Flanders Fields. A poignant image for Memorial Day.

Memorial Day is this coming weekend here in the United States.  It is one of our treasured ‘long weekends’ and is a big weekend for many.  Family gatherings, barbecues, and a lovely Monday free from our regular routines!

With the holiday here, it got me thinking about it more than usual.  So it was that I found myself asking around the other day about the meaning Memorial Day.  The almost universal response was ‘oh yes, Memorial Day is the beginning of summer’.

I was saddened by the lack of a single response that had to do with the real purpose, meaning, and reason for Memorial Day.

‘Flags In’ is a wonderful effort at Veterans Cemeteries across the United States.

Granted my sample was not scientific, but it made me sad all the same.

Those of you who follow me, know I am a bit of a GOG, or Grizzled Old Genealogist.  That is to say I am old enough that I recall when ‘Memorial Day’ was ‘Decoration Day’.  Where I grew up in Ohio it was very important.  It was a day for honor, recollecting our veterans, community, and family.  A day that revolved around those in our family who were Veterans and especially those who gave the full measure in their service.

Our community always had a big parade.  If I recall correctly, it was only exceeded in size by the 4^th of July parade.  In the lead were all the Veterans who wanted to march.  Those who couldn’t make the long march were chauffeured in local folks’ best convertibles.  The guests of honor were followed by Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, Bands, Clubs, and community and neighborhood groups of all kinds – each and every one showing their support for those who served our great country.

My hometown. The Triangle where our parades always were. Genealogy has helped me better appreciate Memorial Day.

I recall that the parade route always passed by the town square (actually a triangle in my town) that held our memorials to all those who lost their lives in the Civil War and the two World Wars.  I passed those monuments daily in my life, but on this day they took on a presence that seemed to make them twice as large and far more noticeable, at least to me.  I imagine that many others had this same feeling.

The parade always ended in the park at the amphitheater in one of our parks.  Speeches followed and wreaths were presented.  Then the time came that everyone was waiting for.

TAPS!

The playing of TAPS was always very special!

There were always two buglers.  One was right in front of everyone.  The second was farther away, often across the adjacent lake and hidden from view.  The buglers played TAPS, echoing each other and I can still feel the shivers that this induced.  The shivers happened every year; year in, year out.  As a matter of fact, I cannot hear TAPS today and not think back to those Decoration/Memorial Days.

A lot of years have passed since those days of my youth, and I have only come to feel more and more strongly about Memorial Day since then.

These stronger feelings have been enhanced by my work as a historical genealogist.  Then when you add to this the new facts about our family and its members military service and it makes the holiday far more poignant.  Back in my youth, I knew my dad (U.S. Army) and my uncle (U.S. Navy) were in World War II, but that was about it.  Also, while I knew we visited graves of other family, as a youngster it was a bit removed.

My Dad, back row right corner, with his team members.  They had the ghastly duty of Graves Registration following D-Day at Omaha Beach and during their push through Normandy into Germany.

Now after years of research I know that our family was filled with Veterans …. as your families may also be.

I discovered that I had a great Uncle, William Morrish Phillipps, who died in Flanders Fields in World War I and rests eternally in a small churchyard in Houyet, Belgium.   I also know our family had Veterans who served in the Indian Wars, Civil War, Spanish-American War, World War I, and II, Korea, Vietnam and family members who gave their lives in the Civil War, World War I, World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

Genealogy brought me to this place. Finding my great Uncle, who died in WWI.

Now when I hear the words “Memorial Day” not only do I think of my boyhood days and echoing TAPS, but I give thanks for the very special family members who gave the full measure, such as Sidney James Abbott, John Trefusis Carpenter-Garnier, Everett Emory Dillon, William Henry Evenden, Herbert Winsloe Patton, William Morrish Phillipps, William Gerhard Recker, Jack Rickard, Samuel Rowe, Norman James Sloan, Edward A. Thomas, Paul Dean Urquhart, Anthony Frederick Wedge, and Robert E. Williams.

My rubbing from The Wall of my cousin, Paul D. Urquhart. Shot down in his helicopter in Vietnam. Still MIA/KIA.

So, please, as you kick off your summer , as you prepare the barbecue, and gather for the long weekend, I ask that you join in at 3 pm your local time and observe the one minute of National silence in honor and memory of all our departed who paid the ultimate price so we can all be here …. free!

You will find my wife and I out at the cemetery paying our respects to all our veterans.

Have a blessed and lovely Memorial Day!

Onward To Our Past,

Scott

I’ll admit it.  ”The Usual Suspects” is one of my favorite movies.  

Don’t always focus on The Usual Suspects. Rather keep Keyser Soze in mind in your ancestry work.

There are many reasons I believe this film is wonderful.  First, I love that it was shot on a budget of only $6 million, that it was shown first at the Caanes Film Festival, but not even in competition,and gained its popularity from word-of-mouth.  Of course I fully enjoy the story line, that Christopher McQuarrie won the Academy Award for the screen play and naturally that Kevin Spacey won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his portrayal of Roger “Verbal” Kint.

Just who was Keyser Soze …..

I won’t go into the story line here, but if you haven’t seen this film or haven’t seen it recently, I suggest you do so for some entertainment (if you like film noir) and for a genealogy lesson as well.

You see, I learned a very valuable lesson from “The Usual Suspects” for my genealogy.  It is this:

Check out the usual suspects, but you might do better seeking out Keyser Söze!

You see, my family tree and my years of research are living proof that more often than you might think, the clues, the missing fact, the chisel to begin busting down that brick wall, will be found not in the usual suspects of your research  but rather in the far more hidden world of ‘Keyser Söze resources’ …. those hidden, less well known, and alas a bit more difficult to find and access.

Certainly there are billions of records online and digitally available.  However, remember this:  One document may well be considered dozens of records.  If the field in the document is searchable, then usually it is counted as a ‘record’.  So that one line on your grandfather’s 1940 Census return might well qualify as a dozen records in the count.  A birth certificate can often contain dozens of records all on its own as well.  Not that it makes all that much difference, but it just shows that the huge number we often take comfort in and believe those who say ‘well, almost everything is online these days’ and results in sloppy, incomplete, and poorly done genealogy, ancestry, and family histories.

Also think about the fact that untold trillions of records are not even touched, let alone indexed or put into categories.   This can be especially true if you ancestors happen to have emigrated from some of the lesser known genealogy countries in the world.  For instance have you ever tried to find an online birth, death, or marriage record for Angola?  Oh, and I do not mean the town in Indiana or New York.

Some country’s records can be a bit more challenging to access!

I mean nothing negative by using Angola as an example.  Actually I have traveled through Angola and love it and the people there.  It was just a convenient example  Plus the example of finding success in trying to track the Keyser Söze type of records can be carried on right here in the good old U. S. of A.  The following are a few personal examples:

• While many military records are online through MyHeritage.com, FamilySearch, Ancesty.com, Fold3.com (the old Footnotes.com) and others, it wasn’t until I was able to research in the National Archives in St. Louis and review such items as Morning Reports and After Action Reports, which are not online yet, that I was able to find any information of value on my own father’s military service.
• Then I found even more valuable information at the US Army’s Quartermasters Museum.  Plus some incredibly knowledgeable and friendly archivists there!
• An incredibly helpful set of records and documents that I found happened to be at the Bank of England’s Archives in London, England.  They hold some truly amazing records from all the way to the 1400s and in my case had records of annuities granted in my ancestor Nicholas Phillipps estate to multiple heirs, with addresses and much more.  These ledgers and records held tremendous information for me, which when coupled with some family wills and probate records opened up some wonderful findings.
• Speaking of wills and probate, I also needed to access wills in the United Kingdom, which were subject to probate after 1858.  This means that, if you want more than the index listing, which you should, you need to access them at the United Kingdom’s Department of Justice, Probate Services and are not online.  You have to request these forms in person, so you need to be there or have an ‘agent’, in my case a local researcher, Kristina Bedford with Ancestral Deeds.
• Also be aware that all indexed material may not digitally available.  Such is the case with the United Kingdom’s National Archives.  However, you can search those documents then order them from the United Kingdom National Archives via their Discovery online catalog.  Be sure to search under the tab titled “All Collections”.  That way if there is a document that is not digitally available, they will give you a free quote to have it digitized and sent.  I have received a number of wills and Admiralty information using this system.
• Once you have a document, there is often times the challenge to read it!  In my case I have accessed multiple U.K. wills from the 1500s and 1600s and the script and verbiage used can be almost like it is not written in English.  That is when, even though you have the document, you might do well to consider using the services of a palaeographer such as the world-class palaeographer I use, Peter Foden.
• Just recently I also found an absolute treasure while searching through history books of Fraternal Organizations.  I usually start with Google Books and move on from there to some of the large used book shops such as Alibris and Abe Books.  Then to the smaller, more specialized shops such as the magnificent shop of Ivor Cornish, ABMRA Books in the U.K. and the equally impressive Zubal Books in the United States.
• And don’t overlook the smaller, specialized museums and smaller genealogy societies that also may not have their collections and information in digital form.  I have had wonderful success with museums such as the Cranbrook (Kent) Museum, the Hemet-San Jacinto Genealogy Society, the Iron Range Research Center (in Northern Minnesota), which has a wonderful genealogy service, and many other semi-hidden gems!

So when doing your research, remember to always check your ‘Usual Suspects’, but to find some of the best genealogy gems in the world, you have to keep searching for Keyser Söze!

Good searching!

Onward To Our Past®

A couple of days ago my wife and I made a trip to see my mom.  She is on the cusp of turning 93 and living with my sister, my niece, and her family in rural Ohio.

I am blessed by my magnificent Mother!

Mom is the matriarch of our family.  She just recently broke her hip and her Parkinson’s disease and age are making her recovery a bit of a challenge, but she is a strong, tough lady, so she is giving it her usual dose of 100% and doing so in her normally cheerful and positive manner.

Fifteen hours in a car was our total and our visit was all too brief, but visit we did and today and forever after, we are all the richer for it.  And while we may have missed Mothers’ Day proper, yet any visit with my mom now qualifies as a real “Mother’s Day”.

During our drive home my wife and I had ample time to talk about many things, especially about family and the love and admiration we have for all things related to my mom, family, family history, and ancestry.

Family history and ancestry … four generations of the strong women in my wife’s family!

I recalled that as far back as I can remember my mom has always been our families’ glue.  Not only keeping her immediate family together, but the extended family as well.  Growing up I learned early on that no reason was ever too large nor ever too insignificant to be the spark to warrant the call for a family gathering.  Every birthday, every holiday, and quite often just because it was ‘Saturday’ got my Mom on the phone, when the party line was available that is.  She would begin rallying the family to come to our home for the day and, of course, a meal.  Now, I never complained about this, since it usually resulted in some of my very favorite foods being prepared including my Bohemian favorites of knedliky and kolache, plus if I was exceptionally lucky my grandmother’s black cherry parfait pie.  Often we had so many family members for these gatherings that we had to break up the ping-pong table into two extra dinner tables, resulting in fun, family, feasting, and more.  Each and every one of those days is a treasure to me.  If I close my eyes and sit quietly I can still hear the voices, most in English, some in Czech.  I can smell the aroma of Uncle Jim’s cigar and the frequent booms of laughter.

My wonderful Mom, my Aunt Em Vanek and me enjoying wonderful times together.

The more I thought about it, I quickly realized that I actually was doubly blessed in this department!    My mother-in-law, Dolores, was truly the equivalent of a second mother to me.  She accepted me as a son and taught me so very much about her Italian heritage and the very special place ‘la famiglia’ holds in Italian heritage.   Additionally, my grandmother-in-law, Helen, who was affectionately known as ‘Moose Heart” since she included so many at her dinner tables, blessed me with her love and acceptance.  And let me tell you that since my wife’s family is 100% Italian as far back as I have traced, those dinner tables were something truly awe-inspiring.  I remember well looking in the kitchen on one of my first dinner visits.  I asked what was for dinner and was told ravioli, gnocchi, soup, salad, and more.  I noticed a roast of beef on the counter and asked ‘what about the roast?’  I was told ‘that’s a side dish.’  I knew there and then I was getting into the RIGHT family!

My Grandparents-in-law teaching me how to make wine in their home! Genealogy at its finest!

All this was actually great training for me.  In my youth it instilled a significant love of extended family at a very early age.   According to my mom, no reason was too large or too small to include family.  Holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, and even ‘just because it is Saturday’ always resulted in huge, extended family gatherings at our home.   A bit later, when I married, I was shown that the true definition of family is expansive and inclusive, and not at all exclusive.  As a result, it was oh-so-easy to add our in-laws into our lives not as in-laws, but truly as new family members.  Additionally I even more blessed with my wife who also sees extended family as an integral factor in our combined lives, and family gatherings would be continuing in our lives, evidenced by our new ‘record’ of 24 for Thanksgiving this past autumn.

Now my wife and I have been blessed to see our own family expand with children, new in-laws, and grandchildren.  As a Mother, and while I know I may be just a bit prejudiced in my view since we have been married now for 37 years, my wife was an amazing Mother and role-model for our children.  She is an awesome Mom who carried off the balance between motherhood, family responsibilities, raising children, her career as an interior designer, creating fundraising events for nonprofits, and even more with grace, happiness, aplomb, and with a deep love for all.  (Disclaimer:  She also happens to be my favorite proofreader and editor!)

One of my favorite photos of my wife. A terrific Mother and partner.

Perhaps it is the most heartwarming to see that our children are now carrying on the same love of family that we, as a couple, have.  Holidays and gatherings contain family.  Vacations focus on when and how to get to the old family cabin ‘Up North’, where they are steeped in memories and surrounded by family.  The kitchen activities feature old-time family favorites on the stove, barbeque, or in the oven.  Parents, children, grandchildren, and grandparents all clamoring for the same goodies that enthralled our parents, grandparents, and many more before them.

It wasn’t long before the genealogist in me I started thinking backwards in time.  I was envisioning our family tree and recalled that for several generations it was the strong women in the family who kept my family going.  My grandmother, Mae, was thrust into single parenthood during The Great Depression, due to the death of her husband.  Her Mom, Anna, cast in the same role as a single Mom when her husband mysteriously disappeared from the family in 1911.  I recalled that my dad’s grandmother, Louisa, was also left as a single Mom when her husband died at 34.

I realized that it was no wonder we always spent Mothers’ Day having a very special dinner that focused as much on my grandmothers as my mom.  In my younger days, it was a rare occasion that found my family in a restaurant of any kind, except that is, on Mother’s Day.  Then it was off to ‘The Wagon Wheel’, a place that feed each table ‘family style’ and our table always included our family, and my grandmothers.

My wife made an excellent point to me that we were blessed to have many friends and acquaintances who were incredible role-models as Mothers.  Many were single Mom’s, working, raising a family, and struggling in the face of huge odds, but always with their focus on doing their very best.

And so it goes … more women keeping a family going.  No wonder family stayed so important in our lives … impressive Mothers, Mothers-in-Laws, Grandmothers, Aunts, and Great Aunts abounding and setting examples for us to admire, learn from, and attempt to emulate.

It wasn’t long and I realized how much I owe to a whole lot of the Mothers of our family tree!

So for a whole lot of reasons, this Mothers’ Day is going to hold some very special feelings for the Mother of my children, my mother, my mother-in-law, my grandmothers, and all the greats that came before!

From the bottom of my heart, I say thank you, thank you, thank you!

And I’ll even thank Mrs. Grott, who taught me to put the apostrophe in the proper place for ALL Mothers!

No matter the apostrophe, you get the message!

I wish each and all of you a wonderful Mothers’ Day!

Onward To Our Past®

This book is reported to be the very first ever published detailing the history of a Czech-American immigrant community anywhere in America, which gives it even more importance as a historical and genealogy reference.

This project is now complete and available for free, exclusively here at Onward To Our Past® genealogy services website.   Special thanks are due to our partner, KENAX Translations, who provided excellent service on this entire project.

We are very proud of this translation and its publication here.  At 196 pages, this work had to be located in Czech Republic, digitally copied (for the first time ever), and then, again for the first time ever, translated to English from the original Czech.

This book not only offers the genealogist and historian more than 1,200 surnames from the Cleveland, Ohio Czech community of the 1800s, but also an intimate view of the growth and development of the City of Cleveland, and what it was like for these early immigrants.

Due to the size of the translation, it is found in eleven sections here on our website, plus this section that contains the Table of Contents.

The following is the Table of Contents to assist you in locating specific areas of the text as provided by the author, Hugo Chotek.

I hope you enjoy this incredible resource as much as I did providing it.

Local Bohemian scene from Cleveland, Ohio 1895.

THE BEGINNINGS OF  CZECH IMMIGRATION  TO CLEVELAND, OHIO.. 4

The History and Flourishing of Cleveland. 5

Beginnings of Czech Immigration. 13

THE FIRST STATISTICS CONCERNING CZECHS IN CLEVELAND.. 27

Community Activities. 27

Introduction. 29

Grand Order of the State of Ohio. 29

Č. S. P. S. Grand Order of Ohio Incorporation Certificate. 33

Č. S. P. S. Order No. 3 – Svornost 39

Žižka, Č. S. P. S. Order No. 9. 51

Lidumil, Order No. 16 of Č. S. P. S. 57

Přemysl, Order No. 18 of Č. S. P. S. 59

Č. S. P. S. Order No. 22, Bratří v Kruhu. 61

Budivoj, Order No. 50 of Č. S. P. S. 68

Č. S. P. S. Order No. 56, Petr Chelčický. 71

Jan Kollar, Order No. 59 of Č. S. P. S. 74

Vítěžslav Hálek, Order No. 62 of Č. S. P. S. 75

Thomas Paine, Order No. 79 of Č. S. P. S. 76

Václav Snajdr, Order No. 92 of Č. S. P. S. 78

Čeští Bratři, Order No. 103 of Č. S. P. S. 83

Sion, Order No. 110 of Č.S.P.S. 84

Čechomír, Order No. 123 of Č. S. P. S. 86

Pravdomil, Order No. 131 of Č. S. P. S. 88

Žižkův Meč, Order No. 133 of Č. S. P. S. 92

Lech, Order No. 160 of Č. S. P. S. 93

Žižkův Tábor, Order No. 204 of Č. S. P. S. 95

Postscript 96

History of Remaining  CZECH CLUBS  IN CLEVELAND, OHIO.. 97

Slovanská Lípa  (The Slavonian Linden Tree) 98

The Svatojanský Order 101

Czech Music in Cleveland. 105

Club of Czech Settlers (Spolek Česká Osada) 105

The Perun Cultural Club (Narodní spolek Perun) 106

The Brotherhood (Spolek Bratrská Jednota) 107

Slovanská Lípa Amateur Drama Club. 107

Slovanstva Savings Bank. 108

Lumír Choir 108

Bell Founder Choir 109

Free Community Club. 109

Č. S. P. S. Order No. 10. 110

Coffee Club. 110

K.Č.L. Choir Number 1. 111

Thalie Drama Club. 111

Czechs of East Cleveland. 111

Vlasta Female Choir 113

Society of Czech Women. 115

J. Č. D. Central Committee. 116

J.Č.D. Grand Committee for the State of Ohio. 117

J.Č.D. Libuše, Order No. 1. 118

Ladislava, Order No. 2. 119

Vratislava, Order No. 6 of J.Č.D. 120

Vlastimila, Order No. 9 of J.Č.D. 121

Blahomila, Order No. 16 of J.Č.D. 122

Lidumila, Order No. 21 of J.Č.D. 123

Eliška Pešková, Order No. 30 of J.Č.D. 124

Františka Stránecká, Order No. 31 of J.Č.D. 124

Renata Tyršová, Order No. 37 of J.Č.D. 125

Vlastenka, Order No. 42 of J.Č.D. 126

Dobromila, Order No. 46 of J.Č.D. 127

Pravda, Order No. 59 of J.Č.D. 128

Anna Sázavská, Order No. 61 of J.Č.D. 129

Láska k Vlasti, Order No. 1 of the Sister Support Society. 130

Věrné Sestry, Order No. 2 of S.P.J. 130

Libuše, Order No. 3 of S.P.J. 131

Vlasta, Order No. 6 of S.P.J. 133

Táboritek, Order No. 7 of S.P.J. 133

Vilma Sokolova, Order No. 8 of S.P.J. 134

Education in Cleveland related to Czechs and free-thinking schools. 134

In Memory of Czech Sunday Free-Thinking Schools in the 17^th ward of Cleveland, Ohio. 137

Free-Thinking Czech Sunday School in Wards 25 and 26. 138

Czech Sunday School in the 40^th Ward in the Western Part of Cleveland. 140

The American Foundation for Schools in Bohemia. 143

Czech Female Compatriots. 145

The Brothers of Jan Hus Club. 146

The Radek Club. 146

The Reader Club. 147

The Sokol Physical Education Club. 147

Czech Sokol Gym Society. 150

Anna Náprstková Female Sokol Club. 151

Thalia Amateur Actor’s Club. 151

International Clubs. 152

Secret Societies. 152

Záboj Court No. 6348 A.O.F. of Anna. 153

Court of Equal Rights No. 6350, A.O. of A.. 154

Vlastimil Court A.O.F. of A No. 7048. 157

Jan Amos Komenský Court No. 7626 A.O.F. of A. 157

Jan Neruda Court, No. 8015 A.O.F. of Anna. 160

Sanctuary of Equality, No. 6350 of Sheep of America. 161

Czech Club No. 10. 161

The Růžena Jesenská Club. 161

Vlasta Club of the Czech Support Fellowship. 162

Knights and Ladies of Honor 163

Palacký, Lodge No. 317 – Pythian Knights. 164

Ludvík Theater Company. 165

Visitors from Back Home. 166

Dinner and Concert in the Haltnorth Garden. 170

Sightseeing around the City. 171

Reports in Non-Czech Local Papers Concerning our Celebration and Dinner 171

Our Guests at the World Fair 172

Guest Appearance of Mr. Šmaha. 172

Mr. Šmaha’s Performance. 173

Summary of the Most Opulent Czech Celebrations. 174

Czech Publications. 175

Patronage of the Czech National Hall 179

Cleveland Sokol 181

Grand Prokop Lodge, No. 708 of I.O.O.F. 181

Karel Havlíček Borovksý Educational Club. 182

Bohemian Slavic Benevolent Society. 183

Czech Roman Catholic Organizations. 183

A Short Excerpt from the History of the St. Augustín Reading Club. 184

Census of Czechs in Cleveland. 187

In the Municipal Legislature. 188

On the School Council 189

In the Police and Fire Brigade Departments. 189

Working in Municipal Services. 189

POSTSCRIPT. 191

Publishers’ Postscript 191

You can count on the Genealogy Diogenes!

This time I have to take issue with the current ‘hot story’ that is being thrown all about the Internet and fast becoming quoted as ‘fact’ by many outlets when it is far from it.

I am referring to the column that appeared recently on the site Mashable.  You can find it on Dick Eastman’s Newsletter site and several other places.  It is getting great ‘play’ and while I suppose that might be good for genealogy and family history in general, it is INACCURATE and it is MISLEADING.  Needless to say these last two items are not good for genealogy, ancestry, and family history.

Oh so often, we meet the enemy and he is us … just as Pogo said!

This article is rife with false information, errors, and more.  Here are just a few of the items I found on my first look through this ‘genealogy’ article.

1. It is totally a lie that professional contracts for genealogy research are all between ‘$2,000 to $5,000′ as the writer and company maintain.  NO WAY!  I know hundreds of individuals and dozens of researchers who have had contracts far below this inflated level.  On a personal level I have had multiple contracts far below this level and only two in it, and those may have been ‘lifetime’ expenses.  All I can guess is that the company wanted to end on as high a number as they could, but how do we know as they explain neither where they got that number nor their process for us.
2. It is totally another lie that grave sites such as those listed, billiongraves, FindAGrave, and Legacy.com ‘collect death certificates’.  They absolutely do NOT!
3. The Facebook game, Family Village, is NOT genealogy.  It is a game.  Enjoy it all you want, have fun, etc, but do not think this is genealogy any more than Candy Crush gets you ready for life.
4. Good, high quality, complete genealogy cannot be done totally for free as the NGS Board member believes.  Inexpensively?  Absolutely!  But to do it right requires spending some money.  I also find it irritating that someone from the National Genealogy Society‘s Board of Directors perpetrates this myth.  Last time I checked it cost money to belong to NGS … I bet you can’t attending their conference in Las Vegas this month for free either — forked-tongue anyone?

I have yet to have my inquiry to the company that conducted the referenced survey, Global Industry Analysts, Inc, returned, but it is early and I will report whatever they have to say in response to my questions.  I am especially interested in how they got the $2,000 to $5,000 price tag, how and how many folks participated in their survey and how they chose them.

Likewise I have also sent an inquiry to the author of the article, Jill Krasny and will post her responses as soon I get them.

Oh, and just for good measure, I also emailed Terry Koch-Bostic, the NGS Board Member, who is quoted in this article to see if she actually said what is attributed to her.

As they say …. watch this space!

When, and if, I get any responses I will post them here.  I certainly hope folks do.

Onward To Our Past®

Scott

In genealogy and family history the good old mailbox still ROCKS!

I went to the mailbox and there inside was a lovely, large, thick, manila envelope with my name on!  Stamped ‘Do not bend – Photographs’ only got my excitement even higher as I walked back down to my office.

At first I was puzzled by the return address.  It just said “HSJGS“.  I puzzled a bit until I looked at it backwards.  Ah, yes, those lovely initials G.S.  Who among us who love genealogy don’t know that shorthand for ‘Genealogical Society’?  Naturally we all do, so it wasn’t long until I recalled a recent inquiry I had made to the Hemet-San Jacinto (California) Genealogy Society.

I received exceptional help, service, and information from this great local society.

In the case of the Hemet-San Jacinto Genealogical Society, I was pursing a newly discovered branch of my family when I reached out to them.  Within weeks, I got my packet and it was a lot like a Halloween bag of goodies!  Three obituaries, three cemetery record sheets, and even personalized photographs of the gravestones of the ancestors I was researching.  It is all terrific quality as well.

This experience made me think back to some of the other local Societies I have worked with over the past years.  So many have served up really outstanding assistance, information, and genealogical gems!

Over and over I have had wonderful successes with local genealogical societies.  Often their records are not yet digitized and often are from some very specific, local books, maps, brochures, and the like that are very scarce and hard to find.  Another fine example of service and information above and beyond the call of duty was the help I received from the Wadena County Historical Society in Minnesota.

Often old photographs are one of the treasures local Societies have, such as this one from Wadena, Minnesota in 1878.

Sure, every once in a great while I run into a ‘bummer’ of an organization, but that has only happened to me one time (and I am still waiting more than a year later for my information).  Every other time I have been met with pleasant, local folks who go above and beyond in helping me out with my family history.

I have often taken the step of becoming a member of many of these local organizations.  Their dues tend to be a bargain (actually far too low in many cases, or so I think), and you get a terrific ROI on your investment.  Plus they need the support to keep going!

The Czech Heritage Partnership has a wonderful group of volunteers and an awesome “Family History and Document Center” in Protivin, Iowa.

At the Czech Heritage Partnership, in Protivin, Iowa, there is an amazingly robust group of supporters, organizers, and volunteers.  Plus they put together one of the most comprehensive local history books I have seen, titled “The Protivin Community Past and Present”, which at over 600 pages has hundreds and hundreds of family biographies and well researched community information.  I was so impressed with this volume, I now have a copy of it on my library shelves.

I was even treated to a great find when I discovered the local neighborhood organization the Old Brooklyn Community Development Corporation and its local newspaper “Old Brooklyn News“.  This award winning newspaper has been a source of some excellent information on the history of this neighborhood.    This was a great find since I had many ancestors in this area of Cleveland, Ohio and it is like a direct link back to that neighborhood.  So remember that some larger cities have lovely and very useful neighborhood organizations and groups.

Local community newspapers can be an awesome help in genealogy!

And so it has gone, from Lidgerwood, North Dakota to Ishpemming, Michigan and from Berea, Ohio to Hemet, California and loads of local communities in between.

Unique resources, lovely folks, and and awesome help and information of all kinds!  So don’t forget these local gems as you pursue your family history and genealogy goals.

What have your best experiences been with local Societies?

Onward To Our Past®

Scott

English: Mila Rechcigl at Rechcigl’s Garden in Rockville. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I have several of Mila’s earlier works and I have never been disappointed.  I enjoy his style of writing and he has a phenomenal grasp of the history and culture of all things Czech.   An added plus is that Mila is a genealogist so he packs his works with names, places, and useful information.

While the price has not been set at thist ime, the best news is if Mila gets enough pre-orders, the price will be even more competitive.  So you can let him know if you are interested via email at svu.one@gmail.com

The following is from Mila’s announcement of the new book:

“SVU Scholar-in-Residence and Past SVU President Míla Rechcigl has just completed a unique, authoritative and intensely absorbing manuscript “Czech American Timeline: Chronology of Milestones in the History of Czechs in America.”

This comprehensive chronology depicts the dazzling epic history of Czech colonists, settlers, as well as early visitors, and their descendants, starting in 1519, with Hernán Cortés’ soldier Johann Berger in Mexico, and in 1528, the Jáchymov miners in Haiti, through the escapades of Bohemian Jesuits in Latin America in the 17th and 18th centuries, the Bohemian and Moravian pioneer settlers in New Amsterdam (New York) in the 17th century and the extraordinary mission work of Moravian Brethren in the 18th century, to the mass migration of Czechs from the Habsburg Empire in the second half of the 19th and the early part of the 20th centuries and the contemporary exodus of Czechs from Nazism and Communism.

The first entries in this amazing work deal with the discovery of the New World, which clearly show that Czechs were no too far behind. In any case, they were among the first to know about this, as the narrations below show:

CHRONOLOGY

some 3000 years ago

Between 1898 and 1903, during his scientific travels across America, Czech-American anthropologist Aleš Hrdlička (1869-1943), a native of Humpolec, Bohemia, became the first scientist to spot and document the theory of human colonization of the American continent from east Asia only some 3,000 years ago. He argued that the Indians migrated across the Bering Strait from Asia, supporting this theory with detailed field research of skeletal remains as well as studies of the people in Mongolia, Tibet, Siberia, Alaska, and Aleutian Islands. The findings backed up the argument which later involved into the theory of global origin of human species that was awarded by the Thomas Henry Huxley Award in 1927.

1466

The inhabitants of the Kingdom of Bohemia began to dream about the New World, ever
since 1466, a quarter century before it was actually ‘discovered,’ when Václav Šašek of Bířkov had written his fantastic travelogue Deník o jízdě a putování pana Lva z Rožmitálu a z Blatné z Čech až na konec světa v letech 1465-67 (A diary about the voyage and the travels of Lev of Rožmitál and Blatná from Bohemia to the end of the world in 1465-67), in which he writes that, upon reaching the village Stella obscura at the end of the Pyrenean Peninsula, they learned about the land beyond the gigantic ocean.

1483

German scholar Franz v. Löher made the claim that Martin Behaim (1459-1507), from New Bohemia (Neuböhmen), in the vicinity of Nuremberg, a noted explorer and the creator of the first globe, rather than Columbus, or for that matter Amerigo Vespucci, was the discoverer of America. Löher celebrated Behaim, whom he considers to be a German, not only as the first European to view the coast of America off Brazil, in the year 1483, but also as the instructor in western navigation of both of the putative later discoverers and explorers, Columbus and Magellan. As the name indicates, Behaim was actually of Bohemian origin, whose ancestors having moved to Nuremberg from Bohemia.

1504

The news of the discovery of the New Word reached the Kingdom of Bohemia as early as the first decade of the 16th century, during the reign of Vladislav II the Jagiellonian (1471-1516), when an early print in the Czech language, Spis o nowych zemiech A o novem swietie O niemžto gsme prwe žadne znamosti nemeli Ani kdy tzo slychali (Treatise about the new lands and the New World about which we had no knowledge nor ever heard of), was published in Plzeň, Bohemia in 1504, by one of the first known Bohemian printers, Mikuláš Bakalář. What is astounding is the fact that it came in the same year as the first printed Latin version.

1519

Johann Berger (ca 1502-d.), b. Osoblaha (Hotzenplotz), Moravia took part as a soldier in the expedition of Hernán Cortés (1485-1547) against Aztecs. He was presumably 17 years of age when he arrived in Mexico (Spaniards landed at Vera Cruz on March 1519), where he fell into French captivity. After being freed he took part in the exploration and battles in Venezuela and Columbia and subsequently returned to Mexico.

1528

The Welser family, Augsburg merchants, was granted rights to colonize most of north-eastern South America by Charles V. In July 1528, the first group of miners (16 men and 1 woman), largely from Bohemia and Silesia, left for America, via Antwerp and Seville in December, sailing off for Santo Domingo. Among them was Hans Trumpel (* aft.1500) from Jáchymov, Bohemia. Two months later the second group of miners (24 men) followed. Altogether some 50 volunteers came to Santo Domingo. It was an unsuccessful venture, number of people died and the remainder returned to Europe.

1585

Joachim Gans (ca 1560-d.), of Prague, took part in the first British colonization effort in America. On July 13, 1585, a group of 108 English colonists, including Joachim Gans, led by Sir Richard Grenville, reached Roanoke Island, Virginia (now in North Carolina). Joachim Gans was a metallurgist by profession who was sent along to seek ores like silver and gold. The expedition returned to Europe the following year without much success.

Mila Rechcigl is an accomplished historian and genealogist and incredibly knowledgeable about all things Czech.

Pre-ordering the Book
Since only a limited number of copies will be printed, SVU members and other interested people are encouraged to order the book beforehand. With sufficient orders there may be a discount. Place your orders: svu.one@gmail.com.”

I’ve already placed my order for two.  One for my bookshelf and one as a gift.

Onward To Our Past®

Scott

There are always questions as we pursue our genealogy. I think that is what makes it so much fun.

The question was this:  What area of Bohemia, now the Czech Republic, did these early Bohemian (Czech) immigrants come from?  And a darn good question it is!

I had to think about this for awhile, as I didn’t have a ready answer.  As is always the case when I am at a loss about a question that includes both of the words ‘Cleveland’ and ‘Czech’, I turn to the incredible Dr. Gregory M. Stone and his work on the Cleveland Czech immigrant community, his PhD dissertation “Ethnicity, Class, and Politics Among Czechs in Cleveland, 1870-1940″, published in 1993 by UMI Dissertation Services.

This is my copy of Dr. Stone’s dissertation. It is one of my most highly prized genealogy possessions. It is an exceptional work.

Over and over again I have thanked my lucky genealogy stars that I found this truly remarkable work early in my genealogy journey.  If you have followed me for any amount of time you know that I often lament the overall lack of study that has been undertaken on the early Czechs of Cleveland.  It is one of the significant reasons I undertook to translate Hugo Chotek’s book into English.  So it is that I consider Dr. Stone’s work to be one of the most important written on the Czech community of Cleveland.

So where did the Cleveland Bohemian (Czechs) come from?

While I was discussing this question with Dr. Stone, he agreed that I could post from his dissertation to help everyone better understand and grasp the geography and findings that were a part of Dr. Stone’s original research of his dissertation.  We all owe Dr. Stone a huge THANK YOU for his generosity and help.

Remember, please, that this work was completed before Google maps, etc, so the maps are handmade and the book was completed on a, gasp, typewriter (some of you may, like I do, even remember what a typewriter is).

Whoa! An IBM Selectric! I recall well when there were ‘state-of-the-art’!

In his dissertation, Dr. Stone has a section titled “Geographic Origins”.  In this section he refers to three maps that I you will see here.

First, Dr. Stone found that his research indicated “Czech immigrants came to the United States from the two historic Czech provinces of Bohemia and Moravia.  Of these two provinces, Bohemia sent the vast majority of emigrants, over 95% (see Map 2.1)”.

Map 2.1, Stone dissertation, page 19a.

Dr. Stone found “Also unlike many other immigrant groups, the primary regions of origin did not shift to any great degree over the period from 1865 to 1914.”   Dr. Stone then continues and begins to refer to his next map, 2.2, below.

Dr. Stone’s map illustrating his four main regions of emigration from Bohemia.

Dr. Stone found, through his study of naturalization, church, and mutual aid society records, that as many as half of Czech immigrants to Cleveland came from the area surrounding the towns of Pisek and Tabor, which are labeled as Region 1.  His research further notes that ‘fully one-third of Czech immigrants’ were from small villages in the one south-central county of Milevsko (yep, my ancestral home village was Milevsko itself), again noted as Region 1.

Significant numbers also came from the three other regions of Bohemia.  Dr. Stone explains that Region 2 is ‘a band of villages around Klatovy in southwest Bohemia, south of Plzen“.  

Region 3 encompasses an area around the city of Caslav, to the east of Prague and Region 4, west and southwest of Prague, including the mining district around Kladno plus an industrial band from Beroun in the NE to Plzen in the SW.  

Thomas Capek, in his book The Czechs in America, (1920), reports that in Cleveland in 1869 Czechs were from the following locations (with the notion added in which of Dr. Stone’s regions they are located when applicable).  Capek’s original source is cited as a private census undertaken by Slavie, the Czech newspaper at that time published in Racine, Wisconsin.

• Beroun (Region 4)      224
• Pisek (Region 1)           194
• Tabor (Region 1)         137
• Plzen (Region 2 & 4)    70
• Caslav (Region 3)          68
• Ceske Budejovice          29
• Boleslav                             10
• Cheb                                    10
• Chrudim                             10

The following is more detailed map from Dr. Stone on Region 1, South Central Bohemia, which shows several of the smaller villages in this region.

Dr. Stone dissertation, map 2.3 page 23a. Genealogy gold!

Dr. Stone notes in his work that chain migration continued to be a significant and strong influence in Czech immigration.  Between 1850 and 1914 it is estimated that more than 346,000 Czechs immigrated to the United States, with over 114,000 of those coming between 1870 and 1890, which is over double the number that came from 1850 to 1870.

More to come:

I will be re-reading more of Dr. Stone’s dissertation and will report some more information on Czech immigration patterns and villages as I find it.  So stay tuned!

Special thanks to Dr. Stone for his help and willingness to share this information and maps here for all of us who love our Czech genealogy and Bohemian roots as he does!

Onward To Our Past®

Scott

It is a good idea to read the ‘fine print’, but on my genealogy blog I put it in BIG PRINT.

Now, I figure this action would make my daughter pleased as she is a lawyer by profession and constantly reminds me ‘to read the fine print, Dad’.  So I have a tendency to do that, but will admit at times I forget to, especially when I am reading different blogs, etc. online.

Fine print is often fine, but at times it is very telling, especially on blogs and other genealogy and family history materials.

So there I was reading this blog’s ‘fine print’ and while I will say I applaud that it was written and put out for all to read, it was both refreshing and shocking to me.

Refreshing in that a genealogy blogger was willing to put into print that he is a member of the Mormon church, which, if you are in the genealogy business, is an important disclaimer since genealogy in the Mormon church is seen as a required covenant and has to do with their practice of baptizing the dead into their church and beliefs.  I absolutely hold no animosity towards anyone of any faith, including the LDS Church, but in my opinion it could skew someone’s point-of-view on issues such as sharing your family tree and sharing both your genealogy and research publicly, etc.

Shocking in that there in the fine print was that this blogger states the following: “It is the editorial policy of this column to be generally supportive of Ancestry.com and FamilySearch“.  What?  I thought to myself, when I read that statement, so much for any image of balanced and true reporting if you admit to a bias before you even start.  I went from being a fan of the blog to thinking that this blog is nothing more than a shill for both those companies.  So be it, at least I know!

The Stooges read the fine print  in ‘Bubble Trouble’. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Just so you all know my point-of-view, here is my BIG PRINT explainer:

SCOTT’S BIG PRINT EXPLANATIONS:

• I love genealogy and family history and that is why, and the only reason why, I write, research, learn,blog, and share what I know about genealogy and family history.
• I call it like I see it.  While I, like every other practicing genealogist, use certain products (both free resources and subscription or fee-based resources) I call it like I experience it with each and every product I use.  I have no predetermined point-of-view regarding any product and I am not beholden to any of them.
• I belong to dozens of genealogy/family history/history organizations, societies, and museums.  Some I have belonged to for many years.  Some I have just recently joined.  Some I have been a member of and dropped.  I laud those that are doing a good job and I try and suggest new avenues, efforts, and ways to help those that may not be so good.  I have no ax to grind with any of them and if asked, I’ll give you my honest opinion of them.
• I like to think of myself as a GENEALOGY DIOGENES.  I am not a ‘genealogy homer’.  I do not think everything about genealogy is above reproach.  I much prefer, as I said, to be in the role of a Genealogy Diogenes.  If you know the stories of this ancient Greek, you know the best known is where he walked the streets with a lamp ‘looking for an honest man’.    If I fulfill this role of Genealogy Diogenes, you can know you are getting what I see as the truth, not something a shill might say.

You can count on the Genealogy Diogenes!

• I do get paid for some of my writing.  However I get paid to write as a freelance writer.  Therefore I get to write what I want, not what I am directed to write, by anyone or any company.
• Onward To Our Past® is in fact a registered and protected trademark through the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office.

So now you know …….

Onward To Our Past®

Scott

I try and keep all my genealogy tips good, inexpensive. and easy!

I am pleased to be sharing many of my favorite tips here on Huffington Post United Kingdom free to anyone.  You can find my first ten free genealogy tips here and my second ten free genealogy tips here.  The purpose of these tips is to provide inexpensive, useable ideas to help what I call ‘real world’ folks – those of us with limited funds and limited time.  I focus on keeping them valuable, yet simple and as cheap as possible!  So welcome back and I hope my third series of tips is helpful.  So here they are:

• Toss the term genealogy in the trash bin.  Somewhere along the line there was a movement to differentiate genealogy and family history and family history got the short end of the stick (IMNSHO).  I say bring it back and assign ‘genealogy’ to the dust bin, or at least to the dusty recesses.  When I start a conversation and use the word ‘genealogy’ more often than not eyes glaze over, sighs ensue, and folks are looking for a quick exit.  If it is children, the look resembles more either that of a deer-in-the-headlights or as if I am introducing them to some dreadful school subject.  The word ‘genealogy’ is way too cold and impersonal.  Then I discovered that when I began to use ‘family history’ I was seeing smiles, heads nodding in understanding, and folks beginning to engage with me!  So I suggest you pitch genealogy and get on with your family history.
• Avoid jargon.  Since you are out at the dust bin now, I suggest you may want to toss the jargon we get caught up in there as well.  Or at least keep it for when you are talking to another true aficionado.  Sure, we can dazzle folks with our understanding of ‘agnate’ and ‘enate’.  Of the intricacies of cousins, three times removed and more.  But the fact of the matter is that we will lose far more folks’ interest if we use these terms than if we use ‘real world’ terms like ‘related on the male side’, ‘related on the female side’, and ‘cousin’.  Likewise when I brought up the idea of ‘genea-tourism’ family trip it fell deader than a doornail, but when I switched to describing it as a ‘family history vacation’ it was met with great support.
• Be flexible, because one size does not fit all in family history.  I learned this tip when I was beginning to really enjoy photography.  I quickly realized that to get great photos of my grandsons I could not do that on my level standing up.  I needed to be on their level.  At first it was on my belly when they were newborns.  Then on my knees as they began to crawl and walk.  Now I find myself kneeling a lot to get a good shot.  You get the idea.  It is the same when we are working on our family history.  We must find the best, mutually beneficial level to work on together.  This means we must become flexible in our approach to each person we work with if we hope to get them engaged and enthused over our family history.
• Be inclusive in your family tree.  The purpose of my family tree, which I keep online at MyHeritage.com since I love their security and they have a world-class focus on being a true family social network, is to be welcoming and of interest and use by our entire family, worldwide.  This means I include in-laws, cousins, aunts and uncles, etc. in as full a measure as I possibly can.  Over the years I have learned that one of the easiest ways to lose an interested family member is to ignore some portion of their family.  So I suggest you use the mantra ‘family is family’ and get them all on your tree.
• Respect copyright laws.  It is important to remember that just because you find something online that does not make it ‘fair game’ for your use.  Photographs are the copyright-protected artwork of the person who took them.  Likewise original works written by other researchers are their work.  It only takes a few seconds to ask permission for appropriate use.  Don’t just take something simply because it is online.  Get to know your copyright laws in your country and respect them.  If we want our work respected, we need to respect others.
• Be proud of your passion.  One of the constant challenges I hear from folks is  that they are perplexed when it comes to thinking about who it could be that might carry their family history torch after they pass on.  If we share our passion for family history far and wide with everyone in the family, then there is a far greater chance that someone will catch the same level of love for family history that we have and carry on.  Plus if we have constructed our family tree electronically (see my first set of tips) it will be far easier for them to continue our work.  Passion for our pastime is contagious and easy to pass on if you just let it show.  Be proud and wear it on your sleeve as they say.
• Focus on the fun in family history.  If we want others to capture the passion we share for family history, then it is incumbent on us to also show everyone how fun it is!  In my case, in order to do this I write and email a Family Update every week.  I send this out to the 200+ family members who have joined me on our family website.  I pass along whatever is new in the family tree and what I may have learned in the past week.  I ask questions and beg for input – and it works terrifically!  At times I also have included family history quizzes and I always ask questions.  Add to this the fact that I have created family history games for our major family gatherings and the fun is evident.  For example, this past Thanksgiving, while my wife and I hosted 24 family members for our Thanksgiving feast, no one was allowed to get dessert unless they participated in my family history game.  I was nervous doing this at first, but the game was a huge hit from the youngest, who is just 3 years old, to our family matriarch at 92!  Making our family history fun shows everyone that family history is something they can really enjoy when they join in.
• Go beyond the data and capture the persona.  While we know there is significant value in the names, dates, and data of our ancestors, it is the stories, photos (if you are lucky enough to have some), and the lives and times of our ancestors that really help us to capture the essence of who they were.  Focusing on the heritage, culture, values, times, and lives of our ancestors, in addition to their facts and figures, truly is what will make your family tree come to life.  I think of my family tree as a quilt and I need to do my best to create as wonderful a square for each member as I possibly can.
• Don’t forget to go international, national, regional, state, county, and local.  As you undertake your research I strongly suggest that you start with the big picture then as you gather more and more information geographically narrow your further research.  Don’t forget that there are genealogy societies that focus internationally all the way down to towns, villages and even neighborhoods of large cities.  I have found, consistently, that many very small Societies often hold very large finds.  Likewise don’t overlook those Societies and groups that specialize in single surnames, guilds, religions, and the like.
• More can be more.  Often I read about the suggestion that when you use search engines ‘more is less’ as Mies van de Rohe said.  However, I have found that often ‘more is more’.  For example, I had undertaken a number of searches on my wife’s great uncle and found quite a bit of information, but it wasn’t until I added the term ‘author’ along with his name into the search box that the search engine found the many books he had written or co-authored.  So I suggest you remember that while less can be more, more can be more too, at least in search results.

Free tips for genealogy and family history are always fun!

There you have them.  Combined with my first two articles in this series, you now have 30 tips to help you make the most of your family history and genealogy work.  I hope they help you as much as they have helped me.

Watch for the fourth and final installment in this series of tips for all us ‘real world’ family historians!

Onward To Our Past®

Scott