Tuesday, October 18, 2016

Another New to Me Picture from the Steen Family



Since having time off with a broken leg, I have had a chance to look at some old pictures that cousin Barb shared with me recently. In the picture above, the man on the left is identified as Wes or West. On the right is "Dad Steen," also known as Charles F. Steen, who was my great great grandfather. Grandpa Steen is so distinguished! I love his bow tie and pocket watch. The walls are decorated with a lot of art work. My guess is that picture was taken in the 1920s in Perkins Township, Erie County, Ohio. Grandpa Charlie Steen was very active in the Erie County Agricultural Society. He was married to Sarah Milner Steen, and they had four children: Harry (who died young), twins Ada and Alpha, and their youngest child, Rollin Steen, who grew up to be an educator in public schools in Ohio, and later at Ohio State University. Below is a picture of the Steen family, long after the death of Harry.

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I so wish I could have met my Great Great Grandpa and Grandma Steen! Mom had just vague memories, as they were quite up in years when she was born. Ada Steen, one of the twins, is my great grandmother, and I am eternally grateful to her for instilling a love of family history in my Mom, who then passed it on to me!  Thanks again Barb for sharing yet another family treasure!





2 comments:

Nancy said...

That first photo ... I want to expand it or go back in time to have a look around the room. I'm sure it could tell a lot about the people who lived there. Yes, your Grandfather Charlie looked very distinguished. Have any family stories about him been passed down?

Dorene from Ohio said...

Well, at one time, he wanted to go west, to find his fortune,but instead, he came back and got married! And his father, also named Charles Steen, was also hoping to move west. In the 1850s, he sold a lot of the livestock from his farm. I don't know all the details, but his body was found in Sandusky Bay. and they suspect he had been robbed. The widow of the elder Charles Steen had to raise her children on her own! Tough folks! The Steen family in my line came from Armagh, Ireland.