PolishOrigins(TM) Forum

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

PolishLibrarian — Fri Jun 01, 2012 7:38 pm

Author: PolishLibrarian

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 7:38 pm

Thanks Ute. You are right. I was very lucky - my grandparents' surnames are farely unique and in almost all cases the names were written fairly clearly on the manifests (and hence indexed so pretty easy to find). In addition the resources at the Minnesota Historical Society Library are excellent. I'm going to send you a private message as well.

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:46 am

Author: Ute

Posted: Fri Jun 01, 2012 12:46 am

PolishLibrarian wrote:

Sorry this is so long, but I think it's interesting to see the chronology of all the immigrating family members.

I started on this journey in 2004 when all I knew were my paternal grandparents’ names, that they were Polish and that they both died in the early 1920s. This is what I have found since then, including meeting living relatives in the Rabka area in 2009.

My grandfather’s family was from Nowy Targ.
Oct. 1903 – My gfather’s older brother Jan (b. 1882) was the first to arrive through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) going to a friend in Streator IL. Apparently there were coal mines outside Streator, but this ancestor worked at the Owens-Corning glassworks/bottle plant all of his life. For more info. on Streater see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streator,_Illinois . In 1911 Jan married a young Polish woman Lucya B. at St. John Cantius Church in Chicago. Jan & Lucya had 8 children.

Sept. 1904 – Next my gfather’s sister’s husband (Walenty Gal b 1876 in Odrowaz – thanks to Shellie for his baptismal record) came through Ellis Is. (via Bremen) to his brother-in-law Jan in Streator.

Feb. 1905 – Jan’s married older brother Francis (b. 1878) came to Jan in Streator through Baltimore (via Bremen). This is the only record I have found for Francis, he just totally disappears.

May 1908 – By 1908 Walenty Gal had moved to Northeast Minneapolis (see demographics & religion info here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast,_Minneapolis ) where his wife Agata (my gfather’s sister b 1876, d 1919) joins him. They had no children.

Nov. 1909 – My grandfather Walenty B. (b. 1885, d. 1924) came through Ellis Island (via Bremen) to Northeast Minneapolis to his brother-in-law W. Gal. He was detained for 2 days at Ellis Is., apparently waiting for money to be telegraphed from W. Gal for his railroad ticket. In 1910 both Walentys are working as laborers for the railroad. In 1920 my gfather is a laborer in a flour mill (General Mills and Pillsbury began with grain mills here). He was the last of the family to come to the U.S.

My grandmother’s family is from the Chabówka/Rabka Zdrój area (about 15 mi. north of Nowy Targ).
Prior to May 1904 – My grandmother’s older sister Zofia (b. 1881) arrived first (date, ports, destination, who coming to all unknown – my main brick wall). My first record for her shows that on May 2, 1904 at Holy Cross Church in Northeast Mpls. she married Karol Hutyra (b. ~1881-82, in Oct. 1902 sailed from Rotterdam via Liverpool arrived in Montreal, took the Canadian Pacific Railway train west entering the U.S. through Sault St. Marie, going to his brother in Mpls.). I think Karol was from Ujsoły (near Gmina Rajcza, in County Żwiec). In the 1910 census he was employed as a boiler maker on railroad engines. Between 1915 and 1920 the family relocated to the small town of Weyerhaeuser Wisconsin where Karol was listed as a farm laborer in 1920 and a farmer in 1930. There were quite a few Polish immigrants living in the Weyerhaeuser area, many of whom came from NE Mpls. Karol & Zofia had 6 children.

May 1909 – My grandmother Barbara (b. 1886) came through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) to her brother-in-law Karol in Northeast Mpls. In 1910 she was living with her sister’s family and working as a dishwasher in a restaurant. In Jan. 1912 she married my grandfather and they had 7 children.

Dec 1911 – My gmother’s younger sister Magdalena (b. 1895) arrived to Zofia’s family coming through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) one month before Barbara’s wedding. Both Zofia & Magdalena are in my grandparent’s wedding picture. In 1915 Magdalena married a young man Andrzej Chudoba from Nowy Targ and they had 6 children.

PolishLibrarian,
It is amazing how much information you have found on your ancestors since 2004 when you started researching your family. I know from my own research how much time, patience, and perseverence it takes when you start your research with nothing else but your grandparents’ names and their dates of death. You can be very proud on yourself that you have found out so much and that you even took a trip to Poland and found living family members in Rabka.
It is so interesting to see the chronology of all your immigrating family members, where they settled and worked, and what their life was like after immigratiion. Thank you very much for sharing all this information with us!
Ute

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

PolishLibrarian — Sun May 27, 2012 9:28 pm

Author: PolishLibrarian

Posted: Sun May 27, 2012 9:28 pm

Sorry this is so long, but I think it's interesting to see the chronology of all the immigrating family members.

