10.31.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Poland, Church Records, Baptismal Records, Danko at 11:46 pm by Administrator
I previously wrote that my Great Grandfather Jakub Dańko was married twice. His first marriage was to Agnieszka Sowa, my great grandmother. After Agnieszka’s tragic death, Jakub married Zofia Głowacz. Two years after this second marriage, Zofia bore Jakub a son, Piotr. Piotr’s record is number 53, the second record on page 238 of the parish register. Like other church records in Galicia, these records were maintained in Latin in a columnar format.
The Birth and Baptismal Record for Piotr Dańko
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Birth and Baptismal Record for Piotr Dańko. Translated from the Latin, the record states that:
Page: 238
Number: 53
Birth: June 28, 1898
Baptism: June 29, 1898
House Number: 207
Name: Piotr Dańko
Religion: Catholic
Sex: Boy
Legitimacy: Legitimate
Father: Jakub Dańko, son of the married couple Paweł Dańko and Zofia née Szymańska
Mother: Zofia Głowacz, daughter of the married couple Jan Głowacz and the deceased Maria née Szymańska
Godparents: Jakub Sowa, farmer, and Zofia daughter of Jan Bal, farmer
Priest: Father Tomasz [Kaprinowicz]
Midwife: Katarzyna Kijanka
Jakub married Zofia when he was 53 years old and Zofia was 25. Piotr was born when Jakub was 55 and Zofia was 27. Jakub died less than a year after Piotr was born.
Before the name of Zofia’s mother there is an abbreviation “p.d.”, which probably stands for “post delictam”, indicating that Zofia’s mother was deceased at the time of Zofia’s marriage.
I imagine that Zofia probably remarried after Jakub’s death.
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10.30.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Poland, Danko at 11:30 pm by Administrator
I received a surprise in my email today - a message from my half-second cousin Piotr Dańko in Kraków!
If you listened to the recent Genealogy Guys Podcast from October 23, 2006, you’ll know that Drew Smith interviewed me over the telephone and we discussed, among other things, my trip to Poland in 2000. Drew asked me if I had met any of my relatives still living in Poland, and I told him that, although I met some of the Dańkos in Nienadowa, nobody there thought I was related to them.
In the end, there was a suggestion that I might be related to a Dańko living in Kraków.
I remember that my Aunt Helen told me that my Great-Grandmother Agnieszka Sowa fell while picking cherries and died. My Great-Grandfather Jakub Dańko then married Zofia Głowacz and the couple had a son. Further, one of the descendants of this line went to live in Kraków.
When I received the email from Piotr Dańko today, he provided me information that convinced me that he is descended from this line, the marriage of Jakub Dańko and Zofia Głowacz. This makes us half-second cousins. Jakub Dańko is our common ancestor - he is a great grandfather to both of us. However, we are half-cousins, because we have different great grandmothers.
I’m looking forward to exchanging information with Piotr. This is the first contact I’ve had with any relatives still living in Poland.
I’ve included in today’s post a photo of my grandfather, Michał Dańko. My grandfather Michał is the half-brother of Piotr’s grandfather. I don’t know the date of this photo. I guess it was taken on Henchman Street in Worcester, Massachusetts in the 1930s or 1940s.
Michał Dańko (Michael Danko)
Thanks to my cousin, Marguerite Martin, for providing me with this photograph.
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Posted in Daily Journal, Church Records, Baptismal Records, Niedzialkowski at 1:09 am by Administrator
Between the births of my Great-Great Grandfather, Wojciech Niedziałkokwski, and his sister Małgorzata was the birth of their brother Teodor (Theodore).
