My Maternal Grandfather's Family

 

By Nate Feldman 

This is a photo of my maternal Grandfather's family.  My grandfather, Wardell Steigerwalt, is the young boy sitting on his father's lap.  The father is George Steigerwalt.  The boy in the back, with the hands on his parents shoulders is  Herman Steigerwalt.  The woman is my Great Grandmother, Cora Bell Steigerwalt (Howerter).  The young girl beside her is Jean Steigerwalt, who eventually became Jean Hess.  

I am not certain when this photo was taken, but since my Grandfather, Wardell, was born in 1920, I assume it was the early 20s of the last century, so about 100 years ago.  Unfortunately, the only people I ever met from this photo were my Grandfather and his sister Jean.  The other three had passed away before I was born, and I only met Jean a handful of times if that.  With that in mind, it's an interesting picture of my family's past.  

This photo is atop the piano I play my music on.  My grandfather was an avid piano player.  He never taught me anything, because I never really got into playing music until I was in my 30s.  With that in mind, I believe the piano I am playing comes from this family, so that is how I can connect it to my music.