Steve's Genealogy Blog

Barbara Poole on Genealogy Magazines

Posted on November 16, 2006 by Steve

At the September meeting of my local genealogy society, I brought some magazines I had received free from the FGS (Federation of Genealogical Societies) Conference held in August, in Boston for 4 days . All 4 magazines were current editions and were familiar to me, but none of which I subscribe to . Some of the club members enjoyed looking through them and even pulling out the inserts to order a subscription . Â When I got around to reading them recently, I realized how different they were from one another . The magazines were Everton’s Genealogical Helper, Family Tree Magazine, Ancestry and German Life . Â I thought I would give a little input on how the first three differ from one another.

Everton’s Genealogical Helper, has been around for about 50 years, had over 176 pages of articles, queries and surname index . Â What I really liked was the large print, a calendar of upcoming genealogy events throughout the world, a Beginner’s Corner section, review of books, and the major topics are on the cover with page number. Â You receive 6 issues a year for $27 . This is a little less than the cost in 2000 . Â Â This is an old publication with a new editor and the Heritage Quest magazine has been combined into the Genealogical Helper. NOTE: This magazine is no longer published.

Family Tree Magazine (not affiliated with Family Tree Maker software) also comes out 6 times a year for $24 . Â Their website is http://www.familytreemagazine.com . The two state research guides are nice (for Texas and Rhode Island), but at that rate, it will take years to complete this series, or maybe not, since I don’t know when the series began.

Ancestry Magazine was very impressive, and I will subscribe to it . Â The glossy pages, nice color pictures, articles (although rather shortâ€¦maybe to hold your attention), and few advertisements are the pluses . The contributors are well known in the genealogical community . Â Their web site is http://www.ancestry.com and click on store tab; I had to type magazine in product box . Their price is similar to the others, 6 issues for $24.95 . Â I especially enjoyed the article on the Evolution of Family History, a 10 year history . Â Some interesting things that began in 1996 were: there were 100,000 websites and 14% of Americans using the internet; Ancestry.com, RootsWeb.com, FamilyTreeMaker.comÂ and Cyndi’s List began . Other milestones during the 10 year span to date were included, now jump to 2006 where there are over 11.5 billion web pages and 77% of Americans are now online . NOTE: This magazine is no longer published.

Recently, I found some old copies of three magazines (1994-2001), they were Everton’s Genealogical Helper, Heritage Quest, and Genealogical Computing. Obviously some of the articles are outdated, but some still pertain today, such as: Source Documentation: Is it Time to Change the Standards (pertaining to the internet); Genealogy Made Inexpensive; State and Federal Census articles. I wish I had seen the 7 page article about Albany, NY area Churches and Synagogue Vital Records many years ago, what a useful source that would have been for me. I also wondered what happened to a Lexington company that in 1994 made Quinsept, a “software that works for generations . The most exciting genealogical research system available.” Sure glad I didn’t buy that!

There are now two new genealogy magazines focusing on using the internet for research . In a past newsletter, I discussed Internet Genealogy magazine http://www.internet-genealogy.com (where you can download a free copy) . My fourth issue arrived a few weeks ago . I continue to like this magazine.

However, I love Digital Genealogist, a magazine that just came out. Digital Genealogist will be in PDF format, so you print what you want . They are offering a free issue, and it prints out at 42 pages . I loved the first issue of Digital Genealogist for a few reasons. First, it is very easy to read & is colorful and second, it is nice to know some of the writers personally. I see Joshua Taylor every time I go to NEHGS and Laura G. Prescott will be speaking at our club in 2007. So now you can download free issues of two different genealogy publications, or print just the pages that interest you . NOTE: This magazine is no longer published.

Many thanks to Barbara Poole for contributing her column on genealogy magazines as today’s GuestBlog!

Copyright © 2016 by Stephen J. Danko

Posted in Uncategorized | Tagged GuestBlog | 2 Comments

The Polish Village of Łosice

Posted on November 15, 2006 by Steve

One of the readers of this blog wrote to me and asked if there was an entry in the Słownik Geograficny Królestwa Polskiego (Geographical Dictionary of the Kingdom of Poland) for the Polish village of Łosice . There are, in fact, two entries for Łosice, one in the Konstantynów Powiat and the other in the Kobryń Powiat.

The Słownik Entry for Łosice

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Słownik entry for Łosice . Translated from the Polish, the entry reads:

Łosice, an urban settlement on the Tuczna River in the Konstantynów Powiat [District], gmina [municipality] and parish of Łosice . It lies in the riverside lowlands, 28 versts [1 verst = 1.0668 kilometers] not far from Siedlce . It possesses a wooden parish church, a Uniate Orthodox church, a synagogue, an elementary school, a local court for the 4th district, and a post office . In 1827 there were 190 homes and 1543 residents here, in 1862 there were 199 homes (6 made of stone) and 1755 residents (838 Jews); currently there are 208 homes, 2610 residents, and 3332 mórgs [1 mórg in the Russian Partition = 1.388 acres] of urban land . Łosice belongs to the oldest ruling urban settlement in Podlasa . In the year 1505, Aleksander Jagiełło moved the local townspeople from Russian Law to German Law . At that time a town hall with a butcher’s shop, scales, a shearing room were erected, and a fair was set up . Despite this, the district governor of the place did not stop oppressing the townfolk, and his collectors collected fees according to Lithuanian laws . Not until the resolution of the Sejm [the Polish parliament] in the year 1573 was the exploitation ended . Władysław the fourth, with the charter in the year 1647, allowed the townspeople to distill vodka and to distribute it freely . Destroyed at the time of the Swedish War, in the year 1677 Łosice was granted confirmation and expansion of the charter for the establishment and sales of alcoholic beverages, but the arrival of the Jews, the protégés of the district governors, prohibited the competition of the townspeople and led them into extreme poverty . The royal ban, confirmed several times, did not rectify the abuse; the Christian population had to shift to agricultural labor . In the year 1511, the Catholic Church of Saint Zygmunt was founded and paid for by Zygmunt the first . The stone chapel of Saint Stanisław stood near it . A Russian Orthodox Church was established in an even earlier time . The Łosice parish of the Konstantynów deaconry had 3252 souls . The Gmina of Łosice belongs to the district court of the 3rd district, there were 2675 residents in that place.
Bronisław Chlebowski

Łosice, a village in the Kobryń Powiat [District], near the road from Chomsk to Drohiczyn and Antopol.

SOURCE: Sulimierski Filip, Bronisaw 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 1884, Volume V, page 732.

Posted in Daily Journal | Tagged Gazetteers | 1 Comment

The Military Medals of Jack Arnold Gibson

Posted on November 14, 2006 by Steve

My cousin, Jack Arnold Gibson, son of Clark Gibson and Sophie Danko, was posthumously awarded the Silver Star and the Purple Heart.

The Silver Star

The Silver Star is awarded for gallantry in action against an enemy of the United States . The Silver Star is the third highest military decoration that can be awarded to a member of the United States Armed Forces.

The Purple Heart

The Purple Heart is awarded to those who were wounded or killed in any action against an enemy of the United States.

Posted in Dańko, Gibson | Comments Off

The Death of Jack Arnold Gibson

Posted on November 13, 2006 by Steve

Of all the people in my family who served in World War II, there was only one combat death – my cousin Jack Arnold Gibson . Jack was the eldest son of my Aunt Sophie Danko and her husband Clark Gibson . Jack was also the first grandchild of my grandparents, Michał Dańko and Marianna Dziurzyńska.

The following description of the circumstances of his death are excerptedÂ from Captain Edmund G. Love’s book The 27th Infantry Division in World War II.

The Third Platoon had moved down through this draw an hour before without opposition of any kind . They had found one cave which they grenaded and investigated, but there seemed to be no life in it so they had moved on by without incident . The 2d Platoon, now coming upon this same cave was to run into trouble, however . Pfc. Perry Hill, who as acting as lead scout, came across a Japanese soldier lying just outside the cave mouth . The enemy was playing dead, a fact which Hill discovered by poking him, so the rifleman finished off the actor, “giving a little truth to his lie.”Â When this happened, however, Hill heard movement inside the cave and decided that it was full of enemy . His called Medina who, in turn, called Sgt. Jack Gibson of the engineers to come down with his flamethrower . Gibson gave the cave opening one short burst and five enemy came running headlong from their hiding place . All were killed . Other Japanese inside the cave immediately opened fire and in the first burst Gibson was mortallyÂ wounded and Pfc. Elmer Bottke, Medina’s bazooka man, was killed . Gibson, who had been badly hit, was in great pain and lying almost directly in front of the cave’s mouth . Although Medina could by-pass this cave if he was careful, he felt that he should get the wounded man out of danger . He asked for volunteers, and Pfc. Lathie Simmons and Pfc. Richard King moved forward to try and drag Gibson out of the way . Both men got within a few feet of the engineer, however, and were then spotted and pinned down . After several minutes, Gibson was finally prevailed upon to roll down from in front of the cave . After one or two quick rolls he was far enough for Private First Class Guld to grab him by the feet and drag him out of danger . Guld gave him aid, but he died later.