The Birth and Baptism of Teodor Niedziałkowski
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Birth and Baptismal Record for Teodor Niedziałkowski. Translated from the Polish, the record states that:
5. Mosaki Godacze
This happened in the church-owned village of Krasne on the 8th / 20th day of January 1839 at three o’clock in the afternoon. Antoni Niedziałkowski presented himself, owner of a part, living in the village of Mosaki Godacze, age 30, in the presence of Andrzej Niedziałkowski, owner of a part, living in the village of Rukle, age 22, likewise Paweł Milkowski, owner of a part, living in the village of Godacze, age 32, and he showed us a male child born in the village of Godacze yesterday at seven o’clock in the morning, born to his wife Karolina Milewska, age 28; At Holy Baptism performed this day, the child was given the name Teodor, and his Godparents were the above mentioned Andrzej Niedziałkowski and Domicela Milewska - This document was read aloud to the declarants and witnesses who cannot write -
Reverend Józef Bonikowski
Pastor of the Krasne Parish
The Godparents, Andrzej Niedziałkowski and Domicela Milewska, may be relatives. As of yet, I don’t know how they might fit into the family tree.
The name of Teodor’s mother is Karolina Milewska, which is the same as the mother of Małgorzata. Wojciech’s mother was reported as Katarzyna Milewska, but this may be an error on the part of the priest. I’ll have to check the records of Wojciech’s siblings who were born before Wojciech and see what those records say.
I was actually surprised to find this record among the digital images I brought back from one of my trips to Salt Lake City. I knew Wojciech had a brother Teodor who died young, but I didn’t realize I had made a copy of the record of Teodor’s birth!
This record extended over two pages in the parish register. For convenience, I spliced the two pieces together. You can tell where I spliced the images because there is a white space extending across the record where the splice was made.
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10.28.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Gravestones, Cemeteries at 11:42 pm by Administrator
I’ve been working all day on the genealogy classes I’m taking through the National Institute for Genealogical Studies / University of Toronto, so I didn’t have much time to blog. Nonetheless, I thought I’d at least post a photo.
My mother died in 1980 in Albany, New York, and is buried in Our Lady of Angels Cemetery. I took the following snapshot while I was in Albany in July.
The flowers around the gravestone are rather tame this year. My sisters, my father, and my cousins keep the flowers watered all through the growing season, so the area is usually full of color even when the grass is brown and dry.
Although you can’t read the inscription from the photograph, the stone reads:
DANKO
SORROW IS NOT FOREVER
LOVE IS
FRANCIS J. JANE A.
1924 - 1922 - HIS WIFE - 1980
The grave is located within Our Lady of Angels Cemetery at St. Francis Shrine - A, Row D, Grave 8.
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10.27.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Church Records, Baptismal Records, Niedzialkowski at 11:48 pm by Administrator
My Great-Great Grandfather Wojciech (Albert) Niedziałkowski was born in 1836. His sister Małgorzata (Margaret) was born in 1840.
The Birth and Baptismal Record for Małgorzata Niedziałkowksa
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Birth and Baptismal Record for Małgorzata Niedziałkowska. The record, translated from the Polish, states:
55. Mosaki Godacze
This happened in the village of Krasne on the 7th / 19th day of July 1840 at seven o’clock in the afternoon. Antoni Niedziałkowski presented himself, age 28, owner of a part, living in Mosaki Godacze, in the presence of Kilian Slaski, age 27, and Józef Grabowski, age 40, both living in the inherited part of Mosaki Godacze, and he showed us a female child, declaring that she was born in Mosaki Godacze the day before yesterday at two o’clock in the afternoon, born to his wife Karolina née Milewska, age 30; At Holy Baptism performed this day, the child was given the name Małgorzata, and her Godparents were the above-mentioned Kilian Slaski and Maryanna Rykowska. This document was read aloud to the declarants and witnesses who are unable to write.
Reverend Józef Bońkowski, Pastor of Krasne
SOURCE: Roman Catholic Parish of St. John the Baptist, Krasne, Poland. Księga Urodzonych Parafii Krasne (Book of Births of the Krasne Parish). 1840. Page 28, Entry Number 55. FHL INTL Film 0702793, Family History Library, Salt Lake City, Utah. Text in Polish, translated by Stephen J. Danko.
