Rare Old Hungarian Wines to Be Shown at 1934 Fair

Chicago Daily News, Roll 675
25 Nov 1933, Page 11
[Click to enlarge]

While conducting newspaper research in Chicago several weeks ago, I came across an article on Hungarian wines to be presented at the 1933-1934 Chicago World's Fair. The fair was otherwise known as the Century of Progress, itself being a celebration of the city's centennial. A transcript of the article is below:

"Rare Old Hungarian Wines
    to Be Shown at 1934 Fair
By John Drury
    Rare old wines from the former royal cellars of Budapest, some of the villages dating back a century will be on exhibition in a proposed new Hungarian pavilion at A Century of Progress exposition next year, it was announced today.
    The musty old bottles will not be for sale to fair visitor, the announcement added. They will be merely on display and the labels will indicate the ages of the various types of wines. Tokays will be the main feature of the exhibit, but there will also be Burgundies and clarets and other popular continental wines.
      Here to Arrange Details
   Announcement of the this exhibit was made by Victor Unterreimer, prominent merchant of Budapest, who arrived in Chicago a few days ago for negotiations with the world's fair management. He said that the wines are now in the custody of a leading bank in Budapest, which took over some of the effects of the royal household after the revolution of 1918.
   "Our pavilion, which will be located at the north end of the Midway," added Mr. Unterreimer, "will also contain exhibits of embroideries, jewelry, glassware and other articles showing the arts and crafts of the Magyar republic.
   "There will also be a collection of historic watches, one of them dating back to 560 A.D. This collection was formerly owned by the Emperor Franz Joseph. It has been shown at many European fairs and expositions and in 1923 it won first prize at the International Watch exhibit in Berlin."
      Others May Exhibit
   Mr. Unterreimer said he is returning to Budapest immediately to enlist the interest of merchants in showing their wares at next year's Chicago fair. He added that he will be back after the first of the year to start work on the pavilion.
   This will not be the first Hungarian pavilion at the world's fair, as one was erected at the 1933 exposition. It stood immediately south of Old Heidelberg Inn. The leading exhibitor in this pavilion was Nicolas Krausz, proprietor of the famous "Haris Bazar No. 4" in Budapest, which featured historic jewelry from the castles of Hungarian noblemen. Mr. Krausz has moved his exhibit to the Leschin women's wearing apparel shop at 318 South Michigan boulevard, where it is now on display.

Obtaining Chicago & Cook County Vital Records On A Budget

Vital records for Cook County, and specifically Chicago, are available on microfilm for a significantly reduced cost, compared to requesting the documents through the Cook County Clerk or Vital Records. Below you can find details of what is available and how you can order copies of these records. Copies of these certificates and licenses are only $6.50, compared to the $15-17 per document through Cook County.

The Great Chicago Fire of 1871 destroyed a majority of documents and registers, so no vital records exist prior to then. Both birth registers (certificates exist post-1878) and marriage licenses began again in 1871, whereas the death certificates didn't begin again until 1878.

Image source: Hearst's Chicago American, January 2, 1902, Page 8
(Click to enlarge)

Cook County also didn't require the official registration of births until January 1, 1902, once a bill in the Illinois State Senate passed and became law. Along with the new law to urge Chicago residents to register their children's birth, was allowed "25 cents for every baby born and registered." By the second day the County Clerk had received more than 80 applications. However, the County Clerk neither had the actual certificates to issue nor the money to provide to applicants for the registrations. The County Clerk at that time, Mr. Knopf, explained he would issue certificates but they had not been supplied to him by the secretary of the State Board of Heath. Mr. Knopf furthermore stated that the County Board would need to supply the money.

How To Order Copies:

Birth certificates and registers are available on microfilm from 1871-1922 and can be ordered through the link here.

Death certificates are available on microfilm from 1878-1945 and can be ordered through the link here.

Marriage licenses are available on microfilm through 1871-1920 and can be ordered through the link here.

Center for Research Libraries in Chicago

An example of three death notices from the Chicago
Polish newspaper, Dziennik Związkowy, 1940.

The Center for Research Libraries, CRL for short, holds many ethnic newspapers on microfilm for viewing and copies. The CRL is located on the south side of the UC campus, in the Hyde Park neighborhood of Chicago.

One particular item of interest is the Chicago Polish newspaper, Dziennik Związkowy, which began in January of 1908 and is available up to 1992 (catalog title: http://catalog.crl.edu/record=b1336327~S1). Many death notices were published in this daily newspaper and should be a must-reviewed resource for Chicago Polish research. The CRL has already digitized the first ten years of the newspaper and those can be searched for free at their website at the following URL: https://dds.crl.edu/crldelivery/15857

A fantastic death notice index for Dziennik Związkowy has also been created, covering 1930-1949, by James J. Czuchra. It can be found at the following URL: http://polfamily.info/dziennik-zwiazkowy-search

The CRL is open to researchers, Monday to Friday & 9am to 2pm, but one must request an appointment. You are allowed up to 12 microfilm a day and they must be ordered when you make your appointment. One day of research will cost $25 and copies (printed or digital) are $.10 each; you pay when you've finished research. I personally reviewed 12 microfilm and made 16 digital scans, with the trip totaling $26.60

There is more to the CRL's collection than Polish publications. They have ethnic newspapers from across the country: Arabic, Chinese, Croatian, Czech, Danish, German, Greek, Hispanic, Hungarian, Jewish, Norwegian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Swedish. Give the catalog a search!