SOURCE: Love, Edmund G., The 27th Infantry Division in World War IIÂ (Washington: Infantry Journal Press, 1949), 512-513.

Jack was born in Albany, New York on 10 November 1923 and died in Saipan, Northern Mariana Islands on 08 July 1944 . Despite the reference to him as sergeant in Captain Love’s book, military records list him as a private . He is buriedÂ in Section 8, Site 464, Gerald B. H. Solomon Saratoga National Cemetery, Schuylerville, New York . He was posthumously awarded the Purple Heart and the Silver Star.

Posted in Daily Journal, Gibson | 1 Comment

My Father’s World War II Medals

Posted on November 12, 2006 by Steve

My father earned three service medals in World War II: The American Campaign Medal, The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal, and The World War II Victory Medal . In 1985, upon the 40th Anniversary of World War II, theÂ Russian FederationÂ awarded a medal to US personnel who participated in the Murmansk Run.

The American Campaign Medal- Obverse

The American Campaign Medal- Reverse

Awarded for service outside the United States in the American theater for 30 days or within the continental United States for one year between 1941 and 1946.

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal – Obverse

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal – Reverse

Awarded for service in the European-African-Middle Eastern theater for 30 days or receipt of any combat decoration between 1941 and 1945.

The World War II Victory Medal – Obverse

The World War II Victory Medal – Reverse

Awarded for service in the United States Armed Forces between 1941 and 1946.

The Murmansk Run Medal

Awarded by the government of theÂ Russian FederationÂ upon the 40th anniversary of World War II to all sailors, armed guards, and merchant marines from the United States who participated in convoys to Murmansk during World War II.

Cuff Trim of Seaman First Class

The Navy Seaman’s cuff had one stripe for Apprentice Seaman, two stripes for Seaman Second Class, and three stripes for Seaman First Class . My father began his naval service as Apprentice Seaman, and was promoted to Seaman Second Class and then to Seaman First Class.

Armed Guard Mark

The Armed Guard Mark was worn midway between the left wrist and the elbow.

Posted in Daily Journal | 6 Comments

World War II Convoys JW-54A and RA-55A

Posted on November 11, 2006 by Steve

As part of the US Naval Armed Guard, my father served on the Liberty Ship the S. S. Daniel Drake on two convoys as part of the Murmansk Run, delivering war supplies to the Eastern Front . The Murmansk Run was one of the most dangerous assignments for an American servicemanÂ in World War II.

The Murmansk Run

Convoy JW-54A

Convoy JW-54A sailed from Liverpool, EnglandÂ to Kola Inlet, RussiaÂ (near Murmansk) and on the return trip, Convoy RA-55A sailed from Kola Inlet, RussiaÂ to Loch Ewe, Scotland . The ship’s manifest for the S. S. Daniel Drake that I posted previously was the list of the crew just prior to the departure of Convoy JW-54A, but not necessarily of the same crew as that in Convoy JW-54A.

Convoy JW-54A departed Liverpool on November 15, 1943 and arrived at Kola Inlet on November 24, 1943 . Nineteen vessels made up this convoy:

COPELAND (Br)
DANIEL DRAKE (Am)
EDMUND FANNING (Am)
EMPIRE CARPENTER (Br)
EMPIRE CELIA (Br)
EMPIRE NIGEL (Br)
FORT YUKON (Br)
GILBERT STUART (Am)
HENRY VILLARD (Am)
JAMES GORDON BENNETT (Am)
JAMES SMITH (Am)
JUNECREST (Br)
MIJDRECHT (Du)
NORLYS (Pan)
OCEAN VANITY (Br)
OCEAN VERITY (Br)
PARK HOLLAND (Am)
THOMAS SIM LEE (Am)
WILLIAM WINDOM (Am)

The convoy was escorted by the following ships:

Nov. 15-Nov. 18: Destroyers Brissenden, Termagant and Polish Burza
Nov. 15-Nov. 24: Destroyers Inconstant, Whitehall, corvette Heather and minesweeper Hussar
Nov. 18-Nov. 25: Destroyers Impulsive, Onslaught, Onslow, Orwell, and Canadian Haida, Huron and Iroquois
Nov. 18-Nov. 19: Obedient (returned early with defects)
Nov. 24-Nov. 26: Minesweeper Seagull.
Nov. 19-Nov. 24: Cruiser cover by Bermuda, Jamaica and Kent, distant cover by battleship Anson, cruiser USS Tuscaloosa, American destroyers Corry, Fitch, Forrest and Hobson.

Convoy RA-55A

Convoy RA-55A departed Kola Inlet on December 22, 1943 and arrived atÂ Loch EweÂ on January 1, 1944 . Â Twenty-threeÂ vessels made up this convoy:

ARTHUR L. PERRY (Am)
DANIEL DRAKE (Am)
EDMUND FANNING (Am)
EMPIRE CARPENTER (Br)
EMPIRE CELIA (Br)
EMPIRE NIGEL (Br)
FORT MCMURRAY (Br)
FORT YUKON (Br)
GILBERT STUART (Am)
HENRY VILLARD (Am)
JAMES SMITH (Am)
JUNECREST (Br)
MIJDRECHT (Du)
OCEAN STRENGTH (Br)
OCEAN VANITY (Br)
OCEAN VERITY (Br)
PARK HOLLAND (Am)
RATHLIN (Br)
SAN ADOLFO (Br)
THOMAS KEARNS (Am)
THOMAS SIM LEE (Am)
WILLIAM L. MARCY (Am)
WILLIAM WINDOM (Am)

The convoy was escorted, at least in part, by the Acanthus, Ashanti, Athabaskan, Beagle, Belfast, Borage, Dianella, Hound, Hydra, Matchless, Meteor, Milne, Musketeer, Norfolk, Opportune, Poppy, Saumarez, Savage, Scorpion, Seagull, Sheffield, Stord, Virago, Wallflower, and Westcott.

Posted in Daily Journal | Comments Off

The Crew Manifest of the World War II Liberty Ship ‘Joaquin Miller’

Posted on November 10, 2006 by Steve

I’ve been taking the opportunity to search the Immigration Collection at Ancestry.com during the Free access to this database through the end of the month of November . Yesterday, I found the Crew Manifest for the World War II Liberty Ship S. S. Daniel Drake on which my father served . Today, I found the Crew Manifest for the World War II Liberty Ship S. S. Joaquin Miller, on which my uncle Frederick F. Niedzialkowski served.

Crew Manifest for Frederick F. Niedzialkowski – 1943

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Crew Manifest for Frederick F. Niedzialkowski – 1943 . My uncle’s record states that:

The manifest is that of the S/S Joaquin Miller
The ship departed Boston and arrived in New York
Frederick F. Niedzialkowski is listed on lineÂ 21
He had been to sea for 1 year at this point in time
His position in the ship’s company was Seaman 1/c (Seaman, First Class)
He was not to be discharged at the port of arrival (New York)
He was able to read
He was 19 years old, was of the male sex, was of the Polish race, and his nationality was US
Fred’s height was 6’1″, and his weight was 176 (pounds)
He had a scar on his right wrist

Other pages of the manifest show that the ship was operated by the Isthmian Steamship Co., 71 Broadway, New York, and that it arrived in New York on 31 August 1943 . Other pages show that the shipÂ was expected to leave New York on 11 September 1943 and thatÂ it stopped in Newport News, Virginia on 14 September 1943, thence heading for foreign locations.

There is also an enigmatic notation on one page that the ship had previously left Bizerte (Tunisia?) on 20 July 1943 . In this notation about Bizerte, the port of departure Boston was crossed out and the port of Bizerte was written in.

I’ll have to check with my cousins to see if they have a copy of Fred’s military records to see if those records include any additional information on Fred’s destinations while in the Navy.

Posted in Niedziałkowski | Comments Off

The Crew Manifest of the World War II Liberty Ship ‘Daniel Drake’

Posted on November 9, 2006 by Steve

Today I saw that no fewer than four genealogy blogs, Chris Dunham’s The Genealogue, Joe Beine’s Genealogy Roots Blog, Eastman’s Online Genealogy Newsletter, and Randy Seaver’s Genea-Musings mentioned the fact that Ancestry.com has now digitized and indexed all readily available U.S. Passengers Lists from 1820 to 1960. Moreover, Ancestry’s entire Immigration Collection is FREE until the end of November.

