The Story of Andrzej Kaszucki & Salomea Wiciejewska

Andrzej Kaszucki was likely a very respected man. When his daughter was married in 1885, when he was 53, he was listed as a burgher in the city of Tomaszów. He wouldn’t have been a grand burgher, a hereditary title reserved for the magnates. He would have been a minor burgher, as he worked in the middle class as a furrier, carrying on the tradition of his father who came from Uhnow, Galicia, Austria from a family of furriers. His family was of the Greek Catholic tradition up to his granddaughter Katarzyna’s Roman Catholic marriage to my great grandfather Jan Raczkiewicz. ***** Another way that respect can be seen is in the way he was a witness or declarant for the deaths and births of many people besides his own children. For instance, on June 25 1821 at 8am, his niece Marianna Kaszucka (daughter of Teodore & Teodora.) was born in the house of Jan Zamalski in house #425. On June 28 at 10pm, Andrzej went with Wojciech Kudlicki, a shoemaker to the priest and confirmed her birth. As their father, Andrzej did this for all of his own children. For instance on April 7 1824 at 7pm, he and Rafal Laswicki, a carpenter, and Mikolaj Niedźwiedź, went from his father-in-law’ Maciej Wiciejwski’s house #27, where Nicholas was born the day before at 11::00 am, and made sure the birth was registered. ***** Andrzej and his two brothers moved to Tomaszów Lubelski from Uhnów, Galicia, Austria. which at the time was in the Ukraine Province of Lwów. (Uhnów - Polish; Uhniv - Ukrainian) Their parents Lukasz and Agata Kaszucki were furriers there. Andrzej and his brother Teodor worked as furriers and their brother Fidory was a shoemaker. I do not know if he had siblings that remained there. ***** Why did Andrzej and his two brothers move from Uhnów to Tomaszów Lubelski, thirty miles away? Uhnów is approximately two miles from the current Poland - Ukraine border, but at the time Uhnów,would have been in Galicia. By the current route, they would have moved around 30 miles from home. It seems likely that the three Kaszucki siblings made their way to Tomaszów Lubelski at this time for more freedom and for economic security. It was not likely for religious reasons since they were Greek rather than Roman Catholic, though they were not Orthodox. ***** Andrzej and his two brothers Teodore and Fedory were born between 1791 and 1802, while both Tomaszów Lubelski and Uhnów were under Austrian rule. When the three boys were between the approximate ages of 13 and 22, the Vienna Congress created the Polish Congress under Russia in 1815. During this time period, 29% of the people were of Polish origin while Ukrainians made up 70% and there were a very small number of people of German descent. Whatever changes that were coming from this may have caused the boys to seek their fortune away from home. After 1815, Tomaszów Lubelski was part of the independent Congress Poland. That might be why the first brother went there. The town included many laborers involved in flour millers, wood processors, weavers, tailors, shoemakers and leather tanners. Unfortunately, the independent Kingdom of Poland was short-lived. By 1816, the first brother Teodore was living and was married in Tomaszów Lubelski. At that point their mother Agata Krzackowska was still alive in Uhnow, but their father Lukasz was deceased. Andrzej married in 1823 in Tomaszów Lubelski. By 1831, The reforms were short-lived and Russification began. Besides Tomaszów, other Kaszuckis ended up in Chodywance, Rzeplin and Łaszczów. ***** Like his two older brothers, Andrzej found a wife in Tomaszów Lubelski. Prior to marriage, banns were published and permission was obtained if the participants were underage. Two Banns were announced on January 12th and 19th, 1823. Because his father Lukasz was deceased and his mother Agata nee Krzaczk was still living in the city of Uhnów, Galicia, Austria, Andrzej went to the municipal office a week before the wedding and had an “act of knowing” drawn up which was approved by the court of peace of the county. This was required because at the age of 24, marriage required parental approval and his parents were not available to provide consent. The bride’s parents accompanied her to church for the wedding and provided their consent. ***** Andrzej and Salomea Wiciejewska (my 3x great grandparents) appeared before the pastor of Tomaszów, who was the civil registrar for this city, founded in the county of Tomaszów, province of Lublin on January 26, 1823. Salomea Wiciejowska was 19 years old, Roman Catholic, and a maiden, according to a certificate excerpted from the books of the Tomaszów parish church. She and her parents, Maciej Wiciejowski and her mother, Marianna nee Metelska, were all born in the city of Tomaszów Lubelski. Salomea was the firstborn of their nine children. Her family was Roman Catholic and worked as potters. Andrzej was of the Greek Uniate faith and was working as a furrier in Tomaszów Lubelski. ***** The witnesses to the marriage were Andrzej Niedźwiedź, age 41, (related to current day Curt Wolf) and Szymon Władysz, age 40, who were both shoemakers, Rafał Lusawicki, age 47, cabinet-maker, and Marcin Ceroński, age 28, spoonmaker, all residing in the city of Tomaszów. Initially the translators were stumped at the occupation of Marcin -- Łyszczarz. It was not on a list of occupations and their Polish names that I had. Eventually, it was determined that it meant spoonmaker. ***** Another time that Andrzej was a declarant, or witness, was on June 18, 1827 at 10 a.m., when along with his brother Theodore, 36, he was a witness for their other brother's death. Fedora died the day before at noon. Andrzej and the brother who was the other witness were both furriers. Their 25 year old brother who died mid-day was a shoemaker and left behind a widowed wife Maryanna nee Mirowski. (Remember the two brothers are hard to differentiate in the records due to similar names -Fedor, Fedir, Fedora, Teodor, etc.) ***** Andrzej and Salomea’s Children: Andrzej and his Salomea had eight children in 23 years. The girls were baptized Roman Catholic and the boys were baptized Greek Catholic. Their first child Nikolaj (or Mikolaj – not sure) was born on April 28, 1824, in Tomaszów, just after Salomea’s own brother Valentine was born on February 9. Mikolaj’s first wife was a Greek Catholic woman from Tomaszów and his second wife was Greek Orthodox. ***** Jan was born in 1826 and there is no further information about him. Piotr (1829) died at the age of three during an outbreak of cholera. "Stefan Jozef" (my 2x great grandfather) was born on August 10, 1832, and his first wife was Greek Catholic and his second wife (my 2x great grandmother) was Roman Catholic. Marianna (1835) married Ignacy Pirog, a Greek Catholic shoemaker from Przonek. Michał (1837) died at age 40, unmarried. Julianna (1841) married Grzegorz Niedźwiedź, a furrier. Franciszek (1847) died at age two. All the witnesses to the births, marriages and deaths were furriers, shoemakers, watchmakers, hunters and farmers. ***** Deaths of Andrzej and Salomea: ***** When Andrzej died at age 62, on September 18, 1861 at 2:00 a.m., his friends and family returned the favor of reporting his death. His son Jozef and another furrier, Mikolaj Tracznaki went two days later on September 20 at 4:00 pm and presented themselves and confirmed his death. Andrzej and Salomea had been married 38 years. ***** Salomea died on April 24 1877 at age 73, 16 years after her husband. The declarants went the next day to report her death. They were Józef, 48 (her son) and Walenty Lisikiewicz, both farmers from Tomaszów. They were both illiterate so the document was read aloud to them and signed by the priest. ***** https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galicia_(Eastern_Europe) Uhnów information https://www.ukraine.com/forums/forum/personals/genealogy/5374-town-of-uhnow-rawa-ruska Poverty https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poverty_in_Austrian_Galicia Tomaszów information: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tomasz%C3%B3w_Lubelski https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/Tomaszów-lubelski https://www.encyclopedia.com/religion/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/Tomaszów-lubelski

