PolishOrigins(TM) Forum

Re: Surname Bala

j_lex — Sun Oct 30, 2022 10:01 pm

Author: j_lex

Posted: Sun Oct 30, 2022 10:01 pm

For anyone not aware (I didn't see it mentioned), for some searches of Catholic parishes in Buffalo, you can use: https://pgsnys.online/databases-2/

I've had a lot of success searching various permutations of relatives. Some of the indexed entries show helpful info as well. And then of course you have to go back to the FamilySearch catalog and find the right page and entry.

I'm sure you've already come across these records (Trish referenced earlier):

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Tue Aug 02, 2022 11:26 am

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Tue Aug 02, 2022 11:26 am

MBBuffalo wrote:

dnowicki wrote:

Trish wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Hey Dave,

I apologize for being so needy, but apparently the Bala line prefers to go incognito. I've tried googling and searching all sorts of Penn databases for either the marriage of Jozef/Lucy or birth of John and am coming up short. That Geneteka site you linked way up in the chat has come in hand big time. I've managed to take Jadwiga Jasinska and go back a few generations following the birth and marriage trails as they list parents on their marriage info thankfully. Tried all sorts of combinations of Bala too and tried different provinces around to double check.

As, I think Trish mentioned, I was also perplexed as to why Jozef put father in law even though he may have technically been unmarried. Perhaps its as simple as he intended to marry her and just notated him as FIL? Same with Jadwiga. Can't find a marriage record state side or Polish side (yet) for Jan Bala to either Jadwiga Szuba or Jasinska. Is it possible she just took his name or was the duty to honor your family in the church too strong for that to be the scenario. There i a find a grave with Jan and Jadwiga Bala from here in Buffalo, New York.

Thanks again all for your help.

Your grateful amateur genealogist,

Matt

Hi Matt, Sophia, and Dave,

I found two of Jozef Bala's children in St. Adalbert's Church in Buffalo. (I'm look for my Pisarski relative and found Matt's family. )

Franciszek Bala was born on 2 July 1907 in Buffalo, NY and Baptized in St. Adalbert's. His B&B is Entry #152, Image #892 on film #1292862. The towns are listed for Jozef and Lucja.

Zofia Bala was born on in Buffalo, NY and Baptized in St. Adalbert's. Her B&B is Entry #88, Image #177, Film #1292862.

I also found the following on Family Search. It could be the father of Jan Bala born 1849. The film # 2as 1959913 Item 7. It was only a transcription. There is no image available.

Name Joannes Bala
Sex Male
Baptism Date 27 May 1849
Baptism Place Żyraków, Żyraków, Rzeszów, Poland
Father's Name Mathias Bala
Mother's Name Teresia Kurek
Event Type Baptism
House Number 13
Volume Beginning Year 1846
Volume Ending Year 1886

Joannes Bala's Parents
Mathias Bala - Father
Teresia Kurek - Mother

Hope this is helpful.
Trish

Hi Matt, Trish & Sophia,

Matt, You’ll not find the Bial-Jasinska marriage indexed on Geneteka or another database. Marriages for the parish of Straszęcin have not been indexed post 1870. The same is true of births and deaths. If you look at the attached screenshot of the Geneteka index you can see the years that have been indexed. Probably the best option in going forward would be to write to the parish and ask for copies of the records you need. Sine the last Szuba child was born in 1873 and the first Bala child was born in 1876 Marcin Szuba must have died in or after 1873 and the Bala-Jasinska marriage must have taken place after 1873 and before 1876. The letter should be written in Polish. Family Search has a guide for writing letters in Polish which should work for you. https://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Poland_Letter_Writing_Guide
After you’ve put together a mix and match request you can post a draft of your letter and I or someone else can offer suggestions and/or corrections.

Wishing you success,

Dave

Thank you all dearly for the suggestions. I will certainly follow-up on them and let you know the results (or post a draft as you mentioned.

Sincerely,

Matt

Hello again!

I finally finished the letter to the Parish of Jan and Jadwiga Bala. Would someone mind proof reading it to make sure it is respectful and appropriate for what's trying to be accomplished?

Thank you,

Matt

2 Sierpnia 2022

Drogi Księże,

Mieszkam w Stanach Zjednoczonych, ale moi przodkowie są polskiego pochodzenia. Chcę dowiedzieć się więcej o moich przodkach. Następujące osoby są moimi przodkami, którzy urodzili się w Polsce. Podaję wszystkie dane jakie mam o nich.

