This is one of the latest photos that I scanned. It was a copy inside of a book I got from a fellow Zalewski researcher a few years back. For some reason, I never got to scanning the photos from it.
This photo is from July 4th, 1913. Back row is Frank Gierszewski and Edwin Cybela. Front row is Mary (Zalewski) Gierszewski and Frances (Zalewski) Cybela. Frances and Mary are my great-great-aunts. Frank and Mary later changed their surname to Giersch.
Happy Memorial Day, everyone!
Happy Memorial Day, everyone! I’d like to thank all of my military ancestors and all of your military ancestors, too.
Continue for some select photos
May 25th
1922 – Died – Ignatius SZULTA – Ignatius is my 3rd-great-grandfather on my father’s side. He was born 1 Feb 1849 in Poland and married his wife, Nepomuncema SYLDAKT in 1875. They immigrated to Milwaukee in the early 1880s. He passed away in Milwaukee and is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery.
May 26th
1813 – Married – Jannis DEES & Janna VERMEULEN – Jannis and Janna are my 5th-great-grandparents on my mother’s side. They were married in Biervlient, Zeeland, Netherlands and had 3 children, including my ancestor, Janneke DEES.
May 27th
1778 – Married – Wilhelmus VAN CRAYBECK & Anna Catherina CROX – Wilhelmus and Anna are my 6th-great-grandparents on my mother’s side. They were married in Genk, Limburg, Belgium and had 4 children, including my ancestor, Leonardus CRAYBECK.
2006 – This is also the day of my wedding anniversary with my wife, Darcy. I didn’t know that we share an anniversary with my 6th-great-grandparents. Only 228 years earlier.
I was running through ideas in the shower today (who doesn’t?) and I tried to figure out what my fascination is with the family of Frank & Anna Zalewski. For some reason, this family really interests me. I enjoy finding out information about each of the children and their families. Maybe it’s because the photo of their family in 1907 was the first “old” family photo I saw. Maybe it’s because this was always the line that I’ve been stuck on.
It’s crossed my mind to put together a family reunion of sorts for the descendants of Frank & Anna Zalewski. We used to have one similar to that for my grandmother’s family, the descendants of Thomas Corrigan. I have no idea what kind of undertaking that would be, but I’m imagining a lot of work. Just contacting everyone seems like a massive job.
Every one of their children, except Frank Jr., married and had children of their own (though, I’m not sure if Angeline did.) I had most of their descendants listed, but not a lot of information about them. Maybe it will come to fruition some day, because I’d really like to see what information everyone else may have on their great-grandparents and great-great-grandparents. For now, I will try to collect as much informati0n as I can on this family to create their story. Who knows, maybe it’ll make a good book about a family that traveled from Europe and made it in America?
This is a photo of my great-great-grandparents, Joe & Clara (SZULTA) TROKA on their 50th wedding anniversary. The date of this photo would be somewhere around 29 Jan 1944 since they were married in 1894. They were married at St. Hedwig’s Church in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. There is a very nice writeup and history for St. Hedwig’s at Wikipedia. Here is a closer photo from the “Polsih Churches of Milwaukee” website.
Since publishing my Single View post on my great-great-grandfather, Frank J Zalewski, Sr. I have been checking all information I have on the Zalewski family. I ran through each of his children’s records and all of the other info I had written down. I was then looking for copies of obituaries that I know I’ve seen. I checked the “Zalewski” folder in my file cabinet and decided to just browse through everything in there again. In 2000 I was in contact with a descendant of Frank & Anna, Michael Rynka, that was also doing some research. When my dad and I met him, he gave me a nice booklet with all of his Zalewski family information in it. There was nothing new in that book, but I was able to scan in a lot of the photos that I had never scanned.
Then I read over the two letters that he had sent me originally. There was nothing new in the letters that popped out, until I read this:
I am especially interested in learning more about the parents and siblings of Frank Zalewski, Sr. I do not know their names, nor do I know how many brothers and sisters he may have had. My mother’s (Editor’s note: his mother is Frank & Anna’s granddaughter) godfather was Joseph GORALSKI, and she remembers that he was somehow related to the Zalewski family. However, I don’t know what the relationship may have been. Joe GORALSKI was not Frank’s brother-in-law, since his wife’s maiden name was not Zalewski. Perhaps Joe was Frank’s cousin.
I decided to go down this path. This paragraph most likely means that Joseph GORALSKI had lived in the Milwaukee area. After finding a Joseph Goralski in the Milwaukee US Census records (1900-1930), he is shown living with his wife and in-laws in the same area as Frank & Anna. His in-laws are listed as August & Anna GWIAZDOWSKI. Using the information in these records (immigration, birth, etc) I found this same group in a Philadelphia passenger list for December 1892. In the notes for this group of people it says, “Visitors Nephew Franz Zaleski at 902 Pulaski St.”
Seeing that Pulaski Street is right near Fratney Street in the Riverwest neighborhood of eastern Milwaukee where Frank and his family lived most of their life, this was a very, very good clue. Now, assuming this all adds up, this would make August GWIAZDOWSKI Frank’s uncle and Mary GORALSKI (Joe’s wife) his cousin. And, obviously, this would make Frank’s mother’s maiden name GWIAZDOWSKI, also.
Now, I have yet to prove this information, but I am so happy that this passenger list happened to list that much detail as to where exactly the passengers were going. This is the first time I’ve seen that much detail and it was the exact information that connects them to my family. Without it, I wouldn’t have gave it a second thought.
This opens up more research, but that’s a good thing. One good and bad thing is that the surname GWIAZDOWSKI doesn’t seem to be extremely popular. I’ve already found some information on other people researching it, so I have some contact to make.
Unfortunately, I’m not sure if Michael Rynka is still around. It’s been 9 years since I’ve last contacted him. When we met him he was already blind in one eye and I had heard that he may have had a stroke in the last few years. I checked around today using online phone books and even looked through the obituaries, but I haven’t found him. I do have his address and phone number from 2000, so I may just go out on a limb and give them a try.
See, it pays to do these Single View posts, huh?
This is the first of my “Single View” posts. These will be entries on a specific individual (or possibly family.) I will put out as much detail as I have in hopes to find someone who may have more information. Not only will this help me get the info online, but it will also help me dig through the data again and maybe find something I missed originally. I welcome any research tips.
This entry is about Frank J ZALEWSKI, Sr. Frank is my great-great-grandfather and the oldest Zalewski entry in my family tree. As with most people, I’d like to dig deeper into my paternal (surname) line as far as I can. Unfortunately, this is probably the shortest line I have.
May 18
1678 – Died – Francois CHEVREFILS – Francois is my 9th-great-grandfather on my mother’s side. He was born in 1643 at Perigueux, Perigord, Dordogne, France. He married Marie LAUNY on 18 Mar 1678 in St. Ours, Richelieu, Quebec, Canada. Francois passed away in St. Ours.
1848 – Born – Peter MUHM – Peter is my 3rd-great-grandfather on my mother’s side. Peter was born in Hanover, Germany. He married my 3rd-great-grandmother, Ida SCHAVANDIE, on 18 Apr 1870 at Germantown, Washington Co., Wisconsin according to their marriage certificate. They had 3 children. Peter passed away on 6 May 1888 in Langlade Co., Wisconsin.
May 20
1840 – Married – Jacobus Franciscus KREBBEKX and Maria Sophia SCHALLOIR. Jacobus and Maria are my 4th-great-grandparents on my mother’s side. They were married in Hoofdplaat, Zeeland, Netherlands. They had two children, including my 3rd-great-grandmother, Johanna Maria KREBBEKX.
1920 – Died – Olivie Marie ST. LOUIS – Olivine is my 3rd-great-grandmother on my mother’s side. She was born 17 Sep 1835 in Yamachiche, St. Maurice, Quebec, Canada. She married Jean-Baptiste LAURENT on 7 Sep 1857. According to notes in the History of Outagamie County [Wisconsin], Olivine was the first school teacher in Phlox, Wisconsin. She passed away in Phlox at the age of 85.
May 21
1835 – Married – Jacobus Bernardus VAN PARIJS and Janneke DEES. Jacobus and Janneke are my 4th-great-grandparents on my mother’s side. They were married at Ijzendijke, Zeeland, Netherlands. They had 5 children, including my 3rd-great-grandfather, Charles Ludovicus VAN PARIJS.
1893 – Born – Joseph Frank ZALEWSKI – Joseph is my great-grandfather on my father’s side. Joseph was born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin to Frank J ZALEWSKI, Sr and Anna LINDNER. He was the 4th child and the first to be born in Milwaukee. After serving in the Army in World War I, Joseph married my great-grandmother, Emily M TROKA, in about 1919. Emily passed away at a young age in 1941. He lived with his new wife until he passed away on 15 aug 1981 in Cedarburg, Ozaukee Co., Wisconsin. He is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Milwaukee.
May 22
1646 – Born – Nicolaes VAN CRAYBECK – Nicolaes is my 9th-great-grandfather on my mother’s side. He was born in St. Lambertus, Herck, Belgium. He married my 9th-great-grandmother, Helena WAGEMANS, on 9 Aug 1671. He passed away on 26 Mar 1721 in Kuringen, Belgium.
1743 – Died – Madeleine BENOIT – Madeleine is my 7th-great-grandmother on my mother’s side. She was born 19 Jun 1965 in Trois-Rivieres, St. Maurice, Quebec, Canada. She married Gabriel Robidas dit MANSEAU on 16 Sep 1715. They had 12 children and she passed away at Baie-du-Febvre, Yamaska, Quebec, Canada.
