The Story of Błażej Wiśniewski & Agnieszka Szczesnicki

Błażej Wiśniewski (my 4x great grandfather) was in a bit of a hurry after his wife Jagnieszka Szcześnicka (my 4x great grandmother) died. His children were six to fourteen years old so that may explain his rush. He ended up engaged – that fell through – and then he ended up marrying about a year after Jagniewska’s death. Jagniewska died May 20, 1823 at age 49. It happened in house #347 at 6:00 in the evening in Tomaszów. Two days later Błażej , 53, who was working as a grave digger and her brother Bartłomiej Szcześnicki, 53, a manufacturer of faience, went to report the death. ***** Wedding banns were posted on the main door of the community house by September 7, less than four months later, by the Parish priest of Tomaszów, who operated as the clerk of the civil records in the Administrative district of Tomaszów, Tomaszów County, Province Lubelskie. These were the first banns for the planned marriage of Marianna Cyronik, age 25 and Błażej , who was in his 50s. ***** Banns are published prior to a wedding to determine if there is a civil or religious reason to prevent the marriage. Concerns could be a current marriage, a pledge of celibacy, a close family relationship, or lack of consent. The guidance from 1743 required the priest to carefully and separately question the bride and groom. If any of these concerns were discovered, the banns were suspended. If the bride and groom cleared this hurdle, the banns were published to give the public the chance to object. In most cases, there are three banns and in most records I read, the wedding went through. In this fascinating example, the first banns were published – but eight months later the groom married someone else! Banns are no longer required in the Catholic church but may still be published and many parishes still do so. ***** Obviously something happened before the wedding occurred to determine they could not be married, and the wedding was canceled. The intended bride was Marianna Cyronśkówna, 25. Her father Ignacy had been a farmer in Tomaszów but was deceased and her mother Helena née Kowalik, was working as a laborer. There was a very large age difference, but Błażej had been prominent earlier in his role as a pottery factory supervisor even though he was working as a grave digger at this time. It is unknown what prevented the marriage from occurring. ***** Instead of marrying Marianna, Błażej and Anna Adamczyk were married on May 9, 1824 at 6:00 p.m. Anna, a 41-year-old maiden, was living and working in Tomaszów, as a servant. She was the daughter of deceased parents Błażej Adamczyk and Katarzyna nee Fuss, who had been peasants in Wólka Łosiniecka, which is in the same county as Tomaszów, about six miles (10 kilometers) west. Wólka Łosiniecka had about 73 houses at the time with granges, mills, a brickyard and an inn. The witnesses were Grzegorz Nazarewicz, 36, a smith, Jan Kalarzyński,45, a manufacturer, Maciej Wiciiowski, 55, a "garncarz" potter and, Michał Kudlicki, 45, a shoemaker, 45, all residing in Tomaszów. I believe Maciej was another 4th grandfather of mine, from the other family that worked at the pottery factory. Błażej was working as a grave digger and a farmer, like his father was before his death. ***** Błażej's family were from Pacanów, Galicia. His parents were Mateusz Wiśniowski and Marianna Kalinowska. When Błażej first married Jagnieszka, her father Michał was a legal authority or judge ("jurydyczanie" singular: "jurydyczanin.") At the time, the owner of the local manor was the administrator and judge unless he delegated those duties to someone else. It is possible that Jagnieska’s father worked for the magnate Alexander Zamoyski who employed her husband in his pottery factory. ***** The local ceramics factory figured prominently in their lives. Błażej was a foreman there before the demise of the faience industry in Tomaszów. He knew many potters: Błażej’s brother-in-law Bartlomiej Szczesnicki was a potter and fellow potters Filip Zawalski, Jan Lisikiewicz and Stefan Okopcinski were witnesses for his second marriage. Maciej Wiciejewski (another 4x great grandfather) and Jakub Wiciejewski, his father (my 5x great grandfather) were also potters. Maciej Glowacki was a potter who was a declarant for the birth of one of Antoni Kurkiewicz’s (another 4th great grandfather) children. ***** Błażej and Jagnieska’s children were Ewa (1809), Józef (1810), Wojciech (1813), Józef (1815), and Anna (1816.) Ewa (my 3x great grandmother) married Wincenty Rachański, a shoemaker and later married Józef Kurkiewicz, a farmer and shoemaker. Józef died in childhood. I do not have any information about Wojciech. Their second child named Józef was a journeyman shoemaker when he married Miss Marianna Kaszucka, age 17, the daughter of Teodor Kaszucka and Teodorzia nee Pańczyszak. Her father (3x great uncle) was a furrier from the Kaszucki family that moved to Tomaszów from Ukraine. Józef later worked as a mason, and died fairly young at the age of 28. Anna died in childhood. ***** Marianna Cyronśkówna died in 1839, 16 years after her engagement to Błażej , at the age of 42. She never married. On January 20 in 1844 at 2:00 p.m., Błażej died at the age of 92, though there are some discrepancies in the records and he might have been 83. Błażej was born approximately in the 1750s or 1760s. One witness was Józef Kurkiewicz, farmer, age 29, his son-in-law, married to Ewa (my 3rd great-grandmother.). The other witness was Franciszek Szcześnicki, bricklayer, age 29, As a Szcześnicki, Franciszek may have been related to Błażej ’s prior wife, Jagnieszka. ***** After nearly 20 years of marriage, Błażej died on January 20, 1844, at the age of 92. Józef Kurkiewicz, a 29-year-old farmer and his son-in-law, and Franciszek Szcześnicki, a 29-year-old bricklayer and his first wife’s nephew, reported the death two days later. ***** Anna, his wife for twenty years who had