The Life Of Pauline Raczkiewicz

In the first six years of Pauline’s life, four more children were born and two of them died. A year and a half after she was born, Francis (or Agnes– there is some confusion if they are the same child or two different children) was born on October 13, 1903. Stanley was born on April 28, 1905 when Pauline was three years old, making them a family of three children who were three years old and younger. A year and a half later, Stanley died on September 8, 1906. Pauline was only four years old. When she was almost five, Adam was born on February 7, 1907. A year later, Francis died on February 11, 1908, when he was a little younger than five years old. Francis died of bronchial pneumonia but the family may have been struggling because unfortunately, the contributing factors listed on the death certificate were “unhygienic surroundings and care.” At the time of Francis’ death, Pauline was almost six, Adam was one and his mother was pregnant. On September 8 of that same year, Marian was born so six year old Pauline now had two younger siblings – Adam and infant Mary, and the family had lost two young children. ***** Between the ages of eight and 13, another three children were born to the family with only one of them surviving. When Pauline was eight years old, in 1910, Vickie was born. The family lived at 41 Stevens and Walter worked in a foundry. The census worker wrote their last name as “Scravch.” She was listed as “Polly Scravch” in the 1910 census which is an example of the challenges in doing genealogy. That must have been what it sounded like when her parents reported to the census worker. ***** Joseph was born the following year in 1911. In 1914, Casmirium was born but only lived a few weeks. In 1915, Genofain only lived a month after she was born, dying of capillary bronchitis. By this time, Pauline was 13 years old. ***** A major family event occurred before the next three children arrived. When Pauline was 14 years old in 1916, her mother was arrested for selling alcohol without a license. Adam remembered that time because he passed his memories on to his descendants and so did Victoria who told her children that her mother always had “bums” over to buy shots of liquor for a quarter. Anna also had an apron that she used to deliver her canning jars of alcohol. Sometimes, she had her oldest daughter Pauline deliver and get the money.Walter was gone from the home when his Anna appeared in court and it was revealed that this would happen occasionally and the family didn’t know when he would return. In one of the articles about her arrest, it says that Anna was pregnant but there is no record of a baby born in 1916 or 1917. In 1918 Matthew was born when Pauline was 16, making five children in the family. ***** The family moved to nearby 36 Stephens in 1920. Walter was working in a machine shop and besides Pauline, Mary, Victoria, Joseph and Matthew, Anna was pregnant again. ***** A Big Move: At age 18, Pauline left home for a trip to Grand Rapids, Michigan with a girl friend and ended up married and not returning. The older children in her family probably had to help out more in Pauline’s absence. Adam was 12 and Mary was 11 and the younger children were 9 (Victoria), 8 (Joseph), and 2 (Matthew.) When she left, her mother was pregnant. In August of that year, Helen was born and died within five months of “cataphora fever.” ***** Within a few months of her arrival in Grand Rapids, she married Antoni (Anthony) Raczkiewicz, a widower. He married his first wife Klementyna Golabiewska in Grand Rapids, MI on June 20, 1916. This was about four years after Anthony arrived in the U.S., in 1912 from Tomaszów Lubelski, Poland. Anthony’s brother Joseph was one of the witnesses. The other was Catherine Nadwornik (spelling?), who was on the ship with Klementyna when she came to the U.S. and both were also from Tomaszow Lubelski, Poland. Klementyna had family in Bay City, Michigan and their daughter Brownislawa was born there on April 1, 1918. Anthony and Klementyna were married for less than two years when Klementyna passed away on April 4, 1918, from complications of childbirth. Their daughter Bronislawa was taken to D.A. Blodgett Children’s Home in Grand Rapids for medical care. She passed away there three months later on July 12, 1918 from a congenital heart problem. ***** Pauline and Anthony’s wedding, on September 6, 1920, was at St. Adalbert Church. Reverend C Skory performed the marriage and Joseph Raczkiewicz and J. (Juuie?) Sagauska are listed as witnesses. I think J. Sagauska was “Jennie” who my mother remembered was a long term friend of Joseph. Joseph was Anthony’s older brother and worked as a cabinet maker until a short stint in the military during World War 1 either caused or revealed his epilepsy. When they married, Joseph was living with their brother John and worked for a short time again as a cabinet maker. After that, he usually lived with his brother Tony. ***** The record says Anthony was 25 years old but I now know he was actually 27 since I have now seen his translated birth record from Poland. Pauline was 18 according to the records but with a birthdate of April 1904, she was actually 16 ½ years old. This might explain the later confusion where family members thought she would “lie” about her age and claim to be younger than she was. (In the 1930 census, she claims she was 17 when married. The marriage document indicates 18. Birth dates vary . . . ) Anthony’s last name and his father’s last name are spelled Ratkiewicz on the marriage document. At the time of the marriage, Anthony was a cabinet maker. ***** Her wedding dress, veil and bouquet were very elaborate. She told her family the wedding gown was featured in the window of Wurzburg’s Department Store in downtown Grand Rapids. She bought and wore the matching shoes even though they were the wrong size and pinched her feet. ***** Tony Runs a “Game Room” And Their First Child Is Born Soon after the wedding of Pauline and Anthony, her younger sister Victoria, age 11, was sent to Grand Rapids to live with Pauline and her family. They lived at 208 Lexington. “Vickie” moved there to help her sister Pauline and her husband since Pauline was having her first child and her husband was running a pool hall. Her move also may have helped the family in Oil City too. Vickie was worried about a brother she left behind in Oil City that her mother allegedly beat with a stick. Mary was still living at home and was probably worried about her brother also. In 1921, Vickie was listed as a student in Grand Rapids. Pauline and Anthony’s first child Lorraine was born September 29, 1921. Anthony, (Tony) was 28, and Pauline, was 19 and they had been married for a year. The family had moved to 315 Gunnison SW. Anthony worked as a cabinet maker. His brother Joe, who also worked as a cabinet maker, lived with them. ***** News From Oil City And The Son Anthony Jr. Is Born: Back in OIl City, the last Skrobat child, Jane, was born the following year on June 3, 1922. Her mother Anna had her twelfth child around six months after Pauline’s first child was born. Because Jane was 20 years younger than her, some people thought Jane was her child instead of her sister. In 1924, they moved to Milwaukee St and the address was listed at various times as either 503 or 501. The property had a house with an apartment upstairs and also a small house next door. Their second child, Anthony Raczkiewicz Jr (Tony), was born Nov. 11, 1925. ***** Around 1927, Mary married Henry Schossler. Mary and Pauline were very close but it is unknown if Pauline made it back to OIl City for the wedding, It is unlikely because it is believed she didn’t return for decades. Letters, phone calls