Anyone requiring research assistance with the resources within this library can request help through my Genlighten offering here.

Genealogy Resources at the Harold Washington Library in Chicago

The Harold Washington Library, in Chicago, Illinois, has a collection of material that could aid in genealogy research. They can be found in the Microfilm Room, on the third floor, where you will find rows of microfilm cabinets containing newspapers, city directories and telephone directories. Over the past six months, I have created inventories of what is currently available on microfilm for these collections and you can find them below.

Newspapers

The newspaper collection is by far the largest, taking up most of the space. The inventory I created was focused on newspapers from the Chicago area, although the library has many other newspapers on microfilm from around the world. The earliest available newspaper is the Chicago Democrat, beginning on November 26th, 1833.

You can view the inventory here: Chicago’s Historic Newspapers On Microfilm At The Harold Washington Library

City Directories

The library's collection of Chicago city directories ranges from 1839 through 1917, in 1923 and finally in 1928-1929. City directories contain the name of an individual, their occupation and address of residence. You may also come across a second address, an address of business, if the individual was a business owner. This collection is helpful in placing your ancestor at an exact addresses in Chicago between the censuses, as well as determining if they owned a business.

You can view the inventory here: Chicago City Directories On Microfilm At The Harold Washington Library

Telephone Directories

Where city directories end, the telephone directories pick up. The earliest telephone directory for Chicago was published in 1878. They are available for both the city of Chicago and Suburban Chicago up to 1971. The directories had separately published the Alphabetical (residential) and Classified (business), from 1914-1971. The library has directories from other localities throughout the entire state of Illinois: Algonquin, Alton, Altonwood River, Beardstown, Beecher, Big Rock, Cairo, Canton, Centralia, Champaign, Champaign-Urbana, Clinton County, Collinsville, Crown Point (Indiana), Danville, Decatur, Delavan, Dwight, Edgington, Edwardville, Elburn, Forest, Galina, Gibson City, Gilman, Greenville, Hampshire, Harristown, Harvey, Huntley, Ipava, Joliet, Kankakee, Kendall County, Kinmundy, Lake County, Lasalle, Lewistown, Lilly Lake, Lockport, Loves Park, Lowell, Manteno, McHenry, Momence, Morris, Mt. Vernon, Nashville, Oglesby, Olive Branch, Onarga, Oswego, Ottawa, Peoria, Peru, Petersburg, Plato Center, Quad Cities, Quincy, Rock Island, Rockford, Seneca, Springfield, West Suburban Exchange and Zion.

You can view the inventory here: Chicagoland Telephone Directories On Microfilm At The Harold Washington Library

Mr. and Mrs. Gust Martin Celebrate 50th Anniversary

Antigo Daily Journal
Thursday, August 1, 1957; page 5

Mr. and Mrs. Gust Martin Celebrate 50th Anniversary

   Mr. and Mrs. Gust Martin of Polar, who were married fifty years July 23 were guests at a surprise dance given for them July 27 at the Polar country club. Music was furnished by the Phil Fleischmann orchestra and lunch was served.
   Mr. and Mrs. Martin were married July 23, 1907 by the Rev. Griese at  St. Peter's Lutheran church at Polar. Mrs. Hattie Shank and Carl Summ of route 2, members of the original wedding party, were present for the dance.
   Mrs. Martin, the former Marie Summ, daughter of the late Mr. and Mrs. John Summ of Antigo, was born July 23, 1873 (Incorrect! 1883), in Antigo. Gust Martin, son of the late Mr. and Mrs. Gustave Martin, was born in Germany June 21, 1872 (Incorrect! 1882), and came to Polar with his parents as a child. Since their marriage, the Gust Martins have lived on a farm in Polar.
   The couple had six children, of which a son Harold is deceased. They are: Mrs. Ewald Flemming of Bryant; Mrs. James McMorrow of Honolulu, Hawaii; Leonard Martin of Cudahy; Marlow Martin of Waukesha; and Oscar Martin of Antigo; seven grandchildren and four great-grandchildren.
   Among the gifts they received were two bouquets of orchids from their daughter in Hawaii.
   The 250 guests attended from Pearson, Bryant, Antigo, White Lake, Polar, Cudahy, Waukesha and Chicago, Ill.

