Our Family - Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International

Transcription

Naše rodina
“Our Famil y”
Quarterly of the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International
September 2011
Volume 23 Number 3
46°4’29” N 97°8’59” W: How Did
Genealogy Ever Bring Me Here?
By Scott Phillips
Grab your GPS, your water bottle,
and your walking stick because here
we go to ….. oh wait, I‘m getting
ahead of myself.
In the years of working on my
family history and genealogy, I have
found myself in some wonderful,
but, at least to me, fairly predictable
places. I knew my wife’s families
(D’Aquila and Casagrande) were
100% Italian when I married her,
especially since I was the first nonItalian to join her clan. I knew my
paternal grandparents (Phillips and
Cottle) and their predecessors were
Cornishmen and Cornishwomen to
a person. I also knew my maternal
lines (Vicha and Knechtl) came
from Bohemia. Born and raised in
Ohio with decades in Minnesota, I
thought I had my geography pretty
well lined up. HA! My genealogical
journeys were nowhere near complete, as I just recently found out.
Studying each branch of my
family has been lots of fun, but I
have found particular enjoyment in
tackling my Bohemian ancestors.
This I trace back to the wonderful
family gatherings that my mother
would frequently host while I was
growing up in Cleveland. I vividly
Main Street in Lidgerwood, North Dakota, 1914. Photo courtesy of Lidgerwood
Community Museum.
recall that many of these would
start in one of two ways. Either
my mother would be calling to my
grandmother, who lived with us, to
join her in the kitchen to begin the
planning for how to cook enough
Knedliky for the whole crew, or she
Continued on page 83
Theme of This Issue:
Czechs in North Dakota
81 – 46° 4’ 29” N 97° 8’ 59” W: How Did
Genealogy Ever Bring Me Here?
82 – President’s Message
89 – Czech Settlements in North Dakota
95 – Gustav Frištenský, 1879-1957,
Preserving the Czech Legend
98 – Professor Jozef Novák’s 80 Year
Anniversary
100 – St. Louis Conference Down to the
Wire
101 – History of Sokol Saint Louis
106 – Slate of Candidates for Office
107 – The Beginning of Sts Peter and
Paul Catholic Church of Bechyne,
North Dakota
110 – Library Donations / Sponsors
111 – Financial Statements for 2010
112 – The Librarian’s Shelf
116 – 2012 Salt Lake City Symposium
118 – Sales Order Form
119 – Calendar of Events
President’s Message
Naše rodina
Quarterly Newsletter for the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International (CGSI) members
CGSI Board of Directors (at large)
Rosie Bodien
(Washington)
Carolyn Janka
(Virginia)
Mary Jane Scherdin
(Wisconsin)
Tom Kajer
(Minnesota)
John Sabol
(Ohio)
Steve Parke
(Colorado)
Gene Aksamit
(Minnesota)
Lisa Alzo
(New York)
Paul Valasek
(Chicago, IL)
CGSI Officers
President
1st Vice President
2nd Vice President
Treasurer
Recording Secretary
Corresponding Secretary
Ginger Simek
Kathy Jorgenson
Pamela Kotval
Barb Vermeer
Ruth Ahrens
Tony Kadlec
CGSI Committee Chairs
Education
Hospitality
Library and Archives
Membership
Newsletter
Product Sales
Publicity
Volunteer Coordinator
Internet (Webmaster)
Ruth Chovancek
Pam Peltier
Suzette Steppe
Joyce Fagerness
Paul Makousky
Jerry Parupsky
Dan Urban
Barb Douvier
Bob Bina
Naše rodina promotes genealogy of the ethnic
groups that comprise Czechoslovakia as it was
formed in 1918. We accept articles of historical
and cultural information, but they must have
genealogical significance and all are subject to
editing. The deadlines for submitting articles to
Naše rodina are:
January 1
March issue
April 1
June issue
July 1
September issue
October 1
December issue
Naše rodina (Our Family) (ISSN 1045-8190) is
published quarterly by the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International, P.O. Box 16225, St.
Paul, MN 55116-0225, a non-profit organization.