and visits from Mary kept the strong connection between Mary and Pauline. Mary traveled by plane and train to visit Pauline several times in Grand Rapids, Michigan. She stayed about a mile away at the Rowe Hotel at 201 Michigan N.W. The hotel is right across the river from the heavily Polish westside of Grand Rapids, on the edge of the downtown area. The hotel had a glamorous lobby and ballroom and 300 guest rooms. By 1963 it was no longer a hotel and it was used for senior housing as Olds Manor. ***** Bad News From Oil City: Pauline’s father Walter was arrested in Oil City, Pennsylvania at the end of 1929. He was arrested for the sale and production of alcohol, which was illegal because of Prohibition, which began in 1920 and continued until 1933. Walter was found guilty of selling alcohol illegally (and not guilty of producing alcohol) and he spent several months in jail. By the following Spring of 1930, Walter left Oil City to live with his oldest daughter Pauline and her family in Grand Rapids. He left behind his wife and three of his children: Joseph, 19, Matthew, 12, and Jennie (Jane), 8. Adam, 23, doesn’t show up in their home on the 1930 census, but it is possible that is when he was at Coyne Electrical College in Chicago, Illinois. ***** Shirley Is Born And Joseph Moves In With The Family: Lorraine was 8 1⁄2 years old and Anthony Jr. was 4 ½ years old. They attended St. Adalbert School. Anthony worked as a tacker for a leather tanning company. Pauline’s 61-year-old father Walter and Anthony’s brother Joseph lived with them. It was common for Polish immigrants to take in boarders both to help out the immigrants and as a source of income. It was common for Polish immigrants to take in boarders both to help out the immigrants and as a source of income and they rented out the apartment above them for extra income. John and Pauline Kunecki and children Roman, Celia and Elaine. The little house they owned that was next door was rented by Pauline’s younger sister Vickie and her husband. They lived there with their daughter Lillian. ***** Shirley was born on January 15, 1936, when her father, Anthony, was 40, and her mother, Apolonia, was 31. Joseph, her brother, temporarily lived with them the following year, in 1937. He was living with his oldest sister Pauline and her husband, Anthony, and their children Lorraine, 16, Anthony, 12 and Shirley, 1, with several renters upstairs. It is unclear how long Joseph stayed but by April 11, 1940, he was 28 years old and living back in Oil City with his mother and siblings Jane, 17, and Matthew, 22. Joseph was a tool dresser related to ball bearings, but had been unemployed for twelve weeks. ***** Lorraine Graduates And Marries and Ronald Was Born Lorraine graduated from Union High School in 1939 and Ronald was born later that year on November 10, 1939. He was the youngest of their four children. Ron was born when his father was 46 and his mother 37 years old. Anthony still worked as a tacker in a leather tannery. Lorraine and John married on February 22, 1941 at St. Adalbert Church, and she was a 19 year old stenographer and John was a 20 year old truck driver. Their marriage license is signed by a Methodist minister because John was Protestant which probably required some discussion with her parents. They lived in the “little house” on Milwaukee St. NW that Lorraine’s parents owned next to their own house near St. James Church which her sister Vickie and her husband no longer lived in. ***** Anthony Registers For the Draft And Joseph Skrobot Serves in the Military: Anthony registered for the World War II draft in 1942, but was too old to be called. Her brother Joseph registered for the Selective Service to be drafted on October 16, 1940 but had not been called. Joseph listed his occupation as an unskilled worker in the production of petroleum and that he had two years of high school. Joseph (Skrobat) was again living in Grand Rapids with his sister Pauline. The household also included the other Joseph (Pauline’s brother-in-law), as well as three of their four children. Shirley has described her childhood home as often crowded. Once her oldest sister Lorraine married, Shirley often stayed with them, probably enjoying the space that provided. According to his nephew Frank Palczewski Jr., “Joe” went back and forth often between Grand Rapids and Oil City. He remembered him as having a dark brown complexion. He remembers an incident where Joe was “rolled” for his money, down by the railroad, and he kept returning there looking for the thieves. Joseph’s military career began at Fort Custer in Michigan on March 31, 1942 The camp had reopened as a military training base for World War II by the time Joseph arrived. He went on to serve with the U.S. Army as a sergeant in the Signal Headquarters Company in the Pacific Theater during World War II. ***** Shirley and Ron Grow Up: Shirley attended St. Adalbert School, first through eighth grade, the cost subsidized by the church. It was near the end of the “Golden Age '' of the Grand Rapids Polish Polonia. She walked a few blocks every day to get to school. The family lived near First St. and the school was on Fourth St. They had to cross one busy street -- Stocking Avenue -- to get there. Their neighborhood was full of immigrants, similar to them. The Dutch people lived a few blocks away in their own neighborhoods. Tony Jr. was a senior at Union High School in 1943, active in Humane Club, R.O.T.C., Bar and Chevrons Club, and was a cheerleader. ***** More Bad News From Oil City: Pauline’s mother was hit by a car and seriously injured in May of 1943, while crossing a street near her home. She ended up with two broken legs and other injuries. Pauline made what was likely her first trip back to Oil City, to help care for her mother. ***** The First Grandchild: The first grandchild arrived on July 13, 1943, when Sandra Ann was born to Lorraine and John. She was born prematurely so needed extra careful parenting. Tony, Shirley and Ronnie continued to spend a lot of time with their older sister and her family Shirley was only seven years older than Sandy and Ronnie was only four years older. They developed close relationships that continued into their adult lives with holiday celebrations and Sunday meals. Shirley says that when she was a teenager, she often stayed with her older sister Lorraine because her house was crowded. Anthony’s brother Joseph lived with them her whole life. ***** Tony Jr. and John Serve in the Military: Later the same year, on November 11, 1943, Tony Jr., age 18, registered for the draft while he worked at a gas station. He began his service in the Navy by December of 1943, John was drafted into the Army and was in Normandy and the Battle of the Bulge. He received two purple hearts, honors for those who were wounded or killed. He also received a Bronze star with bronze clusters, the fourth highest military decoration. He served until October of 1945, During the time he was in the service, Lorraine lived at 751 First St. NW which would have been right around the corner from where Lorraine grew up. Lorraine’s friend Virginia lived with Lorraine at the beginning of her time on First St. because John was in the service. Lorraine knew her because Virginia and her family had lived upstairs in the Raczkiewicz home when Lorraine was a teenager. On one occasion, Virginia saved Sandy from falling out of a window. Shirley, much younger at age ten, visited her often. ***** After John returned from military service he joined Dykstra Beef Co., a family business as a livestock buyer and became a part owner with his brothers Bob and Sib. It was around this time that John suffered from appendicitis and the fairly new use of antibiotics saved his