raised his children from Jagnieszka, died less than two years after her husband Józef. She died as a beggar woman “'Baba żebraczka” in Tomaszów on February 26, 1846. Her age was unknown in the death record. She was listed as a widow but her husband wasn’t named. The informants knew her parents were peasants from Wolka Losiniecki but did not know their names. She was 63 year old Anna Wizniewska (a different spelling) from Tomaszów, the second wife of Błażej Wiśniewski. Reporting the death was Michał Wizniewski, a 42-year old blacksmith – how he was related to her is unknown. Also reporting on the death was Józef Kurkiewicz, a 30 year old cobbler/shoemaker and her son-in-law. Her stepdaughter Ewa was remarried with four (soon to be five) children, her stepson Józef had already died in his twenties and it is unknown if Wojciech was alive. ***** http://wystawy.biblioteka.pollub.pl/exhibits/show/ceramika/historia-Tomaszów (History of Tomaszów pottery) http://wystawy.biblioteka.pollub.pl/exhibits/show/ceramika/kolekcja-Tomaszówska (Pictures of pottery from Tomaszów) http://wystawy.biblioteka.pollub.pl/exhibits/show/ceramika/historia-Tomaszów https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Faience http://www.turystyka.susiec.pl/?wolka-losiniecka,63 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kozio%C5%82ek_Mato%C5%82ek

The Life of Jozef Raczkiewicz

(In this story I use the names “Józef” and “Antoni” when they are in Poland and “Joe ” and “Joseph” and “Anthony” and “Tony” when they are in the U.S.) ***** Family stories give hints to our ancestors’ lives but the stories are sometimes misleading or lead to other questions. Little snippets of these tales from the life of my grandparents and their families still remain. One family story is that Józef and his brother Antoni had to swim to safety when they traveled together to the U.S. from Poland. Another one is that Józef’s epilepsy meant he couldn’t work and was caused by his involvement in “the war” – it was unclear if that was when he was in Poland or after he moved to the U.S. There were several questions about Joe’s life with no answers: were the stories about the cause of his epilepsy, not working and the swim true? If Joe and Anthony traveled together to the US, why did we only find Joe’s name on a ship manifest during a family visit to Ellis Island in New York? When did Joe serve in the military and did that cause his epilepsy? Is it true that Joe never worked? And finally, when was his birthday (because even Joe didn’t know!) ***** By doing family history research, I was able to piece together more of his story. While I knew my great uncle as “Uncle Joe” he was born Józef in Poland and went by Joseph or Joe in the U.S. “Uncle Joe” was always in the background during my childhood until he died when I was thirteen. He never married and he lived with my grandparents. Because he never married and had no children, I hope his story makes an impression so that he is remembered by others. ***** JOE’S BIRTHDAY: In interviewing my mother countless times about family history, I learned that Joe didn’t know when his actual birthday was and that it was celebrated on the Name Day for St. Joseph. Finding out his actual birthday became a goal. I was able to successfully answer the question of Joe’s birthday at the beginning of my research. ***** “Wszystkiego najlepszego z okazji imienin” means “Happy Name Day” in Polish. Joe likely heard that from his brother and sister-in-law while the rest of the family would have stuck to the English “Happy birthday.” Joe celebrated his Name Day on March 19. “Uncle Joe” lived with my grandparents so my sisters and I celebrated his birthday/name day with him when we were young. He liked to celebrate by buying special meats, cheeses, and bread to share with his family along with eating cake someone in the family would make for him. Even though St. Joseph’s name day occurs during Lent, the normal diet prohibitions are suspended for a celebration like this. ***** My mother inherited a small pile of papers related to Joe because I don’t think anyone else wanted them. One item was an abbreviated copy of his birth and baptismal certificate that was obtained in 1966 from Poland, which my grandmother Pauline would have ordered on behalf of her brother-in-law. The correct date of birth for Józef is written in Polish. One of the first records found and translated for me by volunteers on a genealogy Facebook page was the full birth record written in Russian and obtained from the archives in Poland. It was a surprise to learn the real date of his birth. Józef Raczkiewicz was born at 3:00 in the afternoon on 6/18 February 1891 in Sabaudia, Poland, not on March 18 as we believed. The reason that there are two dates listed is that the first date was from the Julian calendar and the second date was from the Gregorian calendar. The Julian calendar was used by the Russian government and the Russian Orthodox Church. The Gregorian date was used by people in Poland and people in the rest of Europe, and it is used by people in the United States today. In the 1800s, there was a 12 day difference between the two dates. ***** I learned that Józef’s parents were Jan Raczkiewicz, a 26 year old peasant and Katarzyna nee Kaszucka, age 21. Józef was their second child. The oldest child Jan was two and a half years old when he was born. “Józef” was baptized 7/19 February in Tomaszów Lubelski. His Godparents were Wiktor Wiciewski and Józefa Skurcz. Her mother was a Katarzyna Raczkiewicz, unknown how she was related. Later, she would marry Józefa Kędra, Jan Raczkiewicz’ half brother. ***** The wrong birthdate for Joe was used on several U.S. official records. The Social Security and Michigan Death Index list the incorrect date since that is what the people reporting his death would have believed. The birth year is also wrong in the U.S.records since it lists 1894 but he was actually born in 1891. It’s