I stopped on Ukraine history to read Russian history up to the October, 1917 Bolshevik revolution since the events in St. Petersburg and Moscow directly affected Ukraine. So, I have been slogging through Orlando Figes book. The February, 1917 revolution that deposed the Tsar and set up the provisional government appeared to really be a surprise. It started out as just a protest for "land, bread and peace". Land for the peasants who were struggling, bread for the people in the cities who were starving and peace from World War I and the slaughter of millions of Russians. A key element of the February Revolution was the support of the military.
Now I am taking a side trip to better understand the forces outside Russia and Ukraine that contributed to the February, 1917 Revolution. I think that will help me understand the pressures that then led to the October, 1917 Revolution. I will read Barbara Tuchman's book, "The Proud Tower", A Portrait of the World Before the War, 1890-1914.
I will follow that with her book, "The Guns of August".
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Sunday, August 8, 2010
M Liachowcy
I have some question that Iwan Mamiszew, arriving on the Campanello in 1910 from Lechowiec, Russia is our Grandfather Mamyshoff. There are two differing factors: his age on the manifest is 32, and his naturalization papers say he would have been 21 and arrived on the Olympic from Liverpool.
The manifest for the Olympic doesn't show his name, so the key difference is his age. I think there is just one way to ascertain his age, and that would be to determine his town of origin and see if any birth or other records still exist. The women on the Ukrainian chat board have been very helpful, and they have narrowed it down to Lyakhovichi, a small village southwest of Pinsk, province of Brest, in today's Belarus.
The Jewish genealogy site has research on shtetls in eastern Europe, and have some resources on this area. The first is Lyakhovichi. The second is an interesting page on the various spellings of the village and the people originating from there. The names listed are Jewish, and I did see the Silberman family listed, who is the family that was listed on the Oceania manifest right before Anafansi Mamiszew. I am making the assumption that he knew them, since they were in line together, and listed the same origin village. This gives me a little confidence I am on the right track.
The village would have been in the Volhyn province in 1910 and part of the Russian Empire. The Moscow and St. Petersburg areas and East were called Great Russia, the Ukraine was called Little Russia, and the Belarus area was called White Russia. Grandpa's village would have been in the far northwest Ukraine, right on the border then with White Russia. But all of these were part of the Russian Empire, not individual countries.
My next step is to determine what resources I can find to explore for things like his birth certificate and baptism in the Church. This will be a little more difficult. I will start by contacting the Lyakhovichi research group and use the information on the JewishGen website that talks about church records.
I am reading the history of Ukraine, but am still in the 1600's, so have a ways to go until Grandpa was born.
The manifest for the Olympic doesn't show his name, so the key difference is his age. I think there is just one way to ascertain his age, and that would be to determine his town of origin and see if any birth or other records still exist. The women on the Ukrainian chat board have been very helpful, and they have narrowed it down to Lyakhovichi, a small village southwest of Pinsk, province of Brest, in today's Belarus.
The Jewish genealogy site has research on shtetls in eastern Europe, and have some resources on this area. The first is Lyakhovichi. The second is an interesting page on the various spellings of the village and the people originating from there. The names listed are Jewish, and I did see the Silberman family listed, who is the family that was listed on the Oceania manifest right before Anafansi Mamiszew. I am making the assumption that he knew them, since they were in line together, and listed the same origin village. This gives me a little confidence I am on the right track.
The village would have been in the Volhyn province in 1910 and part of the Russian Empire. The Moscow and St. Petersburg areas and East were called Great Russia, the Ukraine was called Little Russia, and the Belarus area was called White Russia. Grandpa's village would have been in the far northwest Ukraine, right on the border then with White Russia. But all of these were part of the Russian Empire, not individual countries.
My next step is to determine what resources I can find to explore for things like his birth certificate and baptism in the Church. This will be a little more difficult. I will start by contacting the Lyakhovichi research group and use the information on the JewishGen website that talks about church records.