life. Tony Jr. returned from his military service and attended Grand Rapids Junior College for an Associate degree. He worked at Hayes Manufacturing and met his future wife Cecilia Zalewski around this time. ***** Several Deaths: Walter, Mary’s father, died on November 25, 1944 in Grand Rapids, Michigan, having never returned to OIl City. The obituary indicated that Joseph was in New Guinea and his older brother Matthew was with the Seabees in New Zealand. Jane, the youngest of the siblings, offered to bring her mother Anna to the funeral but Anna declined and it is believed that no one from OIl City attended the funeral. Joseph was discharged December 20, 1945 after three years and nine months of service and returned home to OIl City. When Henry, Mary’s husband died unexpectedly on May 22, 1949 in Oil City, Pennsylvania, this may have been the second time Pauline returned to the city in which she was born. Accompanying her from Grand Rapids were Lorraine and John, Anthony Jr., her sister Vicki and her husband Frank and their son Frank Jr, and their son-in-law Lee Thompson. ***** Tony Jr. Married In GR, Shirley Is Confirmed and Eileen is Married in Oil City: Anthony Jr. and Cecilia Zalewskin married July 23, 1949 at Sacred Heart Church. For many of the early years of their marriage, Anthony Jr. and Cecilia were next door neighbors with his sister and her husband, Lorraine and John, on Pine Street.Their daughter Yvonne was born in May 1953 and Eileen was born in June 1956. ***** Shirleyś's confirmation sponsor was Eileen Schossler, the oldest daughter of Pauline’s sister Mary. In the late 1940s, Eileen was a student at St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, Indiana. Instead of traveling back to Pennsylvania for school holidays, she would visit with her Aunt Pauline and family in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In this way, Shirley got to know her older cousin. ***** Eileen Schossler married Max Gabreski on August 19, 1950 in Oil City. Attending from Grand Rapids were Pauline, Shirley and Ronald, Lorraine and John and their daughter Sandra. In the Fall of 1950, Shirley began high school at the Catholic Central West Annex, held at St. Adalbert. ***** Shirley Graduates And Begins Training: In 1953, Shirley began her junior year at Catholic Central, riding the bus from the west side of the city, over the river to the east side, in downtown Grand Rapids. Shirley graduated from Catholic Central High School in 1954. She started training at St. Mary’s Hospital to become an x-ray technician and worked in a downtown parking garage. ***** Another Wedding in Oil City: Henrietta Schossler and Ted Marchibroda were married on July 31, 1954 in Oil City. Shirley was a bridesmaid for the wedding, along with her cousin Carol Skrobat, Pauline helped her sister Mary, at Mary’s house, during the preparations for the “poprawiny” or afterparty that was common with Polish weddings working in the kitchen to help Mary make chop suey. ***** Shirley Married: Lorraine and John moved to their newly built home in Walker in 1956. Shirley often visited Lorraine and John at the Singapore Yacht Club in Saugatuck and that is where she met Roy Longwell and they married at St. Adalbert Church on October 26, 1957. Since, like John, Roy wasn’t a Catholic, the couple had to agree to raise their children Catholic. Later Roy joined the Catholic Church and enjoyed the social customs of the westside Polish people. Pauline complained that Roy knew more Polish than Shirley. Shirley and Roy Longwell had three daughters: Paulette (1958), Linda (1961) and Lori (1963). They first lived in the “little house” next to Shirley’s parents. ***** Ron Graduated and Married: Ronald graduated from Union High School in 1959 and married the former Pamela Ferwerda in June of 1960. Their children Rhonda (1961), Paula (1963), and Robert (1967).Shirley and Roy moved out of the “little house” so Ron and Pam could have his turn. Displaced by the Freeway: They had to move, along with their parents, when a demolition order came through. After approximately 37 years living on Milwaukee Street, Tony and Pauline’s houses were condemned because a highway was being built. Highway US 196, between the Lane St. exit and US 131 was being built in their neighborhood, splitting the west side of Grand Rapids. OK Wrecking demolished the house after the demolition order of May 23, 1962. ***** On October 4, 1961, Pauline and Anthony purchased for $10,000., the “west 40 feet of Lot 7, of Block 1, Robert’s Addition to the City of Grand Rapids. Tony and Pauline moved to 827 Douglas and son Ron and his wife Pam bought their first house. Anthony was proud of his rose garden in the backyard. She enjoyed dancing the polka, visiting with her children and their families, making Polish food like kluski noodles for chicken soup and kielbasa from a local meat market, and helping others. (The house was built in 1920 and was sold in 1990’s for $48,000. In 2020, the house is a rental – three apartments total, not looking great on the outside but fixed up on the inside for student rentals for the nearby Grand Valley State University.) ***** Sunday Visits: Sundays, after church, was a time that her children and grandchildren came to visit. The dining room had a very large table and chairs on the left and a large buffet on the right hand side. Large family dinners and holiday dinners were enjoyed in the dining room--with the overflow of children at the “kid’s table” in the kitchen. Kielbaska from the meat market would be served along with turkey for Thanksgiving or ham for Christmas. Simple meals were eaten at the table in the kitchen--things like homemade soup and kluski noodles. The kitchen table would be powdered with flour and the dough rolled out for the noodles which were cut by hand. Kruschicki, or bow-ties, were a special treat. A special horror was when she made herself liver and onions and wanted to kiss you! Because she often cooked for large crowds, she didn’t bother with pie tins. Her apple pie was made in a metal 9 x 13 pan and was called “horse pie” since it was big enough to feed a horse. She frequently had a parakeet in the kitchen, keeping her company while she cooked. Her skin was very soft and free of wrinkles which she attributed to using Pond’s Cold Cream Later Life and Death: Lorraine died at the young age of 47 on October 23, 1969, in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Lorraine, her daughter Sandy, age 27 and Shirley, age 33, were all together the afternoon before she died. Pauline missed her the rest of her life. ***** Pauline’s mother Anna died on May 1, 1970 In OIl City, Pennsylvania. Traveling from Grand Rapids to attend were Pauline, with her daughter Shirley and son-in-laws Roy and John. Frank Palczewski drove his wife Marguerite and his sister Lillian Sorensen but his mother Victoria had recently had a stroke so was unable to go. Her will specified the division of her estate between her children in Oil City: Adam, Mary, Joseph, and Matthew. She left $6,000 for Pauline and $4,000 for Vickie, her daughters living in Grand Rapids, Michigan. I wonder if the reason for a difference in what she left the two daughters that moved away is because Pauline had taken care of both her husband and one of her sons. ***** Joseph, her brother-in-law, who lived with them their entire married life, died on May 17, 1971. He lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan for 57 years. He was frequently at my grandparent’s house when we visited, often reading newspapers. He would do errands for Pauline and she would often scold him. The canaries that she raised lived in his bedroom. It is believed that his sister-in-law Pauline had helped him apply to receive