The record states that Małgorzata was born “the day before yesterday”, so she was born on July 17, 1840. My experience with the Birth and Baptismal Records in Poland tells me that this was unusual. Parents usually brought their newborn children to be baptized on the day the child was born or the day after. I have no explanation why the family waited two days for the baptism.
When Wojciech was born in 1836, the village in which my ancestors lived was called Godacze. When Małgorzata was born in 1840, the same village was called Mosaki Godacze.
And notice the given name of the first witness: Kilian. This is not exactly a common Polish name, but it isn’t particularly rare, either. In any case, the origin of the name is Irish.
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10.26.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Poland, Gazetteers at 11:14 pm by Administrator
Szwelice was the church-owned village that housed the parish to which the villages of Pomoski and Głodki belonged, and therefore was the home parish to my Niedziałkowski ancestors for many years. Generally the gazetteer entries in the Słownik Geograficny were more detailed for the parish villages than for the smaller villages, and the entry for Szwelice is no exception.
In this entry are recorded the history of Szwelice, the origin of the parish, the names and holdings of some of the more eminent residents, information about rents and taxes (often paid in geese, eggs, oats, and the like), numbers of houses and of residents, and information about military service.
Słownik Geograficny Entry for Szwelice
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Słownik Geograficny entry for Szwelice. Translated from the Polish, the record states:
Szwelice 1.) a village on the Pełtą river, Maków Powiat [District], Karniewo gmina [municipality], Szwelice parish. The parish owns a wooden church and has 1078 mórgs of territory. Lesser nobility live here. In 1827 there were 46 homes and 344 inhabitants. The village was from the deed of the Bishop of Płock. The deed of Father Konrad in the year 1203 mentions it (in the Pultusk Castellany). Bishop Wojciech Baranowski founded here a parish and the Church of Saint Lawrence. The parish is made up of the old villages of the bishop: Boby, Czarnostowo, Dębiny, Dzierżanowo, Gościejewo, Głodowo, Wójty and the villages of the lesser nobility: Głodki, Pomarki Wielkie, Pomaski Sikuty, Pomaski Kownaty, Slasy, Złotki, Zelki-Dąbrowe. The rectory grounds were composed from the old province of Szwelice; calculating from 4 włóki [a włóka is about 16.8 hectares] each with 3 fields of the village, as this charter of prince Ferdinand testifies, the Bishop of Płock transferred to the parish the charter of Hilary Krzysztof Szembek, Bishop of Płock, on the 7th of April 1756; by Bishop Michał Poniatowski confirms this charter on the 27th of May 1778. At the village in 1783 one finds 5 farms of mercenaries, out of which Mateusz Wieńczyk, with wife and daughter, has 2 beef cows; Kajetan Lendzian, married, 2 horses; Adam Przychodzień, with wife and 3 sons, 2 oxen; each landholder worked for the rectory for 2 days a week; moreover, there was found a certain Mister Mróz, a servant near the manor in Czarnostowo and the sexton grandfather with his daughter. Bishop Szembek on the 3rd of July 1758 granted to the church half a włóka in exchange for men from the Czarostawski manor, but evidently in spite of these men in Czarnostowo further was collected because in 1783 on the 19th of March Bishop Poniatowski confers on the church a new half włóka for 9 corps of men from Czarnostowo. The church possessed an enrollment: 500 Polish złoty in the Chrzanowo village (Karniewo parish) in the year 1750, 500 Polish złoty in Łosiny (Pniewo parish) in the year 1744 and 400 Polish złoty in Szyg (Rożan parish) in the year 1744. In the year 1819 to the priest of the parish, curate, organist, 2 medical personnel, 2 serfs and 14 farmers (10 planters for 2 korzecs [vessels for storing grain] of barley and ½ of winter wheat, between them a blacksmith, and 4 by 4 korzecs of winter wheat and 4 vegetables). An elementary school. The village of Szwelice in the year 1819 consisted of two parts: one entered in the