I am reading the history of Ukraine, but am still in the 1600's, so have a ways to go until Grandpa was born.
Sunday, August 1, 2010
Kieven Rus'
I have switched to Ukraine a History by Orest Subtelny. So far I have covered the Kievan Rus' period, from 880 to about 1350. Lots of princes and battles, swapping of land and conversion from paganism to Christianity. A good, short overview of this time can be found here.
Kyiv was the center of everything: trade, power, culture. The book also covers this period for Galicia, Belorussia and Vohlyn (western part of Ukraine), which is my main place of interest. Particularly Vohlyn. Ukraine didn't really exist as a nation, as generally defined. It was Kievan Rus', then Lithuaian territory, then Polish territory with the Golden Horde taking over from time to time.
I am now at the period where Poland was trying to Polanize everything under its dominion, such as the land system, language and religion. Poland was Roman Catholic, while Kievan Rus' was Greek Orthodox, due to the Great Schism that occured in 1054. The Roman Catholics were ruled by the Pope, while the Orthodox Christians took their orders from Constantinople.
This religious history also explains the Greek Cyrillic alphabet that is used by most Slavic countries.
Since there was really no form of central government in the early days, religion was the center of everyone's universe. Ukraine, as well as Russia, was originally pagan, then adopted the Greek Orthodox religion. The Greek Orthodox religion segued into Russian Orthodox. Both the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches were very, very powerful in their territories.
When Lithuania took over the western part of Ukraine, it was Orthodox and shared a lot of similarities, so things went fairly well. However, when Poland got involved with Roman Catholicism, this created a lot of tension. From what I understand, this tension still exists. I will learn more as I continue reading.
By the way, the preferred spelling of Kiev is Kyiv.
Revolution and The Battleship Potemkin
I am up to 1905 in my reading on Russia, the year of the first Revolution. Due to the Famine in 1891-1892, peasants were drawn to the major cities to work in factories. The Revolution was sparked by Bloody Sunday in January, when an estimated 100,000 workers marched peacefully on the Winter Palace in St. Petersburg to ask the Tsar for improved working conditions and representative government. The Tsar's army fired at the workers, killing and wounding about 1,000 people.
The unrest soon spread to the countryside and peasants seized and destroyed property. This Revolution caused the Tsar to form the first Duma, or representative government. The Duma ultimately failed around 1912, primarily because the Tsar was unwilling to abdicate his autocracy, believing that he was appointed by God to rule the Russian people as their patriarch.
The unrest also spread to the military. The crew of the battleship Potemkin, in the Black Sea, objected to being fed meat covered with maggots. The ship's doctor said the meat was just fine, and the crew complained to the captain. This resulted in the killing of their spokesman, Vakulenchuk. The crew mutinied, killed several officers and raised a red flag on the ship.
The Potemkin sailed to Odessa, where the sailors laid the body of Vakulenchuk at the base of a long series of marble steps leading from the city to the harbor, where he was paid tribute by the many workers in Odessa that were on strike. Thousands of people gathered at the site.
The government sent in soldiers, shooting at everyone in their path. An estimated 2,000 people were killed and around 3,000 wounded. The Potemkin left the harbor, and eventually surrendered.(A People's Tragedy by Orlando Figes)
The key part of this event was that even some of the military in 1905 was in revolt against the government.
In 1925, the event was immortalized as a propaganda film, the Battleship Potemkin. It is a silent film available as an Instant Play movie on Netflix. You can also read about it here. The scene of the soldiers on the steps to the harbor is chilling. I hope to visit Odessa and see it in person.
The unrest soon spread to the countryside and peasants seized and destroyed property. This Revolution caused the Tsar to form the first Duma, or representative government. The Duma ultimately failed around 1912, primarily because the Tsar was unwilling to abdicate his autocracy, believing that he was appointed by God to rule the Russian people as their patriarch.
