Genealogy / Want to find a person [766]

Klemm family, Wegrow, Poland

Does anyone live in or near Wegrow? I am wondering if a Jaroslawa Klemm still lives at ul. Narutowicza 18a? Or a Zygmunt Klemm lives at ul. Narutowicza 14? For I am wondering if they are related to a Jan Klemm (who died in 1919) and who married a Hedwig Wegner, sister to my great grandmother. Thanks.

Genealogy / Displaced Persons Camp / Work camp and concentration camp difference [86]

My grandparents, mother and aunt were dps in a small town called Schelklingen, Germany. They were there from 1946 until Jan. 1951 before coming to Canada.

Gerhard

Work / Poland Work Permit / Study Visa Processing Times [191]

Hi all

This is going to seem like a stupid question in regard to visas. If a person has and can prove EU citizenship, what visas does one need for Poland? Thanks.

Australia / HELP! Australian wanted to apply for Polish Passport via ancestory [51]

travelbugz

Are you still following this thread? Look up 'Travel around Poland,' then go to the forums, then click on the immigration uk. After that you will find a thread about Polish citizenship there. It is about 26 or 27 pages by now. Others have gone through what you are trying to do with obtaining a passport.

There is also a part 1 to this thread as well that can be read, but not posted to. Someone in the current thread could link you to the previous so you can read it. From there you would have to either get it printed out for future reference or make notes and ask in the current thread. Good Luck. If you cannot find it let me know.

Law / Polish EU Drivers Licence - can I get one the easy way (by paying for it)? [185]

Here is a question in regards to the topic at hand. I have attempted to get a license here a number of times, but the assessors have failed me without explanation. I do have dual with Germany. So I am wondering which country would be the better choice to get a 1st time license? I am looking at getting an ESL job in Poland preferably, with Czech and Germany being in 2nd & 3rd place. I have noticed a couple of ESL jobs that require a license.

That is why I am wondering if I can get it in Germany without a permanent address or in Poland.

Law / Polish EU Drivers Licence - can I get one the easy way (by paying for it)? [185]

If all goes well and I manage to get am ESL job in Poland, then I can go for the drivers' license. Most of the contracts will be over 9 months. So I am hoping that they will accept the address of the place I will be staying at. It gives me some hope.

News / RUSSIA TO MAKE PUBLIC THE KATYN FILES... [274]

From what my relatives are finally and slowly telling me about my grandfather and his military service was that the unit that he was with, he may have been in the vicinity of where the Katyn Massacre happened. My grandfather and a brother of his served in the Polish Armed Forces.

But right now I am still having problems in obtaining his military records.

Genealogy / Americans of Polish descent. How many of us are on Polish forums? [216]

Patrycja19

While I am not American but Canadian. I did not know of or was aware of family in Poland until I started doing the genealogy over 6 yrs ago. I was going on just a couple of letters, 2 pieces of paper that provides a typed address for 2 different people with the same last name that matched with the letters and an individual who married my great grandmothers' sister.

Not only that, there was some photos as well. It was by pure chance that I was contacted by a relative from there because I had made a posting in regards to the letters and trying to determine if that individual was a relative to the husband of my great grannys' sis. That is the first contact with this part of the family since my grandparents died over 30 years ago.

As for me, I have Canadian, German and am trying to prove Polish. The traditions are just the ones you would find here in Canada.

News / RUSSIA TO MAKE PUBLIC THE KATYN FILES... [274]

It would be nice to get the P.O.W. files to look over the names for those that survived to see if there are any names that can be recognized. I have relatives that claim my grandfather (as a non com) may have been a witness to the massacre. But because he knew German and Russian besides Polish may have saved his life.

So he spent some time as a P.O.W. But not sure for how long or where. Hopefully someone will make the Katyn files and other attachments in regards to names of those shot or as P.O.W.'s available as a PDF.

Genealogy / I am of Polish descent (i am something called kashoop). Kaszub, Kashubian? [19]

Dave

The term is Kashub(ian) as another member has pointed out. It is a cross between German and Polish. There are Kashubians living NW of Ottawa, Ontario in the area of Wilno and Maynooth, Ontario. There was an hour long tv show about them last November.

Genealogy / I have Jewish DNA, but only know of Polish ancestry . [120]

Here is another theory that might be more plausible then marriage. Could be that one of your ancestors could have been an orphan Jew and was adopted out of sympathy because of one of the many wars that happened over the centuries. Maybe or maybe not, but it is something else to consider if there might not have been any known immediate family. of the orphan.

Genealogy / Motyl - Tracing My Polish Roots for the 1st time [28]

I forget the website that you can check through in regards to your grandfathers' military service since he was based in the U.K. during the war. Someone through here might know that and once you can obtain his records, it should provide a d.o.b. and next of kin and possible addresses of those as well.

Australia / Mail problem- Poland to Australia, delivery time frame [40]

Here in Canada it takes about a week. Except for easter and Christmas it is recommended to send at least 1 month before. From Australia, I would assume it to take 2 weeks. But that figure could be wrong. Have you asked at the local post office about this? But your best bet would be to assume 2-3 weeks. This way, you will know that it will arrive in time. Part of it could be in the way the mail could be routed and that is what I can understand where your confusion comes in. Since there are 2 ways that the mail could be routed. One route would be through North America to Europe or through the mid east to Europe. Sorry this answer is not what you wanted or expected.