Surname Saturday #19: Gotowy

The Gotowy family had been a struggle for me for a very long time, until I stumbled upon the  Poznań Project, a few years ago. Thanks to that wonderful website, I was able to determine where in Poland my Gotowy ancestors came from. Here is what I know:

1. Agnieszka (Agnes) Gotowa
b. 07 Jan 1869, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
d. 25 Oct 1917, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Martin Domagalski; 26 Oct 1885, St. Mary's Church, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Josephine Domagalski, 04 Sep 1886, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Ignacy Domagalski, b. 01 Mar 1888, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*John Domagalski (later Smith), b. 23 Dec 1889, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Lucy Domagalski, b. 11 Dec 1891, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Clara Domagalski, b. abt Oct 1893, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Wladislaw Domagalski, b. 16 Jun 1896, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Eleanora Domagalski, b. 15 Jan 1899, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Frank S. Domagalski, b. 05 Feb 1901, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Edward Domagalski, b. 10 Apr 1903, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Roman Domagalski, b. 15 Feb 1904, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Cecilia Agnes Domagalski, b. 22 Nov 1906, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Helen A. Domagalski, b. 06 Dec 1908, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

2. Stanislaus Gotowy
b. 07 May 1840, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
d. 14 Nov 1919, Medina, Orleans County, New York
m. Jozefa (Josephine) Leśniewska; 24 Nov 1867, Głuszyna, Poznań, Poland
*Agnieszka Gotowa, (above)
*Apollonia Gotowa, b. 04 Feb 1871, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Michal Gotowy, b. 23 Aug 1872, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Marianna Gotowa, b. 04 Jan 1874, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Katarzyna Gotowa, b. 06 Feb 1876, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Jozef Gotowy, b. 14 Feb 1877, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Cecelia Gotowa, b. 22 Oct 1881, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Thomas J. Gottovi, ba. 14 Dec 1884, St. Mary's Church, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Stanislaus Gottovi, ba. 18 Apr 1886, St. Mary's Church, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Catherine Gottovi, ba. 06 Nov 1887, St. Mary's Church, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Edward M. Gottovi, b. about 13 Apr 1887, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Anthony Gottovi, ba. 24 Nov 1889, St. Mary's Church, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Anna M. Gottovi, b. Oct 1890, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Ellen A. Gottovi, b. 13 Apr 1892, Medina, Orleans County, New York

3. Kazimerz Gotowy
b. 25 Feb 1811, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
d. 20 Mar 1882, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
m. Marianna Leżałka; 21 Oct 1832, Głuszyna, Poznań, Poland
*Eva Gotowa (twin), b. 15 Dec 1833, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Eva Gotowa (twin), b. 15 Dec 1833, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Tomasz Gotowy, b. 13 Dec 1834, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Agnieszka Gotowa, b. 09 Jan 1837, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Szymon Gotowy, b. 06 Oct 1838, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Stanislaus Gotowy, (above)
*Agata Gotowa, b. 22 Jan 1842, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Michal Gotowy, b. 24 Sep 1843, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Marianna Gotowa, b. 29 Jun 1846, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Jakub Gotowy, b. 30 Jun 1850, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Wojciech Gotowy, b. 02 Apr 1853, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland

4. Wojciech Gotowy
ba. 20 Apr 1766, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
d. 24 Oct 1830, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
m. Marianna Mądrzonka/Mądry; none found
*Jozef Gotowy, ba. 20 Mar 1791, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Piotr Gotowy, ba. 30 Jun 1793, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Katarzyna Gotowa, b. 15 Nov 1795, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Agnieszka Gotowa, b. 06 Jan 1799, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Konstancja Gotowa, b. 06 Apr 1801, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Andrzej Gotowy, b. 20 Nov 1803, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Wojciech Gotowy, b. 14 Apr 1806, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Kazimerz Gotowy, (above)

5. Maciej Gotowy/Cauponis
b. unknown
d. unknown
m. Marcjanna Piduscianka; 12 Nov 1758, Głuszyna, Poznań, Poland
*Stanislaus Kostka Gotowy, ba. 23 Nov 1760, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Katarzyna Gotowa, ba. 20 May 1764, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Wojciech Gotowy, (above)
*Marianna Gotowa, ba. 29 Mar 1768, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Anna Gotowa, ba. 29 Jul 1770, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland
*Agnieszka Gotowa, ba. 03 Jan 1773, Daszewice, Poznań, Poland

Surname Saturday #12: Wozniak

I don't know too much about this branch of my family, because church records are not readily available on microfilm. Here is what I do know:

1. Rozalia Zofia Wozniak
b. 1887, Osobnica, Jaslo County, Rzeszow Province, Poland
d. 22 Oct 1959, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Wojciech (George) Czarny; 26 Oct 1908, Saints Peter & Paul Church, Chicago
*Children omitted for privacy reasons.