military benefits. Her brother Joseph died in Oil City on June 25, 1977 and her brother Matthew died in Oil City on May 10, 1978 ***** Her husband Anthony J Raczkiewicz died on October 31, 1980, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, when he was 85 years old and is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery. They had been married for 60 years. ***** A large group of Pennsylvania relatives came to Grand Rapids, Michigan for Paulette’s wedding on June 26, 1982, because of their family connections with Pauline. Besides the wedding and a visit to Roy and Shirley’s house, they also visited Pauline at her house. Mary attended along with her grandson Brian Gabreski and her daughter Henrietta and husband Ted. Locally, Frank “Sonny” Palczewskis (Pauline’s nephew) and his wife Peg attended. ***** Ten years after her husband, Pauline died on July 3, 1990 In Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her sisters Mary, Jane and Victoria were still alive, as was her brother Adam. The Ladies Rosary Society, of which she was a member, recited the Rosary. Her funeral Mass was celebrated at the Basilica of St. Adalberts. She was still a member of the Polish National Society. She is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery. Pauline’s will was written October 7, 1986 and revised on October 9 changing no provision for Sandra Spruit (daughter of Lorraine who was deceased) to $5,000 and her diamond ring to son Ronald. The first will was prepared by the attorney Kozak at 616 Bridge St. NW. The second version was witnessed by Alex Masakaski (spelling) and an undecipherable name. ***** Pauline and Tony’s Children: Lorraine’s husband never remarried. John sold the meat company and started transporting yachts around the country which he did until he was 75. John died on Feb. 2, 2009. He was survived by his daughter Sandy (Don) Spruit, grandchildren Colette (Robert) Beitel, John (Irene) Spruit, Rachel (Matthew) Spencer and Heather (Ron) Wilson, great-grandchildren, Erica, Andrea, Brooke, Trevor, Jordyn, Nolan, Branden, Teague and Neala. ***** Tony Jr.: Anthony, aged 80, passed away on January 29, 2006. Tony was preceded in death by his wife Cecilia a half a year earlier on May 21, 2005. Yvonne worked as a teacher in a Catholic School and her husband Barry Feirrick had two daughters, Mindy and Heather. She is married to Mike Basham. Eileen worked as a physical therapist and had two children with her husband Mark Erichsen: Jennifer and Keith. ***** Shirley: Her husband Roy developed Parkinsons and later passed away on November 4, 2009, in Grand Rapids, Michigan, at the age of 80. Their daughters Paulette, Linda and Lori live in Grand Rapids. There are three grandchildren: James, Thomas and Marissa. ***** Ron: Ron was part owner of Shawmut Inn, a bar/restaurant and before that was part owner of Midwest Bumper. Their oldest daughter Rhonda lives in North Carolina and Paula and “Bobbie” are deceased. Their grandchildren are Bryan, Aric, Steven, and Shannon. His wife Pam lives in Coopersville, Michigan. ***** — 1902: Baptism Record, Oil City Catholic Church Office 1910: 4/1910 (Census) Year: 1910; Census Place: Oil City Ward 2, Venango, Pennsylvania; Roll: T624_1424; Page: 11A; Enumeration District: 0128; FHL microfilm: 1375437, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo, UT, USA, 2006. 1920: 1/2/1920 (Census) Year: 1920; Census Place: Oil Ward 2, Venango, Pennsylvania; Roll: T625_1656; Page: 1B; Enumeration District: 126, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo, UT, USA, 2010. Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan, Marriage Records, 1867-1952; Film: 151; Film Description: 1920 Kent-1920 Montmorency, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo., UT, 2015 1925: Anthony Jr. birth: U.S. Public Records Index, 1950-1993, Volume 1, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo, UT, USA, 2010 1930: Year: 1930; Census Place: Grand Rapids, Kent, Michigan; Page: 15A; Enumeration District: 0018; FHL microfilm: 2340735 1936: U.S. City Directories, 1822-1995, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT, 2011 1939: "U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: Union High School; Year: 1939, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT, 2010. Ronald’s birth: U.S., Social Security Applications and Claims Index, 1936-2007, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT, 2015 1940: Year: 1940; Census Place: Grand Rapids, Kent, Michigan; Roll: m-t0627-01898; Page: 5A; Enumeration District: 86-31 1941: Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan, Marriage Records, 1867-1952; Film: 117; Film Title: 41 Kent 25650-28879; Film Description: Kent (1940-1942), Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT, 2015 1943: Yearbook picture: "U.S., School Yearbooks, 1880-2012"; School Name: Union High School; Year: 1943 The National Archives in St. Louis, Missouri; St. Louis, Missouri; WWII Draft Registration Cards for Michigan, 10/16/1940-03/31/1947; Record Group: Records of the Selective Service System, 147; Box: 970, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT, 2011 1949: Michigan Department of Community Health, Division of Vital Records and Health Statistics; Lansing, MI, USA; Michigan, Marriage Records, 1867-1952; Film: 124; Film Title: 41 Kent 48600-51899; Film Description: Kent (1949-1950), Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT,, 2015 1950: United States of America, Bureau of the Census; Washington, D.C.; Seventeenth Census of the United States, 1950; Record Group: Records of the Bureau of the Census, 1790-2007; Record Group Number: 29; Residence Date: 1950; Home in 1950: Grand Rapids, Kent, 1957: Shirley’s marriage license: Kent Co. Marriage License 141-127, 21 1969: U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc. Provo, UT,, 2012. 1973: Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File 1980: Anthony’s death: U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo, UT, 201 1990: Social Security Administration; Washington D.C., USA; Social Security Death Index, Master File, Ancestry.com Operations, In., Provo, UT, 2014. Web: Western Michigan Newspapers, Death Index, 1910-2012, Ancestry.com Operations, Inc., Provo, UT, 2013 U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, Ancestry.com, Provo, UT, 2012 2006: U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, Ancestry.com, Provo, UT, 2012 2009: Roy: U.S., Find A Grave Index, 1600s-Current, 2012 2017: https://www.mlive.com/news/grand-rapids/2017/08/shawmut_inn_closes_after_39_ye.htm Catholic Education: History of Catholic education in GR--GR info starts p. 61 (p. 72 of PDF) https://commons.emich.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1092&context=theses History of Polish immigrants/churches in GR https://www.therapidian.org/history-polish-immigrants-churches-and-aid-societies-westside The Rise and Fall of the Grand Rapids Polonia (https://dutchamericans.files.wordpress.com/2017/02/1993_07_skendzel.pdf The First Hundred Years: The Basilica of St. Adalbert http://www.mipolonia.net/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/St.-Adalbert_1881-1981_Grand-Rapids_MI.pdf Information about Oath of Allegiance (Act of June25, 1936): Act of July 2, 1940 provided that all women who had lost citizenship by marriage could repatriate regardless of their marital status. ● They only had to take an Oath of Allegiance--no declaration of intention was required. https://www.archives.gov/files/calendar/genealogy-fair/2014/handouts/session-3-presentation-handout-hacker.pdf Other: “The Poles, the Dutch and the Furniture Strike of 1911”, Mary Patrice Erdmans, Polish American Studies, Vol. 62, No. 2 (Autumn, 2005), pp. 5-22)

