Carnival of Genealogy, 116th Edition

Welcome to the April 4, 2012 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The topic for this edition is: Women's History Month! This has become an annual tradition here at the COG, to honor and remember women from our family trees. This month you will meet some more amazing women who are fondly remembered and greatly admired. This is such a great way to pay tribute to the women who came before us. Come along now and meet the women we've chosen to share with you. I think you'll like them! Pour yourself a... let's see, Spring is here so let's launch the season with an Arnold Palmer. Come on then. Bring your drink. The carnival is back in town!

Dorene presents Augusta Florentine Jaensch Piehl, 1858-1906 posted at Graveyard Rabbit of Sandusky Bay, saying, "Dorene from Ohio tells us about her great great grandmother, Augusta Piehl, who came to the U.S. from Germany in 1880."

Carol presents Lorena Estelle Eley Norsworthy Dews Harlow Lenahan Collins::116th COG posted at Reflections From the Fence, saying, "Come on over to Reflections and meet my great grandmother, married 5, yes FIVE times. She outlived 3, divorced one and no one knows what happened to hubby # 5. And, even after researching her since 1991, I just this week discovered a little surprise while writing this COG entry. Who says your research is done?? HAHA. Lorena is waiting, come meet her."

Pauleen Cass presents Carnival of Genealogy – 116th edition – Catherine McCorkindale posted at Family history across the seas.

Frances Owen presents What did Mary do on Monday? Women’s work (Picture/Story for Women's History Month.) posted at A Rebel Hand, saying, "My great-grandmother smiles at the camera as she hangs out the washing. But washday was 'the most hated task' most women had to carry out in the 19th century. I can machine wash a load of dirty clothes in less than an hour. What was it women had to do that took up the whole day? And what equipment did they use?"

Susan Clark presents Lives Entwined - A Friend of the Family posted at Nolichucky Roots, saying, "While reflecting about women's lives this month I realized how key friendships had been in my own life and those of many of my female relatives. While I hold my family most dear, I could not have managed the challenging times of my life without the support and love of friends. I suspect my grandmother felt that way about her friend."

Linda McCauley presents Documenting the Details: Aunt Harriet posted at Documenting the Details, saying, "Harriet married later in life and had no children. I wanted to tell her story because she has no descendants to do it."

Lisa Wallen Logsdon presents COG 116 - Women's History Month: Levina Newby posted at Old Stones Undeciphered, saying, "If I have an ancestor who wants very much to be remembered by her descendants, Levina is certainly that ancestor! This is the second time I've had to ask myself, concerning my 3rd great grandmother Levina, "Just what are the chances of THAT?"."

Jasia presents Ceily, My Role Model posted at :: C R E A T I V E G E N E ::, saying, "Come meet this woman who played a special role in my life. I looked up to her and admired her and wanted to be just like her when I grew up. She brought sunshine and every kind of happiness to my childhood."

Janet Iles presents Janet the researcher: Carnival of Genealogy: Women's History Month 2012 posted at Janet the researcher, saying, "While sharing what she knows about her great-grandmother Sarah Dudley, nee Mucklow, Janet realizes that there are some records that she needs to obtain. Will she ever be able to prove that Sarah had 22 children?"

Nancy presents A Biography from the Heart: Emma Bickerstaff Meinzen posted at My Ancestors and Me, saying, "Sometimes we write bare bones biographies with names, dates, and locations. Sometimes - the best times - we write biographies from the heart."

Cynthia Shenette presents The Opal Ring posted at Heritage Zen:, saying, "My Aunt Helen was a successful business woman, but I wonder what her life would have been like if she had chosen a different path and been allowed to follow her heart..."

Joan Hill presents Carnival of Genealogy, #116: Picture and Memories of Elizabeth foss McPherson posted at Roots'n'Leaves, saying, "The ever changing mist of childhood memories merge with family stories to bring life and form to my grandmother Elizabeth Alfreda McPherson, nee Foss."

Julie Goucher presents Anglers Rest: Carnival Of Genealogy 116 - Picture/Story for Women's History Month. posted at Anglers Rest, saying, "The story of Emma Jane West."

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I sure hope you enjoyed meeting these wonderful women as much as I did! This is one of my favorite editions of the COG each year because the participants always do such a fantastic job of making the women they honor come to life. They are born again on the pages of our blogs and somewhere in the heavens they are no doubt blushing over the fuss being made of them. Here's to you, ladies, we honor you and we won't let you be forgotten!

Once again I find myself having to apologize for any inconvenience you may have experienced in submitting your articles via the blogcarnival.com web site. It appears they are still having technical difficulties over there. If you are ever in doubt about whether your submission has been received, please don't hesitate to send me an email to give me a head's up (imjasia at yahoo dot com). So far, the articles all seem to be coming through even though there are no emails going out to confirm that. I appreciate your patience through this difficult (and hopefully SOON to be over) time.

Call for Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: 1940! Have you found a family member in the newly released 1940 U.S. Census? If so, what have you learned about them? No family member in the 1940 Census? No problem. Write what you know of your family back in 1940 anyway. Let's take the COG back to 1940 and create a history lesson that brings our families to life! The deadline for submissions will be May 1st.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. Please use a descriptive phrase in the title of any articles you plan to submit and/or write a brief description/introduction to your articles in the "comment" box of the blog carnival submission form. This will give readers an idea of what you've written about and hopefully interest them in clicking on your link. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Ceily, My Role Model

My Auntie Ceily was my favorite aunt. I've mentioned her before in posts on this blog and others but I decided it was time to honor her with an article all her own for Women's History Month. November 2012 will mark 100 years since her birth. I'd say that's a good reason to make this her year to be recognized and remembered.

Cecilia was born on November 18, 1912 to Jozef and Karolina Laska in Detroit, Michigan. She was baptized a few days later, on November 23, at St Francis D'Assisi Catholic Church, in Detroit's west side Polish neighborhood. Her Godparents were Jan Lipa (1st cousin once removed), and Sophia Lipa Soldatek (her mother's sister). She was the 4th of Jozef and Karolina's 11 children, having 2 older brothers and 1 older sister. My father would be born 21 months after her.

Cecilia, affectionately known as Ceily, attended St Francis grade school, presumably through the 8th grade. Like all of her siblings except one (Mary Jane, the baby), she did not graduate from high school. I don't know if she even went beyond the 8th grade in terms of formal schooling. With so many siblings in the house, she was no doubt expected to help out with domestic chores. At the time of the 1930 U.S. Census, she was 17 years old and still living at home. There was no occupation listed for her at that time.

Ceily met the love of her life right in her own neighborhood and she married him in 1935. John Sagovac was born August 11, 1911 in Chippawa, Welland, Ontario, Canada to his parents Eli and Cadie (nee Segecie) Sagovac. He was the second born of their 12 children. The parents immigrated from Nova Gradiska, Yugoslavia, which means they weren't Polish. And they weren't Catholic either. This must have made for a difficult situation for Ceily. She and John applied for a marriage license on September 20, 1935 and were married in a civil ceremony a short time later. I was told by other family members that she and John eloped but I haven't been able to verify that. John was employed as a pattern maker apprentice according to the 1930 U.S. Census. I believe he was in the pattern making business all of his life.

In 1939, Ceily and John had a son (living) and in 1942 they had a daughter, Carolyn (1942-2002). In between the births of their two children, Ceily's mother, Karolina died (September 1940) unexpectedly from a heart attack. A few years later, in January 1949, her father died of heart attack as well. So the 1940s were a decade of births and deaths for Ceily as well as time spent at home raising her family. In March of 1955, Ceily and John had their marriage blessed at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Dearborn, Michigan. Shortly after that, I was born and Ceily became my Godmother.

The 1960s were a decade of marriages and grandchildren for Ceily. Her son married in 1962 and I believe her daughter married in 1963. From 1963 through 1966 she became the proud grandmother of 4 grandchildren. I believe it was about that same time that she sold some of their property for a high school to be built and she became a city council member. Some of the streets in her residential neighborhood were named for her grandchildren. How cool is that!

In addition to her civic and family activities, Ceily was also a member of the Polish Falcons. She liked to dance and was a good dancer.

Ceily's husband John died in 1977. A few years later, in 1982, she was blessed with her 5th grandchild, a second grandson. Sadly, her first grandson died in 1987.   A couple years after that, in April 1989, Ceily herself died of lung cancer.

I have nothing but fond memories of Auntie Ceily. She was my Godmother and to me she was almost like a fairy Godmother, granting my special wishes. She would always phone my mother before Christmas or my birthday to see what special gift I might like. She gave me some of the best gifts; fancy dresses from Macy's or Nordstrom's in Chicago, the biggest and best Easter basket filled to over flowing with lots of candy... especially chocolate, and one year for Christmas she even gave me a Barbie Dream House! I absolutely adored her.

I remember Ceily as an elegant woman. She had more refined taste than anyone else in the family. My mom said that Ceily once told her that if she saw 2 similar items for sale she would always buy the more expensive one because there was something better about that one. She was a lady who valued quality. She dressed very well and even wore a signature fragrance, Chanel No.5. To this day whenever I smell that scent I think of her. But for all her refinement, she was very down to earth and kind to all. I have nothing but happy memories of her.

Dear Auntie Ceily, I honor you this Women's History Month for being thoughtful, generous, inspiring, and a real class act. You had a positive influence on those around you, especially me, and left us with wonderful memories. You were the woman I most admired when I was growing up. What a wonderful role model you were. God bless you.

A Tribute To My Maternal Ancestors, Part 2

Once you come to the end of your document-dependent genealogy (as far as written records can take you), you have to reach into your genealogist's tool box to come up with a different set of tools to look at your deep ancestry. As most of my readers know, I took an mtDNA test a while back and ever since then I've been on a mission to discover what is known about my before-there-were-records ancestry. The test results I received didn't spell out anything for me in terms of my personal ancestry. But I've been reading extensively and spending lots of time doing online searches for information and I think I've come up with an interesting theory about The Ladies Pałka who lived before there were documents to validate them.

In Part 1 of this tribute to my maternal ancestors I introduced you to 6 of The Ladies Pałka, ending with Małgorzata who was born in the mid 1700s in Wojnicz, Poland. In fact, you may have noticed that with the exception of my mother who was born here in the U.S., all of the other 5 Ladies were born in Wojnicz, Poland. As it turns out, Wojnicz has been around for a very long time. While it's possible that Małgorzata was the first in her family to live in Wojnicz, it's also very likely that she was not. Take a look at a segment of the time line of Wojnicz's history from Wikipedia (translated the best I could).

History of Wojnicz

4000– 1700 b.c. - Temporary colonization
1700– 700 b.c. - Abiding, but not continuous colonization
700– 400 b.c. - Not abiding lusatian colonization
X Century - Settlement by the knights of the body-guard of first Polish rulers. Raised embankments will became the city.
1109 - Church built called Św. Wawrzyńca
1239 - Visited by Kinga, The daughter of the King of Hungary, Bels IV, Future wife of Bolesława Shy. Wojnicz probably then received Municipal rights.
1278 - First reference about Wojnicz as municipality. The building up of municipal embankments.
1349 - City's Magdeburg rights taken By Kazimierz the Great
1379 - First fire noted in sources annihilates city
1381 - Confirmation Municipal rights By Hungarian Ludwig. Wojnicz becomes habitat and Administrative district. Parochial school arises.
1427 - Confirmation of the charters of townsmen by Wladyslaw Jagiełłę
1465 - The parish was assigned a church leader. He raised schools to the collegiate level, rebuilt the parochial church Św. Wawrzyńca in the Gothic style.
1485 - City annihilated by second fire
1503 - Approval by regional council of Laudum Wojnicz
1527 - The permission delivered by Zygmunt the Long-standing on the formation of first bridge over the Dunajec river by townsmen
1530 - Establishment of the Great Guild after consent from Zygmunt Long-standing
1575 - First confirmation of a brick town-hall in market square, with tower, bell and clock
3 October 1655 - Battle between Polish and Swedish armies
19 March 1657 - Rakoczi's armies appear in the city
1702 - Swedish mercenary cavalrymen blockade city because the townsmen refuse to make their contributory payment to the Swedes.
1732 - The appropriation of the incomes of city by the foreman of Jakub Karwowskiego
1739 - Large brewery is built in the area
1751 - Creating of extensive archdeaconship of Wojnicz

Here in the mid 1700s is where I left off with Małgorzata. So you can see that it is very possible that my maternal line continued back in this same town for a very long time. What makes me think they may have? That's where the mtDNA testing comes in.

My mtDNA test results indicated that I am in haplogroup H, likely in subclade H11. So what is known about haplogroup H?

The very first of The Ladies Pałka, "Helena", was born about 20,000 years ago on the strip of land that joins France and Spain, near what is now Perpignan. Helena's family arrived in Europe from the Middle East and not long after she was born, the glaciers that covered much of Europe began to gradually recede. Some of her clan moved to the lands of the Basque, where they are found to this day. Other of her children took advantage of the fertile soil and abundant wildlife in the wake of the receding glaciers and journeyed northwards. We know that they reached England around 12,000 years ago because DNA recovered from a skeleton found in Somerset shows that he too belonged to haplogroup H. (This would have been one of my really, really great uncles ;-)

If the journey to England took less than or equal to 8,000 years, say 6,000 years, (my really great uncle could have been there for a couple thousand years without leaving any evidence) and adding another 8,000 years for the additional distance to Wojnicz, Poland, you end up with one of The Ladies Pałka arriving in Wojnicz roughly 6,000 ago. Now take a look at the beginning of the history of Wojnicz time line again. Bingo! The Ladies Pałka could have arrived in Wojnicz 4,000 b.c. and lived there until the first written records of Małgorzata Pałka!


The map above shows a possible travel route starting with Perpignan, France and then going on to the areas where I have found people with exact matches for my mtDNA results. (See my findings on this post.) I've also added in Denmark because there is a high concentration of hg H there, see this article and these maps (Geographical locations of populations surveyed for haplogroup H (top) and it's spacial frequency distribution (bottom).) from this article.

Of course it's also possible that The Ladies Pałka were not founding members of the Wojnicz area. Perhaps they arrived at a later point in the city's history. But it's exciting to think that we may be just one newly discovered skeleton away from firming up this theory. Once we get to the point where there are no more documents we have to depend on digging up actual bones for evidence. Elizabeth Shown Mills may one day have to rewrite her book on evidence to accommodate physical artifacts and DNA results.

Of course this is all a lot of theory based on very little fact. But isn't that the same way we all approach our genealogy research? Don't we all start out knowing grandma's maiden name and trying to prove we're related to royalty? ;-) The truth is, this could very well be my family history, just the way it's written. I know that hard core skeptics won't cut me much slack on this one so I'll have to continue my search for evidence to prove my theory. But hey, that's the key to our genealogy addiction isn't it? ... Ever in search of more evidence!

So here's to The Ladies Pałka... going back 20,000 years. You've given me a family tree to be proud of. This month we celebrate Women's History Month and I celebrate you, the women who make up the history of my family...


This scrapbook page shows the only 3-generation photo I have of my maternal ancestors. The photo was taken in 1957 and shows me between my mother (right) and her sister (left) who are seated on the couch at my maternal grandmother's house in Detroit. My grandmother appears in the mirror above the couch, she was sitting across the room.

References:

"The Molecular Dissection of mtDNA Haplogroup H Confirms That the Franco-Cantabrian Glacial Refuge Was a Major Source for the European Gene Pool" by Alessandro Achilli, Chiara Rengo, Chiara Magri,Vincenza Battaglia, Anna Olivieri, Rosaria Scozzari, Fulvio Cruciani, Massimo Zeviani, Egill Briem, Valerio Carelli, Pedro Moral, Jean-Michel Dugoujon, Urmas Roostalu, Eva-Liis Loogväli, Toomas Kivisild, Hans-Jürgen Bandelt, Martin Richards, Richard Villems, A.Silvana Santachiara-Benerecetti, Ornella Semino, Antonio Torroni. Published in The American Journal of Human Genetics - 1 November 2004 (Vol. 75, Issue 5, pp. 910-918). Online at [http://www.ajhg.org/AJHG/fulltext/S0002-9297%2807%2963798-7]

Wikipedia Polska on Wojnicz [http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wojnicz] The English version Wikipedia web page for Wojnicz had very little information but the Polish version had a great deal of info including an extensive time line of events and the city coat of arms (all Polish city, and district coat of arms are in the public domain).

The official City of Wojnicz web site [http://wojnicz.pl/] which has a very nice history of the city and of the gmina of Wojnicz.

Google Maps [http://maps.google.com/]

The very beautiful parish of Wojnicz and Św. Wawrzyńca web site. [http://www.parafiawojnicz.eu/]

I used Global Translations [http://gts-translation.com] to translate all of the Polish language web sites I accessed. This is without a doubt the best online Polish-English translator I've ever used. Unfortunately the site is sometimes unavailable for days at a time (I think they have bandwidth issues) and you shouldn't count on it if you have a deadline to meet ;-)

Mitosearch.org [http://www.mitosearch.org/] which has a public database of mtDNA results.

Clan Helena Home Page [http://www.olypen.com/amelia/helena/]. This site has some good information, unfortunately it hasn't been updated since 2004.

Sykes, Bryan. The Seven Daughters of Eve. New York: W.W. Norton & Co., 2001. My review of this book can be found at [http://haplogrouph.blogspot.com/2008/03/book-review-seven-daughters-of-eve.html]

My results report from DNA Heritage [http://dnaheritage.com]

The scrapbook kit used to create my Maternal Line scrapbook page is, Dirty Days Enchanted by Scrappin Nut Designs.

Part 1 of A Tribute to My Maternal Ancestors

A Tribute To My Maternal Ancestors, Part 1

It's March and that means it's National Women's History Month. I am taking this opportunity to honor my maternal ancestors by remembering their lives. I've personally only known my maternal ancestors 2 generations back, my mother and grandmother. But I have names and information about my maternal ancestors an additional 4 generations back. I can also share something about my female ancestors who lived before there were written records of them. And thanks to mtDNA, I can tell you something about my maternal ancestors who lived thousands of years ago too. I invite you along on my journey of remembrances as I visit the lives and times of The Ladies Pałka.

Let's start with an introduction. The Ladies Pałka are the women I share my mtDNA with. This is my maternal line of ancestors including my mother, her mother, her mother's mother, and so forth going back about 20,000 years or so. The surname, Pałka (pronounced "pow-ka"), is Polish and it means stick, cudgel or club. (Don't mess with these ladies ;-) I affectionately refer to these women I share my genes with as The Ladies Pałka in honor of Małgorzata Pałka. She is the last in my line of maternal ancestors who there are written records for. Pałka is my matriname. Now, let's meet the ladies...

Lucyna (1918-2007)
Lucyna was the first generation of The Ladies Pałka born in the United States. She was born at the tail end of the Great War (WWI) and grew up in Detroit, Michigan. She had her share of good times and bad. While a young child in grade school her immigrant parents ran a successful neighborhood bakery. It was during the Roaring Twenties which was a prosperous time for Detroit and its residents. Her family was blessed with good fortune. But the Great Depression came along at the end of 1929 and put an end to economic prosperity. Lucyna graduated from the 8th grade when the economic depression was at its worst (1932) and graduated from high school in 1936 when the economy was just recovering.

After high school Lucyna worked first as a clerk/teller at the Federal Reserve Bank in Detroit, and then as a typist for the R. L. Polk Company (publishers of the well known city directories). She married in the midst of WWII (1944) and had three children, passing on her mtDNA to 2 sons and a daughter. She worked at home for R. L. Polk for many years (her version of a home office consisted of a typewriter on a stand in the kitchen) until after her husband died in 1974. Then she worked full time for a local district court as a court clerk until her retirement in 1983. She sent a son off to the Vietnam War in 1968 and welcomed him safely home in 1970. She marveled at man's first walk on the moon in 1969, computers in the home in the 1980s, and cried over the events on 9/11. She enjoyed dancing, gardening, sewing, family history, and spending time with her grandchildren.

Zofia (1894-1970)
Zofia was born in Wojnicz (pronounced "voy-neech"), Poland during a time of relative peace but certainly not prosperity. Just a year after her birth, the village of Wojnicz (population at the time was about 1700) had a major fire that destroyed much of the village. Fortunately her family did not live in the village but on a nearby farm so their home was not effected. The farm was a small one, not large enough to support the family. When recruiters from a steamship company came to town in 1913 (Zofia was age 19) her parents decided to send her to America. Her mission was to earn money and send it back to them for support.

Zofia made the voyage to America in November of 1913. She went directly to Detroit, Michigan and lived the rest of her life there. She never saw her parents, brothers, or youngest sister again but she did sponsor her two other sisters and they joined her in Detroit in 1920. When she first arrived in Detroit, Zofia worked as a seamstress. Then she married in 1916 and together with her husband they started a bakery in a west side Detroit Polish neighborhood. Zofia gave birth to 2 daughters and 1 son while maintaining her career as a businesswoman. She worked alongside her husband at the bakery and when the bakery incorporated she served as the bakery's treasurer. Zofia learned to drive a car when her husband bought a Model T in 1925. She became a citizen in 1940, 20 years after women in the U.S. were given the right to vote. She worried over her family back in Poland during WWI and sent her son off to fight among the allied forces in WWII. She lived to see the invention of refrigerators, automobiles, and television. She loved dancing, gardening, and sewing.

Anna (1862-1941)
Unlike her mother before her, Anna was born a free person in Wojnicz, Poland. But the family was very poor. Her father was a farmer who owned a house with a small piece of land and garden and probably a small stock of farm animals. Her mother died when she was just 2.5 years old and she was raised by her father and his second wife. She probably attended the new school in the village which was built in 1869-70.

Anna married at the age of 26 and had 6 children, 4 daughters and 2 sons. Three of her daughters were sent to America and her other three children remained in Poland. She no doubt lived in fear during WWI when the city of Wojnicz received heavy artillery fire from the front lines of fighting at the nearby Dunajec River. There was partial destruction to historic św. Wawrzyńca (St. Lawrence) catholic church (built in the mid 1400s) where Anna was baptized, married, and attended Mass. Also heavily damaged were the brewery on Zamoscie street and a steam mill. She celebrated the war's end with her fellow citizens when it was announced in Wojnicz on May 5, 1918.

Halina (1823-1865)
Halina was born into serfdom in Wojnicz, Poland which means her marriage (in 1844) was almost certainly an arranged one. Peasants' lives were not their own and were primarily dictated by their manor lords. A typical working arrangement for peasants was as such: Those who owned a cottage got 18 acres each and paid their dues by laboring six days a week for the lord of the manor with a team of oxen and a wagon or plow. Tenants typically had six-acre lots each and paid their dues three days a week laboring with hand tools such as a sickle, hoe, or spade. Laborers only had huts and were not bound to any dues at all. They were hired on a daily basis as needed by others who required help to meet their dues. Everyone had to first serve his labor to the manor house each day and then work his own land at night. Sundays were reserved for the Lord as decreed by the Catholic church. Overseers were appointed by the manor lords to insure that everyone did their share. Slackers and the sickly were beaten and if they did not perform up to expectations even after beatings they were ejected from their dwelling and another family was installed in it. It was not a pleasant life.

In 1846, a couple years after Halina was married, peasant revolts against manor lords took place on a national level throughout Poland. Locally, at the Palace Dąbski, villagers from Wojnicz assisted insurgents in breaking up a meeting of conspirators which resulted in the arrest of the palace owner and the parish priest. As a result of the many peasant uprisings, serfdom was abolished in Poland in 1848. But just as in the case with emancipation in the U.S., it was quite a few years after freedom was granted before the peasants were able to adjust to having free will and working to get ahead rather than just subsist. Halina and her husband had 5 daughters before she died at age 42.

Agnieszka (1800-1870)
Agnieszka lived her whole life as a peasant-serf in Wojnicz. Her life was one of serving others, first her parents and the Lord, then her husband and the manor lord. She lived at a time when craft guilds came to Wojnicz, a school opened in the village, and city life was expanding as commerce in the area grew. It appears that she may have had her first child (daughter Halina) out of wedlock but then married the child's father some years later. Arranged marriages were the norm back then and she would have needed the approval of her parents as well as the manor lord for the marriage to take place. She and her husband had three more daughters together.

The growth of the town of Wojnicz was curtailed in 1852 when railway lines were being drawn and built in Poland. The people of Wojnicz feared having the great locomotives coming through their town and turned down the opportunity to have rail service. It was a mistake that the people of Wojnicz came to regret. There is no rail service to Wojnicz to this day. If Agnieszka rode a train in her lifetime she would have had to travel to Tarnów (12 km away) to do so.

Małgorzata (1754-1840)
Małgorzata (Pałka) was born before written records were kept on peasants in the area of Wojnicz. She was married before that time as well. Records began in 1784 and the birth/baptismal records of her 5 children, 3 daughters 2 sons, indicate that they were all legitimate births. So it's safe to assume that Małgorzata was in fact married. Her death record indicates her age at death was 86. Her birth year was derived from that information. I consider it an approximation with no means of verification.

In 1752, around the time Małgorzata was born, the parish church in Wojnicz (built in the mid 15th century) was destroyed by fire along with the town hall. By 1754 a new church was erected in the village. The baptismal font from the original 15th century church was saved and installed in the new church which was built in the Gothic style. Małgorzata may have been baptized at that font in either the 15th century church or the replacement Gothic-styled church depending on whether she was born before the fire or afterwards. Or, she may also have been baptized at the other church in Wojnicz, św Leonard, which was built in the 16th century.

Continued in Part 2

References:

Wikipedia Polska on Wojnicz [http://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wojnicz] The English version Wikipedia web page for Wojnicz had very little information but the Polish version had a great deal of info including an extensive time line of events and the city coat of arms (all Polish city, and district coat of arms are in the public domain).

The official City of Wojnicz web site [http://wojnicz.pl/] which has a very nice history of the city and of the gmina of Wojnicz.

The very beautiful parish of Wojnicz and Św. Wawrzyńca web site. [http://www.parafiawojnicz.eu/]

I used Global Translations [http://gts-translation.com] to translate all of the Polish language web sites I accessed. This is without a doubt the best online Polish-English translator I've ever used. Unfortunately the site is sometimes unavailable for days at a time (I think they have bandwidth issues) and you shouldn't count on it if you have a deadline to meet ;-)

The National Women's History Project web site (for their logo) [http://www.nwhp.org/]

The City of Detroit seal was from a photo of mine taken at the Detroit Historical Museum [http://www.detroithistorical.org/]

The meaning of the surname "Pałka" is from Fred Hoffman's, Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings. Published by the Polish Genealogical Society of America in Chicago, Ill. C. 1998.

Information on serfdom in Poland was from, From Serfdom to Self-Government, Memoirs of a Polish Village Mayor 1842-1927 by Jan Slomka. Translated from Polish by William John Rose, PhD. Published by Minerva Publishing Co. of London, England. C. 1941.

Information on Polish village society after emancipation was from, The Nation in the Village, The Genesis of Peasant National Identity in Austrian Poland 1848-1914 by Keely Stauter-Halsted. Published by Cornell University Press in Ithica, NY. C. 2001.

I used a variety of sources for researching my ancestors from Wojnicz. My primary source was the microfilmed records available for the parish of Wojnicz from the LDS Church. I also had documents obtained from the parish in Wojnicz and the government records office there. There is also a good bit of family information handed down included here and more recent and much appreciated information from Jacek Redźko of RedBoom1.com .

In Honor of International Women's Day

In honor of International Women's Day, I'd like to honor the women in my family by announcing my mtDNA haplogroup. This is my genetic link with the women in my family that goes back thousands of years, you might say the tie that binds us. We are truly an international group of women so it is especially fitting to honor the whole lot of us on this special day.

Back in early February I won a DNA test kit from DNA Heritage in a contest on The Genetic Genealogist blog. I chose an mtDNA test (maternal line) and have written a couple of posts about the testing process and my thoughts about it. My results came in earlier than I expected and ever since then I've been trying to find information about my haplogroup. Now that National Women's History month is here it's time for the big reveal. It is after all, the deep history of the women in my family.

Drum roll please... ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: Thank you! The results of my mtDNA test are: I'm in haplogroup H.

Now don't go falling all over yourselves with excitement here... try to contain your enthusiasm. I know what you're thinking. Yes, H is a lovely letter. H is for happy, healthy, heart, heat, honey, history, hope, healing, hippies, home, humor, hummingbirds, harmonica, heaven, Helena, and human. They are all lovely words aren't they? And happy I am to be in haplogroup H!

But H is not just for happy words. It has it's share of not-so-happy words too... like huh? which is what I thought when I got my results, and hassle which is what I've gone through trying to find information about my haplogroup, hectic is the pace I've kept while trying to get the research done on my maternal line in time to write it up for the next edition of the COG, hissy-fit is what I want to throw every time I find another link leading to the Family Tree DNA web site because they won't let me play with them, hard is what it's like to read the scientific journal articles about my haplogroup, and headache is what I get when I'm through reading them.

So what have I learned about my haplogroup? Not a lot really, especially given that haplogroup H is the largest of the 7 haplogroups in Europe. It's estimated that around 40-60% of native Europeans belong to haplogroup H. You'd think with a group that size there would be a good amount of information available about it but I'm not finding that to be the case. Or maybe I should say I'm having a hard time locating understandable-to-a-layman information about the group.

I am working on compiling information on haplogroup H and have even started a blog on the topic. I know, I know, my New Year's resolution was NO NEW PROJECTS (in conjunction with "get something published")... and I didn't even make it through February before I got another one started. But I couldn't foresee this one coming!!! How was I supposed to know I was going to win this contest??? What's a girl supposed to do?

But seriously, my new blog, HaplogroupH.blogspot.com, is intended to be nothing more than a compilation of information I come across that may be of interest to other non-scientific haplogroup H information hunters. I'm thinking that my education on the topic of haplogroup H will be ongoing and sporadic (as time allows) and that's how I predict my posting to that blog will go as well. The Creative Gene blog is already diverse enough without adding all my haplogroup H findings to it so that's why I felt the need to start a new blog.

Now, before I finish this final post in my series on winning the DNA testing kit I'd like to say a great big THANK YOU to Blaine Bettinger, author of The Genetic Genealogist blog and Alastair Greenshields at DNA Heritage. These two gentlemen have launched my genetic genealogy journey and I am very grateful to be on my way. Just for the record, I am very glad I chose the mtDNA test in spite of the fact that I'm a little challenged right now in interpreting my results. I was very pleased with the ease of use of the DNA Heritage test kit and with the quick results. This has been a very happy experience for me!

P.S. Blaine is writing an ebook on the topic of interpreting the results of your DNA test and he has graciously shared his work in progress with me. This will no doubt be a hugely popular book because it is so badly needed and so very well written. There are more and better resources in his book than I found in all my many hours of searching online.

Oh, and one more thing. Marie Antoinette was a haplogroup H member. So I have finally found my family connection to royalty ;-)

Who else out there is in the H group? If you'd like to learn more about haplogroup H, please join me on the Haplogroup H blog!

Here are my previous posts on this topic:
Here's Where I'm at With Analyzing My mtDNA Results
The Results Are In!
Here Today Gone Tomorrow
Kit On Order
My Own mtDNA vs Y-DNA Test Analysis
Excited!

Book Review: The Great American Pin-Up

I stopped by the bookstore this evening on the way back from a fish fry dinner at Sweetest Heart of Mary Church in Detroit. My intention was to buy a book on DNA. No luck with that but I did pick up a book and a magazine while I was there.

I found the most wonderful book on the "Bargain Books" shelf. The Great American Pin-Up by Charles G. Martignette and Louis K. Meilsel. I was fascinated and just had to buy it. For $9.99 how could I pass it up?

This book tells the tale of a genre as utterly American as the paintings of Edward Hopper, describing its origins and development in detail and showcasing the most important artists. With over 900 illustrations, The Great American Pin-Up is one of the first comprehensive studies of the genre to appear anywhere.

The illustrations are just gorgeous. And all the text in the book is written in English, German, and French. The book begins with Author's Notes, A Historical Commentary, an article on the fine art of illustration, and an article about the popularity of pin-up illustrations and where they were found in American culture. The remainder of the book is divided by artist with several examples of each artist's pin-up illustrations (1920-1980).

The illustrations in this book are definitely not G rated. As a matter of fact, I had a hard time finding one to include here that wouldn't offend anyone. I finally settled for the cover illustration. I'll probably use some of the illustrations in my personal scrapbooking. They would make such great period elements to include with some of my old photos. The colors are vibrant and lively, and oh yes, the ladies are lovely!

I also bought the Jan/Feb 2008 issue of ancestry magazine. This is the special research issue with tips on researching various ethnic groups. My friend Ceil Jensen has an article in it on Polish genealogy and Lisa Alzo (COG contributor) has one on Slovak genealogy.

Maybe tomorrow I'll try again for that book on DNA...

Katyn is Nominated for Academy Award

I'm excited to tell you that the movie, Katyn, which I've written about before on this blog, has been nominated for an Academy Award under the Foreign Language Films category. This film has not been released in the U.S. as far as I know but it is creating quite a buzz none the less. Anne Applebaum, of The New York Review of Books, has written a wonderfully thorough review of the movie which you can read here. The same web site also has a just-for-fun poll where you can vote for your favorite Oscar nominees. If you'd like to vote for Katyn (or any of the other nominated films) you can do so here. I sure hope this film wins and brings attention to this very sad chapter in Polish history.

There is a very moving sculpture created in honor of those who died at Katyn on the campus of Orchard Lake, MI. (Pictured above)


Previous posts on this topic:

Creative Gene: WWII, the Story of the Katyn Massacre Becomes a Movie
Creative Gene: I See Their Faces and Wonder

Kit On Order

I ordered my mtDNA test kit from DNA Heritage today. I received a confirmation email with an access code.

Using Oracle, you can see when your sample has been sent out, received back in the lab and sent for testing, as well as update your contact details. When your results are ready they are posted on your secure Oracle pages and we shall notify you via email.

In terms of the time frame, mtDNA tests take approximately 5 weeks to complete from the time they receive my DNA sample. So I think I'm looking at receiving my results in early March. That's a perfect time for me to write up my results as March is National Women's History Month. The mtDNA test will analyze my maternal line of ancestors and what better way to honor those women than with a blog post about their history? :-) It must be fate!

And speaking of NWHM, here's this year's poster from the http://www.nwhp.org/ web site, available today.

Was Your Granny a Fanny Dunker?

We're coming up on the end of March, which means the end of National Women's History Month. I mentioned a while back that I would write some articles this month about women's history from the ordinary woman's point of view. In keeping with that theme, I'd like to address the history of women's swimwear, or lack there of ;-) Just what did your female ancestors wear to the beach or the watering hole? Were they skinny dippers, fanny dunkers, bikini mavens? Let's take a look at women's swimwear through the ages and you can decide for yourself. Of course if you have pictures of your grandma at the beach you may already know if she covered all or bared all. But if not, well, we'll just let you imagine...

As it turns out, it wasn't until the mid 1800s that swimming for recreation developed. Before that, if a lady got in the water it was generally for bathing or therapeutic purposes. The early "fashion" swimsuits that appeared on beaches in the mid 1800s consisted of bloomers with black stockings. But by the 1880s it was different story. From The Evolution of Swimwear site:

By the 1880's the "Princess" cut was introduced, consisting of a blouse and trousers in one piece. The skirts were traded in for cotton-like pants. There was also a separate skirt that fell below the knee and button at the waist to conceal the figure. A ruffled cap or a straw hat completed the ensemble.

Of course that's what you might see on the beaches here in America. In Britain the Victorian Period was another story altogether. The Fashion-Era web site has some nice pictures and descriptions of seaside wear for ladies from the Victorian and Edwardian period.

Even when bloomers were accepted by many late Victorians as cycling wear in the 1890s they still remained only on the fringes of fashions of the day.

At that point in time women's swimwear was definitely more about modesty than about the practicality of moving about in the water.

One web site I came across, CoolOldStuff.com, has a series of photos from the American Memory Collection that show the changes in women's swim wear fashion over time. These pictures are just priceless. My absolute favorite was this one from Balboa Beach, CA in 1920. It's a panorama view so you'll have to scroll to see it all (click for larger view), but it's worth it. This is one of those cases where a picture is worth a thousand words. Could your granny be in this picture?

Moving on then... the Fashion-Era site tells the tale of women's swimwear from the 1920s-1960s. Ladies were getting more daring after the Roaring Twenties and their swimwear got more risque with each decade. By the time the 1940s came around (think WWII pin-up girls ;-) women were covering less and showing more skin. Here's a great picture of my mom from August 1940. She was at Detroit Beach with friends when she was captured on film. My mom couldn't swim and was terribly afraid of water all her life. But that didn't stop her from hanging out at the beach sporting the latest swim wear fashion!

When it comes to a good collection of information you can't go wrong stopping by Wikipedia. They have a page on swimsuits that gives a brief history (no pun intended) of both men's and women's swimwear.

The first bikinis were introduced just after World War II. Early examples were not very different from the women's two pieces common since the 1920s, except that they had a gap below the breast line allowing for a section of bare midriff. They were named after Bikini Atoll, the site of several nuclear weapons tests, for their supposed explosive effect on the viewer.

Through the 1950s, it was thought proper for the lower part of the bikini to come up high enough to cover the navel. From the 1960s on, the bikini shrank in all directions...

Wikipedia also has a page devoted to the bikini...

According to the official version, the modern bikini was invented by French engineer Louis Réard and fashion designer Jacques Heim in Paris in 1946 and introduced on July 5 at a fashion show at Piscine Molitor in Paris. It was a string bikini with a g-string back. Pictured here is Micheline Bernardini modelling the first bikini swimwear that went by that name. Now are you picturing your grandma in this swim suit?

So what about the "fanny dunker" you ask? Well, I've saved the best for last. I have to leave you with a great video that will explain all about the fanny dunker. It starts out a little slow but stay with it. It's really a good story of the history of women's swimwear. Check it out... The History of Women's Swimwear: an interview with Esther Williams.

It's fun to look at women's fashions over time and to try and imagine our moms, aunts, grandmas and great grandmas in the swimwear of their day. Of course there's always the possibility that our female ancestors went skinny dipping too, especially the ones who lived out in the country where they could cool off in the local watering hole with some privacy... or not ;-)

Carnival of Genealogy, 20th Edition

Welcome to the March 18, 2007 edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. The theme for this edition is: A tribute to women. Since March is National Women's History Month it seemed only fitting to dedicate this edition to the women in our lives, past and present. The contributors to this edition have done an outstanding job of honoring women with their very touching tributes. I know you'll enjoy reading about these women who may or may not have been famous in their day, but are infamous on the internet now.

Starting us off, Bill West presents West in New England: Agnes McFarland posted at West in New England Here's the story of a resilient woman who was able to persevere, written by her grandson who is able to recognize the sacrifices and efforts she made and give her the credit due her. I believe she would be honored, Bill.

Next, Lori Thornton presents Laura Lucy Taylor posted at Smoky Mountain Family Historian. Here we have the history of one woman's life as daughter, wife and mother. It's respectfully described by her great granddaughter. A fine tribute to this woman, Lori!

And next, Becky Wiseman shares with us Grandma's Story posted at kinexxions. Becky has a way of really capturing the essence of people in her writing. In this instance she also captures the essence of her grandmother in a great set of pictures. Becky, it's clear that Hazelette wanted to be remembered, in her own way. I think she would be pleased with your tribute. Thanks for sharing.

Apple presents Ruby Blanche Camfield posted at Apple's Tree, saying, "I chose to write about my Aunt Ruby because she had no children of her own but was an important part of the lives of three generations of her nieces and nephews." What a nice tribute to Ruby, Apple. She was obviously a "no-fuss, no-bother" kind of person. I'm sure she would have appreciated that you chose to honor her "for free" on the internet. Good choice!

Jasia writes of Ludwika Knot Lipa, One Woman posted at Creative Gene. I find it challenging to write a bio about someone I only know from documents. Writing a novel with her as the main character was easier. But I wanted the "real" Ludwika to be honorably mentioned for posterity. So here you have her.

David Bowles presents A Tribute to One Woman on International Women's Day posted at Writing the Westward Sagas, saying, "I've written about Margaret Mitchell in the past but she deserves a special tribute on International Women's Day. Her heroism and strong character contributed not only to the Mitchell Family but also to the colonists during the Revolutionary War." Though you've introduced us to Margaret before, it's certainly nice to revisit her. Thanks for sharing, David.

Here's a real heartfelt tribute. Tammy shares 80 Years... Forever Young posted at Family Doin's. Read about Tammy's mom Ruthie then leave her a belated birthday wish in the comment section on Tammy's blog!

Nikki-ann presents March 11, 2007 post entry posted at Nikki-ann : Journal, saying, "My entry was inspired by Apple after reading her post. Edna was the Aunt I never knew..." And now we all know Edna. Thanks for sharing your touching tribute Nikki-ann!

Randy Seaver composed a whole list of his female ancestors in Thinking about the women in my ancestry posted at Genea-Musings and left us hanging... wondering who he would write more in depth about. I didn't get an article submission from him so I'm guessing he still hasn't decided ;-) But allow me to mention on his behalf that he regularly shares the journal of Della (Smith) Carringer with us, and lately he has been detailing his online search for the ancestors of Cornelia Bresee. [Edit] My apologies. Randy did submit an article about his grandmother, Today is my Gram's 107th birthday. It's a loving tribute to a warm and loving woman. Thank you for sharing, Randy.

Next, Craig Manson writes a very fitting tribute to Bernadine, Ruth, and Frances Coles in Three Sisters posted at GeneaBlogie. I can understand why Craig couldn't just write about One Woman when he has these three true pioneering women on his family tree. They all three truly deserve recognition and honor for their accomplishments. Thank you, Craig, for introducing us to these outstanding women!

Dana Huff's A Tribute to Granna posted at Our Family History: A Genealogy Blog by Dana Huff may not make you laugh out loud or break into tears, but it will touch your heart. Granna is a dear soul who certainly knew how to make a difference in the life of a child. Dana, Coke for breakfast... she's a treasure alright!

Steve Danko presents Steve’s Genealogy Blog » Memories of Grandmother Danko posted at Steve's Genealogy Blog, saying, "This isn't a new post, but it's one of my personal favorites. Some photographs to accompany this post are at Photographs of Grandmother Danko". I wish I could have written this post about my own Polish-speaking grandmother. Steve shares warm, personal memories of Nanny Danko, a good hearted and strong willed farmer's daughter. She could have walked right off the pages of The Peasants. Thanks Steve!

footnote Maven presents Only Woman-Built Boat on Long Island posted at footnote Maven. This is an intriguing story about a somewhat mysterious woman. It teases you, brings all sorts of questions to mind. And generates a certain amount of respect for Lois Green. She must have been an uncommon woman to have undertaken such an uncommon pursuit. Hats off to Lois! Thanks for sharing, Maven. (Check out her very cool Carnival of Genealogy button. I love it!)

Next, Susan Kitchens shares a sad tale with many unanswered questions in Why International Women's Day is Hard posted at Family Oral History Using Digital Tools. This article was hard to write, no doubt. The memories, hard to live with to this day. But Polly is remembered in the tragedy that was her death. Questions, sadness, anger. Acceptance.

Rounding things up for us, Miriam Robbins Midkiff shares One Woman: Barbara Dorothy Valk, Missionary to Central Africa posted at AnceStories: The Stories of My Ancestors, saying, "The story of my maternal grandaunt, and her 46 years of service as a missionary." I am humbled when I read of such women. Barbara is well deserving of the tribute you have given her, Miriam. Thank you for sharing her life and good works with us.

We have an additional submission that came in just after I published this edition. It is beautifully written by Sasha Faith Mitchell and I absolutely must include it in our Carnival. One Woman - Nanny - Mary Eliza Mason Stewart 1871-1965 is posted at Memory Lane. Beautiful photos and a touching tribute to a good woman who indeed deserves to be remembered. Thank you, Sasha, for contributing your article!