Imię i nazwisko: Jan Bala
Data zgonu: 1902
Miejsce zgonu: Buffalo, New York, United States
Imię i nazwisko panieńskie żony: Jadwiga Jasinska
Syn: Josef Bala (12 Jul 1879 Żyraków, Żyraków, Rzeszow, Poland - 27 December 1927 Buffalo, NY, USA)
Córka: Katarzyna Bala (1876)
Siostra: Marianna Bala (1858 – 1870)

Chiciałbym dowiedzieć się więcej o rodzinie tej osoby. Byłbym wdzięczny za podanie nazwisk i dat urodzenia braci i sióstr oraz kopię świadectwa ślubu rodziców. Proszę o przesłnani mi pełnego odpisu świadectwa ślubu tej osoby. Proszę o przesłnani mi pełnego odpisu świadectwa ślubu rodziców tej osoby. Proszę o przesłanie mi pełnego odpisu lub kserokopii świadectwa urodzenia albo chrztu tej osoby.

Imię i nazwisko: Jadwiga Jasinska
Imię i nazwisko ojca: Andrzej Jasinski
Imię nazwisko panieńskie matki: Apolonia Wiśniowska
Data urodzenia (w przybliżeniu): 1840
Miejsce urodzenia: Straszecin, Podkarpackie, Poland
Data zgonu: 1893
Miejsce zgonu: Buffalo, New York, United States
Imię i nazwisko męża: Martin Szuba
Imię i nazwisko męża: Jan Bala (Data ślubu: 1873 – 1876)

Chiciałbym dowiedzieć się więcej o rodzinie tej osoby. Byłbym wdzięczny za podanie nazwisk i dat urodzenia braci i sióstr oraz kopię świadectwa ślubu rodziców. Proszę o przesłnani mi pełnego odpisu świadectwa ślubu tej osoby. Proszę o przesłnani mi pełnego odpisu świadectwa ślubu rodziców tej osoby. Proszę o przesłanie mi pełnego odpisu lub kserokopii świadectwa urodzenia albo chrztu tej osoby.

Jeśli Pan Ksiądz, nie dysponuje informacjami, których potrzebuję, chicałbym dowiedzieć się gdzie mogę je znaleźć. Czy można otrzymać kserokopie dokumentów i za jaką opłatą? Proszę o informację w jaki sposób mogę w ramach wdzięczności za okazaną pomoc złożyć ofiarę na kościół?

Z góry dziękuję za pomoc.

Z szacunkiem,
Matthew Bala

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Tue Jul 12, 2022 8:36 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Tue Jul 12, 2022 8:36 pm

dnowicki wrote:

Trish wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Thank you all dearly for the suggestions. I will certainly follow-up on them and let you know the results (or post a draft as you mentioned.

Sincerely,

Matt

Re: Surname Bala

dnowicki — Sun Jul 10, 2022 5:59 pm

Author: dnowicki

Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2022 5:59 pm

Trish wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Trish — Sun Jul 10, 2022 1:52 pm

Author: Trish

Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2022 1:52 pm

MBBuffalo wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Sophia — Sun Jul 10, 2022 7:21 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Sun Jul 10, 2022 7:21 am

MBBuffalo wrote:

Hi Matt,
You mention that you have been googling and searching databases, and coming up short. Did you follow through on Dave's suggestion to look on Family Search at the Buffalo church records? You mentioned that you know the family belonged to St. Adalbert's. Did you look at their records? Family Search does have a good search engine, but many of the records that they have microfilmed have not been indexed and thus do not show up in the results of a search there. You have to open the records and go page by page through them (happily, many church books include a few pages of hand-written indices to make the hunt easier.) Once you've got that, you will have a primary record (see earlier in this thread for Dave's excellent advice regarding primary vs. secondary sources). Then your next task will be going from Geneteka results (which are also secondary sources) to finding the actual records behind them. Lots of work! But very satisfying.
I agree with your hypothesis that the reason Jozef listed Stanislaw Konieczny as his father-in-law on his ship manifest is that he was engaged to be married and this term was the most accurate way of describing his relationship to the person he was going to.
Best of luck in your search,
Sophia

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Fri Jul 08, 2022 2:44 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Fri Jul 08, 2022 2:44 pm

dnowicki wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Trish wrote:

dnowicki wrote:

On this side of the pond...there are still places to research which should provide valuable info. Catholics in Buffalo are rather easy to research by using parish registers which are online at Family Search https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/results?count=20&placeId=185230&query=%2Bplace%3A%22United%20States%2C%20New%20York%2C%20Erie%2C%20Buffalo%22&subjectsOpen=365287-50 The key to make it easy to find baptism, marriage, and death & burial records is to know the parish to which the family belonged. The following were Polish ethnic parishes in Buffalo: St. Adalbert, Assumption, St. Casimir, Corpus Christi, St. Florian, St. Luke, Prescious Blood. Holy Rosary, Queen of Peace, St. Stanislaus, and Transfiguration. Since it appears that Polish was the primary language the family used at home it is likely that they belonged to one of the Polish parishes. There are no online databases of names in the parish books so it is necessary to use the “Biblical” method of research...seek and you shall find.
Dave

Hi Sophia, Dave, and Matt,

Sophia and Dave, you always give out some great information. I'm learning so much about my Polish ancestors. Thank you.

Dave, thank you for posting about Buffalo, New York Church records on Family Search. I forgot all about them. I was able to find one of my Pisarski's baptismal record in St. Adalbert's Church records. I'm still missing one child who was born in Buffalo so I'll be checking the other Parishes you mentioned.
Trish

Thank you all for the assistance so far. I am grateful for the tips and information on where to look. The Szuba marriage and side is all new to me. Interesting. Would Jadwiga have married Jozef as Jadwiga Szuba or would she have dropped the name whenever she split or Marcin passed away?

I know for a fact that St. Adalberts was the family parish once they moved to Buffalo. I'm trying to check out Hazelton, PA parishes since thats where the oldest John Bala was born. Looking up by parish was a great idea.

Hi Matt,

There were two Polish parishes in Hazelton, St. Stanislaus (Roman Catholic) & St. John (Polish National Catholic). St. Stanislaus would be your best bet since your family was Roman Catholic. The Polish National Catholic Church broke away from the Roman Catholic Church in the late 19th Century. The main protagonist of the break away was Fr. Hodur, a R.C. priest from PA who decided to start his own show. The PNC Church is not connected to the Roman Catholic Church.

I hope that this narrows things down for you.

Dave

Re: Surname Bala

dnowicki — Tue Jul 05, 2022 4:32 pm

Author: dnowicki

Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2022 4:32 pm

MBBuffalo wrote:

Trish wrote:

dnowicki wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Tue Jul 05, 2022 2:25 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Tue Jul 05, 2022 2:25 pm

Trish wrote:

dnowicki wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Trish — Sun Jul 03, 2022 1:49 pm

Author: Trish

Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2022 1:49 pm

dnowicki wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Sophia — Sun Jul 03, 2022 5:48 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Sun Jul 03, 2022 5:48 am

Hi Matt, Trish and Dave,
Lots of good info here for Matt to use in furthering his research. I do enjoy these threads where there is a lot of participation from forum members.
Dave, excellent advice regarding primary vs. secondary sources. Aslo, thanks for the correction about the Polish version of Lucy. I was not aware of Łucja, I've not come across that name, so it is good to know.
You might be interested to know that, on Geneteka, there actually is one Buffalo parish with marriages that have been indexed. When you look at the list of provinces (OK, technically vovoideships but they have labelled the column "provinces" on the English version of the webpage), there is at the bottom "pozostale" and in there you will find Buffalo's St. Stanislaus 1874-1913 marriages.
https://geneteka.genealodzy.pl/index.php?op=gt&lang=pol&bdm=B&w=25po&rid=5524&search_lastname=&search_name=&search_lastname2=&search_name2=&from_date=&to_date=
Good luck with your search,
Sophia

Re: Surname Bala

dnowicki — Sat Jul 02, 2022 1:54 pm

Author: dnowicki

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2022 1:54 pm

Sophia wrote:

Trish wrote:

Hi Matt and Sophia,

On MyHeirtage.com, I found a tree with the following information.

NameJózef Bała
Birth July 5 1879 Żyraków 12

Family members
Parents
Jan Bała
1849 - ?

Jadwiga Szuba (z d. Jasińska)(Note: Jadwiga was married to Marcin Szuba)
1840 - 1893

Siblings
Andrzej Szuba
1861 - ?

Marianna Wielgocki (z d. Szuba)
1864 - 1906

Jan Szuba
1866 - ?

Stanisław Szuba
1869 - ?