2. Wawrzyniec (Lawrence) Wozniak; (supposedly a 'mayor')
b. possibly Osobnica, Jaslo County, Rzeszow Province, Poland
d. possibly Osobnica, Jaslo County, Rzeszow Province, Poland
m. Agatha Turek; date unknown (may have died young?)
*Rozalia Zofia Wozniak, (above)
*Andrew Wozniak, b. 15 Sep 1889, Osobnica, Jaslo County, Rzeszow Province, Poland

Surname Saturday #11: Domagalski

This has been one of my most dead-end lines up until a few years ago, thanks to the Poznan Project. This is the family of my 2nd-great-grandmother, Josephine Domagalski:

1. Josephine Domagalski
b. 04 Sep 1886, Medina, Orleans County, New York
d. 14 Nov 1958, Manteno State Hospital, Manteno, Kankakee County, Illinois
m. Joseph Adas; 11 Oct 1903, St. Joseph Church, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Anna Adas, b. 26 Jul 1904, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Thomas L. Adas, b. 19 Dec 1905, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Joseph Vincent Adas, b. 27 Oct 1907, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Lawrence Adas, b. 01 Sep 1909, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Edward Robert Adas, Sr., b. 14 Apr 1911, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Raymund Adas, b. 18 Aug 1913, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

2. Martin (also Marcin) Domagalski
b. abt 1861-1865, Poland
d. 05 May 1917, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Agnieszka Gotowa; 26 Oct 1885, Medina, Orleans County, New York
*Josephine Domagalski, (above)
*Ignacy Domagalski, b. 01 Mar 1888, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*John Domagalski (later Smith), b. 23 Dec 1889, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Lucy Domagalski, b. 11 Dec 1891, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Clara Domagalski, b. abt Oct 1893, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Wladislaw Domagalski, b. 16 Jun 1896, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Eleanora Domagalski, b. 15 Jan 1899, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Frank S. Domagalski, b. 05 Feb 1901, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Edward Domagalski, b. 10 Apr 1903, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Roman Domagalski, b. 15 Feb 1904, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Cecilia Agnes Domagalski, b. 22 Nov 1906, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Helen A. Domagalski, b. 06 Dec 1908, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

3. Wojciech Domagala/Domagalski
b. abt 1814-1817, Poland
d. aft 1876, Buffalo, Erie County, New York
m1. Margarita Bogaczyk; 25 Oct 1841, Słupy, Gmina Szubin, Bydgoszcz, Poland
m2. Marianna Gadacz; 14 May 1853, Brzyskorzystew, Gmina Żnin, Bydgoszcz, Poland
m3. Magdalena Welniak; 31 Jul 1865, Słupy, Gmina Szubin, Bydgoszcz, Poland
*Jan Domagala, b. 29 May 1842
*Michael Domagala/Domagalski, b. 03 Aug 1843
*Jakub Domagala, b. 22 Jul 1846
*Franciszka Domagala, b. 15 Aug 1849
*Franciszek Domagala, b. 29 Aug 1852
*Anna/Antonia Domagala/Domagalski, b. 16 Jul 1857
*Jozefa Domagala, b. abt 1857
*Martin/Marcin, (above)
*Martina, b. abt 1863

4. Jan Domagala
b. unknown
d. bef 31 Jul 1865, Poland
m. Marianna
*Wojciech Domagala, (above)

Surname Saturday #6: Czarny

Czarny is the surname of my paternal grandmother's mother. They were a Polish family who immigrated to Chicago from a village called Osobnica, Poland. Thanks to the help of a distant cousin and friend, I've been able to add additional data to this line that I normally wouldn't have been able to. You know who you are, and thank you! :) Here is my line:

1. Martha Violet Czarny
b. 24 Apr 1911, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
d. 23 Oct 1989, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Edward Robert Adas, Sr.; 16 May 1934, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Mary Louise Adas (my grandmother), b. 02 Mar 1940, Chicago; d. 03 May 1896, Chicago
*Edward Robert Adas, Jr., b. 08 Sep 1941, Chicago; d. 15 Oct 1995, Chicago

2. Wojciech Czarny
b. 24 Apr 1888, Osobnica, Poland
d. Oct 1961, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Rozalia Sophia Wozniak; 26 Oct 1908, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Edward Michael Czarny, b. 03 Jul 1909, Chicago; d. 08 Oct 1994, Chicago
*Martha Violet Czarny (above)
*Helen T. Czarny; information omitted for privacy.

3. Szymon Czarny
b. abt 1839, Osobnica, Poland
d. unknown
m1. Anna Dybaś; bef. 29 Jan 1870, Osobnica, Poland
m2. Katarzyna Kiełtyka; 27 Apr 1875, Osobnica, Poland
*Grezgorz Czarny, b. 1870, Osobnica, Poland
*Jakub Czarny, b. 1872, Osobnica, Poland
*Agata Carny, b. 1874, Osobnica, Poland
*Anna Czarny, b. 1876, Osobnica, Poland
*Jozef Czarny, b. 1878, Osobnica, Poland; d. 1962, Chicago
*Marcin Czarny, b. 1880, Osobnica, Poland
*Agata Czarny, b. 1882, Osobnica, Poland
*Sophia Czarny, b. 1885, Osobnica, Poland; d. 1956, Chicago
*Wojciech Czarny, (above)
*Marianna Czarny, b. 1892, Osobnica, Poland
*Anna Czarny, b. 1896, Osobnica, Poland; d. 1959, Chicago

