Birth Place Assistance - Nowakowski

Hello All:

New poster here.
I've exhausted my capabilities at familysearch, ancestry et. al. Perhaps I can find some new luck here.

I'm at a brick wall at my great-great grandparents.

Their names were: Szczepan Nowakowski and Franciszka Markuszewska

Stephen was born 27 Dec 1876.
Frances was born in 1879.

They lived from 1910 on in Wheeling, WV. I'm not sure where they lived between immigrating and 1910; if anywhere else at all.
They only had 1 daughter while living in Poland - Helena.

I'm hoping to have a professional polish researcher pull birth, marriage, etc records for me - if I could find the local parish for their home town.

Unfortunately, I've been unable to decipher what their hometown is.

I'll post links to the passenger list for each of them. As well as attach screen-shots.

The earlier American records list their birth country as "Russ.Polish." Later on, it was just Poland. (I'm not a total newbie - I know generally of Poland's history and division. Just posting the above for clarity.)

Frances arrived sometime AFTER Stephen on 22 May 1909 with her daughter Helena.
interactive.ancestry.com/7488/NYT715_1271-0732/4033158122
(line 18)

libertyellisfoundation.org/passenger-details/czoxMjoiMTAxNjAyMDkwMzc4Ijs=/czo4OiJtYW5pZmVzdCI7
(line 18 on image 152, 151)

The things I need help reading:
1. It looks like her last residence was "Likori" Russia.
2. The relative listed is her mother-in-law - but I cannot decipher the name. I'd guess Daria/Deria Nowakowska. It would be amazing to know, as this is Stephen's mom and I do not have any information on her.

3. For Frances' birthplace on the second page, it looks perhaps like "Brala" or "Brila" Russia.

Stephen:
I'm actually unsure as to the passenger list for Stephen.

The census' have different dates for his arrival.
In the 1910 census, it was listed as 1902. (Seems weird he would be here 7 years before Frances came?)
1920 census - immigration year looks like it says 'un'
1930 census - immigration year 1892 which looks very wrong.

1 possibility 1903 (a year off). Age would be ~2 years off. And the destination is listed as Cleveland, Oh. Which is a few hours away from his home in Wheeling, WV

libertyellisfoundation.org/passenger-details/czoxMjoiMTAyNjQ5MDYwNzk2Ijs=/czo4OiJtYW5pZmVzdCI7

2nd one - I don't think this is a possibility. Destination of Pittsburgh PA is promising, but I remember from my research another Szczepan Nowakowski who lived his life in Pittsburgh. Plus the age is 8+ years off.

libertyellisfoundation.org/passenger-details/czoxMjoiMTAyNjQyMDIwMzQwIjs=/czo4OiJtYW5pZmVzdCI7

3rd Is pretty much spot on for his age - and close to the 1902 date first listed (1905). But I do NOT recognize the destination location. I wish it had more information (name of last relative, etc.)

libertyellisfoundation.org/passenger-details/czoxMjoiMTA0MTE0MDQxMDUwIjs=/czo4OiJtYW5pZmVzdCI7

Sorry for the overload of information.

Any help at all is appreciated..
I'm not expecting help locating Stephen's passenger list -- but it would definitely be a help if someone can read Frances' entry and answer questions 1,2 and 3 above.

THANK YOU for any help!

Franciszka:


I see on Ellis Passenger Record "Sikori" as last residence instead. However I don't recognize the exact name both in Russia or Poland. It might be "Sikory" though. But I'm not sure of course.

Sikory - seven villages in Poland:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sikory

Her birthplace for me looks like Biala (Polish pronunciation - Biała)
In Poland is one Biała town, and several villages with that name:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bia%C5%82a_Prudnicka
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bia%C5%82a


Probably Daria - it's known first name in Poland. Where you see the record about Daria Nowakowaska? I can't see such name on 18 line.

There's only stated that Franciszka will join her husband Szczepan Nowakowski.

Szczepan records:


I think, the destination is Stamford, CT, Pacific St. 89
I can't recognize his last residence unfortunately, seems like Rochi - but no such town I've found.

Hello Looker:

Thank you for your response.


Disheartening about Sikory - I would not know where to begin to narrow it down.


I will attach a screenshot. It was column 10 on the first page of her record -- where it asks for the name of the closest relative from whence they came.


This is what throws me about this record and why I hesitate to decide that this was his. The birth date is spot on at 1876. The immigration date is off by 3 years - but he had personally listed at least 2 disparate immigration dates on american records, so who's to really say.