hard to believe that someone would not know when they were born but at least Joe had an annual celebration on his Name Day. ***** TRAVEL TO A NEW LIFE How could I find immigration information about Józef and his brother Antoni since there was no record of Anthony arriving in New York? Even though I had not learned HOW Józef and Antoni made it to the U.S. I understood a little of WHY they left Poland. It was known through family stories that our relatives needed to leave Poland for safety and better opportunities. The economic and political situation they faced is why the Raczkiewicz siblings were encouraged to immigrate. ***** While I am no historian, a little research into what was going on shows some of the challenges. Economic reasons included a shortage of land, high taxes, and poverty. Around the time that Jan and Katarzyna married, the Peasant Bank was established in 1883 to help peasants buy farmland. Families struggled to obtain enough land to pass on to their children. Wealthy nobles were better positioned to obtain land. Some people left Poland in order to earn money with the intent of returning to buy farmland. The Russian government encouraged people to relocate to areas with industry in Russia such as Siberia. Józef’s parents were lucky that Jan had inherited land from his grandfather but land would have been hard to obtain for the older brothers as they reached adulthood and wanted to marry and start families. ***** Forced conscription into fighting for the Russian Army was another reason to consider leaving. Military service was mandatory. Polish soldiers were put in separate groups which were sent in to fight first during battles and these troops therefore suffered the highest casualties. My sister reminded me of the story about our Grandpa and his brother Joe related to leaving Poland. According to the story, the brothers were facing unwilling conscription into the Russian army and allegedly had to swim across a river in the journey towards the ship that would take them to the U.S. They would have been facing lengthy military terms since the Russian emperor modified the conscription statute in 1874 to compulsory service for all 20-year-olds for six years of service and for nine years in the reserves. All three brothers left at around that age: Jan in 1810 at age 21 years, 7 months and Antoni at 19 years, 6 months and Józef at 21 years, 6 months. ***** Also, since the family was Polish, the Russian government prevented them from practicing their cultural and religious freedoms. An example of the challenges is when his Godmother married in 1905, it legitimized the births of their two children since “The newlyweds explain the delay in registering the act as an external reason, independent of their will.” When Józef was a young teenager, from 1905-1907, there was a revolution in the Russian Partition, with Poles fighting for greater freedoms but when Józef and his brother left in 1912, Russian policies still dominated the area. Along with discrimination, there were frequent epidemics. Economic and political factors obviously drove people out of Poland, but I will never have a complete understanding of what impact all this had on Joe or his family. The factors that pulled the Raczkiewicz brothers to a particular location such as Grand Rapids, Michigan, were the prospect of jobs, farmland that was affordable, and chain migration. Chain migration is the idea that immigrants gravitate to a particular town after hearing about it from friends and relatives that went there before them. ***** During a family trip to New York, several of us tried to find immigration information on Anthony and his brother Joseph at Ellis Island. We found “Józef Raczkiewicz,” who emigrated to the United States when he was 20 years old, departing on July 26, 1913, and arriving at Ellis Island on September 6, 1913. We couldn’t find any information about our grandfather being on the same ship but our mother believed they came over together. We left the Statue of Liberty confused, but in awe, using our imagination to think of the decision to leave home, the determination to make arrangements to leave, pay for it, and endure the taxing travel required, since the ship, Amerika, departed from Hamburg, German, approximately 500 to 600 miles from their home. ***** Ten years later after that trip to Ellis Island, I decided to trace our family history. I still believed the family lore that Antoni traveled with Józef and I looked at every line on that particular ship’s manifest to find his name. I also looked at many other possible voyages arriving in New York. I also looked for their sister Marion, who also came to the U.S., many years after the three brothers, without any luck. ***** One day I got lucky though and received more information which helped to solve the mystery. I applied for the “Alien Registration” form of the United States Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Service through the National Archives for my grandfather Anthony. It turns out that Anthony arrived in the United States at Detroit, Michigan, on October 4, 1912, by train, as a passenger, entering as a permanent resident. From there, I was able to find the US Border Crossings from Canada to the U.S., (1895-1960 in Ancestry) which told me that Antoni and Józef both sailed on the SS Mount Temple, from Antwerp, Belgium to Quebec, Canada, leaving on September 18, 1912, and arriving October 1, 1912, Their final destination of Grand Rapids, Michigan was where their brother Jan already lived. In Family Search, I also found the ship manifest. After finding information from the ship records from nearly 100 years ago, I now could piece together their trip, from their goodbyes, the travel from their hometown to the port, the travel by ship to Canada, the train travel from Canada to Detroit, and finally, their final destination of Grand Rapids, Michigan. I learned that Józef (and his brothers) faced many daunting tasks in their journey. ***** When Katarzyna (Kaszucka) Raczkiewicz (my great grandmother) said goodbye to her two sons Józef and Antoni, it was likely that she was never going to see them again. They were journeying to the United States for a better life. Her oldest son Jan had already left two years earlier and now two more sons were leaving. The remaining six children were ages six to seventeen. Her husband Jan was still alive (and would be for three more years) and he had encouraged his sons to go to the United States and he helped with the cost and the planning. It is hard to imagine what the young men would have packed for their journey and what their mother might have wanted them to bring. They would have had to carry everything so they probably needed to pack lightly. ***** Katarzyna was 39-years-old when Jan left, 41-years-old when Joseph and Anthony left, and 52-years-old when daughter Mary left. As part of the process of doing family history, I have become acquainted with several previously unknown relatives who still live in Poland. One, a first cousin of my mother, Is Eugeniusz Raczkiewicz, a son of my grandfather’s youngest brother Boleslaw. When Eugeniusz heard what I had learned about the travels of the three brothers, he told me about a statue that is near Sabaudia where they lived, and near where he and much of his family still reside. Eugeniusz wrote to me, “It is a figurine built in Sabaudia in 1909. (That would have been a year before their first son Jan left home.) I believe that my Grandma Katarzyna said goodbye from this place and blessed her sons and daughter before the long journey. It used to stand at the end of the village. Today, the residents say goodbye as they drive past it. When you are in Sabaudia, you will see the statue first before you see your grandfather's house. The figurine says: “God bless these inhabitants!” ***** Before they could sail to the U.S., Antoni and Józef first had 700 to 800 miles of travel, some by rail, to get to the port of Antwerp, Belgium from their home. “The initial phase of the journey for the emigrant was the trip to the port.” To get there they would have gone by horse and cart, by foot, and by train. They likely had to pass a border station to go through Germany and to enter Belgium where officials from each country they were entering, policemen and an agent of the steamship company would review papers and determine if they were healthy enough to enter. After this, they re-boarded the train for the ride the rest of the way to the port. Some Poles chose to avoid the border stations but sneaking across the border could be dangerous and difficult. It would have been challenging and full of danger to avoid them but this might be where the story of Józef and Antoni swimming across a river fits in. We will never know. Once Józef and Antoni arrived in the port, they either stayed in shipping company accommodations or found somewhere nearby to stay until the ship was ready to leave. “Hopefully, the wait was short because the cost of the room and food would tax the meager funds that they needed to make a start in America.” ***** THE SHIP & ITS CONNECTION TO THE TITANIC: Józef and Antoni sailed on the SS Mount Temple, from Antwerp, Belgium to Quebec, Canada, leaving on September 18, 1912 and arriving October 2, 1912. They spent fifteen days on the ocean. In Family Search, I found the ship manifest. The entries for the two brothers are on lines 7 and 8. The form says they are farm laborers who can read and write. They are from Russia and are Polish. It says they are from Zibaldy (Sabaudia) and Tomaszów is listed as well as their father – Jan Raczkiewicz. Their eventual destination is their brother Jan, on West Division Street in Grand Rapids, Michigan. ***** This trip would have been a huge investment of money. The $39 Józef and Antoni carried on the ship is equivalent to $1,130 in today’s money. Adding the tickets for the ship brings the total to around $3,000 for the trip, which doesn’t include the travel from their hometown to the ship. Józef’s passage was paid for by his brother (unnamed) and Antoni’s passage was paid for by their father Jan. “In the early 1900s, steamship tickets for America cost between $30 to $35 for steerage or third class.” That would be approximately $792.67 to about $920.87 in current dollars! “Paying for their ticket was . . . a challenge. People had to save money for years to buy their tickets, or they borrowed the money from relatives. Personal items may also have been sold to pay the passage. ***** After paying for the passage, Józef had $14 left for the trip. On the manifest, this amount was crossed off and re-written as $20. Antoni had $25 entered as the amount of money he was carrying onboard, but it was also crossed off and $18 was written. It is possible that the officials on the ship evened out the money between the two of them. My sister Lori theorized that there was possibly a tax on any amount over $20. Maybe the authorities helped them adjust how much each brother had so that additional tax did not need to be paid. Lori also found out about the Immigration Act of 1882 which created a "head tax" imposed upon certain immigrants entering the U.S. It was fifty cents for each passenger and would rise in stages to $8 by 1917. Józef and Antoni had $39 between the two of them originally and after the adjustments, their total was $38 with the missing dollar likely going to pay for this head tax. ***** What was the ocean trip like for the brothers? I found their names on a steerage list and steerage cabins for 2 to 8 people included a bunk, a seat, a mirror, a hook for clothes and a washstand. The third class included large compartments, occupied by single male passengers. The menu for third-class dining on a 1912 voyage included: “oatmeal porridge, fried tripe, bread, butter, marmalade, milk, tea, and coffee for breakfast; soup, roast beef with brown gravy, green beans, boiled potatoes, biscuits, bread, prunes, and rice for lunch; rabbit, baked potatoes, bread and butter, jam, coffee and tea for dinner.” ***** The ship that the brothers traveled on had a connection to the Titanic. The Mount Temple was originally put into service in 1901 carrying cargo. By 1903, a wireless telegraph was added and the ship was retrofitted to carry passengers in one direction and cargo on the return trip. When Great Britain entered World War I on August 2, 1914, the ship was used to transport food and troops until it was captured and sunk on December 6, 1916. The ship’s history included hitting another ship, being grounded several times, and being stuck in rocks on a shore. The most interesting fact about the ship’s history though, is its connection to the Titanic. ***** Earlier the same year that Józef and Antoni traveled on the SS Mount Temple, the Titanic was on its usual journey from Antwerp, Belgium to St. John, Canada with 1,461 immigrants on board. The wireless operator on the ship picked up a distress signal from the RMS Titanic, on the night of April 14 until the morning of April 15. Even though Captain Moore, in charge of the SS Mount Temple, had been directed to avoid icebergs, they went to the last known position of the Titanic and waited in an area of heavy ice. Without seeing the Titanic or any survivors, they gave up and headed for Canada. There was controversy about the ship’s role in the potential rescue and some accused them of being nearby and not helping with the rescue. Rumors continue to this day. This connection is a reminder of the danger that my relatives potentially faced in their travels. They might not have known about their ship’s controversy but certainly the knowledge that an “unsinkable” boat had sunk would have contributed to the perceived danger of their journey. ***** Fifteen days after they boarded the ship, Józef and Antoni arrived in Canada on October 1, 1912. “After the immigrants had left the ship, they were suddenly confronted with crowds of people they could not understand. Attendants yelled commands in a strange language and pointed their fingers sharply to where they should go.” “They waited in long lines for their turn for processing and admittance.” “They knew that the inspectors might reject some of them, and they feared that family members could be separated if some were accepted and others rejected.” “The medical and legal examinations for the steerage passengers were efficient and quick but sometimes were done callously.” “Over the years about two percent of the arriving immigrants were turned back and returned to Europe.” ***** The next day, the two brothers took the train from Canada to Detroit. They arrived as train passengers, entering the U.S. as permanent residents. “The immigrant trains were crowded and uncomfortable, but the cost of the ticket was low, so the immigrants endured again to save what little money they had.” “When the train stopped at the border, U.S. inspectors boarded the train and collected the Certificates of Admission.” “As our Polish immigrants stepped through the gate into America, they claimed their luggage and then exchanged their foreign money for U.S. dollars.” Upon arrival, the brothers still had about 160 miles to travel to Grand Rapids before being reunited with their brother Jan. ***** WHY GRAND RAPIDS? Their final destination of Grand Rapids, Michigan is where their brother Jan already lived for two years. Why did several Raczkiewicz siblings pick Grand Rapids, Michigan as their final destination? The likely answer is that they knew people from home who had already moved to Grand Rapids for the furniture industry. There were Polish neighborhoods, churches, a Polish military band, choirs, halls for social and other support, and Polish political organizations. ***** The earliest person from their group I have found so far arrived in 1909. The names of the travelers -- Raczkiewicz, Czarnopys, Kudlicka, Niedzwiedz (Nedzwed), Kwiatkowski, Kurkiewicz, Golebiowska, Malec, Eifler, Kiszczynska – to name a few – are somewhere in the family tree as some sort of cousin or aunt or uncle. Family was obviously a big reason. They traveled together, they helped others that were still in Poland to come. I would really like to know who was the first from Tomaszów to Grand Rapids and how did it spread? I know my Grandma could communicate in Russian and Polish even though she was born in Oil City, PA, (her parents were 1rst generation) and she apparently wrote and read letters to and from the "old country" and some of those letters were about additional people coming to the U.S. ***** Józef and others he knew likely came to Grand Rapids for the economic opportunities. However, most of the jobs available to immigrants without a lot of education like him with a first grade education, were in the factories on the Westside of Grand Rapids, within walking distance of where they lived. Immigrants were more likely than the native-born Americans of British descent, to work in the brickyards, gypsum mines and factories. Grand Rapids recruited foreign workers for the furniture industry and the associated businesses such as the tanning of animal hides, the manufacture of hand screws, clamps, varnish, glue, veneers and the preparation of lumber. The city hosted a huge furniture market that was attended by buyers from all over. ***** When they came to the U.S., the people living in the Westside of Grand Rapids were mostly the Dutch and the Poles. They resided in separate neighborhoods, centered around their churches. The churches looked different and different languages were spoken depending on the neighborhood. While the Dutch and Poles worked together in the factories, they didn’t interact after work or on the weekends. Both groups were conservative though the Poles were more oriented to the Democratic Party. Polish Catholics were more likely to vote against prohibition, regulations on