4. Jakub Czarny
b. unknown
d. unknown
m. Marianna Pięta; 06 Nov 1867, Osobnica, Poland
*Szymon Czarny, (above)
*Jan Czarny, b. 1844

5. Andrzej Czarny
b. unknown
d. unknown
m. Teresa

Surname Saturday #3: Adas

My paternal grandmother's surname is Adas. Before immigrating to America, they were ethnic Kashubians from West Prussia. It was my grandmother's great-grandfather that immigrated to America in 1872. He first settled in Detroit, Michigan, married and started a family before he migrated to Chicago. Here is what I know on my Adas family:

1. Mary Louise Adas
b. 02 Mar 1940, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
d. 03 May 1986, Burbank, Cook County, Illinois
m. John Gombash, Sr.; 30 Nov 1957, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Children omitted for privacy.

2. Edward Robert Adas, Sr.
b. 14 Apr 1911, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
d. 10 Jan 1962, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Martha Violet Czarny; 16 May 1934, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Mary Louise Adas, (above)
*Edward Robert Adas, Jr., b. 08 Sep 1941

3. Joseph Adas
b. 21 May 1882, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
d. 20 Feb 1939, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Josephine Domagalski; 11 Oct 1903, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Anna Adas, b. 26 Jul 1904, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Thomas L. Adas, b. 19 Dec 1905, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Joseph Vincent Adas, b. 27 Oct 1907, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Lawrence Adas, b. 01 Sep 1909, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
*Edward Robert Adas, Sr., (above)
*Raymund Adas, b. 18 Aug 1913

4. Joseph Vincenz Adass
b. 21 Jan 1853, Oslanin, Putzig parish, West Prussia
d. 21 Sep 1932, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
m. Marianna Rosalia Plotzke; 18 Jan 1874, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
*John A. Adas, b. 18 Nov 1874
*Mary Annie Adas, b. 01 Feb 1878
*Martha R. Adas, b. 08 Feb 1880
*Joseph Adas, (above)
*Frank Martin Adas, b. 11 Sep 1884
*Rosalia Adas, b. 18 Feb 1889

5. Johann Adass
b. 31 Oct 1825, Blansekow, Putzig parish, West Prussia
d. 1852, Oslanin, Putzig parish, West Prussia
m. Marianna Meina/Meyna; 15 Oct 1850, Putzig, Putzig parish, West Prussia
*Marianna Adass, b. 08 Dec 1851
*Joseph Vincenz Adass, (above)

6. Anton Adass
b. 15 Sep 1788, Blansekow, Putzig parish, West Prussia
d. before 23 Nov 1840, Oslanin, Putzig parish, West Prussia
m. Marianna Kolp; 25 Nov 1821, Putzig, Putzig parish, West Prussia
*Joseph Adass, b. 02 Feb 1823
*Johann Adass, (above)
*Anton Valentin Adass, b. 07 Feb 1830
*Marianna Adass, b. 19 Jan 1833
*Franz Adass, b. 06 Jun 1836
*Christina Adass, b. 01 Oct 1839

7. George Adass
b. about 1750
d. unknown
m. Anna Hirt; 28 Sep 1777, Putzig, Putzig parish, West Prussia
*Johannes Adass, b. 08 Oct 1778
*Barbara Adass, b. 17 Mar 1780
*Marianna Adass, b. 22 May 1782
*Catharina Adass, b. 08 May 1784
*Michael Adass, b. 05 Sep 1786
*Anton Adass, (above)
*Christina Adass, b. 30 Oct 1792
*Jacob Adass, b. 5 Jul 1794
*Matthias Adass, b. 28 Feb 1800

(Not So) Wordless Wednesday

Marcin (Martin) Domagalski & wife Agnieszka (Agnes) Gotowacirca 1898

This picture is of my 3rd-great-grandparents, Martin Domagalski and wife Agnes Gotowa. This couple had been a brick-wall for me for so many years, when I first began my research. I knew so little about their beginnings and where they came from prior to moving to Chicago. Lack of finding any information continued to make them more and more of a mystery over the years, which drew me to them even more. It didn't hurt that their headstone in Resurrection Cemetery in Justice, Cook County, Illinois, was huge and absolutely beautiful! It was and still is, the first place I stop every single time I go to this cemetery.. even if I'm doing look-ups for people not related to me. I always stop at their grave.

A few years ago, I finally cracked a piece of the brick-wall down and found that they had moved to Chicago from Medina, Orleans County, New York. Their first child, Josephine, whom I descend from, was the only child of theirs that was born in Medina. Sometime during the 1 1/2 year gap between the birth of Josephine and their next child, they moved to the "Back Of The Yards" area of Chicago. I believe they went to join Martin's sister Anna/Antonia Domagalska, married to Peter Paluszek. Along with Martin and Agnes, came the sister of Agnes and her husband: Apolonia Gotowa and Michael "Asher" Popiolek. Apolonia and husband Michael are buried in the plot to the south of her sister Agnes and husband Martin. They have an equally beautiful stone, although not as large.