Michał Szuba
1871 - 1872

Joanna Szuba
1871 - 1872

Katarzyna Szuba
1873 - 1873

Anna Szuba
1873 - 1873

Katarzyna Bała (parents Jan Bala and Jadwiga)
1876 - ?

Hope this helps some.
Trish

Hi Trish,
Thanks for both of your posts here, they are very helpful! The information that Jadwiga's first marriage was to a Szuba will be quite useful.

Matt, if you open the image of the Trave manifest that Trish attached (which is a JPG file) and the image that you attached (which is is PNG file) you will see that the former is legible, while the latter is much less so. I am able to see Jozef's father-in-law written in, as you had said -- his name is Stanislaw Konieczny. So this is definitely the correct manifest. I am a little puzzled by the manifest you attached which is for Lucy, since I can't see it clearly but it appears that she is traveling under the Konieczna surname rather than the Bala surname and I don't understand why. Did they marry in Buffalo? If so, then Stanislaw Konieczny was not yet Jozef's father-in-law when he arrived. Are you able to re-post it, as a JPG? One more detail for what Trish found on Jadwiga. You see it says Jadwiga Szuba (z d. Jasinska) and the "z d." is an abbreviation for "z domu," "from home" which is a common way of indicating a woman's maiden name. It is like saying she is from the home of the Jasinski family, if that works for you.

Best regards,
Sophia

Hi Matt, Sophia, & Trish,

What you have posted is a very valuable starting point for research and the search for primary source records. (The immigration manifests and the Find A Grave post are primary sources for immigration and burial.) However, the other info is secondary source material seeking primary source records. (Even Jozef’s Fam. Search baptism info is a secondary source since it is an extract and not the actual record. The actual record should include the names of both his paternal and maternal grandparents.) The seconday sources are an excellent starting point for the search for primary source material.

All of Jozef’s Szuba relatives are half siblings since they only share one parent in common with him. His only full sibling appears to be Katarzyna Bała, born in 1876. Here are some suggestions to move the research forward. According to the Geneteka index of the Szuba-Jasińska marriage Jadwiga’s parents were Jędrzej (an alternate form for Andrzej) Jasiński & Apolonia Wiśniowska https://geneteka.genealodzy.pl/index.php?op=gt&lang=pol&bdm=S&w=09pk&rid=S&search_lastname=szuba&search_name=&search_lastname2=jasinska&search_name2=&from_date=&to_date=
It is important to note that all the records from Europe are from the parish of Straszęcin, the parish to which the village of Żyraków belonged. The village now has its own parish church but the parish was not established until after WWII. The entries in the B&B register are likely seperated by village and the parish register likely contains a heading like “Pro Pago Żyraków/For the Village of Żyraków”. Here is a link to a Geneteka sub-page which lists where the parish records are located https://parafie.genealodzy.pl/index.php?op=pr&pid=8165 The info from the Geneteka sub-page (Katalog Zasobów Metrykalnich) is usually accurate but often not complete.

The attached screenshot from the Słownik geograficzny provides info about the village during the final quarter of the 19th Century. It states that Żyraków was part of the parish of Straszęcin and that the village had 77 houses and a population of 445 (431 Roman Catholics & 14 Jews). 219 of the inhabitants were men and 226 were women. The other attachments are a map of the region and a map of 19th Century Galicia.

On this side of the pond...there are still places to research which should provide valuable info. Catholics in Buffalo are rather easy to research by using parish registers which are online at Family Search https://www.familysearch.org/search/catalog/results?count=20&placeId=185230&query=%2Bplace%3A%22United%20States%2C%20New%20York%2C%20Erie%2C%20Buffalo%22&subjectsOpen=365287-50 The key to make it easy to find baptism, marriage, and death & burial records is to know the parish to which the family belonged. The following were Polish ethnic parishes in Buffalo: St. Adalbert, Assumption, St. Casimir, Corpus Christi, St. Florian, St. Luke, Prescious Blood. Holy Rosary, Queen of Peace, St. Stanislaus, and Transfiguration. Since it appears that Polish was the primary language the family used at home it is likely that they belonged to one of the Polish parishes. There are no online databases of names in the parish books so it is necessary to use the “Biblical” method of research...seek and you shall find.

Since Matt has the 1910 & 1920 Censuses the following links are for the convenience of Sophia & Trish:
1910 Census: https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RJD-F8?i=46&cc=1727033&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AM59T-3NT
1920 Census https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:33S7-9RXC-CHX?i=19&cc=1488411&personaUrl=%2Fark%3A%2F61903%2F1%3A1%3AMJ22-XNM
There is a high chance of accuracy in those records since both enumerators were Polish and thus had little difficulty communicating with Polish immigrants.

