cambridge","Family","Victorian-era social life"], description: "A collection of correspondence from J. Osgood Nichols to Alice Austen in June 1892, discussing social events and family matters.", place: ["Cambridge","Harshill"]}

@j_osgood_nichols:person {full_name: "J. Lloyd Nichols", role: "correspondent"}

@alice_austen:person {full_name: "Elizabeth Alice Austen", birth: @date_1866, death: @date_1952, occupation: "photographer", location: @staten_island}

@staten_island:place {state: @new_york, country: @united_states}

@cambridge:place {description: "City referenced in the correspondence"}

@harshill:place {description: "Location mentioned as the origin of friends"}

@beck:place {description: "Destination mentioned for meeting"}

@gymnasium_spread:concept {type: "social event"}

@pudding_spread:concept {type: "social event"}

@mrs_richards:person {title: "Mrs.", last_name: "Richards"}

@file_1892_6_21_j_osgood_nichols_cambridge001_copy_jpg:file {format: "image", description: "Letter page 1 with OCR text"}

@file_1892_6_21_j_osgood_nichols_cambridge002_copy_jpg:file {format: "image", description: "Letter page 2 with OCR text"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> wrote -> @j_osgood_nichols_correspondence:event {when: @date_1892_06_21, where: @cambridge}

@j_osgood_nichols_correspondence:event -> addressed to -> @alice_austen

@j_osgood_nichols -> asked -> @alice_austen {about: "cards for the Gymnasium spread"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> arranged -> cards {recipients: [@alice_austen, @mrs_richards], destination: @beck, related_event: @pudding_spread, purpose: "thank the Gym"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> mentioned -> @harshill {context: "friends from Harshill are coming"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> planned meeting with -> @alice_austen {when: @date_1892_06_21, location: @beck, activity: "visit two smaller spreads"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> referenced -> @matthews {context: "sent cards to one of them in Matthews"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> noted -> @tall_tickets:concept {status: "none available"}

@j_osgood_nichols -> hoped to obtain -> @two:concept {type: "tickets"}

Metadata

Files (2)

1892_6-21-J Osgood Nichols Cambridge001 copy.jpgJPEG
2.58 MB
OCR Text

Cambridge My dear Alice, I have been so busy with examinations as not to have found time to write to you before. Have you and Mrs. Austen cards for the Gymnasium spread? As I have none for you? I arranged to have cards sent you and Mrs. Richards with whom I understood you were to be during the day to Beck and the Pudding spread and to thank the Gym.

1892_6-21-J Osgood Nichols Cambridge002 copy.jpgJPEG
2.45 MB
OCR Text

I am very sorry that I did not have your Aunt's address at the time but will get an extra one for Beck if you will need it. My Mother and some friends from Harshill are coming and I am sure that I cannot be entirely at liberty during the day but I hope to meet you and go to two of the smaller spreads during the afternoon as you may be interested in seeing the college work and some of the men have kindly asked me to bring you. If have sent you cards to one of them in Matthews. I shall see you & hope before then and talk it over when I shall know certainly what Mother's plans are. There are absolutely no tall tickets to be discovered but I am in hopes—very faintly—of getting two. Sincerely Yours, J. Lloyd Nichols 21st Monday

Version History (4 versions)

  • ✓ v4 (current) · 12/9/2025, 9:43:29 PM
    "Added description"
  • v3 · 12/9/2025, 8:40:46 PM · View this version
    "Added knowledge graph extraction"
  • v2 · 12/9/2025, 7:50:28 PM · View this version
    "Added PINAX metadata"
  • v1 · 12/9/2025, 7:29:20 PM · View this version
    "Reorganization group: J_Osgood_Nichols_Correspondence_June_1892"

Parent

01KC28V1R09BVZ5BCZHF3WP37S

No children (leaf entity)