The Story of Jakub Wiciejewski & Anges Plebanski

garncarz = potter ***** Jakub Wiciejewski (my 5x great grandfather) worked as a potter. Jakub and his son Maciej both worked at the local ceramics (faience) factory along with members of the Wisniewski family. Within the Lublin region in the 18th century until the mid-19th century, there were factories in four areas that were established by Polish magnates, including in Tomaszów Lubelski. They were built to compete with imported products. The factories started out making imitations but then they hired artists that created original designs. A popular color was blue. Different factories produced different products such as pottery, porcelain dishes and stoneware. ***** In Tomaszów Lubelski, in the Zamość Estate, a faience and porcelain factory was begun in 1794 by Alexander August Zamoyski, age 24. Beginning with Jan Zamoyski in 1621, this family of magnates established taxes, permitted the development of stores, weekly markets and several annual fares. They allowed Jews in the area in the mid 17th century. They were taxed, allowed to develop a synagogue and allowed a certain number of locations in the market square. (Moscop) Guilds were developed for the different occupations such as weavers, locksmiths, and blacksmiths. ***** The faience company employed a ceramist, Franciszek Mezer. The company successfully made and sold faience – a type of tin-glazed pottery – and eventually the more-coveted porcelain. They established a contract where a square and buildings were signed over to the business. “The manufactory buildings were located on Lwówska Street - it was the only paved road in the city - on both sides. In the period of its greatest prosperity, 50 employees were employed here. For the first 12 years, until 1806, only earthenware was produced”. ***** Local forests were available for the fuel and the clay was brought in from Wolowska, near Lviv, approximately 150 miles away. The local clay was useful only to produce faience, not porcelain. Faience is “fine tin-glazed pottery.” A glaze was developed that allowed for decorative painting to be added which was a major innovation in the history of pottery. It required a kiln producing temperatures above 1,830 degrees F (1,000 C.) ***** CHILDREN I believe his wife was Agnieszka Plebanska. The woman (or women) he was married to are listed as Anna, Agnieszka, Katarzyna and Marianna in their children’s birth and marriage records. In some cases, the same child has a different mother listed in each record, so there are either some errors, she went by different names, or Jakub had more than one wife. While their only son continued in the same line of work as his father as a potter, the daughters all married men with other trades. ***** Justyna (born about 1754 and mother’s name was Anna, not Agnes in her birth record). She married Jakub Janusz, a weaver from Zolynia, Austrian Galicia. When she died at age 76, she was a laborer in Tomaszów. Her son Wojciech, a weaver like his father, and Walenty Kubka, a spoon maker, reported the death. Maciej (born about 1763 and mother’s name was Marianna). He was a potter, like his father, and married Marianna Metalska (my 4th great-grandparents.) He lived to age 76. Marianna (born about 1781. Mother is listed as Katarzyna). She married Rafal Lusawicki, a cabinet maker, after the death of his first wife. (Even though the mother’s name is different from the Anna/Marianna of the rest of the children, I believe her father is the same Jakub and Katarzyna is an error in the record. It appears that Marianna and Rafal’s first born child was born in the same house that Marianna’s mother died – listed as Marianna, not Katarzyna. There can be another