Pauline Raczkiewicz Loses Her Citizenship

Pauline Raczkiewicz (my grandma) traveled from Pennsylvania to Michigan and ended up losing her U.S. citizenship. Pauline was born a United States citizen to parents who had immigrated from Poland. She never traveled outside of the United States and in fact the farthest trip she made was from Michigan to Pennsylvania. She traveled when she was a young woman from Oil City to Grand Rapids with a friend to visit relatives and never returned home. On that trip she met and married Anthony Raczkiewicz. The short version of that story is that her mother was difficult to get along with and expected her to take care of the family’s many children. The family had 12 children, five of which didn’t live past childhood and her mother was still having children when Pauline was already married and had one child herself. Knowing more about this trip to Grand Rapids and how Pauline and Anthony met would also make for a good story. While their home was of modest value, Anthony and Pauline Raczkiewicz took pride in their contributions to their church and in helping family and friends. She was known for helping others in the Polish community to get needed benefits, arrange emigration from Poland and solve problems of daily living for people of little means and a language barrier. She lent money, wrote letters, read documents for people and even went to court with them. At least once though, she needed to go to court for her own interests. Pauline’s trip to court for herself was to regain her US citizenship that she lost without ever leaving the United States. ***** So how could a woman born in the United States and who never left the United States lose her citizenship? The answer lies in a little-known law. American women who married between 1907 and 1922 lost their American citizenship if they married an “alien” even without leaving the United States. This was because of the Act of March 2, 1907. Women became the citizens of the country of their husbands – obviously, this was during a time when women did not have a lot of rights. Since Anthony was an “alien” when he and Pauline married in 1920, she lost her citizenship due to the then-current law which didn’t change for many years. Anthony began the process of applying for citizenship on October 7, 1921, and was at the stage of “First Papers.” (There is no evidence that he ever completed the process. When I requested his naturalization paperwork from the National Archives, the only item I received was his registration as an “alien” in September, 1940.) ***** Pauline was born a United States citizen. She was born on April 23, 1902, in Oil City, Pennsylvania, to Anna Agnes Barsch, age 21, and Walter Eugene Skrobat, age 30. Pauline’s parents were both Polish immigrants to the U.S. who ended up in Oil City. Her father was Wladyslaw (Walter Eugene) Skrobat (born June 27, 1873 in Gorlice, Moszczenica, Poland) and her mother was Anna Agnes Barszcz (born February 12, 1883 in Ropica Gorna, Moszczenica, Poland). Walter and Anna married in Oil City, Pennsylvania, on June 24, 1901, ten months before Pauline was born. “Appallonia” (spelling on the birth document) was baptized at the Church of Saint Joseph, 35 Pearl Avenue, Oil City, Pennsylvania, the day after she was born, on April 24, 1902. Her Godparents were John Barszcz (likely her uncle) and Anna Szczepanik. ***** After Pauline married in 1920, she lost her citizenship. Many women were unaware of this situation and there is no way to know how or when she figured it out. They did receive an English and Polish newspaper regularly and participated in activities at the social halls for Polish Americans. ***** Several revisions to this law were made, attempting to give American women who married foreigners back their rights. The Cable Act of September 22, 1922, was repealed so anyone married after that point would not lose their American citizenship by giving women equal citizenship and nationality rights. Unfortunately, this didn’t solve the issue for women previously married like Pauline. Another revision in 1931 corrected more problems but still did not apply to Pauline. The Act of June 25, 1936, allowed widowed or divorced women to repatriate -- all others still had to go through the entire naturalization process if they wanted to regain their citizenship. Again, this version did not help Pauline since she was married to her husband and he was still alive. ***** It wasn’t until the revision in 1940 that all women who had lost citizenship by marriage could repatriate regardless of their marital status. The Act of July 2, 1940, changed things again so that all women who had lost citizenship by marriage could repatriate regardless of their marital status. An Oath of Allegiance was all that was required with no need for a declaration of intention. On March 30, 1943, Pauline took the “Oath of Allegiance to the United States” in the Western District of Michigan Court of the US in Grand Rapids, Michigan. At the time Pauline was a 40 year old housewife who had not been a citizen for the previous 23 years. (As those of you who knew my Grandma’s tendency to change her age, I had to calculate her age several times before I could make this statement of her age!) When she took the Oath of Allegiance, Pauline had a medium complexion, blue eyes and brown hair. She was 5”3” tall and weighed 190 pounds, with a small scar on the right side of her chin. ***** This solved the mystery of why among the small number of family records I found, there was an Oath of Allegiance to the United States signed by my U.S. born grandmother. It didn’t make sense to me why she needed to take an oath when I found it. This was one of the early stories that really hooked me into learning more about my family history. *****

The Story of Lukasz Kaszucki & Agata Krzaczkowska.

Łukasz Kaszucki (my 4x great grandfather) was a Greek Catholic furrier in the city of Uhnów in Galicia, Austria, which was in the Ukraine Province of Lwów. The name is Uhniv in Ukrainian and Uhnów in Polish. The current population is 939. Łukasz was born between 1750 and 1770, during the time when the area was under Austrian control because of the First Partition of Poland, which occurred in 1722. This resulted in the area being awarded to the Habsburg Empress Maria-Theresa, the only female Hapsburg ruler, who ruled Austria and other countries, until her death in 1780. This area was called the province of Galicia. The new borders cut off some trade and markets. Additionally, the Austrian government didn’t want industry to develop in this area, instead expecting it to remain agricultural to provide food and raw materials for other Hapsburg provinces. These limits and new taxes resulted in poverty, with the area the Kaszucki family was living in being the poorest province in Austro-Hungary. Famines began in the early 1800s and continued off and on up to the 1900’s. The Austrian government also conscripted men from this area for their imperial army. Łukasz was married to Agata Krzaczkowska. They had three sons who moved to Tomaszów Lubelski and worked (two as furriers and one as a shoemaker), married, and died there. It is unknown if there were other children back at home. Two of the sons had the same or a similar name – Teodor and Fedor. There are various spellings of both names, further confusing the issue. . Teodor Kaszucki married Teodora (“Teska”) Czyszykiewicz when they were both 23 years old. Her father also was a furrier like Teodor and lived at house #219 Krasnobrodzki Street in Tomaszów Lubelski with her mother Anna Jewniczuk. . The wedding was on February 25, 1816, at Saint Nicholas the Wonderworker Greek Catholic Church.Teodora/Teodozja/Feodysia, who was going by the nickname “Teska,” had a change of surname. Her father Stephan changed their name from Czyszykiewicz to Panczyszak. Teodor died on December 15, 1862. He was widowed, working as a laborer and was 70 years old. Szymon Ziółkowski, a shoemaker and Jozef Kaszucki, a furrier, reported the death. Fedor married Marianna Mirowska. He was working as a shoemaker. They had three children: Mikolaj (b. 1825), Maciej (b. 1827) who died at birth, and Apolonia (b. Abt. 1829) who married Mikolaj Malec. Fedor died on June 17, 1827, at the young age of 25. The death record indicates his mother is still alive but his father is deceased. His brothers Fedory, age 36 and Andrzej, age 30, reported his death. Marriana remarried on October 9, 1831 to Andrzej Zolkiewski and had seven more children. Andrzej married Salomea Wiciejewska (my 3x great grandparents) on January 26, 1823. The record states that his father is deceased but his mother is still alive. Andrzej and Salomea had nine children between 1823 and 1847. Andzej died on September 18, 1861, fifteen months before his brother Theodore died. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uhniv https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maria_Theresa Photo credit: Uhnow | historia regionu Regionally dressed peasants in Uhnow-Rawa-Poddubce region in a photo of a 19th century painting by Zygmunt Ajdukiewicz