storehouse of the Rożan economy, the second to Górek. In the Górek part in the year 1820 there were 2 rents (a blacksmith, planting 2 korzecs of winter wheat and 2⅓ of vegetables, paying 62 złoty 22 grosze rent and 8 days of furlough [?]; the chair of the village council 4 korzecs of vegetables and 4 of winter wheat and 111 Polish złoty 18 grosze of rent); 10 mercenary farmers planting in 4 korzecs of winter wheat and 4 of winter wheat, working for 78 days coupled with 78 days of infantry, 16 days stationed and 4 furloughed [?] and coupled with 4 złoty 18 grosze 1 ½ shillings rent, a goose, 2 capons, 2 chickens, 20 eggs; 1 serf, planting 1 ½ korzecs of vegetables, 52 days of infantry and 4 furloughed [?], unpaid labor paid back to Czarnostaw. Moreover, the group paid the manor 67 Polish złoty of hiberna [tax paid to maintain the army during winter] and a tenth sheaf to the rectory in Gąsewo. At the same time in the Góreki part and at the rectory in the year 1820 there were 173 residents (33 men, 3 women; younger children 27 male, 25 female and 12 male and 10 female children over 10 years old; 26 male farmhands, 7 female farmhands); 19 horses, 42 oxen, 45 cows, 30 calves, 50 pigs. In the Rożan part in 1805 (at the time of measuring) 429 mórgs [1.388 acres per mórg]; at that time there was 1 half-knight farmer Żmuda, performing 156 days coupled with 4 days furloughed [?] and 16 stationed and paying back 20 Polish złoty of rent of the land, 5 Polish złoty 5 grosze for hiberna [tax paid to maintain the army during winter], 2 złoty 15 grosze for the watchman, 1 korzecs of oats, a goose, 2 chickens, 2 capons, 20 eggs and 3 elbows of yarn from the fibers of the manor. In the year 1806 two new farmers settled on the half-włóka: Łuniewski and Golba. In the year 1819 we run across 3 half-włóka settlements, from which all wages equally natural; only Golba and Łuniewski from a lack of harnesses made for unpaid labor for 104 days on foot, 16 stationed, and 4 furloughed [?]; 2 half włókas (Ampała and Gadomski), they worked for 104 days by hand for 4 złoty 15 grosze of rent, 16 gallons of oats, ½ of a goose, a capon, a chicken, 10 eggs and 1½ elbows [a measure of length] of the estate’s fibers; 2 gardeners, working off for 2 days furloughed [?] and 8 stationed. Those stationed giving back in Bysewa, a tenth of a sheaf to the parish priest in Gąsewo. Together in the Rożan part were 36 residents (7 men, 7 women; 8 male young children, 6 female young children; 4 male children older than 10, 2 female children older than 10; 2 ministers); 3 horses, 4 oxen, 6 cows, 6 pigs, 14 sheep. In the year 1821 both parts were included into the economy of Górki. In the year 1827 in the whole village 344 residents, 46 homes. Szwelice parish, Maków deconry, 2197 souls. 2.) Szwelice-Pajewo, Ciechanów county, see Pajewo 1).
Lud. Krz.
SOURCE: Chlebowski, Bronisław, Filip Sulimierski, and Władysław Walewski, eds., Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowiańskich (Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other Slavonic Countries) - Warsaw 1892, Volume XII, pages 89-90. Text in Polish, translated by Stephen J. Danko.
This entry was difficult to translate because many of the words are abbreviated, and unless one is fairly fluent in Poland, it takes a while to find likely translations for these words. Further, several of the words in this passage are archaic. I checked with a native speaker of Polish for help with the archaic words, and even she was only partially successful in translating these words.
Of particular interest, though, are the words:
gmina: municipality,
hibernia: tax to maintain the army during the winter,
korzec: vessel for storing grain,
łokieć: elbow (a measure of the length of spun fibers?)
mórg: 1.388 acres (in the Russian partition),
powiat: district or county,
włóka: about 16.8 hectares.
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Posted in Daily Journal, Television at 2:42 pm by Administrator
You may have heard that Ancestry.com was going to be on Good Morning America on Thursday October 26, Wednesday November 1, Thursday November 2, and Friday November 3. Megan Smolenyak Smolenyak blogged about this yesterday and Barbara Poole alerted me by email.
