My husband and i are looking at going to Poland next summer. Mainly because my great-grandfather came through Ellis Island from Poland. I would love to go to his hometown. THe problem is, I am very unfamiliar with Polish cities. I have a WWI draft card (that I got from ancestry.com) that has his hometown listed on it, but it is old and hard to read. I am looking for some help to decipher (best guess) the hometown. If you are willing to help, I will email you the image of the draft card! Thanks ahead of time!
Nicole
Posted by
Tulsa, OK
276 posts
Me too :) I've sent you a PM with my email address.
Posted by
San Francisco
15135 posts
Hi, WW I draft card...is it written in German (Fraktur) or Russian? I'll help if I can.
Posted by
OP
North Dallas, TX, USA
153 posts
The draft card is in English. He had already immigrated to the US at that point! My email is [email protected]. I can't attach the document on here :(
any help is welcome!
Posted by
Philadelphia, PA, USA
553 posts
Nicole, I think your proposed trip sounds intriguing. When my husband and I explored the possibility of visiting his ancestors' towns of origin, we learned that because of changing national borders, the home town that was in one country many years ago had become part of another country. Towns also changed names, and in some cases, disappeared during the world wars. We also found information through immigration and naturalization records and the US census. Searching for information about ancestors can be addicting. Good luck.
Posted by
San Francisco
15135 posts
Hi, Got it. Sorry, I misunderstood.
Posted by
OP
North Dallas, TX, USA
153 posts
Ok all, I have spent all day searching and with your help I am thinking that the writing states Slupca Poland. I searched another genealogy site and it clearly states Slupca. https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1971-26324-12709-72?cc=1968530&wc=M9SG-WSX:n1593045538 Here is the link to the easier to read one! THank you for all your help!!
Nicole
Posted by
Tulsa, OK
276 posts
Woohoo! That's wonderful! I just looked it up and it's relatively close to Poznan which, though I never visited, I've heard from friends is quite pretty and has a thriving art scene. So glad you figured it out. I hope you have a great trip! :)
Posted by
San Francisco
15135 posts
Hi, It's near to Poznan, as pointed out above, actually east of Poznan, which means he was born in the Russian controlled area. That's why it stated Slupca, Poland.
Posted by
Philadelphia, PA, USA
106 posts
As a suggestion, if you decide to visit your great-grandfather's hometown and do some research, you may want to hire a personal guide to help. We went to Poland last year to find my husband's grandmother's birthplace. We had the name of the town that she was born in. Luckily, I arranged ahead of time to get help from a guide in Poland. If we would not have had her help, we never would have found as much as we did. In some of the small towns, it is difficult to find people that speak English. In addition, someone local will know where to go, who to talk to, etc. The company I used is called Ancestral Attic - www.ancestralattic.com. We had 1 tour guide from them for the Warsaw area, and 1 for Poznan. I can't say enough good things about them. They arranged everything for us - hotel, transportation, etc. They also contacted the church in advance to arrange for our visit to look through the records, etc. We also discovered that records prior to a certain year are shipped off to a central location - usually in a big city. So, you may not find anything in his actual hometown, but have to go to the central record location. Hiring someone in advance can help you sort through all of that.