Bydgoszcz / Bromberg Research (1925–1929) – Need Alternative Local Sources

Hi everyone, I'm researching my family history, specifically trying to trace how two relatives lived in Bromberg (modern-day Bydgoszcz) between 1925 and 1929.

Archives confirm they lived at Ogrodowa 15 before returning to Germany in late 1929, a move involving the German Passstelle in Bromberg. I've contacted archives in Bydgoszcz, Poznań, Piła, and Kalisz, but registration cards, passport files, school records, and employee documents were either destroyed or not preserved. One relative may have worked for Polish State Railways (PKP), but those records are largely incomplete.

I'm looking for leads, local sources, or ideas to reconstruct their daily lives and employment:

- What was the Ogrodowa Street area like in the 1920s?

- Which major businesses operated in Bydgoszcz from 1925-1929?

- Were there common places of employment for workers returning from the Ruhr area?

- Where else might PKP employee records from this era be stored?

- Are there alternative local sources (old newspapers, address books, directories, etc.) that could offer indirect clues?

Any tips or experiences researching this period would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

@Bydgoszcz▲ 0▼ 0

Church records in Poland can show whether an ancestor attended church, so if that seems likely, that might be worth checking. You could also try asking neighbors who lived on the same street; they might have a mention, but it's not guaranteed.

@Syriusz▲ 0▼ 0

Thank you very much for the reply and the tip. I already have all the birth, marriage, and death records, so I am wondering what else I might look for in the parish registers from the years 1925-1929.

Do you happen to have any ideas regarding specific entries or lists worth checking for information on people living on Ogrodowa Street at that time?

I am thinking of things like communion or confirmation rolls, parishioner lists, annotations regarding membership in confraternities, or details about witnesses or godparents-anything that might provide even a small clue about daily life during that period.

@Bydgoszcz▲ 0▼ 0