I started on this journey in 2004 when all I knew were my paternal grandparents’ names, that they were Polish and that they both died in the early 1920s. This is what I have found since then, including meeting living relatives in the Rabka area in 2009.

My grandfather’s family was from Nowy Targ.
Oct. 1903 – My gfather’s older brother Jan (b. 1882) was the first to arrive through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) going to a friend in Streator IL. Apparently there were coal mines outside Streator, but this ancestor worked at the Owens-Corning glassworks/bottle plant all of his life. For more info. on Streater see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Streator,_Illinois . In 1911 Jan married a young Polish woman Lucya B. at St. John Cantius Church in Chicago. Jan & Lucya had 8 children.

Sept. 1904 – Next my gfather’s sister’s husband (Walenty Gal b 1876 in Odrowaz – thanks to Shellie for his baptismal record) came through Ellis Is. (via Bremen) to his brother-in-law Jan in Streator.

Feb. 1905 – Jan’s married older brother Francis (b. 1878) came to Jan in Streator through Baltimore (via Bremen). This is the only record I have found for Francis, he just totally disappears.

May 1908 – By 1908 Walenty Gal had moved to Northeast Minneapolis (see demographics & religion info here http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Northeast,_Minneapolis ) where his wife Agata (my gfather’s sister b 1876, d 1919) joins him. They had no children.

Nov. 1909 – My grandfather Walenty B. (b. 1885, d. 1924) came through Ellis Island (via Bremen) to Northeast Minneapolis to his brother-in-law W. Gal. He was detained for 2 days at Ellis Is., apparently waiting for money to be telegraphed from W. Gal for his railroad ticket. In 1910 both Walentys are working as laborers for the railroad. In 1920 my gfather is a laborer in a flour mill (General Mills and Pillsbury began with grain mills here). He was the last of the family to come to the U.S.

My grandmother’s family is from the Chabówka/Rabka Zdrój area (about 15 mi. north of Nowy Targ).
Prior to May 1904 – My grandmother’s older sister Zofia (b. 1881) arrived first (date, ports, destination, who coming to all unknown – my main brick wall). My first record for her shows that on May 2, 1904 at Holy Cross Church in Northeast Mpls. she married Karol Hutyra (b. ~1881-82, in Oct. 1902 sailed from Rotterdam via Liverpool arrived in Montreal, took the Canadian Pacific Railway train west entering the U.S. through Sault St. Marie, going to his brother in Mpls.). I think Karol was from Ujsoły (near Gmina Rajcza, in County Żwiec). In the 1910 census he was employed as a boiler maker on railroad engines. Between 1915 and 1920 the family relocated to the small town of Weyerhaeuser Wisconsin where Karol was listed as a farm laborer in 1920 and a farmer in 1930. There were quite a few Polish immigrants living in the Weyerhaeuser area, many of whom came from NE Mpls. Karol & Zofia had 6 children.

May 1909 – My grandmother Barbara (b. 1886) came through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) to her brother-in-law Karol in Northeast Mpls. In 1910 she was living with her sister’s family and working as a dishwasher in a restaurant. In Jan. 1912 she married my grandfather and they had 7 children.

Dec 1911 – My gmother’s younger sister Magdalena (b. 1895) arrived to Zofia’s family coming through Ellis Island (via Antwerp) one month before Barbara’s wedding. Both Zofia & Magdalena are in my grandparent’s wedding picture. In 1915 Magdalena married a young man Andrzej Chudoba from Nowy Targ and they had 6 children.

where di our Polish Ancestors Live After Immigration

Mary Pate — Mon May 14, 2012 11:10 am

Author: Mary Pate

Posted: Mon May 14, 2012 11:10 am

Thank you "Ute" and "Gdeborski" for your input. It's interesting to know where the Poles settled other than the more apparent places. I never realized that they immigrated to Colorado. You mentioned having ancestors from Wagrowiec area--I do, too. My maternal grandparents came from near there and I have many generations back from that area, too. Grandparents were Dolinski/Zielinski. Other name in that line are Zientara, Posinski, Komasa, Napierala, etc., etc. St. Casimir's was the Catholic church in Leavenworth, KS. I have a picture on my Family Room wall from 1913 of their (translated) St. Casimir, King, Society. On it, I have 7 ancestors--grandparents, uncles, cousin. There was also another fraternal orgn. called St. Barbara's. This must have been quite common. When I went to the parish grade school in the 1940s and 50s, it was still called the Polish church. However, after the coal mines closed in the 1930s, many Poles left because of lack of jobs. The story of how Poles did get to Kansas has always interested me. There is a story that the priest contacted some clergy in Chicago to recruit Polish men to come work the mines. Don't know how true that is since all of my ancestors came directly to Leavenworth from the Poznan area and Galicia. Speaking of Galicia, the article on it in the forum was quite informative. Thanks for all the interesting reading.
Mary