explanation – that Jakub had several wives – one named Katarzyna and more than one named Marianna or Anna. Katarzyna (born about 1789- 1793. Her mother is listed as Marianna Plebanska and Agnieszka). She married Walenty Kurkiewicz, a widower with children, who was a carpenter, in 1817. Her parents were deceased and she lived with her brother Maciej and his wife and their six children. Maciej was a witness for her marriage and also for two other younger sisters, all who married in their late 20s. The other witnesses were Paweł Kurkiewicz, father of the groom, 70, Jakob Kiszczyński, 22 and Jakub Januszaracki, 37. Katarzyna died at age 42, with her husband and Maciej Swiderek, church sexton, reporting. Marianna (born about 1793 -1794. Mother is listed as Marianna Plebanska) married her first husband Tomasz Bogucki, who was a widower and a butcher. Marianna’s second husband Paweł Szostak, was a Greek Catholic shoemaker. (There is some confusion with another Marianna Wiciejewska with a father named Jakub who married Rafal Lusawicki.) Agnieszka (born 1796) was the youngest child. She married Stefan Dominik Mieszkowska, a 26-year-old weaver. Stefan Dominik’s deceased father had been a bailiff's/land steward servant. When they were married, Agnieszka, age 27, was a servant. Stefan Dominik was a weaver in the city of Tomaszów Lubelski and had been born in Grodek. On the 31st of December, 1855, in the city of Tomaszów Lubelski, Agnieszka (Wiciejewska) Nieszkowska (my 4th great aunt) died at age 59. She was a widow of a weaver in the city of Tomaszow. Wojciech Janusz,, age 44, and Tomasz Podgórski, age 60, both weavers in the city of Tomaszów, appeared to report her death. ***** When Marainna (Jakub’s wife) died, her husband was already deceased. She died on August 23, 1812 when she was 70 years old. She died in house #201 in Tomaszów Lubelski. She was born in approximately the year 1742. One witness was Rafal Lusawicki, a 38 years old who was her son-in-law. Jan Jablonski, 43, a neighbor, was the other witness. The cause of death was unknown but happening at the time was the Asiatic Cholera Epidemic, the Galician peasant uprising, and typhus from Napoleon's army. ***** References: ***** Death of Marianna Wiciejewska: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach. Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-e). Death of Marianna Wiciejewska. https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/9781658e1494869bda4e949105f2d1b84eb9e83ce4e1318963d076f3475d01dd History: Google. (n.d.). Encyclopedia of Ukraine. Google Books. https://books.google.com/books?id=JWxEDAAAQBAJ&pg=PT466&lpg=PT466&dq=zamoyski%2Btomaszow%2Bpoland%2Bfaience&source=bl&ots=_Xcex6ZLlg&sig=ACfU3U1680XdU8thx3hwy_IzAQgvfQIViQ&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjV3Im3zazsAhUICc0KHYb2DVcQ6AEwDXoECAEQAg#v=onepage&q=zamoyski%20tomaszow%20poland%20faience&f=false Historia manufaktury W tomaszowie lubelskim. wirtualne wystawy. (n.d.). http://wystawy.biblioteka.pollub.pl/exhibits/show/ceramika/historia-tomaszow?fbclid=IwAR1-ok6PvjLG5lwcS1-QHyJmRdZEW7Ja9LPJYmH8Q8M9g_xRENmv4zCAu8o Kolekcja Tomaszowska. wirtualne wystawy. (n.d.-b). http://wystawy.biblioteka.pollub.pl/exhibits/show/ceramika/kolekcja-tomaszowska?fbclid=IwAR153REMtSrs0P93EuUaqpGVImwjjNmnFvgMrfweCjhOQfNSl-tE7GtA0wI Moscop, J. M. (Ed.). (2008). Tomaszow Lubelski, Tyszowce, Laszczow, Krylow and komarow jewish ancestry. Facebook: Tomaszow Lubelski, Tyszowce, Laszczow, Krylow and komarow jewish ancestry. https://www.facebook.com/groups/812333692214988/?multi_permalinks=6721843851263913&ref=share Wikimedia Foundation. (2023, June 4). Zamoyski family entail. Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zamoyski_family_entail