Sophia, the couple may have married in Buffalo or may have married in Pennsylvania since their first child was born in PA. A likely location would be Erie, PA. The 1910 Census states that they were married for 10 years. A likely Polish version of Lucy’s name would be Łucja (spelled Łucya in the 19th Century). Lucyna is a distinct name. The English is Lucina.

Enjoy the holiday weekend.

Dave

Re: Surname Bala

Sophia — Sat Jul 02, 2022 5:14 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Sat Jul 02, 2022 5:14 am

Trish wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:27 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:27 pm

MBBuffalo wrote:

Sophia wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Hi Sophia,

Thank you for much for your detailed response. The idea the L with a slash could be translated as a t was not something I considered. Using FamilySearch I found a possible connection thanks to your advice. I'm just not sure if its a coincidence or if there are multiple records for individuals kept within the church. Here's an example of what I found (apologize if my focus is all over the place, reading through so many numbers and records and names tends to fatigue me):

FAMILY SEARCH RECORD:
Name Josephus Bata
Sex Male
Baptism Date 09 Jul 1879
Baptism Place Żyraków, Żyraków, Rzeszow, Poland
Father's Name Joannes Bata
Mother's Name Hedvigis Jasintko
Event Type Baptism
House Number 12
Volume Beginning Year 1846
Volume Ending Year 1886

INFORMATION FROM ANCESTRY AND MY RELATIVES
Name Joseph/Jozef/Josef Bala
Sex Male
Birth Date: 12 Jul 1879
Father's Name: Jan Bala
Mother's Name: Jadwiga Jasinski

According to all the Census' from Buffalo, Joseph noted he arrived in 1899. One ship manifest has this listed:
Name Josef Bala
Gender Male
Ethnicity/ Nationality Galician
Age 19
Birth Date 1880
Place of Origin Galicia
Departure Port Bremen
Arrival Date 2 Mar 1899
Arrival Port New York, New York, USA
Ship Name Trave
Residence Zerakow
Departure Bremen

The record even has person he knows in faded ink below darker writing as "father-in-law _____ Konieczny" which would be the accurate surname.

I'm not familiar with all of the variations using the Polish language, but I cannot find any place called Zerakow Poland or Zerakow Galicia. There are different close names such as Zyrakow in the Rzeszow area.

Does this seem like it may be a match to you?

Thank you,

Matt

Hi Matt,
Well done! I think you found a perfect match. The baptism info which you extracted (or which you found, already extracted?) is clearly from a record written in Latin. Josephus is Józef in Polish, Joannes is Jan in Polish, and Hedvigis is Jadwiga in Polish. As I've learned from Dave (who helps people learn how to do Latin record translations here on the forum), people who went about their whole lives speaking Polish and using the Polish forms of their names might never have known that their names were recorded in Latin for baptisms, etc. and would be rather surprised with us if we were to call them by the Latin forms of their names in our family trees. If you have the original image of the record from Żyraków and need any clarification on it, go ahead and post it in the Latin records translation thread.
The "Zerakow" you found on the ship manifest may either be an error in recording the name of the town, or an error in reading and indexing it, but I would consider this a match, as well. If you want to post an image (or a link to FamilySearch since I don't have an Ancestry subscription) of the manifest here, I can look at it.
One more topic - - the correct Polish form for his wife's name would be Lucyna Konieczna. The surname ending changes based on gender, so she would be Konieczna and her father Konieczny. (Similarly, your Jadwiga would be Jadwiga Jasińska). I see indexed in Geneteka one Lucyna Konieczna, she may or may not be yours, but her birth year of 1881 seems reasonable, and her place of birth is Zasów which is about 6 miles from Żyraków so it is plausible. Here is the link to Geneteka:
https://geneteka.genealodzy.pl/index.php?op=gt&lang=pol&bdm=B&w=09pk&rid=B&search_lastname=Konieczna&search_name=Lucyna&search_lastname2=&search_name2=&from_date=&to_date=
There is a small chance that her name was Ludwika, rather than Lucyna, so keep your eyes open for that possibility when searching records.
Best regards,
Sophia

Thank you again! Your hints about naming will come in handy and offer many new search options through databases. I attached the manifest for the Trave (or attempted to). Lucyna was definitely born in 1881 or 1882 by most documents that I do have.

