Will Steunenberg
Written on the photo (as best I can decipher it):
"Jan 1913
Governor Steunenbergs of Idaho Brother
This is his brother, WM Steunenberg
stayed at our home for years
belong to odd fellow lodge in Caldwell Ida our home town.
Medas picture"
This wonderful old photograph comes to us compliments of Sharon 'Tipton' Conlin. Sharon and I reconnected by email this week and she has graciously shared a few scans of her family photographs.
The photo originates from the Charles Hamilton Cupp Family. It had been in the possession of Lillie 'Blaisdell' Cupp, and the writing at the side of the picture was by her daughter Almeda “Meda.” The picture was given to Sharon in 1995.
Sharon's great grandmother was Lillie Cupp. The Steunenberg's and Cupp's were friends and associates in Caldwell. Estella Cupp married James Munro, who was a Cashier/Clerk at the Caldwell Bank & Trust. Click on the link and you will see a blog post about the bank, including an original cabinet photo from my family collection showing the interior. A.K Steunenberg is standing at the rear cashier's window. I always thought maybe that was James Munro at the front window but now I am not too sure. What do you think?
Along with his brother John Steunenberg, Will operated a shoe store near the Saratoga Hotel. If anyone can pinpoint the location for me I would appreciate it. Will and John liked to be referred to as "fitters of feet." See Will standing in the door window (we think) and W.L. Steunenberg inscribed on the display widow in the photo to the left. This one comes from the COI archives.From Sharon:
"One of the Steunenberg brothers, William, rented room and board with my great- grandmother - Lillie L. Cupp and her children for a few years after her husband Charles Hamilton Cupp, whom was a carpenter by trade, had died from injuries sustained from an accident while training a horse. She had to do baking, and rent a room or two to help support herself and her children."
Brothers Charles Hamilton & Lillie ‘Blaisdell’ Cupp family, and William Monroe Cupp family, and their parents, Sam & Magdalena ‘Walters’ Cupp were all friends of the Steunenberg families, as were the Munro family."
From Big Trouble:
Although Frank, A.K. and their wives certainly ranked among Caldwell's first families, they were less self-assured than they appeared. In a to
wn that had long cherished the notion of unrestrained opportunity, the uncomfortable specter of social class reared its head. When James Munro, a clerk at the Steunenberg bank, married Estella Cupp, the eldest daughter of the towns most prominent real estate broker, the Tribune called them 'popular young society people'—a frank recognition that a 'smart set' was coalescing in this normally egalitarian community. A Young Man's Dancing Club invited these socially active young people to occasional soirees at Armory Hall." — Big Trouble by J. Anthony LukasI may have more on the Steunenberg/Cupp/Munro connection later. Thank you for the great photographs Sharon.
Click below for a blog post about Will and another picture taken inside the shoe store.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
"To Hell With The Man Who Breaks My Will"
1 comment:
In "Big Trouble" the shoe store is said to have been "just behind the Saratoga." I believe the Saratoga filled half the block up to the alley way on South 7th. On maps.google.com it would have to be one of the currently painted green or cream-colored shops on South 7th. My best guess is that it is not the cream one because the edge of the brick there doesn't match up with the picture you posted. It is most likely the first green shop to the left of the cream-colored one. I have a picture taken 2 years ago from the Acapulco Restaurant looking down on these shops.
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