Joseph William Steele and family, ca 1888 (MOHAI 7264)

Joseph William Steele came to Washington Territory by wagon train in 1865 and homesteaded south of Seattle, in the Duwamish River Valley. Mertie Annette Miller traveled to Seattle later on the railroad, and she and Steele were married in 1886. In 1888 or 1889, the Steeles traveled to Seattle where photographer George N. Moore took their family portrait.
In this photo, Joseph W. Steele and his wife, Mertie, sit holding their baby daughter, Ethel Mertie Steele (left) and their son, Joseph Franklin Steele (right). The son is wearing a short skirt and long stockings. In the late-19th century, boy and girl toddlers wore similar clothing.

Subjects (LCTGM): Families