Re: Where are ancestors immigrated in US

Ute — Sun May 13, 2012 12:39 am

Author: Ute

Posted: Sun May 13, 2012 12:39 am

Mary Pate wrote:

I've just scanned the many entries of immigrants from Poland areas to Chicago. Just wanted to let everyone know that both sets of my grandpaents immigrated to Leavenworth, Kansas, to work in the coal mines there. My Dad's parents came from the eastern Galicia area (Austro-Hungary area then - 1900). My Mom's folks came from the old Poznan Province. So, there Polish immigrants from different areas settled there. There was also a large segment of Poles in Kansas City, Kansas. There, they mostly worked in the stockyards or railroad yards.

I do know Chicago was settled by many, many Poles but just wanted all to know that some came to Kansas, too.

Mary

Thank you, Mary and gdeborski! Chicago was the destination of the largest Polish immigrant group, and many of us have a connection to Chicago, but of course many other states became home to a large contingent of Polish immigrants who came to America. Each story is interesting and helps us to better understand our ancestors' lifes, where they first settled, where they worked, and what their life was like after immigration, and that's the goal of our discussion.
Ute

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

gdeborski — Sat May 12, 2012 5:26 pm

Author: gdeborski

Posted: Sat May 12, 2012 5:26 pm

The Polish ancestors of mine that I have found in ship manifests all came through the port of Galveston and settled in Colorado. Among the earliest to arrive and settle in Globeville (now a part of the city of Denver) was Konstanty Klimowski (also spelled Klimoski). Konstanty was the younger brother of my great grandmother Katherine Klimowska. the Klimowskis were from Szczutowo near Rypin in Russian controlled Poland.

Globeville supported a variety of immigrant groups including many from various areas of Poland. In 1889, Globeville's Poles organized Towarzystwo sw Marcina (St. Martin’s Society), Lodge #134, as part of the national Polish National Alliance. Lodge members then began to raise money for a Polish church and, in 1902, built St. Joseph's Polish Catholic Church. The church is still in operation and I believe it is on the National Register of Historic Places. See http://www.globevillehistory.com/poles.html and http://globevillestory.blogspot.com/search?q=klimoski

Sometime in the mid 1880's, my great grandfather Frank(Franciszek) Deborski made the crossing and joined his brother-in-law. Frank went to work in the coal mines near Superior, Colorado and in 1898 paid for the passage of his wife Katherine and their 5 children, including my grandfather Costek. In their early teens, all the males in the family started to work in the coal mines. They lived in a mining town, were paid in company scrip and had to buy what they needed at the company store. For a little on Superior see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Superior,_Colorado

On May 5, 1907 my other Polish great grandfather, Peter Pankowski (also spelled Pankoski), his wife Agnes (Kuranka) and their 5 children, including Marianna, my grandmother, arrived at the port of Galveston. They settled in Superior and again all the males went to work in the coal mines. The Pankowskis were from Rybowo near Wągroviec in German controlled Poland.

My father, both grandfathers, my four great grandfathers, Polish, English, and Welsh, all worked in the coal mines in the area near Boulder, Colorado.

Where are ancestors immigrated in US

Mary Pate — Sat May 12, 2012 2:18 pm

Author: Mary Pate

Posted: Sat May 12, 2012 2:18 pm

I've just scanned the many entries of immigrants from Poland areas to Chicago. Just wanted to let everyone know that both sets of my grandpaents immigrated to Leavenworth, Kansas, to work in the coal mines there. My Dad's parents came from the eastern Galicia area (Austro-Hungary area then - 1900). My Mom's folks came from the old Poznan Province. So, there Polish immigrants from different areas settled there. There was also a large segment of Poles in Kansas City, Kansas. There, they mostly worked in the stockyards or railroad yards.

I do know Chicago was settled by many, many Poles but just wanted all to know that some came to Kansas, too.

Mary

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Fri May 11, 2012 11:44 pm

Author: Ute

Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 11:44 pm

Ute wrote:

I just found two interesting links that may be of interest to those of us who have ancestors in Chicago.