Is there a guide per chance of how different name endings and how they vary for male/female depending on which consonant or vowel is there?

All the best,

Matt

Also attached what is supposed to be Lucy's ship manifest if correct.

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:17 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2022 2:17 pm

Sophia wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Trish — Fri Jul 01, 2022 1:53 pm

Author: Trish

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2022 1:53 pm

Sophia wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

Trish — Fri Jul 01, 2022 1:35 pm

Author: Trish

Posted: Fri Jul 01, 2022 1:35 pm

MBBuffalo wrote:

FAMILY SEARCH RECORD:
Name Josephus Bata
Sex Male
Baptism Date 09 Jul 1879
Baptism Place Żyraków, Żyraków, Rzeszow, Poland
Father's Name Joannes Bata
Mother's Name Hedvigis Jasintko
Event Type Baptism
House Number 12
Volume Beginning Year 1846
Volume Ending Year 1886

INFORMATION FROM ANCESTRY AND MY RELATIVES
Name Joseph/Jozef/Josef Bala
Sex Male
Birth Date: 12 Jul 1879
Father's Name: Jan Bala
Mother's Name: Jadwiga Jasinski

According to all the Census' from Buffalo, Joseph noted he arrived in 1899. One ship manifest has this listed:
Name Josef Bala
Gender Male
Ethnicity/ Nationality Galician
Age 19
Birth Date 1880
Place of Origin Galicia
Departure Port Bremen
Arrival Date 2 Mar 1899
Arrival Port New York, New York, USA
Ship Name Trave
Residence Zerakow
Departure Bremen

The record even has person he knows in faded ink below darker writing as "father-in-law _____ Konieczny" which would be the accurate surname.

I'm not familiar with all of the variations using the Polish language, but I cannot find any place called Zerakow Poland or Zerakow Galicia. There are different close names such as Zyrakow in the Rzeszow area.

Matt

Hi Matt and Sophia,
I am attaching a picture of the ship manifest for Jozef Bala. He is line #14.

Hope this helps.
Trish

Re: Surname Bala

Sophia — Thu Jun 30, 2022 3:28 pm

Author: Sophia

Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2022 3:28 pm

MBBuffalo wrote:

Re: Surname Bala

MBBuffalo — Thu Jun 30, 2022 2:00 pm

Author: MBBuffalo

Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2022 2:00 pm

Sophia wrote:

MBBuffalo wrote:

Hello,

Was wondering if anyone could direct me to finding information about my primary surname Bala. I'm convinced it has been shortened from something else as the trail runs dry at my great grandfather on ancestry, family search, JewishGen, etc.

My great grandfather was Jozef Bala (1879 - 1927 - Buffalo, NY). All his documents list him from either Galicia or Austria/Poland. May have found his hometown if the immigration records are correct, but even that I'm not certain of. His wife was Lucia Konieczny.

His father is listed as Jan Bala ( Unknown - 1902 - Buffalo, NY) and his mother as Jadwiga Jasinska with no information about origins of dates of birth or death aside from 1902 on Jan's tombstone.

DNA testing and other family research shows our family from the Krakow/Tarnow areas or within southern Poland.

Thank you kindly,

Matt

Hi Matt,
Welcome to the forum!
You may find it interesting that the name Bała is in use today, in Poland. Here is a surname distribution map:

https://nazwiska-polskie.pl/Ba%C5%82a

As you can see, the largest concentration of people with this surname is in the Krakow region, which supports what you said your prior research has shown. Each time you zoom in on the map, you will see the numbers become more specific to individual towns. Also, to the left, beneath the map, you will see the number of people in individual towns with the Bała surname.

This makes me think that your name has not been shortened.

The key to finding information beyond what Ancestry (etc) have online is to know the town of origin of your ancestors. Usually, the best tool for finding this is a ship's manifest, although the older those are, the less information they provide, since the requirements for data gathering changed over time. I should add that the "L with a slash" in the Bala surname could have been interpreted as a "T" by someone who indexed the ship manifest records, so be sure to include the spelling "Bata" when you search. Once you have the name of the town, you can get into finding records from Polish sources that would give you birth, marriage and death info.

Best regards,
Sophia

Re: Surname Bala

Sophia — Thu Jun 30, 2022 6:10 am

Author: Sophia

Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2022 6:10 am

MBBuffalo wrote: