Steve’s Genealogy Blog

In yesterday’s post, I showed the Marriage Record of Jan Niedziałkowski and Ludwika Pomaska who were married in the parish church in Szwelice, Okręg makowski, Guberniya Lomzhinskaya, Vistulan Country, Russian Empire on 13 Feb 1889.

I transcribed the Russian document yesterday, but didn’t have time to translate it before I posted the image of the record.

Before I could translate the document today, Matthew Bielawa of the Genealogy of Halychyna and Eastern Galicia website sent me an email and included a translation of the marriage record. Thank you very, very much, Matthew!

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Marriage Record of Jan Niedziałkowski and Ludwika Pomaska - 1889. According to Matthew Bielawa, the document reads:

Sikuty, No. 7

Having occurred in the village of Szwelice on the 1st/13th of February 1889 at 5 o’clock in the afternoon it was announced that in the presence of the witnesses: Maciej Chrzanowski 36 years old from Sikuty and Ludwik Niedziałkowski 60 year old resident of Pomaski, both noble landowners, concluded on this date a religious marital union between Jan Niedziałkowski, 22 year old bachelor, son of Wojciech and Julianna née Gutowska, born in the village of Miłosna of the Nowominsk district, and residing in Pomaski with his noble landowner parents, and Ludwika Pomaska, 26 year old unwed daughter of the deceased Józef and Marianna Chodkowska, born in Pomaski and residing with her family in Sikuty. This marriage was preceded by 3 public announcements in the Szwelice parish church on the Sundays of 1st/13th, 8th/20th, 15th/27th of January of this year.  The newlyweds declared that there was no marital agreement between them.  The marital union was conducted by the priest Jan Zgliczyński, local administrator.  This record was read to the newlyweds and witness and signed by the first witness Maciej Chrzanowski, the newlyweds and second witness are illiterate. 

Administrator of the Szwelice parish and civil registrar: Father J. Zgliczyński

Maciej Chrzanowski

I had not previously known that my great-great grandparents, Wojciech Niedziałkowski and Julianna Gutowska, had a son named Jan. In fact, I’m missing quite a few records on my grandparents, great grandparents, and great-great grandparents.

I know that my great-great grandfather Wojciech Niedziałkowski was born 27 Aug 1836 in Godacze, Powiat ciechanowski, Wojewódstwo płockiej, Congress Kingdom of Poland and was baptized in the Krasne parish church. I know he married Julianna Gutowska, but I haven’t found a marriage record for the couple.

My great grandfather, Teofil Niedzialkowski, was born in about 1861, based on his age as recorded in Wojceich’s death and burial record. However, I still haven’t found a birth/baptismal record for Teofil.

I have found birth/baptismal records in the Szwelice parish for the following children of Wojciech Niedziałkowski and Julianna Gutowska:

• Karolina, born 25 Dec 1870 in Pomaski
• Julianna, born 02 May 1874 in Głodki
• Franciszek, born 08 Jul 1876 in Pomaski

With the Marriage Record of Jan Niedziałkowski and Ludwika Pomaska, I now know that Jan was born in about 1867 in Milosna of the Nowominsk district. This still leaves a significant gap of about six years between the births of Teofil and Jan. I suspect more children were born during that period.

I also know from Julianna Gutowska’s death and burial record that she was born in about 1833 in Holy Cross parish in Warsaw.

The fact that Jan Niedziałkowski was born in Milosna (near Warsaw and Minsk-Mazowiecki) seems to pull Julianna Gutowska’s birth place close to that of her son, Jan. I am now working on the hypothesis that Wojciech Niedziałkowski and Julianna Gutowska may have been married in the parish to which Milosna belongs, and that their first few children were also born in Milosna. If this is correct, I may now be able to find my great-great grandparents’ marriage record and the birth/baptismal records of their first few children, including that of my great grandfather, Teofil Niedziałkowski.

The village of Miłosna belongs to the parish of Wiązowna. The Family History Library has microfilmed the parish records from 1810-1879 which covers the years of interest for the marriage of Wojciech Nieziałkowski and Julianna Gutowska and the births of their first children.

Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko

While at the Family History Center in San Bruno on Wednesday, I discovered the 1889 marriage record for Jan Niedziałkowski and Ludwika Pomaska.

The Marriage Record of Jan Niedziałkowski and Ludwika Pomaska - 1889

SOURCE: Parafia pw. św. Jana Chrzciciela (Szwelice, Okręg makowski, Guberniya Lomzhinskaya, Vistulan Country, Russian Empire, “Księga zaślubionych parafii Szwelice od 1882 do 1889. [Book of marriages of the Szwelice parish from 1882 to 1889.],” item 2, entry 7, Jan Niedziałkowski & Ludwika Pomaska, 13 Feb 1889; filmed as Kopie księg metrykalnych, 1693-1904; FHL INTL microfilm 1,958,807.

Because this record is in Russian and because it is so long, transcription and translation of this record has required more time than I usually need to transcribe and translate a record written in a foreign language.

For now, I know that Jan Niedziałkowski is the son of my great-great grandparents, Wojciech Niedziałkowski and Julianna Gutowska, that Julianna Pomoska is the daughter of Józef Pomaski and Marianna Chodkowska, and that the marriage took place in the parish in Szwelice on 13 February 1889.

Completion of the full transcription and translation will have to wait until tomorrow, but I think this record may supply some critical information to help me break down a brickwall concerning my great grandfather, Teofil Niedziałkowski.

UPDATE 28 Sep 2008: The transcription and translation of this record are reported in Part 2 of this article.

Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko

Despite my best intentions not to get involved in any new projects, I’ve to index the records of the parish of St. John the Baptist in Krasne, Poland.

I began these efforts after reading about the Złotów parish records indexing project that Al of the Polish-American Genealogy Research blog started.

As another impetus, I discovered that many of the early Krasne parish records do not include the indexes usually included at the end of each year’s records, forcing me to examine each record individually.

The earliest records for Krasne that have been microfilmed by the Family History Library are the parish record books from 1657. Beginning in 1808, the microfilmed records are of the civil transcripts.

On Saturday, I began to index the birth/baptismal records from 1808. I completed the index for the first 45 records. The surnames represented in these records are Boiarski, Chełchowski, Chotkowski, Gołąb, Intczak, Jakiebowski, Jakubiak, Jędrasik, Jegliński, Kaoprzak, Kieszak, Łyszkowski, Maculak, Malinowski, Mieszkowski, Milewski, Mosakowski, Mularczyk, Niedziałkowski, Obicziński, Piotrak, Pukrowski, Smurlika, Sobiesiak, Stępnowski, Suski, Szarlik, Trzaska, Wudziński, Zaleski, Zarodkiewicz, Zbikowski, and Zbyszyński.

These births occurred in the villages of Kozino, Krasne, Milewo Brzegędy, Milewo Gawary, Milewo Saweyki, Mosaki Godacze, Mosaki Rukle, Mosaki Stara wieś, Slasy Łozyno, Szczuki, Zalesie, Zbiki Antosy, Zbiki Filipy, Zbiki Gawronki, Zbiki Pańskie, and Zbiki Starki.

The surnames I know are in my own family history include Chotkowski, Milewski, and Niedziałkowski. The villages in which my ancestors resided include Mosaki Godacze, Mosaki Rukle, and Mosaki Stara wieś.

Initially, I’ve decided to include the following information in the index:  Surname, Given Name, Father’s First Name, Father’s Age, Mother’s Maiden Name, Mother’s First Name, Mother’s Age, Date of Birth, Place of Birth, House Number, Date of Baptism, Parish, FHL Film Number, Item Number, and Page.

I’m not including Occupations, Names of Godparents, Name of Priest, Information About Witnesses, or other information in the records.

I expect to finish the index for births/baptisms in 1808 this week.

Thanks, Al, for the inspiration to start this project!

Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko

On 30 Jul 1797, Jan Niedziałkowski, the son of Tomasz Niedziałkowski and Cecylia Chotkowska died and was buried in the cemetery of the parish in Krasne.

The Death and Burial Record of Jan Niedziałkowski - 1797

SOURCE: Parafia pw. św. Jana Chrzciciela. (Krasne, Departement der Kriegs- und Domainen-Kammer zu Plozk, Provinz Neuostpreußen, Kingdom of Prussia) Akta zgonów 1778-1808, Jan Niedziałkowski death (1797); FHL microfilm 1496579.

Click on the image above to enlarge. Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Death and Burial Record of Jan Niedziałkowski - 1797. Translated from the Latin, the record states:

Mosaki Godacze

On the 30th of July 1797, an infant by the name of Jan died, two weeks old, the son of the nobles Tomasz and Cecylia Niedziałkowski, legally married. Buried in the Cemetery.

This is one of the records I found at the Family History Library while attending UPGS 2008.

Jan Niedziałkowski was born and died in the Province of New East Prussia, a province of the Kingdom of Prussia created on 24 Oct 1795 by the Third Partition of Poland. The Province of New East Prussia was short lived. The area was incorporated into the Duchy of Warsaw on 09 Jun 1807.

Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko

Inspired by John D. Reid of Anglo-Celtic Connections (as mentioned by Blaine Bettinger of the Genetic Genealogist), I’ve used Google Maps to plot the earliest known locations of the contributors to my DNA. These locations are probably correct for the locations of my ancestors in about 1808, although some of my ancestors were in these same locations much earlier.

The Earliest Known Locations of Stephen J. Danko’s Ancestors

The yellow marker is Likiškės, Lithuania, the earliest known location of my Chmielewski ancestors and of my Wojnowski ancestors - the source of my mitochondrial DNA.

The purple marker is Mosaki, Poland, the earliest known location of my Chotkowski ancestors.

The red marker hiding behind the purple one is Klonowo, Poland, the earliest known location of my Niedzialkowski ancestors. This is also the source of my maternal grandfather’s Y-DNA. This Y-DNA matches the R1a haplogroup, a group to which more than 50% of Polish men belong.

The blue marker is Warszawa, Poland, the earliest known location of my Gutowski ancestors.

The orange marker is Sielnica, Poland, the earliest known location of my Dziurzyński ancestors. This is also the source of my father’s mitochondrial DNA.

The turquoise marker hiding behind the orange marker is Nienadowa, Poland, the earliest known location of my Dańko ancestors. This is also the source of my Y-DNA.

Copyright © 2008 by Stephen J. Danko

A daughter, Ludwika, was born to my 4th great grandparents, Tomasz Niedziałkowski and Cecylia Chotkowska, on 24 Jun 1808.

The Birth Record of Ludwika Niedziałkowska - 1808

SOURCE: Parafia Podwyższenia Krzyża Świętego (Krasne, Krasne Gmina, Powiat Przasnysz, Departament Płock, Duchy of Warsaw). Akta urodzeń, małżeństw, zgonów 1808-1817, Ludwika Niedziałkowska birth (1808); FHL microfilm 702791.

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Birth Record of Ludwika Niedziałkowska - 1808. Translated from the Polish, the record states:

Mosaki Godacze. In the year one thousand eight hundred eight, on the twenty fourth day of the month of June at the hour of seven in the morning. By Us, pastor of Krasne, performing the duties of the Civil Registrar for the Gmina [Municipality] of Krasne, Powiat [County] of Przasnysz in the Departament [District] of Płock. the well-born Tomasz Niedziałkowski presented himself, heir of his part, forty five years of age, residing in Mosaki Godacze, and he presented us with a child of the female sex who was born in his home under the Number Two, on the twenty fourth day of June of this year, that she is begotten of him and Cecylia nee Chotkowska, thirty seven years of age, his wife, and that it is his wish to give her the name Ludwika. After making the above statement and presenting the child in the presence of the well-born Piotr Bartołt, heir to his part, twenty six years of age, living in Mosaki, as well as Jan Chotkowski, heir to his part from the village of Mosaki Rukle located in the gmina of Krasne, who had completed his twenty eighth year. Whereupon the present birth document was read aloud to the declarants and signed by Us, inasmuch as none of the witnesses know how to write.