The Story of Józef Kurkiewicz & Ewa Wiśniewska

This story of the marriage of my 3rd great grandmother and her first husband is interesting because I am pretty sure, based on the limited information that I have, that their lives were directly affected by the November Uprising in Poland. Ewa’s first husband was a journeyman shoemaker. Wincenty Rachański and Ewa nee Wiśniewska (my 3rd great grandmother) married on January 17, 1830 at 1pm in Tomaszów Lubelski. (Wisniewska can be found with different variations: Wisniewska, Wisniowska, Wisniwski, Wiszniewska, Wiszniowska). Their marriage was the first one recorded for the year of 48 total marriages. The groom was a 22 year old bachelor and journeyman shoemaker. He was born in Tomaszów Lubelski to shoemakers Kazimierz and Tekla (Zielińska) Rachański. They were already deceased. The bride was a 22 year old maiden, the daughter of Błażej Wiśniowski, and the late Agnieszka nee Szcześnicka. Ewa was the oldest child born to Błażej and Agnieszka. Her mother died when she was 14 years old and her father was engaged to one woman and then married Anna Adamczyk, when Ewa was about 15 years old. Her father was a foreman of the faience (ceramics) factory when she was born and was working as a grave digger when she married. Ewa was born in Tomaszów Lubelski and was living there with her father. Her father gave his permission for the wedding. The witnesses were Grzegorz Jaworowski, 67 and Jacenty Janiszewski, 33, both shoemakers from Tomaszów Lubelski. ***** They only had one child together. Filip (Feliks) was born soon after, in October of the same year. The witnesses were Michał Podszadowski, 48 years old, a blacksmith and Ignacy Zieliński, 47 years old, a painter, both living in Krynice. The Godparents were Michał Podszadowski and Konstancja Kiżgowa. Feliks was born in Krynice and the birth was registered in the parish of Łabunie, Krynice is 16 kilometers (a little under 10 miles) north of Tomaszów Lubelski. In Krynice, there was a large manor and salt warehouse owned by the Zamoyski family. Wincenty and their only child Feliks both died in 1831, after Ewa and Wincenty had been married only about a year. One witness that reported the death of Felix was Błażej Wiśniowski, his grandfather from Tomaszów Lubelski. Błażej was 68 years old and was working as a tanner. He had previously worked as a potter and sometimes worked as a gravedigger. The other witness was Maciej Swiderek , church Sexton, age 46. When their son Feliks died when he was nine months old, in August of 1831, his death record indicates that his father (Wincenty) was already deceased, His father was a likely casualty of the November Uprising. While there was an Asiatic cholera epidemic along with influenza, it is possible that Wincenty died during the November Uprising battle that occurred near where they lived. The uprising occurred from November 29, 1930 to October 21, 1831: ***** “In July 1831, during the November Uprising, a siege and a blockade of Zamość began by 12,000 people. Tsarist soldiers led by General Kajsarow. Polish troops commanded by Major Dominik Bulewski and Major Wincenty Szymański, defending the Zamość fortress, fought a victorious skirmish with the Russian army near Krynice. ”https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=pl&u=http://roztoczewita.pl/krynice/&prev=search&pto=aue ***** Timeline: Jan 17 1830 Wincenty and Ewa marry in Tomaszów Lubelski Oct 24, 1830 Feliks is born in Krynice November 29, 1830 November Uprising begins July 1831 Polish troops and Russian Army fight near Krynice (as part of November Uprising August 11 1831 Feliks dies in Tomaszów Lubelski and his father has already died October 31, 1831 November Uprising ends ***** (Is it possible to get military records of relatives this far back?) ***** Ewa returned to Tomaszów Lubelski after the death of her husband, and lived with her father since her mother was deceased. Six years later, she married Jozef Kurkiewicz, a shoemaker. Jozef (my 3x great grandfather) was a 23 year old bachelor, living with his parents, Antoni Kurkiewicz and Marianna Kiszczyńska, when he married Ewa on 30 July 1837. His parents were farmers in Tomaszów Lubelski and also repaired shoes. Ewa was a 28 year old who had been widowed for six years. Witnesses to the marriage of Jozef and Ewa were Jan Recki & Antoni Lachowski. ***** It is very likely that Jozef Kurkiewicz (my 3rd great grandfather) was baptized but the birth record does not reflect it. Most of the records list the birth and baptism dates as well as the Godparents except those I have found between 1810 and 1826. Civil registration of births, marriages and deaths was initiated according to the Code of Napoleon on May 1rst, 1808. After Russia gained control in 1815, this practice continued. Priests were responsible for civil registrations from 1808 to 1825. After 1826, the civil records reverted to church records but kept the same format. Jozef was born at 5 o’clock in the evening on September 8, 1815. His parents were Antoni, 32 and Marianna nee Kiszczynski, 28. He was born in house #60 in Tomaszów Lubelski like his sister Jagnieska, who was born there three years earlier. The witnesses were Maciej Wyszynski, 42 and Maxym Zawalksi, 43. Jozef was the third child of 12 born to his parents. At least seven of their children did not survive to adulthood. Jozef’s father was a shoemaker, his mother came from a family of shoemakers and eventually Jozef himself would become a shoemaker. ***** Together, Jozef and Ewa had five children – Paulina (1833), Andrze (1840), Jakub (1843), Franciszka (1846), and Ignatious (1851). Their oldest child Paulina (my 2x great grandmother) married Jozef Kaszucki, a furrier of the Greek Uniate faith. He was a widower whose wife died two months earlier. Andrzej married an unknown woman and she was deceased when he died at age 