The problem is the first information I have on his residence is the 1910 census - which puts him in Wheeling, WV. Where he ended up living the rest of his life.

I can not yet account for the years between 1905-1910 in this case. He could very well have been in Connecticut.. I just have 0 documentation that supports that as of now.

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Now I see - it was on the next manifest page. Yes - it seems Daria Nowakowska is stated there.
What I noticed yet is the name Helena - right behind Franciszka Nowakowska. It seems to be Helena Nowakowska, 9 year old girl. Maybe a daughter?

Yes! The 1910 census lists that she had 8 children in Poland.. Apparently only Helen survived.

Are you sure 'Sikori' is a place name? To me it looks as if it is the family name (probably maiden name?) of the mother.

familysearch.org/search/record/results?count=20&query=%2Bgivenname%3AMaria~%20%2Bsurname%3ASikori~

@TheOther - Yes, I was fairly certain at least.

The first time Sikori is listed, it is in the column for their last address. In the second box, it's asking for the name AND ADDRESS of the closest relative from whence they came. So she lists her mother-in-law, and the town Sikori again. I'm assuming they lived with/near Stephen's mother in Sikori.

Re: the location, a poster from another forum (Elzbieta) has a hypothesis that would put the 3 locations near each-other.

1) Sikori or Sikory or Sikórz (what is listed as the last address/mother-in-law's addresss)
2) Biala (listed as Frances' birthplace)
3) X... ynowo, Murzynowo (I see the first letter M) [listed as daughter Helena's birth place]

I found such "constellation" near Płock.
1.
Sikórz - wieś w Polsce położona w województwie mazowieckim, w powiecie płockim, w gminie Brudzeń Duży.
pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sik%C3%B3rz_%28wojew%C3%B3dztwo_mazowieckie%29
2.
Biała - wieś w Polsce położona w województwie mazowieckim, w powiecie płockim, siedziba gminy Stara Biała.
pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bia%C5%82a_%28wojew%C3%B3dztwo_mazowieckie%29
3.
Murzynowo - wieś w Polsce położona w województwie mazowieckim, w powiecie płockim, w gminie Brudzeń Duży
pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Murzynowo_%28wojew%C3%B3dztwo_mazowieckie%29

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NOWAKOWSKI: probably originated as a topo tag for someone from Nowaki or Nowakowo. (Newmanville).

MARKUSZEWSKI: same here but this time from a locality once called Markuszew (now Markuszów).

@Polonius3 - thanks, I will note that...

I did find a wiki entry on markuszewski - but who knows if there is a connection.

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Markuszewski

It also lists them in this page on the Lewart Clan:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewart_coat_of_arms

The information on the Lewart clan merely means that at some point someone named Markuszewski had acquired membership of the Lewart clan. It could have been acquired for some feat of valour, inherited patrilineally, or obtained through ennoblement, adoption, marriage or some other circumstance. Determining whether your particular line of the Markuszewski family enjoyed szlachta (gentry) status would be quite a challenging (and pricey!) proposition and require the services of a good genealogist and/or heraldic expert.

in fact the name Nowak or Nowakowski was very often giving to those who converted to Christianity from Judaism.

Hello Rozumiemnic:

Interesting fact.. Is there any documentation of this practice that you know of?
I always wondered. My DNA test matched with ~5% European Jewish. I had thought I identified a g-g uncle on my paternal side who was Jewish. But perhaps instead it comes through my Nowakowski tree.

I've wondered.. Is Nowakowski a common name in Poland? It certainly seems 'not-rare' here in the United States, based off of web-searches.
Markuszewski seems much less common here. Is it an uncommon name in Poland?

no it is just something I read in a couple of places, cannot remember where now.
I have met a couple of Nowak/Nowakowskis so I guess it is not that unusual.
My ex bro in law had that name and a v Jewish look I thought.

Nowakowski is an extremely popular surname in Poland shared by some 50,000 people. According to a widely held rule of thumb suggesting that up to one-third of all Polish people live in the Diaspora, there may be another 16,000 or so world-wide . Perhaps some 80% would be in N. America.

Besides the toponymic option, Nowakowski can also be a patronymic nick meaning son of Nowak.
Yes, Nowak, Nowakowski and similar (Nowek, Nowik, Nowaczyk, Nowicki, etc.) have been used for converts. As have Nawrot, Nawrat (Czech influence), Nawrocki (form nawrócić - to convert) and Noworycki (new rite).