If you didn’t get a chance to see today’s episode tracing Chris Cuomo’s roots to Italy, the episode is available on the Good Morning America website as both an article and a video.
As part of Good Morning America’s Family History series, Ancestry.com is offering free access for 3 days. Just follow the link from the genealogy article on the Good Morning America website.
I signed in to Ancestry.com through the link on the Good Morning America page and, sure enough, I have access to all the Ancestry.com databases. I guess I’d better get to work. My three days will be up soon!
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10.25.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Gravestones, Poland, Cemeteries, Danko at 10:32 pm by Administrator
When I was in Poland in October 2000, I visited the Catholic Cemetery there. I thought I might look for the surnames of my relatives there, but I had heard that most graves in Poland are rented, not purchased, so I didn’t expect to find the graves of any of my ancestors. Nonetheless, my traveling companions and I searched the entire cemetery for relevant surnames.
While we were searching, there were several elderly Polish women who were in the cemetery, sweeping fallen leaves off the graves. These women were very curious about us and kept watching us as we walked up and down the rows of graves. Finally, one of the women came up to us and asked us whose grave we were trying to find, and we told her that we were looking for the graves of the Dańkos. The woman’s first reaction was to ask “The Dańkos from Nienadowa?”. And, of course, she was correct.
I showed this woman a list of other surnames for which I was searching. She saw one of these names - Sawa - and she said the name was probably Sowa, not Sawa. Later, I found out she was, once again, correct.
If you look at the crucifix on the grave of Katarzyna and Stanisław Dańko, you’ll notice that the lower part, the body, is missing. If you further look at the crucifix on the grave on Jan Dańko, you’ll notice that the lower part does not seem to be in proportion to the upper part - each arm is as long as the entire body. Finally, if you compare the two crucifixes, you’ll notice that it looks like the lower part of the crucifix from Katarzyna and Stanisław’s grave was placed on the grave of Jan. I wonder what was going on here?
Also notice that most of the graves appear to be tombs built above ground. I wonder if this is because these graves were built on top of other graves, after the grave rental expired on the older graves.
For more information on cemeteries in Poland and the significance of All Saint’s Day in Poland, visit Jasia’s blog entry on Grave Tending: A National Holiday. When you visit Jasia’s blog, be sure to click on the links Old Cemetery in Tarnow and Old Cemetery in Tarnow at night for some wonderful Polish cemetery photos. When you read Jasia’s blog entry, you’ll understand why the women were sweeping the leaves off the graves in Dubiecko, and you’ll understand the significance of the candles you can see in the photos I’ve posted here.
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10.24.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Poland, Gazetteers at 10:53 pm by Administrator
The earliest records for my Niedziałkowski ancestors are in the Krasne parish where the villages of Mosaki and Godacze were located, but my Great-Great-Grandfather, Wojciech Niedziałkowski, moved to the Szwelice parish sometime during his life.
In the Szwelice parish, all of the church records I’ve found for the Niedziałkowski family were reported from either Pomaski or Głodki. Here are the Słownik Geograficny entries for those two villages.
Słownik Geograficny entry for Pomaski
Click on the link for a PDF Copy of the Słownik Geograficny entry for Pomaski. The record, translated from the Polish, states:
Pomaski, a village of noblemen, Maków Powiat [District] , Smrock gmina [municipality], Szwelice parish. It is made up of three parts: Pomaski Kownaty, in 1827 4 homes, 29 inhabitants; Pomaski Sikuty, in 1827 11 homes, 62 inhabitants; Pomaski Wielkie, in 1827 25 homes, 142 inhabitants.
SOURCE: Chlebowski, Bronisław, Władysław Walewski, and Filip Sulimierski, eds., Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowiańskich (Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other Slavonic Countries) - Warsaw 1887, Volume VIII, page 737. Text in Polish, translated by Stephen J. Danko.