theaters and other entertainment and more likely to vote for an eight hour work day. Both groups had the goal of house ownership in a clean and safe neighborhood. The Dutch also worked in the factories but they had arrived much earlier so were making better wages and getting better jobs. In the 1920 census, there were 4,269 foreign-born Poles living in Grand Rapids. The Dutch greatly outnumbered the Polish except on the Westside where they lived and many factories were located. ***** DID “UNCLE JOE” EVER WORK AND WHEN WAS HE IN THE MILITARY? With his birthdate and immigration information solved, the next questions were about Joe’s employment history and time in the military. Before Józef and his brother came to the United States in 1912, he had been a farm laborer in Poland. His work history in the U.S. was a mystery. The family story was that Joe had never worked in the U.S. because of epilepsy acquired from “fighting in the war.” ***** Even though my mother thought that he didn’t work, I did find work records for him. Joe worked as a tacker at a tanning company and a furniture finisher and cabinet maker. In the earliest Polk Directory I could find that listed him (1914), Joseph was a tacker at Kiefer Tanning Company (260 Front St. SW, owner Irving Orr, 915 Cambridge Dr. SE, leather works.) In 1916, he worked as a furniture finisher. When Joseph registered for the WWI draft in June 1917, he was a cabinet maker at Grand Rapids Piano Case Company. The years that I could verify employment were 1914, 1916, 1917, and then a gap of three years until 1921 when he was again listed as a cabinet maker. ***** When I started doing family history research I was unable to find any service records so I didn’t know when he served. We didn’t know if Joe’s military service was in Poland or in the U.S. After completing two years of family research, I took a look again, and with more understanding of Joe’s life, I was able to begin to piece together his military service with his employment history. There was a reference in the 1930s census to him receiving a pension, which I thought could possibly be a military pension. My mother remembered that her mother had helped Joe with the application process. ***** On his World War I draft registration, completed on June 5, 1917 in Precinct 9, Ward 1 of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Joseph’s record indicated that he was from Lublin, Poland, and was a Russian citizen. Joseph, 25, lived with his brother Jan, 28, and Jan’s wife Frances at 327 Gunnison NW. Joseph did not claim any dependents as a reason for an exemption and was “willing to be drafted at once.” while his brothers requested exemptions because they were married. On the draft card, the descriptions of the brothers showed that they had some physical similarities but also some differences: Joe was described as short and slender, while his brothers were of medium build. He had light hair and they had brown hair. Joe had blue eyes like his brother John and Anthony had gray eyes. Anthony was the only one listed as having a disability – a deformed finger – which is interesting because Joe’s epilepsy was not reported as a problem at this point. I made the assumption that since Joe registered for the WWI draft on June 5, 1917, it is likely that he ended up serving some time between then and 1921, the date of the next work record. ***** A year after enlisting, on September 6, 1918, Joseph) was naturalized as a citizen of the United States. My mother had a copy of his Certificate of Naturalization, which was issued from the Circuit Court of Calhoun County in Battle Creek, Michigan. Battle Creek is 65 miles from where he lived in Grand Rapids. At the time “Joe” lived at 327 Gunnison Avenue in Grand Rapids with his oldest brother John. Joe was 24 years old and described as 5 foot 5 ¾ inches tall, with a ruddy complexion, blue eyes, and brown hair. In the process of trying to rethink when he was in the military, I made a guess that the naturalization was somehow connected to his military service. The army base for Michigan is Fort Custer, near Battle Creek, so my thinking was that naturalization was probably applied for related to his military service. ***** After analyzing his work record, including the gaps and the naturalization information, I could assume that Joef was likely in the service sometime between September 1918 and when he resumed work in 1921. The U.S. entered the war on April 6, 1917, and the war ended by November 11, 1918, so it was likely that his service was soon after he was drafted. ***** Even though two years earlier I looked for Joe’s military records without success, I decided to look again with this new information. Amazingly, I found him with a different spelling of his name! Joe “Rackiewicz” was in CoE Development Battalion 2 of the 85th Division. His final rank was private. The location WAS near Battle Creek, at Camp Custer, which is five miles south of Battle Creek. Fort Custer was established on July 18, 1917, as a training camp for the 85th Division and was in use for that purpose until July, 1918. For a year, beginning on August 25, 1917, the recruits trained then went to England and from there to Russia. The Michigan Census of World War I Veterans indicated that Joe enlisted on July 24, 1918, and was discharged on September 14, 1918, in St. Louis, Missouri. This was only nine weeks later so there were new questions about his health. Did he already have epilepsy and it was diagnosed in boot camp? Was he injured somehow? ***** Was it possible that he caught the Spanish flu and ended up with neurological damage resulting in epilepsy? The 1918-1919 flu epidemic hit the military hard with 20 to 40% of those in the service affected because of their close living quarters. A little bit of research showed that there was a high death rate but among those that survived there could be devastating consequences. One consequence could be a loss of