The Story of Tomasz Dominik & Regina Wójcik

Tomasz Dominik (my 4x great grandfather) was born in Rozaniec, near Tarnograd around 1753. His parents were Paweł Dominik and Anasztacja Baja. He was first married to Helena Szydlowska and had seven children with her before she died in 1801. ***** He then married Regina Wójcik (my 4x great grandmother) and had four additional children. Their first born child died in childhood. Farm life is not without danger –even for children. Twelve year old Rozalia (1802 – 1814) “died of earth,” (Zabita od ziemi) – possibly a farming accident. Their second child Anna (1806 - 1869) (my 3x great grandmother) married Michal Raczkiewicz and had 11 children. Their third and fourth children died in their 40s. Magdalena (1807 - 1855) married Bartlomiej. She died two years after her mother as a 45 year old widow working as a day laborer. Antoni (1809 - 1854) died as a beggar, nine months after his mother at the young age of 40. During the time period that Regina and Magdalena and Antoni died there was cholera and the Great Famine but no cause of death is given in the records. ***** Tomasz Dominik (my 4x great grandfather) died 15 April 1831 at 8:00 in the morning. He was 78 years old. He was born in Majdan Gorno and lived there his whole life. He left behind his widowed wife Regina nee Wojcik. ***** His younger brother Jozef, 70 and Jan Raszkiewicz, 53 were also peasant farmers in Majdan Gorno and they reported his death. The cause of death is not given but there was a cholera outbreak in Russia from 1829 to 1831 that was brought to Poland from soldiers by 1831. Influenza from 1830 to 1831 was also in Europe at the time. ***** When Regina (Wojcik) Dominik (my 4x great grandmother) died on June 15, 1853, she was an 80 year old peasant. Tomasz had died 22 years earlier. The witnesses that reported the death in Tomaszów two days later were Michał Raczkiewicz and Kazmierz Mazur. Michal was 54 years old and from Sabuadia. He was Regina’s son-in-law, married to Anna (nee Dominik.) The other witness Kazmierz was 60 years old and was from Majdan Górno, where Regina was from. ***** Several other relatives died in Majdan Gorny the same year: Jan Raczkiewicz (my 4x great grandfather) died in January at age 75. He was Anna nee Dominik’s father-in-law. Katarzyna (Krawczyk) Grabek (my 3x great grandmother) also died there in March at age 50.

The LIfe of Wladyslaw Bielak

Władysław (Waldemar) Bielak was born on July 19, 1922 to Jan Bielak and his wife Stanisława (Raczkiewicz), one of the five children that they had. His Godmother was Mary Kufta, his mother’s sister. Mary moved to the U.S. a little over a year later. He married Zofia Kawalec and worked as a farmer in Sabaudia, Poland. He also worked as a miller and raised pigeons. Their children are Wiesław (1955) and Jerzy “Jurek” Bielak, (1961), They have six grandchildren, and several great-grandchildren. Wladyslaw died a year ago on April 10, 2022 at the age of 99. He reposed at the Chapel at the Municipal Cemetery in Tomaszów and was buried after Holy Mass on April 12, 2022.

The Life of Jan Raczkiewicz (Junior)

