Editor’s Note (2026)

The article below was written shortly after I received an unexpected email from Omaha historian Jeffrey Spencer. Looking back, I now recognize it as the moment the Weber Piano Project truly began.

I’ve left the article largely unchanged because it captures the surprise and excitement of that moment better than any retrospective account could.

An Unexpected Email

From: Jeffrey
Subject: Message for Jim
Date: May 18, 2018 at 8:24:45 PM CDT

To: Jim

Hello:

The other day, I was going through a folder of notes, and ran across one which was given to me some time ago. It contained information about your web-site “Roy Creek Ranch”, and in particular your postings regarding your antique Weber piano.

I am located in Omaha, Nebraska and may be able to give you a good deal of additional information. I had no idea exactly where the piano ended up, however I did know that it had been disposed of by the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

I actually remember seeing the piano in Eugenie Whitmore’s home on Dewey Avenue in Omaha numerous times. “Seeing” the piano may be a bit of a misstatement, since it was NOT easy to really “see” it! The top was covered by a large silk embroidered “piano scarf”, upon which was displayed many framed photographs, etc. Those entirely covered the top of the piano.  “Miss Eugenie” had a good many pictures of herself in that grouping, as well as those showing her with various “personalities” (such as Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, etc.) I have a very fine painting of her – done in 1923 – which was left to me!

Well, I don’t want to bother you with all of that. This is just an initial contact message to see if in fact you are the “Jim” I am looking for! If so, please let me know – and if you have any questions about the piano, Miss Whitmore, or the Whitmore family in general, I would be glad to be of help.

Good wishes,
Jeffrey
Omaha, Nebraska

I read and re-read the email several times in stunned amazement. There were questions: How had he found me? Why was he interested in helping? Just a few months before, I had speculated about writing a book regarding the Weber Grand piano in my living room and its connection with Eugenia Whitmore, Omaha and me. Here was an unsolicited message from someone who might be able to fill in my sparse knowledge. It seemed too good to be true.

An immediate response was required.

My Reply

Dear Jeffrey –

What a pleasant surprise to find your email this morning! I publish the Roy Creek Ranch web site and currently own the Weber piano. You’ve probably read through some of the Web material, but let me briefly mention my connection to the piano.

I grew up in Omaha where I attended the University of Nebraska at Omaha. I graduated in 1984 with a degree in Music Theory and Composition, but also studied piano with Harry Payne while in school. I purchased the piano in the early 80’s as the result of a piano competition. Having entered and (to my surprise) won the competition, I learned I would be performing the Gershwin Concerto with the Town and Gown Orchestra — then a community and student organization affiliated with the University. I didn’t have a very good practice instrument, and the Weber was offered to me for a contribution to the scholarship fund. I’ve owned it since, and it followed me to graduate school at the University of Texas at Austin in 1984. It is now located in our home in rural Central Texas near Dripping Springs (about 30 miles west of Austin).

My career at the University of Texas managing a media and IT department for the College of Fine Arts limited my time for music, but I recently retired and decided to improve the Weber. Last year, working with a skilled piano rebuilder, Bernard Mollberg, I rebuilt the action. I had re-strung it some years before. The result was gratifying and it is indeed a fine instrument with a distinctive voice. I play it nearly every day, and often host soirées in my home with a community of other piano enthusiasts.

I am confident we are talking about the same instrument, and I would dearly love to learn more. Your mention of the “piano scarf” and all the displayed photographs is consistent with the story I heard from Randy George, a piano technician who worked on the instrument in Ms. Whitmore’s home. Coincidentally, he also serviced the pianos at the University at the time. Most of my relatives are still in Omaha and Eastern Nebraska, and we travel there periodically. Perhaps we could meet the next time we’re in Omaha?

This article on the Roy Creek Ranch web site outlines much of what I know about the instrument’s history (in case you didn’t already find it): http://roycreekranch.com/2017/02/08/rebuilding-another-piano-an-1893-weber-grand/.  I’ve included a few pictures of the instrument (2002 to present – below).

Thank you for taking the time to contact me. The Weber is a wonderful instrument with a fascinating history, and it would be great to tell it. It isn’t often we receive a time capsule from another century. Sadly, pianos are not as revered as they once were, and I hope to at least send this one forward in time once again.

Warm regards,
Jim
———-

How Did He Find Me?

From: Jeffrey
Subject: Very briefly..
Date: May 20, 2018 at 8:20:49 PM CDT
To: Jim

Jim..

I forgot to tell you how I “found” you. Several years ago, your name and the information about your web-site was given to me. This was written down on a piece of paper, and I had it in a folder of “odds and ends” which I recently “resurrected”. It May have come from one of the people who did tuning for us..however not sure which one. Perhaps Harold Erlandson.

I wish now that I had followed up on that long ago – except “better late than never” I suppose!

Jeffrey

The Universe was Calling

After some thought, I realized his friend had found a 2008 blog post regarding the rebuilding of a Baldwin Grand piano. In that post, I had also mentioned the Weber Piano, and its origin in Omaha — no more than a sentence or two. The friend then handed it to Jeffrey on a piece of paper where it sat in his files for perhaps 10 years.

In other words, a 10-year-old blog post, read by perhaps dozens around the world since it was written, had connected me to my history across 800 miles and over 40 years.

The Universe was calling.

And with that, the flood gates opened. I began receiving regular missives from Jeffrey, who knew a great deal about Omaha and its late-19th and early-20th century music scene, Miss Eugenie Whitmore and her family, and of course, the Weber Piano. On top of that, he was well acquainted with people from my youth whom I had not thought about for 40 or 50 years.

I was in for quite an adventure.

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Continue Exploring the Weber Piano Project

What began as a simple email eventually grew into a larger story involving music, history, craftsmanship, and the people connected to an 1893 Weber grand piano. Visit the Weber Piano Project hub page to explore the full project.