After moving to Chicago, Martin and Agnes had eleven more children.. eight of them surviving (not including Josephine) to adulthood. Martin died rather young, at the age of 52, on 05 May 1917. The cause of his death is listed as "chronic interstitial nephritis", with a contributing cause of "Broncho pneumonia". Five months later, Agnes passes away, too. Her cause of death is a bit tragic and upsetting to even think about: "Shock and injuries jumped out of window", with a contributing cause of "temporarily insane". As sad as this is, I like to believe it was grief and caused by the death of her husband, five months earlier. A tragic but romantic ending.

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun - the 1940 US Census

This is going to be a fun post. I saw on a website, that the 1940 census will be open to the public as of yesterday, one year from now. Immediately, I began thinking of who I should find first.

I've already been able to find my maternal grandparents. My grandfather, Thomas Thurman Rodgers, was born in Duck Hill, Montgomery County, Mississippi on 15 Jun 1928 to Fred Lamar Rodgers and Ellen Inez Martin. Here is an excerpt of him with his family in the 1930 census:

Rodgers, Fred L., Head, 30, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi, Farmer
Rodgers, Ellen I., Wife, 27, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi, Farm laborer
Rodgers, M. J., Son, 11, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi
Rodgers, Virginia A., Daughter, 6, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi
Rodgers, Wilburn H., Son, 4 8/12, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi
Rodgers, Thomas T., Son, 16/12, Mississippi, Mississippi, Mississippi


My maternal grandmother was Elaine Florella Stuempges. She was born 31 Dec 1926 in Polar, Langlade County, Wisconsin, to Walter John Stuempges and Sylvia Maria Martin. Here is an excerpt of her with her family in the 1930 census:

Stuempges, Walter, Head, 30, Wisconsin, Wisconsin, Bohemia, Mechanic in Garage
Stuempges, Sylvia, Wife, 20, Wisconsin, Germany, Wisconsin
Stuempges, Elaine, Daughter, 3, Wisconsin, Wisconsin, Wisconsin
Stuempges, Eunice, Daughter, 1, Wisconsin, Wisconsin, Wisconsin

As for my paternal grandparents, they were born after the 1930 census. My grandfather was John Edward Gombash. He was born 02 Oct 1935 in Caretta, McDowell County, West Virginia and was the son of Alex Gombash (previously Sándor Gombás) and Catherine Grządziel. Along with my great-grandparents and my grandfather, there will be 6 other children listed.. siblings to my grandfather. They're all living, so I won't state names and dates out of respect for their privacy.

My paternal grandmother was Mary Louise Adas. She was born 02 Mar 1940 in Chicago, Cook County, Illinois to Edward Robert Adas, Sr. and his wife Martha Violet Czarny. Now knowing she was born in 1940, I'm REALLY hoping she's listed in the census. I'm not sure of the months of which the census was take that year, so I'll have to do some research on that topic. She had one younger brother who was born in 1941.

I'm going to be really curious about my paternal great-great-grandmother, as well. She was Eszter (Tóth) Gombás. Her husband, my great-great-grandfather, had died in May of 1931. She will have been a widow for 9 years now. I'm not sure of the exact location of where she will be, but I believe she may be in Lore City, Richland Township, Guernsey County, Ohio. That's where her daughter Julia (Gombash) Mayors was hopefully living at the time. I do know that Eszter died in April of 1950 in Lore City. Maybe she'll even appear in the 1950 census, too! Boy am I impatient! :)

Saturday Night Genealogy Fun: Ancestral Name List Roulette

1) How old is one of your grandfathers now, or how old would he be if he had lived? Divide this number by 4 and round the number off to a whole number. This is your "roulette number."

2) Use your pedigree charts or your family tree genealogy software program to find the person with that number in your ancestral name list (some people call it an "ahnentafel"). Who is that person?

3) Tell us three facts about that person in your ancestral name list with the "roulette number."

4) Write about it in a blog post on your own blog, in a Facebook note or comment, or as a comment on this blog post.

5) If you do not have a person's name for your "roulette number" then spin the wheel again - pick a grandmother, or yourself, a parent, a favorite aunt or cousin, or even your children!


I used my maternal grandfather for this exercise, his name is Thomas Thurman Rodgers (born in 1928). My whole number comes out (when rounded up) to 21 and my ancestor that fits that number is my 2nd-great-grandmother Josephine Domagalski.

A few years ago, I knew practically nothing about Josephine nor had ever seen a picture of her. Today, I have two.. maybe three.. pictures of her and I know much much more about her! :)

Fact 1: She is the only child (and the eldest) out of her eleven siblings to have been born in Medina, Orleans County, New York. The rest of her eleven siblings were born in Chicago.

Fact 2: According to the 1930 census, she was living with her family at 6019 S. Fairfield Avenue, Chicago, Illinois.

Fact 3: She died in the now closed and supposedly haunted Manteno State Hospital in Kankakee County, Illinois.