I immediately took a look and I found much more than I expected, because the records in this collection are not just Immigrant Passenger Lists, but also include Crew Lists for World War II Naval Ships and Passenger Lists for Vacation Cruise Ships!

In particular, I found the record of my father’s World War II service on the S.S. Daniel Drake, where he served in the U.S. Naval Armed Guard on the Murmansk Run.

Crew Manifest of the S.S. Daniel Drake — *Crew Manifest for the S.S. Daniel Drake (Page 2)*

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Crew Manifest for Francis Danko – 1943. My father’s record states that:

The manifest is that of the S/S Daniel Drake, United States Line
The ship departed London on 20 September 1943 and arrived in New York on 01 October 1943
Francis Danko is listed on line 14 as partÂ of the Armed Guard
His Serial Number was 801 66 21
His rate (rank) was S1c (Seaman, First Class)
His service was USNR (United States Naval Reserve)

Francis J. Danko - US Naval Armed Guard — Francis J. Danko – US Naval Armed Guard

The manifest also lists 42 crew members and 27 other members of the Armed Guard. I’ll have to ask my father if he remembers any of these names. He has several photographs of his shipmates, but doesn’t remember the names of most of them. Perhaps now with this list, he can name the people in some of his World War II photographs.

I found some interesting details on this manifest, including the fact that five of the crew members on this United States Liberty Ship were not U.S. citizens. Also of interest is that, of the members of the U.S. Armed Guard, only one was in the USN, the United States Navy; all the rest were in the USNR, the United States Naval Reserve.

For those who are not familiar with the Liberty Ships in World War II, I’ll have to write a piece on Liberty ships one day. For now, just realize that the Liberty Ship crews consisted of a number of Merchant Marines (who were, in fact, not part of the U.S. Navy) and a group of Navy personnel called the Armed Guard who were trained to protect their ship and the Merchant Marines aboard it.

I never would have guessed that the Crew Manifests of World War II U.S. Liberty Ships would be in this collection!

Posted in Dańko | 7 Comments

The Birth and Baptism of Zofia Głowacz

Posted on November 8, 2006 by Steve

My great grandfather, Jakub Dańko, was married twice . His first marriage was to my great grandmother Agnieszka Sowa who died after falling while picking cherries . His second marriage was to my cousin Piotr’s great grandmother, Zofia Głowacz . Zofia was born in Nienadowa in 1870 . Zofia’s Birth and Baptismal Record is Number 89, the second from the top on this page of the parish register.

The Birth and Baptismal Record for Zofia Głowacz

Click on the link for a PDF copy of the Birth and Baptismal Record for Zofia Głowacz – 1870 . The record, translated from the Latin states that:

Page Number: Not provided
Number: 89
Birth: December 15, 1870
Baptism: December 19, 1870
House Number: 118
Name: Zofia Głowacz
Religion: Catholic
Sex: Girl
Legitimacy: Legitimate
Father: Jan Głowacz, gardener, son of the married couple Józef Głowacz and Anna Giergont
Mother: Marianna Szymańska, daughter of the married couple Piotr Szymański and Zofia Witkowska
Godparents and their occupations: Pawel Podgórniak, gardener, and Zofia, wifeÂ of Wojciech Głowacz, farmers
Baptized by: Father Karol Niedzielski
Midwife: Zofia Wrotna

Like other church records fromÂ the former Galicia, thisÂ document is written in columnar format in Latin.

This record not only provides the names of Zofia’s parents, Jan Głowacz and Anna Giergont, but also provides the names of her grandparents, Józef Głowacz and Anna Giergont, and Piotr Szymański and Zofia Witkowska.

This page of the register shows two other records, both of which include names associated with my ancestors: Pilch, Bal, Szymański, Wrotny, Chruścicki, and Dańko.

In fact, the Birth and Baptismal Record for Wiktoria Bębenek shows that her mother is Zofia Dańko, the daughter of Maciej Dańko, which means that Wiktoria is my great grandfather Jakub’s second cousin!Â Unfortunately, I don’t have an image of this complete page, and so I’m not able to read all of the information in her record.