Copyright 2011 by Czechoslovak Genealogical
Society International. The publication is not
responsible for the return of lost or unsolicited
manuscripts, photographs or any other material
not submitted with a self-addressed, stamped
envelope. Advertisements, manuscripts, articles,
and photographs for the Naše rodina may be
submitted to Czechoslovak Genealogical Society
International, Attn: Paul Makousky, P.O. Box
16225, St. Paul, MN 55116-0225.
Permission to copy, without fee, all or part of the
material is granted, provided that the copies are
not made or distributed for direct commercial
advantage. The CGSI copyright notice and the
title of the publication must appear together with
the date of the publication. Also, indicate that the
copying is with permission by CGSI. Abstracting
with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise or to
republish, requires a fee and/or permission from
CGSI.
The Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International does not endorse the products that we sell
nor the items or services, including translators
that are advertised in this publication. Neither
does CGSI guarantee the quality or results of any
services provided by advertisers.
Page 82
by Ginger Simek
O
ur first e-communication was sent on April 28th to all CGSI members
whose email we have on file, approximately two thirds of the membership. It announced registration materials would be available in May for our
13th Genealogical/Cultural Conference in St. Louis this October, a first time
ever history book sale and a great deal on past issues of Naše rodina, and that
a CGSI table would be part of the very big Southern California Genealogical
Jamboree in June. Many members responded by requesting conference registration information, taking advantage of the reduced price on history books
and past issues of the quarterly, and Dave Hanush, our California Regional
Representative, says “thank you” to Lisa Alzo, Ray Bragg and Laura Stotler
who helped staff our table at the Southern California Genealogical Jamboree.
Over 60% of those receiving this first e-communication opened it. We are excited about using this as a tool to update members on events and news. Sign
into the Members area on the website, www.cgsi.org, so we have your email
contact information. Please contact us at [email protected] if you need
assistance signing in. We welcome any comments
The process is underway to get the first four volumes of Leo Baca’s Czech
Immigration Passenger Lists digitized so they can be put on the website. These
early volumes require some additional efforts to get them in an appropriate format and will need a final proofreading again before uploading. Volumes V - IX
are currently available online for members to search. Once these four volumes
are added to the website, this database will be complete.
CGSI welcomes to our Board of Directors, Paul Valasek. Paul lives in Chicago and his longtime interest in genealogy goes back to 1974. He is of Czech
and Polish descent. Paul is a founder of the Czech and Slovak-American Genealogical Society of Illinois (CSAGSI) and a past president of the Polish Genealogical Society of America. Paul has been a speaker at numerous genealogical
conferences, CGSI’s among them, and his articles have appeared in various
family history publications. He will complete the remainder of Frank Soural’s
term. Sadly, Frank Soural died unexpectedly in April. Paul’s appointment was
approved by the Executive Committee in June and will be confirmed by the
Board of Directors at their October meeting.
Our Annual Membership Meeting will be held on Saturday, October 29th
in conjunction with our 13th Czechoslovak Genealogical/Cultural Conference
in St. Louis, Missouri. See the Slate of Candidates to be voted on for officer,
chair, and board positions in this issue. Proxy ballots may be requested if you
wish to vote but cannot attend.
I am looking forward to seeing many of you at our St. Louis Conference.
The conferences and symposiums are always outstanding opportunities for
new discoveries and networking. Be sure to stay tuned for an announcement
and program information on our 2012 symposium to be held in Salt Lake City
in March. See page 116 for summary details.
Naše rodina
September 2011 Vol. 23 No. 3
Members celebrating the 40th Anniversary of ZČBJ Lodge #30, August Heřman in Lidgerwood, ND. Photo taken in
1929. Courtesy of Lidgerwood Community Museum.
would issue the admonition to my father to get out to
the State Store (the only place that sold liquor-by-thebottle in Ohio in those days) and “Bill, BE SURE to buy
the good Bohemian beer.”
As a youngster, I loved every family gathering of
which I was a part. However, I especially loved them
when they centered round the Bohemian side of the
family for two reasons. First, Knedliky has always been
one of my most favored foods and this insured that a
meal of roast pork, Knedliky, and zelí was in the offing.
Second, it meant the really FUN side of the family was
due to arrive with their laughter, debating, cigars, exotic
language, and great stories!