Genealogy / Chmiel - My Polish Family memories, traditions, thoughts and hopes [11]

Maggie

You can try sending an email to an Emil Krasnodebski. His email is polishgenealogy@rubikon.pl. He has assisted me in obtaining some documents already and of which I am still looking for other information. Maybe he might be able to help you. If there is any info you can provide him in order to know where to start looking will make his job easier and will help him to find whatever you want that much faster. Who knows, maybe you connect with relatives of your grandfather that stayed behind. That is what I did before I connected with Emil.

Gary

Genealogy / Chmiel - My Polish Family memories, traditions, thoughts and hopes [11]

It cost me $23 US per hour and whatever the cost was in obtaining the 6 documents I obtained so far from the appropriate office in Podedworze. That came out close to $110 in Canadian funds. That was for 1 marriage, 3 birth and 2 death certificates and one hr so far. What it is going to cost beyond this will depend on how much time is spent in looking over the records to obtain the information I want. But I was specific to the dates I was looking for since I knew the person and where that individual was born. Now I am after residency info to determine how long a person stayed at a particular address. Particularly from 1940 to 1945 since there are 2 issues that I need to get resolved that happened during that time frame. I also have 2 letters dated during this time frame that may or may not be of some use to verify this individuals whereabouts for that time. It will also depend on the availability of the records as well. If the records dont exist, I may have to follow a different path in order to deal with the matter. Such as other records that will be considered legal that can be used to provide verification of a persons date and location of birth. These other records will be easy enough to locate provided that they weren't destroyed during the war or by some other incident. For example, the marriage certificate confirms my grandmothers' place of birth and how old she was at the time of marriage within 6 months either way of her birthday. That confirms another document I have as to her birthplace. So it will be easy enough not only to locate what I am after but to cut the cost per hour I would be charged. For someone who cant be that specific it may cost a lot more.

Life / Paintings of artists from Poland? [192]

Gask7

The original poster likes the painting so much that he wants to get a copy of that painting. Whether it is poster with the same measurements or if someone can paint a copy of it has been authenticated as a copy of the original.

Law / German/Polish Citizenship. Is my father German or Pole? [17]

Do you have any documents from that time frame where the grandparents and your father were in that refugee camp? Any documents that can verify the time frame and location will help. Then either send an email or go to the nearest German embassy or consulate and ask them that you need to clarify a matter of citizenship. But chances are without documents you will not be entitled to German citizenship. Even if the relatives are unwilling to talk about it, ask them for photos and other documents that they may have still in their possession because you want to do a bit of genealogy on the family. They may be telling the truth and don't remember, but letters sent or received by them may help to find the location and other relatives.

UK, Ireland / Inheritance Law in Poland and debts - how does it affect a British child? [27]

What is the approximate value of the assets to the debts? Since your partner is not interested in the inheritance, do not discount the child. Ask the court if you can be given time to pay off a portion of the debt until the child comes of age at 18. Then as parents you will have to work out how to pass on the remaining debt on to her. Your daughter may be a British citizen now, but when she becomes of age she may or may not want to apply for dual citizenship. Good luck on your decision.

UK, Ireland / Inheritance Law in Poland and debts - how does it affect a British child? [27]

Ok. Now I understand better as well. I have had some time as well to rethink what I was trying to get across in the previous posting. That was certain personal effects or mementos, such as photos dealing with the family and letters that the grandfather may have kept from friends and family that have emmigrated.

History / Is there a list of those in the Polish Army during WWII? [193]

try sending an email to caw.wp.mil.pl that is for the Centralne Archiwum Wojskowe located at 00-910 Warszawa 72. hope that helps.

History / Poland: Her heroes and her traitors [239]

Regarding the surviving daughter or others of the family left behind, there might be a way to dispute the given records. From the 2nd world war until the late 90's it would have been a bit more difficult to prove connection unless you actually had the paperwork. But then there could be claims that the paperwork was forged and photos were dodged to make it look like there was some connection. But with DNA being used to prove family connections now, this might be a way of proving or disproving that Mr. Buchwald was the father. But to do so would mean going through the courts in order to exhume the bodies of the deceased in order to obtain DNA to substantiate claims. Going through the courts would be costly in order to prove a point.

History / Polish conscripts to German army [132]

To king Athelstan
Define wrong side. From those that fought for Germany, Russia or Japan everyone else was on the wrong side. But from the families of the personnel that fought, regardless of which army these people were in, you were on the wrong side.

Genealogy / Americans of Polish descent. How many of us are on Polish forums? [216]

I kind of agree with pieorgi2000. I was over to Germany and Poland twice within the last 4 yrs with hopefully the 3rd trip coming up later this yr. I noticed that the public transportation system is a lot better over there. That makes it a lot easier to get around even in and out of smaller communities. It seems the transport system there is at least 50 years ahead of what we have here in Canada. The train system here is slowly being cut back and even the bus service between a lot of the communities whether small or large is not very conducive. That means you almost have to coerce someone to give you a ride back and forth from one small community to another or a larger centre. Even if I am not fluent with either German or Polish, I felt more at home over there.