That concludes this edition of the Carnival of Genealogy. I am so proud of this edition and how well it honors the very special women mentioned in it. Thank you to all who contributed to it and made it the very best COG ever! And now it's time for a Call For Submissions! The topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: Funny, foolish, family! In keeping with April Fool's Day, April 1st, it's time to share those funny family stories... tell us about wild and crazy Uncle Guido, the practical joke you played on your younger brother, or the family parrot who spouted off something naughty when the priest came to visit. Share with us those stories that make everyone smile when they're told and retold, short quip or long story - doesn't matter! Write up your giggles and submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Genealogy using our carnival submission form. The deadline for submissions will be April 1st (so you can make your post an April Fools joke if you want ;-)

Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

Technorati tags: carnival of genealogy, blog carnival.

Did Your Granny Wear a Bra?

We're coming up on the midpoint of National Women's History Month (and the Carnival of Genealogy deadline is tomorrow, March 15th, for those of you who'd still like to submit an article ;-). I mentioned in a previous post that I intended to write some articles looking at the world through the eyes of our female ancestors. Most of the women on our family trees were ordinary women who led ordinary lives. So the things that filled their world and their days were for the most part ordinary things. Like underwear. You know, lingerie. Now don't go all giggly on me. This is a serious look at the history of women's under things :-O

So, what do you think? Did your granny wear a bra? Maybe yes, maybe no. It depends when your granny was alive. From Wikipedia...

In 1913, a New York socialite named Mary Phelps Jacob changed women's fashion forever when she cobbled the first brassiere together by tying two handkerchiefs together with ribbon. Jacob's original intention was to cover the whalebone sticking out of her corset, which was visible through her sheer dress. Jacob began making brassieres for her family and friends, and word of mouth soon spread about the garment. By 1914, Jacob had a patent for her design and was marketing it throughout the United States. Although women had worn brassiere-like garments years past, Jacob's was the first to be successfully marketed and widely adopted.

Just prior to 1914, granny was most likely wearing something like the garments pictured above (from a 1913 ladies underwear advertisement). There's a nice description of the history of both men's and women's undergarments at Wikipedia.

Have you ever given any thought to how women's undergarments influenced the way they were perceived and treated by society?

Of all the various forms of female underwear, the corset in its various guises has probably played the largest role in keeping women immobilized over the centuries. They restricted movement, made breathing shallow and difficult (reducing lung capacity by almost 2/3) thus giving women the reputation of being “delicate flowers” who could not exert themselves very far without fainting. Corsets were also used as a metaphor for virtue, despite the fact that courtesans were as tightly laced as any other woman. It was thought that an ungirdled woman might be wanton or “loose”.

For more on this topic visit womenshistory.org.au. It's very interesting reading!

If you'd prefer a lovely pictorial history of women's lingerie, check out the wonderful collection presented on the Kent State University Museum web site. It's interesting to look at the pictures and imagine great-great-great grandma wearing something like this metal corset, from the 1700s. Morals be damned... it wouldn't take much to persuade me out of this sucker ;-) It gives you an all new level of respect for those female ancestors of ours doesn't it?

If still photos aren't your thing and you're looking for an online video about the history of corsets you're in luck! Sort of. YouTube has one, unfortunately it's narrated in German. But hey, don't let that stop you from checking it out.

Did you ever wonder how women of yesteryear shopped for their lingerie? If so, you can satisfy your curiosity by checking out the 1915 Montgomery Ward Catalog. This particular edition featured winter undergarments for men and women. Take a look and see what granny might have worn under her dress in the cold weather months...

One garment in particular "stands out" in the history of women's underwear and that would be the crinoline. The crinoline is the garment that used to make the Southern Belle's dresses appear domed. There's a bit of history to this garment. From the Fashion-Era.com web site:

In the 1830s a linen material woven with horsehair called crinoline was first used for cloth petticoats. The word crinoline comes from the French for 'crin' and 'lin', meaning horsehair and linen respectively. This version of a petticoat was the original crinoline and later the name continued in use incorrectly, but universally for the caged or hooped underskirt frames.

Now doesn't that sound itchy? It probably was. The more popular "cage crinoline" was devised in 1856. It didn't have any horsehair :-) And it wasn't particularly uncomfortable either. I can attest to that because I wore a modern day version of it under my senior prom dress (oh the secrets I do tell!).

So now you have a slightly different view of women's history, a view from the eyes of ordinary women. Next time you think about your female ancestors you can think of them on a whole different level... a level previously hidden to your eyes.

Ludwika Knot Lipa, One Woman

My great grandmother, Ludwika KNOT, was born on July 6, 1857 in house number 74 in the village of Bobrowa, Poland. She was baptized at St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church in Nagoszyn, Poland and a copy of her baptismal record is viewable here. I don't know much about her early life in Poland except that her parents, Szymon and Katarzyna KNOT, were farmers in the village of Bobrowa and she had 6 siblings (2 older brothers, 1 younger brother, and 3 younger sisters). As far as I've been able to determine, she was the only member of her family to immigrate to the United States.

On November 15, 1876, at the age of 19, Ludwika married Szymon LIPA (age 34) also at the church in Nagoszyn, Poland. Three years later, on October 8, 1879 she gave birth to Katarzyna, the first of her 11 children. Before she and her husband would leave Poland for America she would give birth to another daughter, Marja.

Ludwika, her husband, and two daughters arrived at the port of Philadelphia on May 20, 1881 aboard the SS British Queen. Once in America, the family made their way to Detroit, Michigan. They bought a house at 57 Superior Street, in the east side Polish neighborhood near St. Albertus Catholic Church.

Ludwika lived at the house on Superior Street until her death on May 30th, 1912, attending first St. Albertus Church and then becoming one of the founding families at Sweetest Heart of Mary Catholic Church. She was buried at Sweetest Heart's parish cemetery on June 3rd, 1912. She was 54 years of age at the time of her death and the cause of death listed on her death certificate was apoplexy.

There was no occupation listed for Ludwika on the 1900 or 1910 census records so I assume she was a housewife and mother.

Ludwika gave birth to 12 children (9 survived to adulthood) and had 29 grandchildren, 16 of which she lived to see. I have no pictures of Ludwika to share with you. I have never seen or heard mention of a photograph of her by family members. I have no photos of her house either. What I do have is a longing to have known this woman. I created a life for her in my novel, Hear the Linden Tree. I'd like to think she had as much passion in her real life as I created for her in my novel.

Even though the village of Bobrowa was very small (pop. 0f 943 about the time Ludwika left for the U.S.), and it's not a big city even now (current pop. 1400), there are a couple of web sites about it. As you might guess, they are written in Polish. But you can still click around the sites and see some photos of the area. The first site was done by an 18 year old young man who lives in Bobrowa (which in Polish means "beaver"). The second site is one created and maintained by the local school administration in Bobrowa (I think). It has a nice history of the village, unfortunately I can't read it. It is interesting that when I click around the school staff and employees I recognize a good many surnames from my family tree (including LIPA). My frustration at not being able to read Polish is great.

Regarding the coat of arms shown in this post: STARYKON is the name. Evidently some KNOT family members used this coat of arms although most certainly not my family since they were commoners from the peasant class. I just put the crest on the page for visual interest ;-)

National Women's History Project

The National Women's History Project is an educational nonprofit organization whose mission is to recognize and celebrate the diverse and historic accomplishments of women by providing information and educational materials and programs. They have a wonderful web site chock full of information. As you would imagine, the promotion of National Women's History Month is one of their many goals. The 2007 theme for National Women's History Month is Generations of women moving history forward. "This theme recognizes the wisdom and tenacity of the generations of women who have come before us and those who will follow."

The NWHP web site presents a nice history of National Women's History Month, and offers a printable brochure that would make a nice handout for genealogical society meetings ;-) There's a fun quiz on the site that will stump you I'm sure but also give you some interesting trivia to discuss at your next party or meeting, such as... Who was the first woman to run for President of the United States (1872)?