- An online database that includes the first ten years (1908-1917) of "Dziennik Zwiadzkowy", Chicago's largest and oldest Polish-language newspaper: http://ecollections.crl.edu/cdm4/index_dz.php

- A website named chicagoancestors.org. The introduction says: "Whether you're doing local history research or your family genealogy, ChicagoAncestors is the spot for finding and sharing information about Chicago. Interested in historic Chicago neighborhoods, churches, buildings or events? Start your search here.": http://www.chicagoancestors.org

I just had a closer look at the website "Chicago.ancestors.org, Discover the past by address" http://www.chicagoancestors.org
Among other interesting things, it has a Chicago neighborhood research guide with maps, one can search by address, and so on, which may be helpful when we are looking for old Chicago addresses again.

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Fri May 11, 2012 12:45 pm

Author: Ute

Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:45 pm

klizzy wrote:

Ute
I've read the book you refereed to by the national park service. It is quite interesting. My maiden name is Mysliwy and my grandfather and his store are mentioned in that book. The store is a restaurant today known as In a Pigs Eye. Some cousins and I have eaten in there and it was nice to see the parts that still look the same as when I went to the store as a child, it brought back many memories that all of us shared. He lived and worked on Derby St which was in the Polish district in Salem, MA.
I found it interesting that the park service researched the area around Derby's wharf and wrote about the lives of the Polish people in that area.

Klizzy,
I've only read part of it, but will try to read more on the weekend. What I read so far was very interesting with a lot of information not only on the life of the Polish people in the area, but also on Polish history, the reasons why so many Poles left their home country (e.g. page 36 ff), Polish life style, and so on, plus many interesting pictures. I can imagine how nice it was to see that parts of your grandfather's old store still exist and still look the same.
Ute

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

klizzy — Fri May 11, 2012 8:55 am

Author: klizzy

Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 8:55 am

Ute
I've read the book you refereed to by the national park service. It is quite interesting. My maiden name is Mysliwy and my grandfather and his store are mentioned in that book. The store is a restaurant today known as In a Pigs Eye. Some cousins and I have eaten in there and it was nice to see the parts that still look the same as when I went to the store as a child, it brought back many memories that all of us shared. He lived and worked on Derby St which was in the Polish district in Salem, MA.
I found it interesting that the park service researched the area around Derby's wharf and wrote about the lives of the Polish people in that area.

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Fri May 11, 2012 12:21 am

Author: Ute

Posted: Fri May 11, 2012 12:21 am

I just found two interesting links that may be of interest to those of us who have ancestors in Chicago.

- An online database that includes the first ten years (1908-1917) of "Dziennik Zwiadzkowy", Chicago's largest and oldest Polish-language newspaper: http://ecollections.crl.edu/cdm4/index_dz.php

- A website named chicagoancestors.org. The introduction says: "Whether you're doing local history research or your family genealogy, ChicagoAncestors is the spot for finding and sharing information about Chicago. Interested in historic Chicago neighborhoods, churches, buildings or events? Start your search here.": http://www.chicagoancestors.org

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Hussar — Thu May 10, 2012 3:23 pm

Author: Hussar

Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 3:23 pm

Magroski49 wrote:

I'm still in the process of learning where our ancestors lived -- was N Hamlin Ave a Polish or a mixed neighborhood? One of my Aunts lived in the Fulleron area until some years back.[/quote]

Ute,

I did that search many years ago and I don't remember to have seen additional info on the neighborhood. I am sorry I cannot help you.

Gilberto[/quote] Gilberto, until the late 80's, it was heavily polish-american. One street west (Avers) is Kosciusko park and it's indoor swimming pool. 2 streets east and one north is St Hyacinth Basilica. A few blocks south is Our Lady of Grace where I went to Saturday polish school. Although the residents of the area are no longer a majority on Sundays they flock back. Gentrification of many neighborhoods including St. John Cantius, Holy Trinity, St. Stanislaus Kostka, St. Mary of the Angels, St, Hedwig, etc. had pushed their former residents into the areas once polish. In addition to Hyacinth, Wenceslaus, St. James, the other St. Stanislaus and even St. Ladislaus isn't quite the safe neighborhoods they once were. If someone were to tell me 35-40 years ago that St. Francis Borgia would have a huge Polish contingent, I would have never believed it. On the south side, similar is happening, Pilsen is being gentrified, areas west of Brighton Park such as Archer park are getting Pilsen's former residents and problems.

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Cyrwus — Thu May 10, 2012 9:47 am

Author: Cyrwus

Posted: Thu May 10, 2012 9:47 am

Ute,

Yes that is the book, my dad has it and he also has the Polish Chicago: Our History, Our Recipes. I will have to look at them next time I am at my parents. I was looking on the map and Fay St is just out side this neighborhood.