Słownik Geograficny entry for Głodki
Click on the link for a PDF Copy of the Słownik Geograficny entry for Głodki. The record, translated from the Polish, states:
Głodki, a village of noblemen, Maków Powiat [District], Smrock gmina [municipality], Szwelice parish. In the year 1827 there were 20 houses and 129 inhabitants here.
SOURCE: Sulimierski, Filip, Bronisław Chlebowski, and Władysław Walewski, eds., Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowiańskich (Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and other Slavonic Countries) - Warsaw 1881, Volume II, page 602. Text in Polish, translated by Stephen J. Danko.
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10.23.06
Posted in Daily Journal, Poland, Gazetteers, Niedzialkowski at 10:25 pm by Administrator
Genealogical research is usually enhanced when one uses maps and gazetteers to place the locations of ones ancestors in context with the geography of the area. In Polish genealogical research, the use of maps and gazetteers is essential to finding the ancestral village of ones ancestors and to finding the parish where the records of baptisms, marriages, and deaths are maintained.
My Great-Great Grandfather Wojciech Niedziałkowski’s Death Record stated that he was born in Mosaki, but his Birth and Baptismal Record stated that he was born in Godacze. A gazetteer helps to understand why these two records are both correct.
The Polish gazetteer that I use most often is the Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowanskich (The Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland and Other Slavonic Countries). This monumental work is a 16 volume gazetteer published in Warsaw under the direction of Filip Sulimierski in the years 1880-1902. The Słownik provides descriptions of nearly every city, town, and village in Poland and the surrounding areas, and was written at about the time the ancestors of many Polish-American citizens still lived in the old country.
The entry for Mosaki is short and to the point.
Słownik Geograficny Entry for Mosaki
Translated from the Polish, this entry states:
Mosaki, see Mossaki
Well, it didn’t take me long to translate that. The entry for Mossaki appears later in the same volume.
Słownik Geograficny Entry for Mossaki
Translated from the Polish, this entry states:
Mossaki also known as Mosaki, a nobleman’s neighborhood, Powiat [District] Ciechanów, Zalesie gmina [municipality], Krasne parish, 23 wiorstas [kilometers] from Ciechanów. It possesses a common elementary school. Within it, there are contained: a) Mossaki-Godacze, a village, it has 6 houses, 44 inhabitants, 133 mórgs of good arable land, 11 unused. It is part of Krasne. b) Mossaki-Iłówko also known as Iłowe, a village, it has 4 homes, 32 inhabitants, 74 mórgs of good arable land, 3 unused. It formed one whole village with the village of Chełchy Iłowe. c) Mossaki-Łyżkowo, a village, it has 2 homes, 15 inhabitants, 180 mórgs of good arable land, 5 of unused land. Lower level noblemen live here. d) Mossaki-Rukle, a village, it has 15 homes, 100 residents, 315 mórgs of good arable land, 12 unused. Lower level noblemen. e) Mossaki-Starawieś, a village, it possesses a tavern, it has 14 homes, 118 inhabitants, 186 mórgs of good arable land, 6 unused. Lower level noblemen live here.
One term that may be unfamiliar is mórg. A mórg is a measure of area - theoretically the amount of land one man could plow in a single day. The actual size of a mórg varied between the Polish Partitions: 1 mórg in the Russian Partition was 1.388 acres, in the Prussian Partition a mórg was 0.631 acres, and in the Austrian Partition a mórg was 1.422 acres. Since Mosaki (or Mossaki) was in the Russian Partition, 1 mórg in Mosaki was equal to about 1.388 acres.
This entry states that Mossaki-Godacze was part of Mossaki. The reference to Godzcze in Wojciech Niedziałkowski’s Birth and Baptismal Record apparently means Mossaki-Godacze, and therefore both the Birth and Baptismal Record and the Death Record are correct.
At the time this entry was published in 1885, Mossaki-Godacze had just 6 houses and 44 inhabitants.
This entry also verifies that Krasne is the parish for the village of Mossaki and that Mossaki is a village of lower-level nobility.
Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Słownik entry for Mosaki/Mossaki.
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