The Story of Maciej Wiciejewski

garncarz = potter Born in the 1760s, Maciej Wiciejewski and Blazej Wisniewski (two of my four great grandfathers on Anthony Raczkiewicz’ mother’s side) worked as potters in the factory in Tomaszow Lubelski started by a Polish magnate Alexander Zamoyski and a ceramist. The company successfully made and sold faience--a type of tin-glazed pottery – and eventually the more-coveted porcelain. Unfortunately political changes occurred that doomed the factory and by 1827, the factory had closed. Maciej, who had risen to a foreman position, went back to grave digging – the occupation of his father. ***** Maciej was born to Jakub Wiciejewski and Marianna Plebanski. His father also had worked as a potter at the faience factory located on Lwowska Street. They lived in house #201 but no street name is given and the numbering of houses has changed since Marianna, his mother, died there in 1811. ***** Maciej Wiciejewski married Marianna nee Metalska and they had children who were born between 1814 and 1824 in houses 106 (the home of Maciej Mirowski, a shoemaker), 160, 206, and 207. Four of the six records are in house #206. By 1827, the records say Maciej and Marianna lived in 27. ***** Maciej and his wife had nine children: Salomea, Malgorzata, Marianna, Józef, Agnieszka, Antonina, Wojciech, Konstancja, and Walenty Józef. Marianna and Jozef died young. I can’t find any records for Agnieszka other than her birth. It is pretty fascinating to be able to trace back the occupation of relatives many years ago. The daughters married a furrier, a spoon maker, a shoe maker, and a carpenter. Two of them had occupations listed – day laborer and shoemaker/cobbler. One son became a blacksmith and the other son did a lot of things including being a spoon maker, being an innkeeper in Para as well as being a peasant farmer there. ***** Their oldest child Salomea (my 3x great grandmother) had her first born in 1824, in house #27 - - her father’s house. She had married Andrzej Kaszucki, a furrier, the year before. Her parents had their last child (Walenty) two and a half months earlier so there would have been two newborns in the house along with six of Maciej and Marianna’s other children. ***** Daughter Małgorzata Wiciejewska married Marcin Ceronoski, an apprentice spoon maker, and she was a day laborer when she died. Daughter Antonina married Mateusz Bulewicz, a shoemaker/cobbler and she was listed as one herself at her death twenty years later. ***** TWINS! Wojciech and Konstancja were the 7th and 8th of the nine children. The father was listed as the "renowned" Maciej Wiciejewski, was aged 36 and still worked as a potter. Their first born, Salomea was 15 years old when they were born. What happened to the twins when they grew up? Konstancja married Jan Nitka, a 46 year old widower of the Greek Catholic rite from Rusianow, Galicia, Austria. Konstancja died as a widow at age 77 in the village of Rybnica. She likely moved there when she was married. Wojciech married Victoria Melin from Dabrowa. He was an apprentice blacksmith at the time. He later married Anna Makar from Majdany Jozefow whose parents were deceased and she was working as a maid in Tomaszow Lubelski. Wojiech died at age 50 before his wife. ***** Maciej and Marianna’s youngest son Walenty Jozef married Helena Józefko, from Komadów but residing in Tomaszów, working as a home helper. Walenty worked as a spoon maker, innkeeper in Para, and peasant farmer in Para, His second wife Ewa Tarczulowna, was the daughter of shoemakers. ***** In 1817, after Maciej and Marianna had six children, he was a witness for his sister Katarzyna’s wedding. She lived with him, since their parents were deceased. He was also a witness for the marriage of two other younger sisters. Since they were younger, it is possible, but the record doesn’t say, that they lived with him also. All three sisters married in their late 20’s. ***** Maciej Wiciejewski died in Tomaszów on December 23, 1839 at 4 o'clock in the evening. He was 76 years old and left behind a widowed wife Maryanna née Metelski. On the next day (Christmas Eve), two declarants, Grzegorz Nazareswicz, 51 and Łukasz Nazareswicz, 41 both blacksmiths in Tomaszów Lubelski, verified his death for the officials. I do not know who they were except that one of his sons also worked as a blacksmith. .