Tombstone Tuesday - János Cserpák

I was at the Mount Olivet Catholic cemetery yesterday, which is on the south side of Chicago. I was originally looking for my half-uncle's great-grandmother, Anna Felton nee Vearon or Vieron. I found her lot easily enough and she unfortunately didn't have headstone or marker. Neither did the random three other people completely unrelated to her, that were around her. Quite sad.

While walking back to my car I stumbled upon a headstone of a fellow Hungarian: János Cserpák. His headstone stated he was born on 22 Jul 1903 and he died on 20 Mar 1922 at the age of 18 years old. I snapped two pictures of his headstone; one of the headstone and one of the picture on the top. You can see them below:





During the car ride home I got to wondering what he could have died from so young. I got home and went onto FamilySearch's Record Search and searched for him in the Cook County, Illinois Deaths, 1878-1922. I found his death certificate listed under John Cherpak. In Hungarian, "CS" is pronounced "CH" as in 'chug'. The Americanized spelling of his name makes perfect sense.

John died at his home, 916 East 92nd Place in Chicago, on 20 Mar 1922. He was buried two days later in Mount Olivet cemetery on 22 Mar 1922. The cause of death is listed as "Lobar pneumonia" for the duration of 4 days and the secondary contributor was "cardiac failure". It's sad to think that something as common as pneumonia is so easily cured with today's medicine. He was listed as 18 years old and was a machinist at the "Nickle Plate R.R." His parents are listed as Jacob Cherpak and Mary Turk. John and his parents were listed as being born in "Austria". His father was the informant for the death certificate.



I found the Cherpak family in the 1920 census living at 916 East 92nd Place in Chicago, Illinois:
Cherpak, Jacob, Head, 52, married, immigrated 1911, alien, Hungary
Cherpak, Mary, Wife, 41, married, immigrated 1913, alien, Hungary
Cherpak, John, Son, 16, single, immigrated 1913, alien, Hungary
Cherpak, Anna, Daughter, 14, single, immigreated 1913, alien, Hungary
Iheri, Jacob, Boarder, 48, married, immigrated 1912, alien, Hungary

Jacob was a carpenter for the railroad shop and John (2 years before his death) was an apprentice at the railroad shop. Looking at the whole census page, every single family was Hungarian.. it must've been a predominantly Hungarian area that they lived in.

I was then able to locate John with his mother and sister in the Ellis Island passenger manifests. They were listed as Cserpak Mária (30), Cserpak János (9) and Cserpak Anna (7). They were of both Hungarian nationality and race. Their last residence, which happened to also be their place of birth, is a town called Vencsellő. They were residing with Mária's mother Anna Turk. (John's death record stated his mother's maiden name was Turk!) They were traveling to their husband and father Cserpak Jakab in Chicago. Vencsellő was in Szabolcs county of Hungary and was actually not too far from where my family came from. Vencsellő is roughly an hour North-East of Tiszadob and Büdszentmihály (now Tiszvasvári). Today, Vencsellő is combined with the town of Gáva and called Gávavencsellő (how original, huh?).

I've actually been researching in the Reformed church records of Gáva with my friend Sharon for her noble Bakó family, for the past few weeks. What are the odds? :)

My Father's Maternal Lineage

1) Nick M. Gombash

2) John E. Gombash, Jr.

3) Mary Louise Adas
Born 02 Mar 1940, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Died 03 May 1986, Burbank, Cook County, Illinois
Married John E. Gombash, Sr., 30 Nov 1957, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

4) Edward Robert Adas, Sr.
Born 14 Apr 1911, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Died: 10 Jan 1962, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Married Martha Violet Czarny, 16 May 1934, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

5) Joseph Adas
Born 21 May 1882, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan
Died 20 Feb 1939, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Married Josephine Domagalski, 11 Oct 1903, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois

6) Joseph Vincenz Adass
Born 21 Jan 1853, Oslanin, West Prussia, Germany
Died 21 Sep 1932, Chicago, Cook County, Illinois
Married Marianna Rosalia Pletzke/Plotzke, 18 Jan 1874, Detroit, Wayne County, Michigan

7) Johann Adass
Born 31 Oct 1825, Blansekow, West Prussia, Germany
Died before 08 Jan 1853, Oslanin, West Prussia, Germany
Married Maria Meina, 15 Oct 1850, Putzig, West Prussia, Germany

8) Anton Adass
Born 15 Sep 1788, Blansekow, West Prussia, Germany
Died before 23 Nov 1840, Oslanin, West Prussia, Germany
Married Marianna Kolp, 25 Nov 1821, Putzig, West Prussia, Germany

9) George Adass
Born abt 1750, West Prussia, Germany
Died unknown
Married Anna Hirt, 28 Sep 1777, Putzig, West Prussia, Germany

What's Been Going On Lately

I've been neglecting my blog really bad lately.. I want to say sorry to my faithful readers out there. You know who you are. :)

I've been busy and preoccupied with a few things going on lately. First is my cousin's Bat Mitzvah, which is tomorrow. There's been months of set up and preparation and I'll be happy when it's over. The other reason I've been busy is I've been doing a lot of research lately.