My love of this side of the family carried over to
when I began my genealogy work and was bolstered by
the request of my 91 year old mother to learn all I could
about her mysterious grandfather, Joseph K. Vicha.
One of the very first steps I took in my Bohemian
genealogy efforts was in the Czechoslovak Genealogical
Society International’s (CGSI) library at 1185 Concord
Street in South St. Paul, Minnesota. Sandwiched inbetween business calls, I had an appointment with the
stellar Ms. Ginger Vogel Simek, now President of CGSI.
Ginger not only walked me through the library and its
holdings, but sat with me and helped me get a starting
point on my Vicha and Knechtl families. This first step
was to be the start of a wild ride, which finally brought
me to Milevsko and Rataje, Bohemia, the ancestral village homes of my Vicha family. You can read about this
portion of my journey in the Summer, 2010 edition of
the Czech and Slovak National Museum and Library’s
journal Slovo. It also excited me so much that I was able
to recently complete the process of documenting, applying, and receiving CGSI Pioneer Certificates for both
my Vicha and Knechtl families (an enjoyable process
that I strongly endorse).
My maternal great grandmother was Anna Knechtl
and while she was born in Cleveland, her parents and
siblings emigrated from Bohemia to Cleveland, Ohio
from Nenačovice, Bohemia. They entered the United
States via Baltimore, Maryland in May 1867. They followed her Uncle, František, a blacksmith, to Cleveland.
I learned in my early research that František was one of
the very earliest of the Bohemian settlers in Cleveland,
Naše rodina
Page 83
coming in 1852. This is according to Jan Habenicht in
his work, History of Czechs in America, published in
1910, page 475. It is interesting to also note that in her
1910 book, Our Fellow Slavic Citizens, Emily Greene
Balch states that in 1855 there were 19 Bohemian
families in all of Cleveland (page 226), of which my
family evidently was a part.
One of the sayings my Czech grandmother always
used after a storm, and as the sky began to clear, was
“Is there enough blue to make a Dutchman a pair of
britches?” Well, one day out of perhaps the same Dutch
blue, came an email from my friend Peter Knegtel.
As many of you have, I am sure, I’ve been blessed The Main Street in Lidgerwood, North Dakota taken around
to meet up with some truly special fellow genealogists. 1896-98. Photo courtesy of Lidgerwood Community Museum.
Helpful, collegial, and united in the search for proof,
cousin, Barbora Knechtl, in the Czech Republic. Barthese folks have added tremendously to my love and
bora and I had met years earlier as part of our individual
enjoyment of this field. One of those folks happens to
family history work with Knechtl families in the Clevebe a maven of the Knechtl name, whom I met online
some time ago and has now become quite an ‘electronic land area. It wasn’t until late in our processes that we
friend’. As I said, his name is Peter Knegtel and he lives found the proof that we were, indeed, related. Barbora
in the Netherlands. Needless to say, without the Internet, and I both agreed that there was a chance that I was
‘on to’ the correct František. Especially since neither
Facebook, etc. it would be a lot harder for us to stay in
of us knew anything about this fellow past his mother
touch.
Over the years, Peter and I had worked on a number and father, Matěj and Marie Anna Nejedlý Knechtl, his
birth date of August 5, 1834, and home village of Ptice,
of the Knechtl lines in my own, and other, families. On
this day Peter’s email contained some questions regard- Praha-zapad, Bohemia. So the search continued.
Leo Baca’s series, Czech Immigration Passenger
ing one of the many men with the name of František
Lists, gave me more information to work with. (Aside:
Knechtl and who may have spent some time in Cleveland, Minnesota, Iowa and/or North Dakota. Peter asked One of the luckier times in my life was when I won the
Silent Auction for a set of these at the CGSI Cleveland
what I knew of this František and if he might be part of
convention.) There in Volume VIII, Baltimore, 1834 –
‘my’ Knechtl family. Never one to ignore a friend-in1879, was the enticing entry of František Knechtel (sic),
need, nor a Bohemian-related mystery, I dove in!
accompanied by his wife, Catha, and daughters Barba,
As I sifted through over half a dozen František or
Frank Knechtl family members (not to mention the mul- Maria, Antonia, and Anna.