Reverend Franciszek Sukowski, pastor of Krasne, performing the duties of the Civil Registrar.

This entry is one of the Niedziałkowski family records from Krasne parish that I have not yet translated and posted, even though I’ve had this record for several years.

One unusual thing about this record is that it records the birth, but not the baptism. Most of the Polish documents I’ve encountered record either the baptism or both the birth and baptism.

The Family History Library has microfilmed two sets of records from Krasne, a set of church records and a set of civil transcripts. The church records of births/baptisms end in 1807 and the civil transcripts begin in 1808, corresponding to the time of the Napoleonic Wars.

Ludwika’s birth occurred just after Napoleon liberated Poland. In 1807, this region was transferred from the Kingdom of Prussia to the Duchy of Warsaw (with allegiance to France).

In the twenty year period from 1795-1815, the area around Krasne changed hands no fewer than four times:

• Polish Lithuanian Commonwealth (before 24 Oct 1795)
• Kingdom of Prussia (24 Oct 1795 - 09 Jun 1807)
• Duchy of Warsaw - with allegiance to France (09 Jun 1807 - 09 Jun 1815)
• Congress Kingdom of Poland - with allegiance to Russia (After 09 Jun 1815)

During the lives of my 4th great grandparents, they lived in four different countries even though they never moved far from the places they were born.

Copyright © 2007 by Stephen J. Danko

In grade school I always enjoyed the day that came every year when our teachers would ask what our mothers’ maiden names were. My mother’s maiden surname - Niedziałkowski - always got everyone’s attention because it was so unusual. My own surname - Dańko - hardly raised an eyebrow.

Not until I began studying my family history in the late 1990s did I begin to realize that those names might have some meaning behind them. After all, a name is a name right? Fairly soon after I started researching my ancestry seriously, the second edition of Fred Hoffman’s book on Polish surnames was published, and boy, was this a godsend!

Categories of Polish Surnames

In his book on Polish surnames, Fred Hoffman divides and discusses the surnames according to five general categories:

1. Personal Names and Coats of Arms
2. Toponyms (Place Names)
3. Occupations
4. Features or Objects (including verbs, animals, trees, plants, food, drink)
5. Foreign Names

Polish Surnames in My Family Tree 

The surnames in my family tree span all of these five groups. Here is a list of some of them with their origins and meanings:

Bal: bal- “to tell tales”, first name Baltazar, Hungarian personal name Bal
Bonislawski: village Bonisław, altered name Będzisław
Chmielewski: chmiel “hops”
Chotkowski: place names Chotków, Chotkowo
Chruścicki: chrust “dry twigs”
Dańko: dan- “given” or name element from Daniel
Dymek: dym “smoke” or name element from Dymitr
Dziura / Dziurzyński: dziura “hole”
Głowacz: głowa “head”
Goliński: goły “bare, naked”, golić “to shave”, or place name Golina
Grabowski: grab “hornbeam”, grabić “to rob”, grabie “rake”, old first name Grab, or toponym
Iwaniec: Ukrainian name Ivan = Polish name Jan (John)
Izbicki: izba “hut, chamber”
Jach: name element from Jan, Jakub, Jachym, etc.
Jara: jar- “sharp, strict”, jary “of the spring, robust, young”
Jedliński: jodła “fir tree”
Kolarowira: kolarz “wheelwright”
Malon: mały “small”, or a name root as in Małomir, also popular in toponyms
Marcinkiewicz: first name Marcin from the Latin Martinus (of or relating to Mars)
Markiewicz: first name Marek from the Latin Marcus (Mark)
Milewski: ancient names Miłobor, Miłosław with the root miły “dear, beloved”
Mossakowski: name Mojsław or Mojżesz (Moses)
Muszynski: mucha “housefly”
Niedziałkowski: nie działać “to do nothing”, niedziela “Sunday” (day of doing nothing)
Nosarzewski: nos “nose”
Panowski: pan “master, bridegroom”, names Pankracy, Pantelejmon, Opanas
Pomaski: village of Pomaski
Pszczółkowski: pszczoła “bee”
Ranow: rana “wound”, rano “early”, or name Ranimir
Skowroński: skowronek “lark’ (a kind of bird)
Ślimak: ślimak “snail, slug” or “slow fellow”
Sowa: sowa “owl”
Szymański: name Szymon (Simon) (Hebrew), meaning “Hear my affliction”
Tropiło / Trupiło: trop “trace, trail, scent”, tropić “to track”
Wojnowski: wojna “war, struggle”
Zygmuntowicz: name Zygmunt, Germanic *sigis “victory” + *mundo “protect, guard”