The unrest also spread to the military. The crew of the battleship Potemkin, in the Black Sea, objected to being fed meat covered with maggots. The ship's doctor said the meat was just fine, and the crew complained to the captain. This resulted in the killing of their spokesman, Vakulenchuk. The crew mutinied, killed several officers and raised a red flag on the ship.
The Potemkin sailed to Odessa, where the sailors laid the body of Vakulenchuk at the base of a long series of marble steps leading from the city to the harbor, where he was paid tribute by the many workers in Odessa that were on strike. Thousands of people gathered at the site.
The government sent in soldiers, shooting at everyone in their path. An estimated 2,000 people were killed and around 3,000 wounded. The Potemkin left the harbor, and eventually surrendered.(A People's Tragedy by Orlando Figes)
The key part of this event was that even some of the military in 1905 was in revolt against the government.
In 1925, the event was immortalized as a propaganda film, the Battleship Potemkin. It is a silent film available as an Instant Play movie on Netflix. You can also read about it here. The scene of the soldiers on the steps to the harbor is chilling. I hope to visit Odessa and see it in person.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Help is On the Way
I am so excited! I found a Ukrainian website that has a chatboard in English, and it has a genealogy thread. I posted what information I had on Mamiszew from Lechowiec and have received comments from 2 people so far, Hannia and Irene. Both appear very knowledgeable and are trying to help me locate the village.
In the meantime, I am learning a lot of interesting things. For one, the name Mamiszew appears mostly in eastern Ukraine, coming from a Tartar history. I am just fascinated!
Here is the link www.ukraine.com then click on Forum and then scroll down to Genealogy. My name on the forum is fastdogs and you can see the replies. Feel free to sign up and help me post ideas and questions.
In the meantime, I am learning a lot of interesting things. For one, the name Mamiszew appears mostly in eastern Ukraine, coming from a Tartar history. I am just fascinated!
Here is the link www.ukraine.com then click on Forum and then scroll down to Genealogy. My name on the forum is fastdogs and you can see the replies. Feel free to sign up and help me post ideas and questions.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Wolhyn g
On the manifest for the Campanello, Iwan Mamiszew listed his town of origin as Lechowiec, Wohlyn g., Russia. In 1910, Russia was made up of provinces, or gubernia. This would mean that Lechowiec was in the province of Wohlyn, located in what is now northwest Ukraine on the border with Poland and Belarus.
This will help to locate the town or village of Lechowiec, as there are several sound-alike towns in Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. The next step will be to locate a map (in English!) of the Wohlyn province around 1900-1910 so I can see the boundaries that were in place. Wohlyn was partitioned a couple times between Poland, Russia and Ukraine.
Following are some interesting websites about the province.
This site also has an interesting link to the Russian Orthodox Church (Pochayiv Lavra). I will research that in a comimg blog. Mom said Grandpa was a practicing Russian Orthodox, so maybe there will be some church records somewhere in the Ukraine to find. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volhynia
http://www.volhynia.com/history.html
http://www.kresy.co.uk/wolyn.html
http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0851120.html
This will help to locate the town or village of Lechowiec, as there are several sound-alike towns in Poland, Belarus and Ukraine. The next step will be to locate a map (in English!) of the Wohlyn province around 1900-1910 so I can see the boundaries that were in place. Wohlyn was partitioned a couple times between Poland, Russia and Ukraine.
Following are some interesting websites about the province.
This site also has an interesting link to the Russian Orthodox Church (Pochayiv Lavra). I will research that in a comimg blog. Mom said Grandpa was a practicing Russian Orthodox, so maybe there will be some church records somewhere in the Ukraine to find. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Volhynia
http://www.volhynia.com/history.html
http://www.kresy.co.uk/wolyn.html
http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0851120.html
Saturday, July 17, 2010
Brother where art thou?
Here is an interesting bit of information.
Since I am going forwad with Iwan Maniszew, I thought I would seek his brother as stated on the Campanello passenger list.
On September 13, 1912 on the ship Saxonia from Liverpool to New York, was a passenger named Afanasy Mameszew. He was 39, male, occupation listed as agriculture, could read and write and had a wife, Zefinija (?) Mameszew in Ljatowce, Russia. He had $225 in his pocket and was headed to Peabody, Massachusetts to see his brother, John Mamiszew.
My mother says that Grandpa received a letter from his brother warning him that if he returned to Russia he would be arrested. I am thinking it is more likely he got a letter from within the United States than one from the Ukraine. If his brother came over 2 years later, he would have information on what was going on at home.
Since I am going forwad with Iwan Maniszew, I thought I would seek his brother as stated on the Campanello passenger list.
On September 13, 1912 on the ship Saxonia from Liverpool to New York, was a passenger named Afanasy Mameszew. He was 39, male, occupation listed as agriculture, could read and write and had a wife, Zefinija (?) Mameszew in Ljatowce, Russia. He had $225 in his pocket and was headed to Peabody, Massachusetts to see his brother, John Mamiszew.
My mother says that Grandpa received a letter from his brother warning him that if he returned to Russia he would be arrested. I am thinking it is more likely he got a letter from within the United States than one from the Ukraine. If his brother came over 2 years later, he would have information on what was going on at home.
Olympic or Campanello
On Grandpa's Declaration of Intention, he stated that he arrived at New York on June 27, 1910. Next to the year, in parentheses, is 1911. His ship was the Olympic of the White Star Line, and he traveled as a 3rd class passenger. He purchased the ticket in Newburg, Germany and was going to Haverhill, Massachusetts.
The Olympic
The Olympic's maiden voyage started from Southhampton, England on June 14, 1911 and ended in New York on June 21, 1911. I don't think it is a big deal that the day was off by 6 days, nor the year 1910 or 1911, as the Declaration was filled out 19-20 years later. The question is whether or not he was on this ship.
I looked at Ellis Island ship manifest on this voyage, and just a handful of Russians were aboard. It lists 1,472 passengers. I don't know how complete the Ellis Island list is, but that is a lot of passengers, so I am thinking it must be fairly complete. No Mamyshew or anything like it is listed.
Another Olympic passenger list I found on the internet says that the first trip had 1,325 passengers: 408 First Class, 307 Second Class and 609 Third Class. This list has all the names, and shows by class of travel. Again, there are just a few Russians on board, and most traveled 3rd class. There is no name even close to Mamyshew and no Iwans or Ivans.
Campanello
The Campanello traveled from Hamburg-Rotterdam-Halifax-New York. Through a process of searches on the Ellis Island site, the closest match on phonetics and spelling with Ivan Mammyshoff is Iwan Mamishev who arrived on the Campanello on December 29, 1910.
Iwan's manifest information is: male, single aged 32; laborer, could read and write, from Lechowiec, Wolhyn g, Russia, closest relative is brother Affanasi Mamiszew that lives in Lechowiec; going to Peabody, Massachusetts to be with cousin Eugenie Hawisch (best I can make out) who lives at 34 Walnut Street. He had $225, was not a polygamist or anarchist, was 5'6" with brown eyes, grey hair and fair complexion; was in good health, not deformed or crippled and had no identifying marks.
Which Ship?
Based on this research, I have to go with Iwan on the Campanello. The Olympic appears to be a more "fashionable" ship, with almost all passengers from England, US, Ireland and France. I am guessing there was a lot of publicity on its maiden voyage and then its sister ship, Titanic, of the White Star Line was of course big news in 1912. Maybe Grandpa just liked that history better.
The information on Iwan Mamiszew on the Campanello matches up, particularly the town of Lechowiec, Russia. The ship was filled with immigrants from Russia. The main discrepancy is the age: 32. That would have him born in 1879, not 1889.
On his Declaration in 1939 he states his hair is white. At that time he was just 49, which seems a little bit young for all white hair. I suspect he fudged his age by 10 years after he settled in the US.
Haverhill, Massachusetts is just 22 miles from Peabody, Mass. Hamburg, Germany or Rotterdam, Netherlands is a more likely departure city coming from the Ukraine and the number of Russians on board the Campanello indicate it was a known port.
I think I will go forward with this premise: he arrived in 1911 on the Campanello; was 32, had a brother Afanasy and was from Lechowiec, Wolhyn g, Russia.
The Olympic
The Olympic's maiden voyage started from Southhampton, England on June 14, 1911 and ended in New York on June 21, 1911. I don't think it is a big deal that the day was off by 6 days, nor the year 1910 or 1911, as the Declaration was filled out 19-20 years later. The question is whether or not he was on this ship.
I looked at Ellis Island ship manifest on this voyage, and just a handful of Russians were aboard. It lists 1,472 passengers. I don't know how complete the Ellis Island list is, but that is a lot of passengers, so I am thinking it must be fairly complete. No Mamyshew or anything like it is listed.
Another Olympic passenger list I found on the internet says that the first trip had 1,325 passengers: 408 First Class, 307 Second Class and 609 Third Class. This list has all the names, and shows by class of travel. Again, there are just a few Russians on board, and most traveled 3rd class. There is no name even close to Mamyshew and no Iwans or Ivans.
Campanello
The Campanello traveled from Hamburg-Rotterdam-Halifax-New York. Through a process of searches on the Ellis Island site, the closest match on phonetics and spelling with Ivan Mammyshoff is Iwan Mamishev who arrived on the Campanello on December 29, 1910.
Iwan's manifest information is: male, single aged 32; laborer, could read and write, from Lechowiec, Wolhyn g, Russia, closest relative is brother Affanasi Mamiszew that lives in Lechowiec; going to Peabody, Massachusetts to be with cousin Eugenie Hawisch (best I can make out) who lives at 34 Walnut Street. He had $225, was not a polygamist or anarchist, was 5'6" with brown eyes, grey hair and fair complexion; was in good health, not deformed or crippled and had no identifying marks.
Which Ship?
Based on this research, I have to go with Iwan on the Campanello. The Olympic appears to be a more "fashionable" ship, with almost all passengers from England, US, Ireland and France. I am guessing there was a lot of publicity on its maiden voyage and then its sister ship, Titanic, of the White Star Line was of course big news in 1912. Maybe Grandpa just liked that history better.
The information on Iwan Mamiszew on the Campanello matches up, particularly the town of Lechowiec, Russia. The ship was filled with immigrants from Russia. The main discrepancy is the age: 32. That would have him born in 1879, not 1889.
On his Declaration in 1939 he states his hair is white. At that time he was just 49, which seems a little bit young for all white hair. I suspect he fudged his age by 10 years after he settled in the US.
Haverhill, Massachusetts is just 22 miles from Peabody, Mass. Hamburg, Germany or Rotterdam, Netherlands is a more likely departure city coming from the Ukraine and the number of Russians on board the Campanello indicate it was a known port.
I think I will go forward with this premise: he arrived in 1911 on the Campanello; was 32, had a brother Afanasy and was from Lechowiec, Wolhyn g, Russia.
Application for Citizenship
Linda sent me 3 documents. When I figure out how to get them posted, I will.
The first document is dated March 6, 1939 and is called "Application For A Certificate of Arrival and Preliminary Form For A Declaration of Intention". This form was filed with the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Omaha, Nebraska and was used to start the process of becoming a US citizen.
On this form, which was filled out by hand (in beautiful handwriting), it states that Ivan Mamyshew arrived in the United States at New York City, New York on June 27, 1910 on the vessel Olympic of the White Star Line. He listed himself as a 3rd class passenger, leaving from Liverpool, England. He purchased the ticket in Newburg, Germany.
He was examined at Ellis Island, and was coming to be with Nickita Krochmalniz in Haverhill, Massachusets. It says he was traveling with Ivan Baschicz (I think).
It says he was born in M. Liachowey, Russia on November 7, 1889. At this time he was 49 years old, white, dark complexion, with brown eyes and white hair. He was 5' 8" and weighed 175 pounds. He stated his race as Ukrainian, nationality as Russian.
His father's name was Michael Mamyshew and his mother was Solomania Seviatetzoci (the best I can make out). He signed the document as John Mamyshoff.
At this time, he lived at 508 North 22nd Street in Council Bluffs, Iowa, was married to Romana (date of marriage August 23, 1922) who was born at Radomia, Poland on October 26, 1900. To the left of the town is written "vilich Radominie" and city is crossed out.
He lists 3 children: Wladimir Walter, Helen Marie and Dolores Jean.
Some of the names are hard to make out, so I have done the best I can on interpreting.
The first document is dated March 6, 1939 and is called "Application For A Certificate of Arrival and Preliminary Form For A Declaration of Intention". This form was filed with the Immigration and Naturalization Service in Omaha, Nebraska and was used to start the process of becoming a US citizen.
On this form, which was filled out by hand (in beautiful handwriting), it states that Ivan Mamyshew arrived in the United States at New York City, New York on June 27, 1910 on the vessel Olympic of the White Star Line. He listed himself as a 3rd class passenger, leaving from Liverpool, England. He purchased the ticket in Newburg, Germany.
He was examined at Ellis Island, and was coming to be with Nickita Krochmalniz in Haverhill, Massachusets. It says he was traveling with Ivan Baschicz (I think).
It says he was born in M. Liachowey, Russia on November 7, 1889. At this time he was 49 years old, white, dark complexion, with brown eyes and white hair. He was 5' 8" and weighed 175 pounds. He stated his race as Ukrainian, nationality as Russian.
His father's name was Michael Mamyshew and his mother was Solomania Seviatetzoci (the best I can make out). He signed the document as John Mamyshoff.
At this time, he lived at 508 North 22nd Street in Council Bluffs, Iowa, was married to Romana (date of marriage August 23, 1922) who was born at Radomia, Poland on October 26, 1900. To the left of the town is written "vilich Radominie" and city is crossed out.
He lists 3 children: Wladimir Walter, Helen Marie and Dolores Jean.
Some of the names are hard to make out, so I have done the best I can on interpreting.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Russian Famine
I am reading "A People's Tragedy...The Russian Revolution 1891-1924" by Orlando Figes, a fascinating book filled with research on the movement towards socialism. My current knowledge of Russia can be summed up as the Tsars ruled Russia, they had great Fabrege eggs and interesting architecture, there was a revolution (Dr Zhivago), the Tsar and family were executed, Communists took over and the rest is bad.
As I read, I am learning that the last Tsar wasn't that great and Russia could easily have developed into a democracy except for some fatal errors by the Tsarist government. A key event was the Great Famine of 1891. The Ukraine area, particularly along the Volga river, was prime agriculture land. Due to lack of rain and snow, the crops failed, causing the famine. The Tsarist government responded very poorly, resulting in the people of Russia working together to feed everyone.
http://http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_famine_of_1891-2
A big player in organizing the people's effort during the Famine was Leo Tolstoy ("War and Peace"; "Anna Karenina"). "Anna Karenina" is one of my favorite books, I have read it at least 5 times. The character Prince Levin is apparently a very realistic description of the class struggle between the landed estates and peasants. I will have to re-read it.
I bought "War and Peace" several years ago, but haven't yet tackled it. I was feeling very literary when I bought it, but that faded quickly. Looks good on the bookshelf, though.
There was a lot going on in Russia in the late 19th century. Peasants were heading to the cities to get jobs in factories, college students (always the first group, I think) were becoming active, peasants were starting to get a little education and Populist groups were popping up.
From what I am reading, the Russian Empire was vast and encompassed many different cultures, languages, conflicts and classes. So a broad statement like "Grandpa left because of the Revolution" may be accurate, but it would be like saying someone left the United States in 1866 because of the Civil War. To guess a motive, it would make a difference if the American was living in Atlanta or New York.