Mark

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Cyrwus — Thu May 10, 2012 9:47 am

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Wed May 09, 2012 10:27 pm

Author: Ute

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 10:27 pm

justvicki wrote:

Ute wrote:

violin75 wrote:

When my ggrandfather , Joseph A. Piotrowski moved from Poland to America he lived in Utica, Oneida County, New York. Then after my ggrandmother died in 1950 he found himself in Chicago as well. He lived at 8438 South Damen Ave, Chicago, IL. I cant find it on Google Maps so I assume it has been torn down. He also lived on Hyslop Street in Chicago. Im not sure if this was a heavily Polish populated area or not? Rest of the family stayed in New York!

Hello violin75,
I found 8438 South Damen Ave (see attached map), but I couldn't find a Hyslop Street in Chicago. I checked the Chicago Tribune Historical Archive and found an article on a fire that destroyed the Harrish grade school in 1950, entitled "Two teachers get heroism award in school fire". It says "Miss Broadhurst, a Hammond teacher for 20 years, lives at 5945 Hyslop Ave, Hammond". A 1953 article also mentioned a Eugene Powlas of 4955 Hyslop av., Hammond.

Hyslop Avenue is in Hammond, Indiana. Hammond lies right next to the southern most Chicago suburbs of Markham, South Holland and Calumet City.

This is a Google Map link I found for 8438 South Damen Avenue in Chicago.

http://maps.google.com/maps?oe=utf-8&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&q=8438+South+Damen+Ave+Chicago&um=1&ie=UTF-8&hq=&hnear=0x880e2f897d5ef2a7:0xa4f8a395ba9cc7a0,8438+S+Damen+Ave,+Chicago,+IL+60620&gl=us&ei=ji6rT9m_FaO16gHGgMGpAQ&sa=X&oi=geocode_result&ct=title&resnum=1&ved=0CB4Q8gEwAA

Thank you, vicki! Wow -- we got so much info in one day!

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Wed May 09, 2012 10:05 pm

Author: Ute

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 10:05 pm

Cyrwus wrote:

Ute,
Bill and I were talking the other day about a book that he got about the Back of the Yards neighborhood, I remember about a book buy the same series (Images of America) about Polish Downtown in Chicago. This book might help you in understanding why you family settled in this area of Chicago.
Mark

Thank you, Mark. Is this the book you are referring to? http://www.amazon.com/Chicagos-Polish-Downtown-Images-America/sim/073853286X/2
Amazon sells it for $16.54. The other books listed below sound interesting also.

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

justvicki — Wed May 09, 2012 10:00 pm

Author: justvicki

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 10:00 pm

Ute wrote:

violin75 wrote:

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Cyrwus — Wed May 09, 2012 9:55 pm

Author: Cyrwus

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 9:55 pm

Ute,

Bill and I were talking the other day about a book that he got about the Back of the Yards neighborhood, I remember about a book buy the same series (Images of America) about Polish Downtown in Chicago. This book might help you in understanding why you family settled in this area of Chicago.

Mark

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

justvicki — Wed May 09, 2012 9:54 pm

Author: justvicki

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 9:54 pm

Ute wrote:

justvicki wrote:

Ute,

I live in WV now (its home) after retiring and moving back from CA last year. My grandparents immigrated to Buffalo, NY from Ludzmierz, then to Old Forge, PA and then to Gary, WV to work in the coal mines. I have a funny feeling our relatives may have passed each other on the road somewhere, either here in the states, or in the old county.

Me too, Vicki! My Dlugopole ancestors all attended the church in Ludzmierz, I bet they passed each other .... at least in the old country ...

They may have even gone to mass together. It truly is a small world!

Re: Where did our Polish ancestors live after immigration?

Ute — Wed May 09, 2012 9:50 pm

Author: Ute

Posted: Wed May 09, 2012 9:50 pm

klizzy wrote:

My grandfather lived in Salem, MA after arriving in the states. He lived there for the rest of his life. Me married my grandmother in Salem, MA and opened a grocery store there as well. Most of his children lived there or in neighboring towns as well as many of his grandchildren. It's a good area of the country to live in.

Thank you, klizzy. It's so great to learn about the different places where our ancestors settled in the U.S. I understand that they tended to live near one another once in the United States. I just noticed a website focusing on Polish-Americans in Salem, MA that looks interesting. I'll make sure I read it later.
http://www.nps.gov/sama/historyculture/upload/SAMA-rpt-small.pdf