68. Jakub died at age 48, likely unmarried. There is no information found about Franciszka. Their youngest child Ignatius (the 2x great-grandfather of Mike Liszewski.) I “found” Mike as a DNA match on Ancestry and now collaborate regularly with his wife Connie. Like me, Mike was born in Grand Rapids. Ignatius was a 53-year-old “petty-bourgeois” when he died.. Social classes in “old” Poland included magnates, nobility (szlachta), peasants, burghers, intelligentsia and “loose people.” ***** Magnates owned castles and entire villages. They made their income by charging peasants to live and farm on their property. They had the most control of life in Poland and it was to their advantage to prevent the peasants and burghers from having much power in society. The nobility were also landowners. Their role was to protect Poland but many were under the control of the magnates. Common occupations were soldier, gentleman farmer, scholar, priest, public official, or administrator of a higher noble’s estate. Zamoyski is the name of the Polish noble that was in the area of Tomaszow Lubelski. Jan was a chancellor and started their estate. His son Tomasz was also a chancellor and the city of Tomaszow was named for him. Peasants formed the largest group in Poland. There were different levels of wealth and status from an extremely poor day laborer to ownership of some things with the requirement still there to do work for their lord. Burghers were immigrants and free citizens that worked as bankers, craftsmen, tradesmen, and merchants which the noble could not do by law. While almost all the men on Katarzyna Kaszucki side worked in these areas, only a few were referred to as burghers in the birth, marriage and death records Professionals (“intelligentisia”) developed in the middle of the 18th century. They were usually members of the burgher or gentry social classes. Common occupations were doctors, scientists, scholars, priests, teachers, lawyers, architects, artists and writers. Loose people could originate from any social class and had no possessions. They might be criminals, prostitutes, gypsies or runaway serfs. ***** On December 30 in 1874, the death of Jozef was recorded in Tomaszów Lubelski after he died the day before. His death was the last one recorded of 169 deaths that year. The declarants were Jan Kamiński, age 45, and Walenty Lisikiewicz,age 28, both farmers from Tomaszów Lubelski. Jozef was 60 years old when he died and left behind a widowed wife, Ewa. Because records were recorded in Russian at this time, two dates were given -- December 30 and December 18. December 18 was from the Julian calendar, in use by Russia. The December 30 date is from the Gregorian calendar which Poland had been using and went back to using after 1917. It is the most commonly used calendar in the world. The difference between the Gregorian and Julian Calendars in the 19th century was 12 days. Fifteen years later, Ewa died on August 10, 1889 at the age of 80. One witness reporting her death was her 38 year old son Ignacy Kurkiewicz. Ignacy was the grandfather of Mike Liszewski and his sisters (my newfound 3rd cousins 1x removed.) The other witness was Walenty Lisikiewicz, age 40. There was a local children’s epidemic at the time Ewa died. ***** References: Birth of Jozef Kurkiewicz: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach (Birth of Jozef Kurkiewicz). Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-a). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/4d72c496ee53614668db9258b385e4c83c18ae35799075719cfef2f20e36de93 Marriage of Vincent Rachanski & Ewa Wisniewska: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach (Marriage of Vincent Rachanski & Ewa Wisniewska. Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/9aa819f02309467e0c0cf6b3a60de4e3de116c76060b7f750d3d905114a694ce Marriage of Józef Kurkiewicz & Ewa Rachańska: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwachn(Marriage of Jozef Kurkiewicz & Ewa Rachanska). Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-d). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/873f5c150ff001fc575476537e4fc0feffb2c509445255878ce69590ccf8b3ca Death of Feliks Rachanski: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach (Death of Feliks Rachanski). Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-a). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/b955f07030f3e26bd57a20845807d226b4801538beb72fed039232c0030b0d14 Death of Jozef Kurkiewicz: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach (Death of Jozef Kurkiewicz). Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-c). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/12f6b7365dba5f29b8a20c6f2fabfd42a771891d314470b4e66399b47f1b807b Death of Ewa Kurkiewicz: Skan - Szukaj W Archiwach (Death of Ewa Kurkiewicz). Przejdź do Szukaj w Archiwach. (n.d.-b). https://www.szukajwarchiwach.gov.pl/skan/-/skan/89f22c701d098f3fb9dd8c81a6287fbf431e4088916a9ceabff141775c20d279 History of area “Dzieje Miejscowosci Gminy Tomaszów Lubelski.” Dzieje Gmin Zamojszczyzny, 2011. Retreived July 11, 2023 from https://dzieje_gminy_tomaszow_lubelski_-_calosc_z_okladka.pdf (tomaszowlubelski.pl Krynice/Art Produkt Gala. Roztocze Wita. (2020, September 29). https://roztoczewita-pl.translate.goog/event/krynice-art-produkt-gala/?_x_tr_sl=pl&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc Krynice. Krynice - park dworski. (n.d.). https://www-ogrodowy-minigo-pl.translate.goog/index.php/page/krynice?_x_tr_sch=http&_x_tr_sl=pl&_x_tr_tl=en&_x_tr_hl=en&_x_tr_pto=sc Petite bourgeoisie - definition, meaning & synonyms. Vocabulary.com. (n.d.). https://www.vocabulary.com/dictionary/petite%20bourgeoisie Wikimedia Foundation. (2022, December 17). Krynice (Województwo Lubelskie). Wikipedia. https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krynice_(wojew%C3%B3dztwo_lubelskie)