Was Grandpa a landowner or a peasant? Was he a soldier or a student? Living in the Ukraine would be a different evironment than Poland or St. Petersburg. Maybe members of his family died in the Famine and the ensuing cholera epidemic. This makes it all the more important to track down his town of origin and his family's occupation. Also his correct age. During the Famine he was either 2 or 13.
Linda is sending me some documents that I should get today. I will post them this weekend.
As I read, I am learning that the last Tsar wasn't that great and Russia could easily have developed into a democracy except for some fatal errors by the Tsarist government. A key event was the Great Famine of 1891. The Ukraine area, particularly along the Volga river, was prime agriculture land. Due to lack of rain and snow, the crops failed, causing the famine. The Tsarist government responded very poorly, resulting in the people of Russia working together to feed everyone.
http://http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_famine_of_1891-2
A big player in organizing the people's effort during the Famine was Leo Tolstoy ("War and Peace"; "Anna Karenina"). "Anna Karenina" is one of my favorite books, I have read it at least 5 times. The character Prince Levin is apparently a very realistic description of the class struggle between the landed estates and peasants. I will have to re-read it.
I bought "War and Peace" several years ago, but haven't yet tackled it. I was feeling very literary when I bought it, but that faded quickly. Looks good on the bookshelf, though.
There was a lot going on in Russia in the late 19th century. Peasants were heading to the cities to get jobs in factories, college students (always the first group, I think) were becoming active, peasants were starting to get a little education and Populist groups were popping up.
From what I am reading, the Russian Empire was vast and encompassed many different cultures, languages, conflicts and classes. So a broad statement like "Grandpa left because of the Revolution" may be accurate, but it would be like saying someone left the United States in 1866 because of the Civil War. To guess a motive, it would make a difference if the American was living in Atlanta or New York.
Was Grandpa a landowner or a peasant? Was he a soldier or a student? Living in the Ukraine would be a different evironment than Poland or St. Petersburg. Maybe members of his family died in the Famine and the ensuing cholera epidemic. This makes it all the more important to track down his town of origin and his family's occupation. Also his correct age. During the Famine he was either 2 or 13.
Linda is sending me some documents that I should get today. I will post them this weekend.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Lechowiec
I did a search on google maps for Lechowiec. There is a Lachowice, Poland that is southwest of Krakow. There is also a Lachowice Podrozne, Ukraine. I think in 1910 the area in Poland was part of the Russian Empire, as was the Ukraine, which was called Little Russia.
I emailed the Boston center on the name of the town. More investigation required.
I emailed the Boston center on the name of the town. More investigation required.
Boston
Aha! found a site right away to help me, the Russian American Cultural Center of Greater Boston at www.raccboston.org The first thing I want to try to find is the city of Lechowiec in Russia. I am assuming it is in the Ukraine, and must be renamed by now. There were several passengers on the Campanello from there, so it must have been a town of some substance. I will contact the director at the Boston organization and see what she knows. If it looks like there is good information there, maybe I will fly there and spend a day.
Ellis Island
I decided to start with the Ellis Island information at http://www.ellisisland.org/ with a simple search by typing in Ivan Mamyshoff, with Ivan being the Russian name for John. Many last names came up with matches by sound, so I started with the top five. Amazingly, the first one looked to be a match, way to go Ellis Island search engine!
The name is Iwan Mamiszew. I read somewhere that the spellings reflected German phonetics, with the "w" being a "v". This Iwan is listed as arriving on December 29, 1910 on the ship Campanello from Rotterdam, Holland. Pulling up his record, he is listed as age 32 from Lechowiec, Russia. Looking on the ship's manifest, he is 5'8" with gray hair. His destination is listed as Massachusetts. His number on the manifest is line 28.
On his line, it says he has $225. That would be quite a bit of money.
The image of the manifest is difficult to read, it will take me some time to interpret the handwriting style. I will order the hard copies of pages 97 and 98.
Good news! The manifest requires who and where the passenger is going, as well as his father's name. More clues.
