The Spiraling Chains: Kowalski - Bellan Family Trees
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Census Sunday: Casimer and Veronica Kowalski, 1940

8/30/2014

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On this day in 1915, my paternal grandfather, Casimer John Kowalski, was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Polish immigrants Dominik and Wladyslawa ('Lottie') Kowalski.  He was the youngest of four boys and the only member of his family born in America.  He married Veronica Bodziony in Cleveland in 1939.  Here is the 1940 U.S. Census in which they are listed (click for larger view):
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1940 U.S. Census: Casimer and Veronica Kowalski
In 1940, Cas and Veronica are living at 6601 Hoppensack Ave on Cleveland's east side.  They had remained in the same neighborhood in which they grew up; both of their parents are still living on E. 65th and E. 63rd Streets, just right around the corner from Hoppensack Ave.
Here is what the home looked like about five years ago, according to Google Street View.  The front siding and windows are obviously newer in make, but the house probably looks much like it did in 1940. (According to real estate data, it was built in 1900.)  Some of the older wooden siding can be seen on the side where the newer siding has come off.  Unfortunately, like this house, many houses in this area of the city have become run-down and/or abandoned. 
According to the census form, Cas and Veronica rented living space from the home's owners and residents, Frank and Anna Kontor, who were Polish immigrants.  My grandfather was working as an inspector in a cast iron foundry.  You can see, by glancing at the occupations of the other residents on the census form, that this was a very blue-collar, industry-dependent neighborhood.

UPDATE (11 Dec 2014): Since August, Google has updated this particular street's Street View images. Because the photo above uses a widget to pull directly from the current database, it updates when the images update. As you can see, the home in which my grandparents lived has been torn down. I am so, so glad that I took screen shots of the previous images, and saved them on my hard drive. Here is what the house looked like:
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©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Wordless Wednesday: Kowalski Honeymoon, July 1939

7/15/2014

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My paternal grandparents, Casimer and Veronica (Bodziony) Kowalski, July 1939
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Cas Kowalski
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Veronica Bodziony Kowalski
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The Photo I Gave To My Grandfather

4/27/2014

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Today, the Catholic Church is canonizing Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II. In 1997, when I was 18 years old, I was fortunate enough to visit The Vatican City and attend the Feast of Saints Peter and Paul, at which Pope John Paul II presided.  Somehow, as our group was filing into the seating rows in St. Peter's Basilica, I managed to get an aisle seat.  I was literally close enough to touch him and I was able to take some great photos.  

After the trip, I gave this particular photo to my Grandpa Kowalski.  I think my mom gave him a little frame for it and it sat on one of his TV room side tables for the rest of his life.  My grandfather was the son of Polish Catholic immigrants, so you can imagine the pride he felt in having a Polish man as the head of the Catholic Church.
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Photo I took of Pope John Paul II and then gave to my grandfather. ©Emily Kowalski Schroeder
Here is the "ticket" we were given to be admitted to the Mass that morning.
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©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Wordless Wednesday: Dominik Kowalski, October 1951

4/22/2014

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My Great-Grandfather, Dominik Kowalski, age 66, Phoenix, Arizona.
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Sports Saturday: Hockey Brothers

4/18/2014

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The NHL playoffs started this past week, so I thought I would share a couple of 'now and then' photos of my three brothers in their hockey gear.  The first one was taken in the early 1990s when they were all playing in our town's youth hockey program, and the second one was taken a couple of years ago at one of their rec league events.
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The Kowalski Brothers, early 1990s
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National Siblings Day

4/10/2014

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Today, April 10th, is National Siblings Day. I grew up with four younger siblings, so there was never a dull moment in our house.  I used today as an excuse to scan and post a few photos of me and my siblings.  
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All of us from 2007.  I was pregnant with my son at the time.
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June 1980 with my newborn baby brother. I was 18 months old.
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Me and my brother, March 1981.  Rockin' the hoodies.
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Two of my younger brothers checking out my new Lego set, November 1989.
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Me with my brother, summer 1990. (Omg, yes I am wearing a 'Bartman' t-shirt.)
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My brother and I with our new baby sister, late November 1990.
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Me and my sister, 1995. We are on our grandmother's front lawn.
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Me and my sister, Christmas 1998.  (And yes, I am wearing a WWF Championship Belt :-))
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Me with our dog, Cookie, 1998.  Because I will always consider her one of my 'siblings.'

©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Wordless Wednesday: Fun in the Crib, November 1981

3/25/2014

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Me (age 3), and my little brother, Mike (age 18 months), November, 1981
©2014, Copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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It's National Hugging Day!

1/21/2014

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Today, January 21, is National Hugging Day.  I think I have posted this photo on my personal Facebook page in the past, but it has never made it to the blog.  It is me, my brother, and three of our cousins hugging, probably around 1984ish.  Give out some good hugs today!
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©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Wordless Wednesday: Pajama Time, January 1981

1/14/2014

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My brother and I looking awesome in our jammies, 33 years ago this month.
©2014, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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Dominik Kowalski's Certificate of Citizenship

12/29/2013

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One of my paternal great-grandfathers, Dominik Kowalski, first came to America from Poland in 1912.  HOWEVER, a few months ago, I found a couple of 1929 ship manifests in which Dominik is also listed.  He is on a United Kingdom incoming passenger list from 14 Jun 1929, in which he is listed 'In transit to Gdynia."  He returns to New York on 27 Aug 1929.  It was a short trip back to Poland, and I noticed on the U.K. list that he was accompanied by a couple with the surname of Balicki, which was his wife's maiden name.  (Click on images for larger versions.)
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Dominik Kowalski in June 1929 U.K. Incoming Passengers List
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Dominik Kowalski in Aug 1929 New York Incoming Passengers List
So, why did he go back?  Was he just accompanying some in-laws for the trip, or was there another purpose?  Did a close family member pass away, perhaps?  I may never figure out the answer, but since he was not yet a citizen in 1929 when he re-entered the country, a visa file should have been opened for him. (Between 1924 and 1944, visa files were created for every immigrant entering the U.S.)  Visa files often contain more information that what is just simply listed in naturalization papers, so I was eager to obtain them, if indeed they did exist.

I went on the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) Genealogy website and ordered an index search for Dominik Kowalski.  The search is supposed to return all file numbers for the immigrant in question.  My search returned a C-File number for Dominik, but no visa file number. The C-File includes a person's citizenship papers, such as the Declaration of Intention and Petition for Naturalization.  I already had copies of these documents for Dominik, but I went ahead and ordered a copy of his C-File anyway, in the hopes that maybe some visa documents would be found in his there as well.  I recently received Dominik's C-File documents from the USCIS, but unfortunately, no visa documents were included.  I did, however, get a copy of his Certificate of Citizenship, which I did not previously have and which included a nice photo of him.  I do have a couple of photos of him as a senior citizen, but this one was taken when he was much younger.  
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Dominik Kowalski's Certificate of Citizenship (1932)
So, while I didn't get any visa documents, going through the whole process was worth it for a copy of his Citizenship Certificate.  I'm not sure why he didn't have a visa file - maybe it was because he had already been living successfully in the U.S. for 17 years, and had filed his Declaration of Intention to become a citizen back in 1925 before this trip to Poland.  I AM pretty confident that he had to fill out some paperwork in order to take this trip (and be able to come back), but, at this point, I'm not sure how to go about finding it.  Will take further digging, I'm sure.

©2013, copyright Emily Kowalski Schroeder
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