The Life of Edward Dubiel

Edward Dubiel (my 1rst cousin 1x removed) died on August 9, 1980. He and his wife Halina (Mandziuk) lived in Rogoźno, Lubelskie, Poland. Rogoźno is a village with farmland that is five kilometers outside of Tomaszów Lubelski. Edward was a carpenter. His granddaughter Ewalina Wawrzusiszyn says she inherited from him her patience for craftsmanship. (Check out her website: www.wawrzusiszyn.com) Edward and Halina had two children: Bogusław Dubiel (1951) and Anna Wawryzusiszyn (1963). They had five grandchildren and His wife Halina died on April 1, 2020. Edward was born on June 14 1933 to Jan Dubiel and Paulina (Raczkiewicz.) His mother Paulina was born in Sabaudia but moved to Rogoźno after she married. Pauline and Jan Dubiel had six children: Leokadia, Bronisława, Jan, Józef, Edward and Halina. I would love to learn more about him!

The story of Lukasz & Justyna Kiszczynski

There are Grand Rapids connections to my fifth grandfather Lukasz Kiszczynski. I believe his brother Alexsander married Marianna Budzinska and their oldest son Wawrzyniec married Teresa Janusz. Their daughter Salomea Petryna had two children that ended up in Grand Rapids – Rozalia Sochan and Antonina Szymanski. Also, Wawrzyniec’s daughter Rozalia Włochowicz had two children move to Grand Rapids: Vincent Peter and Pauline (Stanazak) Czarnopyś, – It is hard to know very much about relatives who lived many generations ago. Justyna Kiszczynska (my 5x great grandfather) died on August 9, 1814, when she was 56 years old. This means she was born in approximately 1758. She died in house number 89 in Tomaszów Lubelski. She died at 10 o’clock at night. I do not know who her parents were or what their last name was because the informants didn’t share that with the priest when they reported about her death. One witness was Jakub, her 25-yea- old son and the other was Ambrozy Kudlcki, age 56 and a neighbor. Her husband Lucasz was already deceased when she died. I only know about two of their children: Their daughter Marianna (my 4x great grandmother) was 27 years old at the time of her mother’s death. She was married to Antoni Józef Kurkiewicz, son of Marcin Kurkiewicz and Franciszka Rzeczycka. At the time of her mother’s death, they already had two of their twelve children. They were shoemakers. Their son Jakub had not yet married but would also marry a Kurkiewicz – Marianna – whose father and mother were Pawel Kurkiewicz and Marianna Pasko. Jakub was also a shoemaker.