I noticed two other passengers from Lechowiec: Philip Bondar, 19, and Lawrenti Puczenczuk, 26 . He came over with friends?? Lots of Russians on board with many of them going to Boston. Must have been a community there; will check that out, too.
Now I have a conflict. The family story is that he came over on the Olympic, one of the 3 big ships of the White Star Line, with the doomed sister ship Titanic. However, Olympic's maiden voyage looks to be in 1911 from England and France. I looked at the passenger list and didn't see any Russians, while the Campanello had lots. Plus, I was told he was born in 1889, which would make him 21 or 22 in 1910 rather than 32. This Iwan had grey hair. Hmmmm.
Will make some family inquiries. All of the information seems to match except age and ship.
The name is Iwan Mamiszew. I read somewhere that the spellings reflected German phonetics, with the "w" being a "v". This Iwan is listed as arriving on December 29, 1910 on the ship Campanello from Rotterdam, Holland. Pulling up his record, he is listed as age 32 from Lechowiec, Russia. Looking on the ship's manifest, he is 5'8" with gray hair. His destination is listed as Massachusetts. His number on the manifest is line 28.
On his line, it says he has $225. That would be quite a bit of money.
The image of the manifest is difficult to read, it will take me some time to interpret the handwriting style. I will order the hard copies of pages 97 and 98.
Good news! The manifest requires who and where the passenger is going, as well as his father's name. More clues.
I noticed two other passengers from Lechowiec: Philip Bondar, 19, and Lawrenti Puczenczuk, 26 . He came over with friends?? Lots of Russians on board with many of them going to Boston. Must have been a community there; will check that out, too.
Now I have a conflict. The family story is that he came over on the Olympic, one of the 3 big ships of the White Star Line, with the doomed sister ship Titanic. However, Olympic's maiden voyage looks to be in 1911 from England and France. I looked at the passenger list and didn't see any Russians, while the Campanello had lots. Plus, I was told he was born in 1889, which would make him 21 or 22 in 1910 rather than 32. This Iwan had grey hair. Hmmmm.
Will make some family inquiries. All of the information seems to match except age and ship.
Monday, July 12, 2010
The Plan
I need a plan.
First, I will gather all public documents and see what I can learn from them.
First, I will gather all public documents and see what I can learn from them.
Mystery
My grandfather was Russian. The family story is that he escaped from Russia hidden in a wagon of hay, made his way to Germany and crossed the Atlantic in one of the White Line ships, Olympic, in 1910. He arrived at Ellis Island at age 22, spent some time in Boston and went on to Chicago. Eventually he settled in Council Bluffs, Iowa and married my grandmother, Romana Cierlinski, a Polish immigrant.
They had 3 children: my uncle Walter, my mother Helen and my aunt Dolores. He was a chef at the Blackstone Hotel in Omaha, Nebraska. When my mother was around 18, he was killed crossing a street by a drunk driver. That is all I know.
My mother tells me that he spoke little of his background and like most immigrants in the early part of the 20th century, he just wanted to be American.
I am American because he was seeking a new life, or something better or more hopeful. The hay wagon story implies he was in danger. What would he fear so strongly he would leave his family, home and country and cross an ocean to a totally foreign country? Why come to America and not Germany or France or England?
My grandfather is my personal mystery. I am on a search for My Russian Roots.
They had 3 children: my uncle Walter, my mother Helen and my aunt Dolores. He was a chef at the Blackstone Hotel in Omaha, Nebraska. When my mother was around 18, he was killed crossing a street by a drunk driver. That is all I know.
My mother tells me that he spoke little of his background and like most immigrants in the early part of the 20th century, he just wanted to be American.
I am American because he was seeking a new life, or something better or more hopeful. The hay wagon story implies he was in danger. What would he fear so strongly he would leave his family, home and country and cross an ocean to a totally foreign country? Why come to America and not Germany or France or England?
My grandfather is my personal mystery. I am on a search for My Russian Roots.
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