by 
Gertrude Wigley is my Great Grandmother on the Garrison side. She was born around 1892 in Trenton, NJ, to Robert and Helena (Grupp) Wigley.
I don’t know at what age Gertrude took an interest in music, but by the age of 18 she was an accomplished musician. It wasn’t until I started researching Gertrude’s life that I became aware of her talent.
In April of 1911, John W. Weastell opened a moving pictures theatre in Trenton. The Park Theatre was located at the corner of Chestnut and Morris Avenues. It was an open-air theatre. Before coming to Trenton, John Weastell managed a theatre in South Beach, Long Island, NY.
During July 1911, Gertrude Wigley* took a job at the theatre as a pianist. Gertrude would play the score while the silent movies flashed overhead.
The Trenton Times announced, on August 22, 1911, that John Weastell would be showing moving pictures in the Odd Fellows hall in Yardley, PA. “Miss Gertrude Wigley” was the pianist.
Early in 1912, Weastell moved the Park Theatre to 13-15 Pennington Avenue where, in addition to first run silent movies, he offered burlesque shows. I can find no mention of Gertrude playing at the new Park Theatre, however – for reasons that will be mentioned later – it is likely she performed at the theatre.
A Trenton Times article published on April 30, 1913, provided the most telling story of Gertrude’s talents:
“Miss Gertrude Wigley, a well known pianist of Division Street, has closed an engagement with a Fourteenth Street Theatre, New York City, and will take a position with a New Brunswick Theatre. Miss Wigley… had considerable difficulty cancelling her engagements with the metropolitan theatre, because of her ability on the piano”
The article ended by saying that Gertrude was also an excellent player on the flute, banjo and mandolin.
Gertrude eventually married John Weastell (my Great Grandfather). On June 22, 1914, their first daughter, Leota Gertrude Weastell (my grandmother), was born.
No other articles regarding Gertrude’s music career have been found after 1913. It appears that Gertrude gave-up her music career. John Weastell gave-up the theatre business and was employed at the Home Rubber Company in Trenton until his death in 1925.
None of this information would have been discovered, had it not been for the Trenton Times on-line digital archive. I had never heard any stories about Gertrude being a musician or playing in theaters. By searching Gertrude by name I was able to wade through the years of newspapers and find the tiny, isolated articles in the back pages of the paper.
*At this time Gertrude was married to William Dobbs, but they were estranged. Despite her marriage, she performed under her maiden name.