The Life of Aleksander Szczepan Raczkiewicz

Aleksander Szczepan Raczkiewicz was the only child of Franciszek Raczkiewicz and Stanisława Oleńczuk from Łaszczów. I learned his birthdate in July 2023 from his daughter Lucyna. He was born August 3, 1939 – 84 years ago. I am not sure, but I would guess he was born in Sabaudia, because his father Franciszek and mother Stanisława were farmers there. I have not seen his birth certificate to know who his Godparents were but on his father’s side, several aunts and uncles lived nearby. Paulina, Stanisława, Piotr all had children of their own though the youngest was five. Bolesław was not yet married. I think his mother was from the nearby village of Łaszczów. His father died when he was three years old. His family had been displaced from their home by Germans and his father was shot in the Rotunda in Zamosc, during World War II. Aleksander Szczepan studied chemistry in Wrocław. I am not sure when he married Danuta, or her last name. Aleksander Szczepan worked in a nitrogen plant and Danuta is a metallurgy engineer. They met at the plant when Danuta was there on a student internship. She is eight years younger. They had two daughters named Lucyna and Sylvia, who live in Kraków. Eugeniusz Raczkiewicz told me that his cousin used to visit him when he was studying in Warsaw. Eugeniusz was five years younger. Lucyna, Aleksander Szczepan’s daughter, remembers that her father once told her about it. Aleksander Szczepan worked in Nigeria, Africa on a work contract. It was common for people from Poland to go to other countries to earn money and then return to Poland. His wife and daughters remained in Poland. Aleksander Szczepan died in Nigeria, Africa on February 1, 1993, of an unknown disease, caused by being bitten by an insect. He was 53 years old. His mother, Stanisława, died on January 23, 2001 in Sabaudia, and is buried in Łaszczówka. His wife Danuta is still alive.

The Life of Stanislaw Bielak

Stanislaw died on August 3, 2002 at the age of 82. Stanislaw Bielak was born April 20, 1920. He was the first living child of Stanislawa nee Raczkiewicz (my great aunt) and Jan Bielak. Czeslaw Marcin was born two years before him and died early. He had three siblings: Wladyslaw, Maria, and Wanda. Wanda recently died on March 11, 2023. Stanislaw lived in Ciotusza Nowa, Poland, where in September of 1939, there were battles near the village, before they were more concentrated around the city of Tomaszów. “In February 1943 the village was pacified, in July 1943 the population was displaced. They were replaced by Ukrainian colonists.” Stanislaw worked in a sawmill on furniture and was also a farmer. His wife Kazimiera (Chucik) Bielak was from Rogozno and helped on the farm and was a seamstress. They had five children: Danuta Sikora (1946), Stanislaw (1948), Edward (1950), Bogumila Zdunczyk (1952) and Janusz (1961) They had 11 grandchildren and there are many great grandchildren. . Many memories of him were collected. Irena Bielak wrote, “It is amazing how fast time goes. It's nice that you remember your grandfather like that today. He would have been 102 years old. Time has passed fast he will always remain in our memories. Lukasz Celmer wrote, “I remember.”: His grandson Marcin Bielak said that “he liked to walk horses and raised pigeons.” His Grandfather kept various kinds: Zamojski high-flying, Zamojski Gray, white lota, Szarik red, black, Skaplirzak, side red black yellow, and various types of crested. Marcin remembers holding a pigeon but they would often fly away when he came out. Eugeniusz Raczkiewicz remembered, “My father (Boleslaw) and I admired Stanisław's beautifully maintained horses and his passion. He enjoyed seeing my parents.” Marta Bielak-Gora shared, ““We spent a lot of time fixing bikes, grandpa was good at it. He also liked apple trees, which were a lot next to our house, and I had a string swing on almost every tree, which grandfather weaved himself. Our grandfather could also scrape a whistle from twigs.” Matrcin Bielak added that the whistles were made from willow bark. Marta also wrote, “Often, when we were bored, he would sit under the house on a bench, pulled out his scissors and began to scrape.” By sharing memories, we are writing these stories of our family together. http://www.turystyka.susiec.pl/?ciotusza-nowa,51

The Life of Halina (Dubiel) Tetych

Halina (Dubiel) Tetych was born on July 31, 1940. She is the youngest child born to Jan Dubiel and Paulina Raczkiewicz. She was married to Mieczysław Szynal. Her second husband was Jozef Tetych. They had two children: Mirosław Tetych and Barbara “Basia” (Tetych) Zubiak. Halina lives in Kurzelow, Poland and her children live in the UK and Ireland. Halina has five grandchildren. I would love to hear more about her!