SOURCE: Hoffman, William F. 1998. Polish surnames: origins and meanings. Chicago: Polish Genealogical Society of America.

Evolution of Polish Surnames 

I am often amazed at the number of different surnames used in Poland. Because fixed surnames are a rather recent phenomenon in Poland (and elsewhere), most not being fixed until the 18th century, many surnames have developed through something of a divergent evolution, where a surname such as Markowicz might diverge into Markowicz and Markiewicz over time.

In fact, in addition to Markowicz and Markiewicz, a large number of names derive from the given name Marek and the numbers of individuals with these surnames in Poland in 1990 varied greatly, with only 1 person using the surname Marec, but with 16,202 people using the surname Marek. And, of course, not all the people in Poland with the same or similar surnames are related to each other. Many surnames arose independently all over Poland, resulting in a convergent evolution of surnames.

Many of these Polish surnames present some difficulty for native speakers of English. I’m often asked “How is that name pronounced?” The short answer a native speaker of Polish would give is “Just the way it’s spelled”, but that’s little comfort to most people. My mother’s maiden name, Niedziałkowski, is mispronounced by nearly all native speakers of English.

These difficulties of pronouncing the surname Niedziałkowski has led to a divergent evolution of the surname among my relatives in the United States, resulting in the surnames Niedzialkowski, Niedzialkoski, Niedzial, and even Newman, all in one family line.

My own mother, while in her teens, briefly changed her surname to Nigel.

But that’s another story.

Copyright © 2007 Stephen J. Danko

My great-great-great-great grandmother, Cecylia Chotkowska was born in 1767.  Her sister, Julianna, was born in 1758.  The record of her baptism is record 36 for the year and the third record on this page of the Book of Baptisms of the Krasne Church 1755-1781.

The Baptismal Record for Julianna Chotkowska 

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Baptismal Record for Julianna Chotkowska.  Translated from the Latin, the record states:

36. Mosaki Rukle

I, Jacób Pilchowski Ca: Re: Lo: on the 21st of September, baptized an infant by the name of Julianna, the daughter of the Noble Andrzej Chotkowski and Marianna née Mosakowska his wife, a lawfully wedded couple.  The Godparents in the Sacred Font were the Nobles Julianna Chotkowska and Slaski of the country home Szlazy.

One problem I have had while researching my Chotkowski ancestors is that the Krasne parish has another family with a similar name: Chełchowski.  In the handwriting of the time, it’s sometimes difficult to tell the difference between the names since the letter T and the letter ł look similar, and the letter k sometimes looks like the letter combination ch.  To make matters worse, At the time Andrzej and Marianna Chotkowski were having children, another couple, Andrzej and Marianna Chełchowski, were also having children.

In fact, before I realized there were two different surnames, I copied a large number of births from the indexes before I realized that the children in my list were born less than 9 months apart!  It was then I realized I was dealing with two families with similar names.