What does it mean to be “unlucky in love?” Jan Raczkiewicz faced significant hardships in his life and the stories about him sound like he was willing to take risks to make things better. Unfortunately, though, things didn’t always turn out well for him – especially in the area of love. It turns out that Jan was unlucky in love. ***** Jan’s existence was unknown to the current U.S. family of his siblings. He moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan before his other siblings Antoni, Jozef and Mary arrived. There is evidence of his move and his marriage but then no other records are available in Grand Rapids. Did he move from Grand Rapids? Did he have children? Where was he buried? This story of Jan answers these questions and more. ***** Jan was born on June 23, 1888, in Sabaudia, Poland. He was the firstborn child of Jan and Katarzyna. Jan’s father (also named Jan) was a 24-year-old peasant in the village of Sabaudia, Poland and his mother Katarzyna was 17-years-old when he was born. His parents had been married for two and a half years. Katarzyna’s family were from the nearby city of Tomaszow Lubelski and worked as furriers. Marcin Skurcz, 20, and Maciej Bend, 28, two local farmers, were witnesses. His Godparents were Marcin Skurcz and Antonina Mazej when he was baptized in the Roman Catholic church. His parents were both Roman Catholic but his mother’s father Stefan Jozef Kaszucki was Greek Catholic. ***** What was the world like at the time of Jan’s birth? Galicia (the term at the time for the area they lived in) was still in the last of seven famines. Even though serfdom had been abolished fifty years earlier, peasants were not wealthy. Peasants owned land but as it was portioned out to their adult children so many owned less than an acre and much of that acre was made up of up to many separate plots of land. They usually did not earn enough to pay taxes. As he grew older, Jan worked as a farmer and day laborer. ***** When Jan was 22 years old, he was encouraged by his father to leave home for economic reasons and because of the challenges of being Polish in a country taken over by Russia . On February 3, 1910, Jan traveled with three other residents of the area from Hamburg, Germany to New York on the ship Pennsylvania. The ships were originally “used to haul goods such as cotton, tobacco, and other raw products from America to Europe.” The companies began advertising to immigrants to fill their cargo holds for the return trip which was the least expensive way to travel to the United States.” (Emigration from Poland. Stephen Szabados.) From New York, Jan made his way to Grand Rapids, Michigan. The likely reason for Grand Rapids, Michigan to be selected as the final destination was that the city was heavily promoted overseas for the opportunities in the furniture industry. Also, many Poles were already in Grand Rapids so the word would have gotten back to them in Poland that there were opportunities available. ***** Jan lived and worked on the west side of the city of Grand Rapids. Jan’s two brothers Jozef and Antoni joined him in 1913. “In a few cases, the father or a son went first to earn the passage for the rest of the household.” (Emigration from Poland. Stephen Szabados.) Like other immigrants, Jan moved around quite a bit during the first five years he was in the U.S. ***** Jan had a job as a cabinet maker at Phoenix Furniture Company and Johnson Furniture Company but then made a career change. He switched to shoe repair for a few years at Adolph Montrim Shoe Repair, then went back to the furniture industry. Was the career change for a good or bad reason? It is hard to tell. Was he fired as a cabinet maker? Or was he trying out something new that could become his own business if it was successful? It is also possible that there was another factor involved. Jan had a big year in 1915 for some reason. Besides switching careers, he was also engaged to be married. And the big shocker is that he was shot – two times actually – on the same night. So what was going on in Jan’s life at the time? ***** The first hint that he might have faced some challenges in his life came from shocking local news in The Grand Rapids Herald. On February 15, 1915, apparently, Jan attended a wedding where he was involved in an argument. The problem followed him the few blocks he walked home to the apartment he shared with his two brothers. He was then shot several times with a 22 caliber revolver. One bullet lodged in his hand and the other bullet went into the left side of his chest and came out of the side of his body. He was treated at Butterworth Hospital. The argument began near First Street and Stocking Avenue, possibly at the reception rather than the wedding. There were two halls in that area at the time: the Taxpayers Hall (on First Street east of Stocking Avenue) and Swantek Hall (on Stocking Avenue at Second Street.) When interviewed, Jan was unable to identify the men involved or what the argument was about. Alcohol, limited English and a reluctance to report to the authorities are all possible reasons for the limited information and the convoluted story the police received. ***** How safe was life in Grand Rapids for the Polish immigrants at this time? Safety of the city has been in the news lately as Grand Rapids saw a sharp spike in shootings with 35 homicides in the year 2020 compared to 18 the year before. The pandemic and racial inequities are the probable reasons for the current increase. What was going on in 1915 in Grand Rapids and how safe was the city to which Jan and his brothers had recently immigrated? At the time there was prejudice against Catholics and Polish people and all the recent immigrant groups had conflicts with each other. The circumstances around Jan’s shooting is another one of the mysteries related to him. ***** As shocking as this news was, the follow-up article the next day titled, “Police Say John Raczkiewicz Was Not the Victim of Assailants” was even more shocking. “After telling a number of conflicting stories John Raczkiewicz aged 26 years yesterday is alleged to have confessed to officers that instead of being attacked and shot by an unknown assailant, he shot himself, giving as a reason, trouble with his girl.” Jan survived the shooting and eleven months later he married a woman from his hometown – there is no way to know if it was the same woman referred to in the article. Jan and Franciszka (Frances) Kudlicka were married on January 25, 1916, in Grand Rapids, Michigan at Sacred Heart Church. The witnesses were Joseph Raczkiewicz (Jan’s brother) and Stanislawa Kudilicka (Francis’ sister.) At the time, Jan had been in the U.S. for six years and was working as a shoemaker and Francis was in the U.S. for three years and was working as a dishwasher. ***** Jan and his two brothers Jozef and Antoni registered for the draft for World War I on June 5, 1917, in Precinct 9, Ward 1 of Grand Rapids, Michigan. Jan was 28, Joseph was 25 and Anthony was 22 years old. He lived with his wife Frances and his brother Jozef and Antoni lived nearby. Jan was a cabinet maker at Johnston Furniture Company. Since Jn was married, he requested an exemption from service. Jan was reported to be of medium height with a medium build and brown hair and blue eyes. ***** After this, the work records end in 1921 for Jan and his wife in the U.S. Some immigrants returned to Poland and a living nephew (recently discovered in Poland) was able to verify that this did happen. Eugeniusz Raczkiewicz remembered hearing about Jan’s return from his father, Boleslaw, who was the youngest of the siblings. Jan and his wife bought a farm near Gniezno in Goślina, Poland. Why would Jan have used his earnings from the U.S. to buy a farm near Gniezno? Gniezno is nearly 450 kilometers (or approximately 280 miles) from his roots in Tomaszow Lubelski. Tomaszow Lubelski is in southeastern Poland and Gniezno is northwest near Poznan, Poland. The distance would make family visits difficult and it is unclear where Jan and his wife would have found out about opportunities in the area. ***** A look at the churches in both Grand Rapids, Michigan, and Gniezno, Poland provides a clue. While Jan and his wife were married at Sacred Heart Church, his brother Anthony’s second marriage to my grandmother was at St. Adalbert Church. Also, St. Adalbert figured prominently in the lives of all the Poles who lived on the West side of Grand Rapids. St. Adalbert’s was originally created by Polish immigrants. Before the Raczkiewicz siblings made it to Grand Rapids, earlier Polish immigrants needed to escape Poland, after over 70 years of struggle against Prussia, Austria, and Russia. Various uprisings occurred in an attempt to reclaim Poland. The last uprising in the Poznan area in 1848 was unsuccessful. People directly involved faced punishment and possible death. Living conditions became deplorable for all of them and they lost the ability to live as Poles. In the time period of the late 1860s to 1870s, many Polish immigrants came to the U.S. This group of Poles was unhappy to leave their homeland but also to leave the orchestras, operas, palaces, and markets of Poznan. Closer to home, they left Gniezno Cathedral (dedicated to St. Adalbert/Wojciech.) This is the saint who had converted Poland to Christianity. ***** Some of this group of earlier Poles made it to Grand Rapids where Catholicism had its roots in 1833 because of the work of missionaries from Yugoslavia, Hungary, and possibly Poland. The area lacked the amenities of a city like Poznan but the river, countryside, mines, and factories allowed for employment. In the beginning, they worshiped at a German-speaking church but then in 1880, they formed their first Polish-speaking parish. It was named after St. Adalbert like their church in Gniezno. Immigrants from other areas – Bialystok, Silesia joined them and by 1913, the current church was consecrated. (This was the year Jan’s brothers Jozef and Antoni arrived.) The new church in Grand Rapids was patterned after the one in Gniezno, with similar architecture. ***** The earlier Polish immigrants to Grand Rapids from the Poznan area recreated their beloved Gniezno Cathedral dedicated to St. Adalbert/St. Wojciech. These early Poles likely dreamed of buying land near Gniezno and returning to their beloved Poland. In the social halls, wedding receptions, and other places that they gathered, Jan likely learned of opportunities they knew about in communication with their relatives back in Poland. There is no way to know for sure why Jan left Grand Rapids and returned to Poland or why Jan selected Gniezno instead of Tomaszow Lubelskie for his return. The connections with the Poles from that area who made it to Grand Rapids earlier than the wave of immigrants that he was a part of, could be the reason. ***** Information about Jan’s death was provided by the same nephew who lives in Poland who remembered more about Jan from his father Boleslaw. “Jan and his wife did not have any children. She cheated him and he went to sleep in a field with potatoes and got sick (pneumonia) and died. We don’t know which year it was.” Potato fields are common in Poland and potatoes have been grown there for a very long time. In 1821, a famous Polish poet Adam Mickiewicz wrote a poem entitled “Kartofla” (meaning potato -- it is more commonly now called ziemniak.) Cheating spouses also have happened for a long time. Jan’s grief led him to the risky behavior of sleeping outside which it was believed caused the illness that claimed his life. ***** Jan died of a broken heart on April 5, 1928, in the Red Cross Town Hospital in Gniezno on Kilińskiego Street 6. He lived in nearby Goślinina and was 39 years and 9 months old. He was still married to Franciszka nee Kudlicka. He wrote a will dated February 14 – Valentine's Day!-- only a few weeks before he died. Sometime after this, Francis ended up remarried to Piotr Krasnicki 300 miles away in Lublin, Poland. This was an unfortunate end to the oldest brother who took many risks for a better life. ***** Jan’s life had many hardships – the need to build a new life in another country, a possible failed career attempt, an unfortunate encounter with a 22 caliber gun, and the unfaithfulness of his wife. One positive way his family was inspired by his willingness to take risks is by following his lead and moving to the U..S, where they all benefited from a new life. Life has challenges for everyone and Jan’s main challenge was being unlucky in love. ***** Photo of St. Adalberts: By WMrapids - Own work, CC0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Basilica_of_St._Adalbert.jpg#/media/File:Basilica_of_St._Adalbert.jpg ***** Photo of Gniezno Cathedral: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catedral_de_Gniezno,_Gniezno,_Polonia,_2014-09-20,_DD_45-47_HDR.jpg#/media/File:Catedral_de_Gniezno,_Gniezno,_Polonia,_2014-09-20,_DD_45-47_HDR.jpg

The Life of Jan Raczkiewicz (Son of Piotr)

Jan Raczkiewicz (my 1rst cousin 1x removed) was born October 23, 1927 to Piotr Raczkiewicz and his wife Józefa Szczupakowska. He was their firstborn of two sons. He was born in Domanisz, near Łaszczów, when Piotr was 30 years old and Józefa was 21 years old. ***** Jan married Stanisława Konopka from the Pieniny Mountains. I am not sure of the date of their wedding. ***** Renata Raczkiewicz, his daughter-in-law shared information with me about them on January 14, 2022. “Jan and Stanisława had their own farm. At the urging of their friends, they moved to Pruszków in the vicinity of Łaszczów, in their sixties. They bought a house, worked in the State Institute,” While studying in Warsaw, Eugeniusz Raczkiewicz often visited him in Pruszków. ***** Renata also said, “Their children attended schools, and they had three of them.” Wiesław was born on April 11, 1948, and is deceased. Ryszard was born in 1949 (not sure of the date) and is married to Helena (Szatkowska) Maria was born on January 3, 1956 and is married to Zbigniew Ziółkowski. There are five grandchildren and many great grandchildren. ***** Jan died April 3, 1974 in Pruszkow, Poland at the age of 46. (OR WAS IT 2007??? - I NEED HELP WITH THIS.) His father Piotr died in 1977 at the age of 79. Stanisława died on June 8, 2011.