The NWHP sponsors a contest each year called, Women: Builders of Communities and Dreams. This year's winners created some awesome projects. There's also a Biography Center where they list 145 women who are former National Women's History Week/Month Honorees... some famous and not so famous names here, check it out.

Probably my favorite feature on the NWHP web site is the calendar. They have a year's worth of monthly calendars which list the highlights of women's history and the birthdays of notable women. Here is the calendar for March:

Women's History Calendar
March Highlights in US Women's History

* March 8 - A day internationally recognized as International Women's Day - it's origins tracing back to protests US and Europe to honor and fight for the political rights for working women
* March 20, 1852 - Harriet Beecher Stowe's novel, "Uncle Tom's Cabin", is published and becomes America's first book to sell over 1 million copies
* Mar 30, 1888 - The National Council of Women of the US is organized by Susan B. Anthony, Clara Barton, Lucy Stone, Julia Ward Howe, and Elizabeth Cady Stanton
* March 17, 1910 - Camp Fire Girls is established as the first American interracial, non-sectarian organization for girls
* March 12, 1912 - Juliette Gordon Low assembled 18 girls together in Savannah, Georgia, for the first-ever Girl Scout meeting
* March 4, 1917 - Jeannette Rankin of Montana is sworn in as the first
* March 6, 1934 - Eleanor Roosevelt becomes the first First lady to travel by air to a foreign country
* March 2, 1973 - Women begin pilot training for the US Navy
* March 1, 1978 - Women's History Week is first observed in Sonoma, California
* March 21, 1986 - Debi Thomas becomes first African American woman to win gold medal in a world skating competition
* March 23, 1917 - Virginia Woolf establishes the Hogarth Press with her husband, Leonard Woolf.
* March 1, 1987 - Congressional resolution naming Women's History Month is passed
* Mar 31, 1776 - Abigail Adams writes to husband John who is helping to frame the Declaration of Independence: "Remember the ladies..."

March Birthdays

* March 3, 1962 - Jackie Joyner-Kersee - Considered the world's greatest female athlete; most decorated woman in U.S. Olympic track and field history with sixth Games medals overall.
* March 5, 1931 - Geraldyn (Jerrie) Cobb - Record-setting aviator; first woman to pass qualifying exams for astronaut training, 1959 but rejected as military did not allow female jet pilots at the time.
* March 7, 1938 - Janet Guthrie - Pioneering woman auto racer; first woman to compete in Indianapolis 500 (1977) and Daytona 500 (1977); only woman to place in top 10 finish at Indy 500 (1978)
* March 9, 1928 (1987) - Graciela Olivarez - Chicana activist; first woman and Latina law graduate from Notre Dame Law School; first woman chair of Mexican American Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF)
* March 16, 1933 - Ruth Bader Ginsburg - Supreme Court Justice
* March 18, 1964 - Bonnie Blair - Speed skater; the most successful Winter Olympian in US history and 5 time gold medalist
* March 23, 1857 (1915) - Fannie Farmer - authored famous cookbook, "The Boston Cooking-School Cookbook", including accurate and specific ingredient measurements for the first time that would become standardized cooking measurements
* March 23, 1924 (1980) - Bette Nesmith Graham - invented Liquid Paper in her kitchen; sold her company to Gillette Corp. for $47.5 million; created 2 foundations to help women find new ways to make a living
* March 24, 1826 (1898) - Matilda Joslyn Gage - Suffragist, women's rights activist and theorist, historian
* March 24, 1912 - Dorothy Height - Served over 40 years as President, National Council of Negro Women; 2002 NWHP Women's History Month honoree
* March 25, 1935 - Gloria Steinem - Women's rights activist and journalist; founding editor of Ms. Magazine; helped found National Women's Political Caucus, the Women's Action Alliance, and the Coalition of Labor Union Women
* March 26, 1930 - Sandra Day O'Connor - First woman to join Supreme Court as justice (1981)
* March 27, 1924 (1990) - Sarah Vaughan - World renown jazz singer and pianist known as the "Divine One"
* March 31, 1889 (1975) - Muriel Wright - Choctaw Indian; fought for recompense for First Americans

The NWHP web site has so much more than the handful of items I've mentioned. When you visit you'll want to allow a good bit of time to explore it. While you're there, don't forget to look for surnames that appear on your family tree. You just may find that one of your ancestors has made a contribution to Women's History.

A Women's History Challenge

Today, March 1st, is the start of Women's History Month. As genealogists and family historians, we often look to historical events to give context to the lives of our ancestors. Because women were often at home taking care of the children while the men folk were out back in the garage inventing cars, or far away from home marching across battlefields, they often weren't in positions to accomplish noteworthy things... except for an exceptional few. But their lives were impacted by the events around them and they in turn impacted the lives of their husbands and children in the course of everyday life. This month we have a chance to honor women, not only the ones whose accomplishments have made headlines but the ordinary and extraordinary women in our own family histories as well.

Each week this month I'm going to feature an article on some aspect of women's history. My goal is to have a look at the world through the eyes of our female ancestors. I hope you'll join me in this look at women's history and use the information as context for the lives of the women on your own family tree. And then I hope you'll write about some of the women in your family's history and submit them to the Carnival of Genealogy (COG).

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The March 18th edition of the COG will be devoted to the women in your family's history. Call for Submissions! In honor of Women's History Month (March), the topic for the next edition of the Carnival of Genealogy will be: A Tribute to Women. Is there a woman in your family that deserves mention? Do you have a favorite aunt, cousin, or 5th great grandmother that you'd like pay tribute to? Let's us hear about her! Submit your blog articles here. Deadline for submissions is March 15th. (There will be a Carnival edition coming up on the topic of mothers in honor of Mother's Day in May so you may want to choose someone other than mom for this one.)

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March 8th is International Women's Day. Here in America it's not a holiday typically celebrated with flowers and candy, though elsewhere in the world it is. From the Wikipedia entry for International Women's Day:

International Women's Day (IWD) is marked on 8 March every year. It is a major day of global celebration for the economic, political and social achievements of women.

Started as a political event, the holiday blended in the culture of many countries (primarily Russia and the countries of former Soviet bloc). In some celebrations, the day lost its political flavour, and became simply an occasion for men to express their sympathy and love to the women around them - somewhat similar to Western Mother's Day and St Valentine's Day mixed together. In others, however, the political and human rights theme as designated by the United Nations runs strong, and political and social awareness of the struggles of women worldwide are brought out and examined in a hopeful manner.

Personally, I think one of the best ways for anyone to honor the women in their lives (friend or relative) or their female ancestors, is in print. Here's an idea...

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One Woman
Compose a poem, write a tribute, share a memory, post a photo, or create a digital scrapbook page for One Woman. Wouldn't it be a wonderful tribute to women's history if all bloggers everywhere took the time to write something about One Woman that impacted their life on International Women's Day, March 8th? (... and then submit it to the Carnival of Genealogy... even better!) We could fill the blogosphere with tributes to women who might otherwise have fallen into obscurity. Sisters, friends, aunts, neighbors, deceased or living... one blog post will get a woman's name in the search engines and make information about her accessible the world over, for years to come! You could give a woman fame, honor her. Think about it. I challenge you all to spread the word, let's start something new for International Women's Day. Let's all write a tribute about One Woman... let's start the One Woman event!

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Remember the success/popularity of the "meme" recently among the genea bloggers? We can get the ball rolling here and spread the idea to bloggers everywhere. What do you think? If you like the idea, blog about it. We only have 8 days to get the word out. Go bloggers, Go!