Life / Public Masturbation now allowed in Sweden, Would this work in Poland? [43]

Regardless of where you masturbate and hopefully it is behind closed doors and in privacy you are practicing safe sex. With all the transmittable diseases, particularly hiv/aids, playing with yourself is more enjoyable than having to deal with meds. Chances are open masturbation may not be readily accepted unless it is at a nudist beach.

Law / A parent born in Poland. Obtaining a Polish birth certificate? [38]

I have tried for my mother and was told they either could not find the book that it would have been registered in or the book is currently missing. While I do have a replacement that was issued on he behalf by request from my grandfather. Unfortunately the replacement has his last name and is in English. Which means that either her birth was never properly registered at the time or it was listed under my grandmothers' first marriage or the book actually is missing.

Law / Poland's Inheritance Law Without Will [21]

You mention about the property in your first post. What is the size of the property and its location? If it is undeveloped property with city limits near industrial, it could be worth some money now if that town/city is growing and its looking for property to entice industry to them and therefore provide employment. In the post you make it sound like it is your babcia that is still alive. One thing is to find out if a video is just as acceptable to the courts as a written will. If the court system will accept the video, then you might want a lawyer present when it is done and you can ask questions like you would in a court to get your babcia to lay it on the line as to who gets what and how much in regards to the property.

Sounds like your ciocia is being greedy and wants to claim what might be your rightful inheritance for her side of the family. If your ciocia is desperate to try and have your mothers claim on the property then she would have to have the property evaluated and have it ascertained how much each portion is worth and have her tell your mother how much her portion is worth and buy her out.

Genealogy / Information on how/where to search to find out my father's history [9]

Awoj21

Who dealt with his funeral and his estate? If he emigrated to Australia, he would have needed some kind of paperwork in order to travel from Poland and to enter Australia. Upon arrival he would have had to file for his intention of becoming a landed immigrant in order to become a citizen. So start with any legal papers the executor/executrix may still have in their possession. Failure on this part, the next step would be to contact the immigration department for Australia and put in a request for copies of documentation they may have on your father.

Do you actually live in Australia yourself? If so, try and think of yourself as an immigrant and what the main point of entry would be for Australia. For example, was it Sydney or Perth? Where do they keep records upwards to 50 years old and do they have a central archives for records older than 50 yrs of age. Prior to 1918, Poland was partitioned by 3 countries, Russia, Austria, and Germany. If your father was born in the Russian partition, chances are any documents that still exist after all this time may be in Russian. So do not be surprised if you may be able to obtain copies of them. Hopefully this will give you a starting point since the others have not done so.

Genealogy / Information on how/where to search to find out my father's history [9]

No you did not. The original poster just knew that his parent was born in Poland but did not indicate if he knew where. Your information, albeit somewhat limited, was going on the fact he or she already had something to work with. You two were already assuming that this individual had something to work with. The impression I got from the posting that this person did not have anything at all but just guesswork.

History / Is there a list of those in the Polish Army during WWII? [193]

Would the British location for archives of Polish military have something on the signal corps? My grandfather never set foot in Britain when the WWII started. His service basically ended on Sept. 17, 1939 after his unit may have been captured by the Russians near Czortow, Poland (now in the Ukraine). I enquired through the CAW and was told that any records for my grandfather can not be found. At the same time, from a story that was related to me, the commissioned officers were segregated and may have eventually been summarily executed.

If that is the case, then his unit may be connected to the Katyn massacre. I heard that Russia declassified some of the material related to the Katyn massacre and handed it over to the Polish government. Can that materiel be accessed in order to (dis)prove a connection? Or do I have to go through a museum in SW Poland that may have POW information to find information. The museum is located in Lambowicz, I believe. Sorry if I have the spelling wrong since I do not have the correct spelling in front of me right now.

Law / Poland's Inheritance Law Without Will [21]

Rey115
If you and your brother do not wish to give up your rights to the part ownership of the property, obtain any documents you can. Such as birth and death certificates. Since your uncle was the owner of the property and died before his parents (your grandparents), and he had no children, how much of the property reverted back to the parents and then after their deaths was divided between your aunt and father. Other postings I have read made allusions that if the owner of a property does not have children to inherit the property then the courts would look at the question did the deceased have siblings and/or parents still living and determine how to split the property if I understand it right.

The point here is who owned the property prior to it being registered in your uncle's name. If ownership got transferred while the original owners were still alive to your uncle there must be some kind of court document to substantiate this. By obtaining the certificates of the individuals involved (birth, marriage and death) may also assist in how the ownership got split may help your claims. By obtaining the various certificates will help to prove your claims to prove that the owner was your uncle because the names of the parents would be on all the birth certificates.

Using the certificates and other documents in proper perspective will help. Your best bet would be to locate a lawyer that will hopefully know the real estate laws and inform you if there is a statute of limitations and how that applies to your case.