Last week today, I went to the Newberry Library in Chicago with my friend Cathy. That place is amazing! I didn't even get through half the list of books I wanted to look at, but I found so much information and great leads on my brick-wall Howell family. My Howell's are dead-ended with a Hiram Howell and wife Rachel. They were born in the 1780's-1790's and lived in Western TN and finally Tippah County, Mississippi in the last years of their lives. Hiram was actually murdered in 1853! Hiram and Rachel were married sometime before 1810 in Tennessee and I believe they had somewhere around ten children, eight boys and two girls. One of the girls was Temperance, my 4th-great-grandmother. She was married to George W. Vance about 1844 (place and date unknown) and they had seven children, before George suddenly died in 1859-1860. He was only about 33 when he died... another possible murder? Hopefully further research will yield those answers.

I've also been pretty busy researching my Hungarian nobility. Through my 9th-great-grandmother, Margit Berzeviczy who married István Horváth de Perlak, I descend from many large and old noble families of Hungary.. some with very powerful connections. Here are some of the families I descend from through Margit's ancestry. If you descend from any of these please contact me, we're cousins!

*Bánffy de Gara (garai Bánffy) - genus Drusma

*Bárczay de Bárcza (bárczai Bárczay)

*Berthóthy de Berthót (berthóti Berthóthy) - genus Aba

*Berzeviczy de Berzevicze (berzeviczei Berzeviczy)

*Bocskay de Bocskó (bocskói Bocskay) - genus Boksa

*Buchai de Bucha (buchai Buchai)

*Cseley de Csele (cselei Cseley) - genus Bogáth-Radván

*Csúzy de Csúz és Puszta-Szent-Mihály (csúzi és puszta-szent-mihályi Csúzy)

*Garay de Gara (garai Garay) - genus Drusma

*Gombos de Gombosfalva (gombosfalvai Gombos) - genus Tekele

*Haraszthy de Haraszt (haraszti Haraszthy)

*Istvánffy baranyavár és Kis-Asszonyfalva (kis-asszonyfalvai és baranyavári Istvánffy)

*Izdenczy de Izdencz és Komlós (izdenczi és komlósi Izdenczy)

*Kapy de Kapivár (kapivári Kapy)

*Lipcsey de Nagy-Lucse (nagy-lucsei Lipcsey)

*Macedóniai de Macedónia (macedóniai Macedóniai)

*Merse de Szinye (szinyei Merse)

*Nekcsey de Nekcse (nekcsei Nekcsey) - genus Aba

*Ostffy de Asszonyfalva (asszonyfalvai Ostffy) - genus Osl

*Soós de Sóvár (sóvári Soós) - genus Boksa

*Szilágyi de Horogszeg (horogszegi Szilágyi)

*Szini de Teresztény (teresztényi Szini)

*Zombory de Zombor (zombori Zombory)

I've also been working on something for my website Hungary Exchange that I hope a lot of people will find useful. It's guides on how to read and decipher church parish records. It explains how to read baptism, marriage and burial records and I'm doing three records of each of those events for each of the religions in Hungary. There's the Civil Registration, Evangelical, Greek Catholic, Jewish, Reformed and Roman Catholic. So there would be a total of nine (9) guides for each religion, totaling 54 pages of guides when I'm completely finished. At the moment I have 100% of Reformed complete, 2/3 of Greek Catholic complete and 2/3 of Jewish complete. I hope to have it up soon.

All you Hungarian genealogists, please visit my website and submit the surnames you're researching in Hungary. The Surname Database already has 125 Hungarian surnames posted, so check it out!

Hungarian Marriage Project Update: 16 Mar 2010

A lot of marriages have been added to the database in the past month. The most significant are the parishes of Tiszaszederkény (Reformed) and Our Lady of Hungary (Catholic).

The parish of Tiszaszederkény has a total number of 1,745 marriages, and I added them in three parts as I completed them. The parish of Our Lady of Hungary is a Catholic church on the south side of Chicago. The parish records available are baptisms, marriages and deaths that range from 1905-1913. I have added 234 marriages from this parish into my database. If you would like a look-up in this church, please feel free to contact me. The microfilm is on permanent loan at my local FHC.

Researching Chicago Family Trees

I'm becoming quite the whiz at researching families from Chicago and the Chicago area. There are so many resources available online now, that it just makes it so much easier to do. Here are some great links I use on a regular basis with my research:

Cook County, Clerk of the Circuit Court

Index to Naturalizations-Declarations of Intention, 1871-1929

http://198.173.15.34/NR/

Cook Count Clerk's Office - Genealogy Online

http://www.cookcountygenealogy.com/

Databases at the Illinois State Archives

http://www.cyberdriveillinois.com/departments/archives/databases.html

A Look At Cook

Street and ED Guide for Census for Cook County

http://alookatcook.com/

Polish Genealogical Society of America

http://www.pgsa.org/

FamilySearch & RecordSearch

http://www.familysearch.org/