mental capacity and convulsions and “hystero-epileptic attacks” that were quite common. The Spanish flu hit Camp Custer on September 29 and by the next day there were 557 cases recorded. Joe was already discharged from St. Louis, Missouri two weeks before that so he likely missed the flu outbreak there. The flu started in the Jefferson Barracks, 10 miles outside of St. Louis, Missouri on October 1. It appears that Józef left before this outbreak so his epilepsy was likely not caused by the epidemic of Spanish flu. ***** I found a minor detail of a later address of Front & Shawmut St. NW in Grand Rapids, but the big news in the new information found is that recorded under “Previous Occupation” was that Joe had worked in Cleveland, Ohio! No one had ever mentioned that Joe had gone to Cleveland. The last work record before his service was June 5, 1917, when he registered for the draft and was working as a cabinet maker at Grand Rapids Piano Case Company. If he worked in Cleveland, it could have only been for a short time because, by July 24, 1918, he was in the army. I have looked for records of him in Cleveland but have been unsuccessful, possibly since it was such a short period of time that it never made it into any local directory. ***** A response to my request for his military records from the National Archives was delayed due to lower staffing levels during the pandemic. When a response was eventually received, I was notified that the records were in the area most affected by a fire on July 12, 1973. Instead they sent a Final Pay Voucher but I believe it was for a different Joseph Raczkiewicz so the record request did not provide any additional information. Unfortunately, this means that there are no other military records available. ***** After Joe’s discharge in 1918, there was a gap in the paper trail until 1921 when Joe was again living with John and his wife and they were both cabinet makers. John returned to Poland after 1921, with his wife Frances to the farm that they purchased with earnings from the United States. It is unclear if Joe continued to work or where he lived. There is a gap of information until 1928 so it is possible that Joe only worked one year or that because he moved from John’s house it wasn’t reported in the Polk directory. In any case, the last listing for employment, he was as a cabinet maker in 1928. By 1929 he was listed with no job and living with Anthony. The 1930 census refers to him as a veteran of World War I and he was not working at that point. In the 1940 census, he was living with Anthony and Pauline and their family. In 1942, he registered for WWII at age 51 (he thought he was 48.) Men ages 45 to 64 were required to register but men were called only up to age 45. ***** Summary of work and military: 1914: tacker at Keifer Tannery, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1916: furniture finisher, Grand Rapids, Michigan June 17, 1817: cabinet maker, Grand Rapids Piano Case Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan ?: unknown work in Cleveland, Ohio July 24, 1918: enlisted in the military, Battle Creek, Michigan September 6, 1918: naturalized as a citizen, Battle Creek, Michigan September 14, 1918, discharged from the military, St. Louis, Missouri 1921: cabinet maker, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1928: cabinet maker, Grand Rapids, Michigan 1929: unemployed, Grand Rapids, Michigan ***** Joseph did work, somehow acquired epilepsy and had an extremely short tenure in the U.S. military. ***** DEATH: Joseph died May 17, 1971. From his obituary: “Joseph passed away at age 77 on an early Monday morning. According to his actual birth record, Joe was 80, not 77 years old when he died. Requiem high mass was sung at St. Adalbert’s Church, and he reposed at Arsulowicz Brothers Mortuary, West Stocking Ave. at Third St. NW, and interment was at Holy Cross Cemetery.” ***** He lived in Grand Rapids, Michigan for 57 years after immigrating from “Zibaldy” (Sabaudia) Poland with his younger brother Anthony. He lived among many other immigrants from Poland. When Joseph died, he was living with Anthony and his wife Pauline. Surviving was Anthony Sr. (brother), Mrs. Frank (Mary) Kufta of Muskegon (sister), two unnamed brothers in Poland (they would have been Piotr & Bolesław), and several nieces and nephews. “Uncle Joe” never married and lived with either his brother Jan or his brother Anthony, most if not all of the time. My mother remembers that he had a female friend “Jenny Katula”, who also emigrated from Poland. My mother remembers her name as “Katula” but it might be the “Jenny Sagauska” who was a witness along with Joe in Anthony’s’ marriage. Jenny reportedly lived near the railroad tracks near Seward Avenue, which was only a few blocks away. ***** His death certificate lists him as a factory worker. He died of acute coronary occlusion and had hypertension and a 50+ year history of epilepsy. His doctor was W.J. Jaracz whose office was around the corner at 634 Bridge St. NW. He was a physician born in Chicago of Polish-born parents, who was popular with the Polish families on the westside of Grand Rapids. ***** “Uncle Joe” died when I was 13 years old. My memories are from times at my grandparents’ house, as he was frequently there when we visited. He was often reading newspapers. There was a Polish-language newspaper in Grand Rapids from 1900 to 1957, the Echo Tygodniowe (The Weekly Echo) which was available weekly. He never drove but could walk wherever he needed to go. My grandmother (his sister-in-law) was often scolding him but he would go to the store or do other errands for her frequently. The canaries that she raised lived in his bedroom. Also in his bedroom was a large picture of him as a young man, taken around the time when Anthony and Paulina married. No one knows where the picture of Joe ended up. The picture of Anthony and Paulina at their wedding is in my sister Lori’s dining room. The hints from family stories lead me to some answers about Joe’s life but some questions do remain. I found out about his birthday. I found out that he and Antoni traveled to Canada, not New York. I am not sure if or why he and Antoni had to swim to safety. I found out he worked and the dates of his military service. I still don’t know how he acquired epilepsy. This story of Joe’s life was told to make an impression so that his life is remembered. By learning more about him, I hope that he will be remembered

The Story of Antoni Raszkiewicz & Marianna Grabek

“Presented himself Łukasz Grabek, a peasant from Majdan Górny, age 45 and in the presence of witnesses Tomasz Krawczyk, age 28 and Andrzej Typek, age 41, both peasants from Majdan Górny and showed us a female child born in Majdan Górny on 10th of this current month and year at 3 o'clock in the morning from his wife Katarzyna née Krawczyk, age 40. This child during Holy Baptism today was given the name Maryanna and the Godparents were the above-mentioned Tomasz Krawczyk and Katarzyna Krawczyk.” (Genealogical Translations FB page, 5/18/2020 Dorothy Woloszczuk ) This is how the translated record reads of Marianna Grabek (my 2x great grandmother) who was born in Tomaszów on February 10, 1843. The Godparent, Tomasz Krawczyk, was her uncle. The Godmother had the same name as her mother but was her mother’s sister-in-law. Marianna’s mother came from Laszczowka and moved to Majdan Górny when she married her husband Lukasz. Marianna’s parents were married for twenty years before they had her, the youngest in the family. Two of her five siblings made it to adulthood. ***** The nineteen-year-old girl from Majdan Górny married 20-year-old Antoni Raczkiewicz. Antoni (my 2x great grandfather) was born May 4 1842. It was spelled with an “s” instead of a “c.” His parents, Michał Raszkiewicz, age 39, and Anna Dominik, age 38, were peasants from Majdan Górny. Marcin Raszkiewicz and Michal Sidor, both peasants from Majdan Górny helped to report the birth and his Godparents were Marcin and Katarzyna Prodowa. Antoni’s parents had 11 children -- Antoni was the 8th one. ***** Like Marianna, Antoni was also born in Majdan Górny, but his family moved to Sabaudia. Antoni’s great grandfather Paweł lived in Łaszczówka, his grandfather Jan moved to Majdan Górny and his father Michał moved to Sabaudia. They lived in Majdan Górny until approximately 1848 when they moved to Sabaudia. Sabaudia is a village that is about five miles from Majdan Górny and about two miles northeast of the city of Tomaszów Lubelski. Wikipedia says there are currently about 600 people living there. ***** Their marriage was on November 16, 1862, in Tomaszów Lubelski. Antoni’s older brother Marcin Raczkiewicz, 40, was one of the witnesses. The second witness was Jakub Herda, 45, a peasant farmer from Górno, who was married to Antoni’s older sister Marianna. ***** Antoni and Marianna had two children together: Jan (1864) and Marianna (1867). ***** Antoni died on July 1, 1868, at the young age of 26. The witnesses were Jan Skurz, age 27 and Andrzej Bonczko, age 40, both peasants living in Sabaudia. Antoni’s parents were still alive. There is no cause of death given, but there was an outbreak of cholera in Russia, and the struggle for democracy and overpopulation led to food shortages and other factors. Their son Jan (my great grandfather) was four years old when his father passed away.Their one-year-old daughter Marianna died a month later. ***** Marianna was widowed and two and a half years later, she married her second husband, Tomasz Kędra, on February 13, 1871. Tomasz was born and lived in the village Jeziernia. He was the 20-year-old son of Michał Kędra and Anastazja nee Król, both already deceased. Marianna’s parents were also already deceased. The witnesses were Jan Skurcz, 38-years-old, and Michal Bender, 35-years-old, both peasants, living in the village of Sabaudia. Marianna was 25 years old and was living in the village of Sabaudia when she married Tomasz. Her son Jan was seven years old. Tomasz had never been married before and had no children. ***** Tomasz and Marianna had two children – Józef (1871) and Katarzyna (1873). On February 15, 1881, Marianna died after ten years of marriage. Surviving her were her husband Tomasz and children Jan, age 17, Józef, age 10, and Katarzyna, age 8. Her 34-year-old husband reported the death along with Jan Raczkiewicz, age 45. ***** A few months later, Tomasz, age 33, married again, this time to Anna Raczkiewicz, age 19, on May 8, 1881. This was the second marriage for both of them. Anna was the daughter of Jan Raczkiewicz and Katarzyna nee Pisarczyk from Górno. (So she would have been the niece of Marianna’s deceased husband Antoni Raczkiewicz.) This couple would be my step great grandmother and step great grandfather. ***** What happened to the children of the original couple, my 2x great grandparents Antoni Raczkiewicz and Marianna Grabek? Jan Raczkiewicz (my great grandfather), their only surviving child, married Katarzyna Kaszucka of Tomaszów Lubelski, four years later. ***** What happened to the children of my 2x great grandmother Marianna Grabek and her husband Tomasz Kedra? Józef married Józefa Skurz in 1905 at the age of 35. They were already married in Austrian Galicia and this act registered the children they had – Katarzyna (b. 1897) and Wladysława (b. 1901) – who were legitimized by this act. The explanation in the record is that the delay was for an external reason, independent of their will. Katarzyna later married Wojciech Typek ofMajdan Górny and was a widow when she died at age 45 in 1918. ***** I am unsure of how many of their own children Tomasz and Anna went on to have but they did start out with Jakub (1883), Rozalia (1885), Józefa (1899), and Jan (1890) – all born in Sabaudia. ***** (picture of Sabaudia sign from Andrzej)

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. *****