While many records are in the process of being
tiple permutations of the spelling of Knechtl) I began
to think there was a chance that this unknown František digitally indexed and cataloged online in the Czech Republic, I found that the records for the parish for Prahawas actually František Seraphinus Knechtl (*1834
zapad have not. Since my inclination to ask for favors
– unknown at that time). František Seraphinus is my
from family only extends to a certain point, I asked Barfirst cousin, 4-times removed so this was a very excitbora to give me a referral to a good, local researcher in
ing possibility! My excitement was muted in large part
the Czech Republic that could do a fairly simple lookby the fact that as I looked at U.S. Census records and
up for me. David Kohout got the ‘call’ and served me
other documentation I saw that this might well be the
proud! There it was. František Seraphinus was certainly
Knechtl family who lived in Protivin, Iowa and Lidgerwood, North Dakota. These were not places where I had the son of Matěj and Marie Anna Nejedlý Knechtl. Plus
David was able to find and send me the images of his
any family that I knew of. These were not communities
that I knew much about at all, nor were they ever part of marriage certificate as well as the birth records for the
children. There was Katharine Himl on the marriage
family discussions, legends, or myths I had ever heard.
First things first, which for me means I go to my ad- certificate and Anna, Barbora, and Antoinie named on
each birth record. This was everyone who was shown on
dress book to pick out the best living relative I can find
to ask for help. This time I did a quick check-in with my Leo Baca’s listing. Happy? Me? Just a bit!
Page 84
Naše rodina
Still, I was more than a bit perplexed by the location
of Lidgerwood, North Dakota. I began to look into this
place that I now knew was where my first cousin had
lived. I was soon to find out what an interesting place it
is.
The first nice thing I learned about Lidgerwood is
that it is the only town with that name in the world. That
alone tends to make searches in Google, Mapquest, Ancestry.com, etc. a bit easier.
Lidgerwood is located in Richland County. Richland County is also easy to find on a map as it happens
to be the county located in the very southeastern corner
of North Dakota. South of Fargo, with Wahpeton as its
county seat, Lidgerwood and Richland County are in the
heart of the wheat fields of the State.
The prehistoric glaciers that retreated across North
America left behind them the wide, rolling prairies of
North Dakota. This was the territory of the nations of
The Cheyenne, The Ojibwa, and The Dakota for generations. As most of the earliest European settlers came
across this area, they continued on to the better-watered
lands to the far West. However, as those Western lands
became settled, settlers turned their eyes and plows to
the Dakota Territories.
In about 1886 both the Great Northern and Sault
Sainte Marie (commonly called The Soo Line) Railroads decided to build railways through what is now
Richland, County, North Dakota. George I. Lidgerwood,
the right-of-way man for the Soo Railroad, which won
the competition, set the first plat of the City and so with
a boxcar on the siding of the Soo Line, the town of
Lidgerwood began. Now, while Mr. Lidgerwood may
have been a fairly unknown fellow to history, the other
early actors in the establishment of Lidgerwood certainly were not. Names such as Louis Hill, the railroad
baron, the Cargill brothers, founders of what is currently
one of the largest agricultural corporations in the world,
and the Washburn family, who went on to be the founders of General Mills, all were early economic forces in
the establishment of Lidgerwood. However, so were the
Bohemians and they were there before Lidgerwood was
even incorporated.
Celebrating 125 Years: 1886 to 2011 Quasquicentennial Hankinson, North Dakota relates that the first
settlement of Bohemians in North Dakota can be traced
to Richland County in 1870 when Albert Chezik filed
for land owned by a Mr. Rich in the area around Lidgerwood. Albert held this land simply by Squatter’s Rights
as the land had yet to be surveyed. In the spring of 1872
came ten more settlers to Chezik’s sod home and a com-
munity was born. Why sod? Practicality demanded it as
the only trees (tamarack and poplar) were to be found
only along the banks of the Sheyenne River, some forty
miles away.
A typical sod home at this time had a dirt floor,
walls about 2 ½ feet thick made from sod or self-styled
Adobe bricks, and usually boarded and white-washed
inside. With a roof of clay and rafters of tree trunks
and a few small, paned windows, these homes were
energy efficient and much warmer than other structures.
So it seems our Bohemian ancestors here were some
of perhaps the earliest ‘Green’ adherents. In her book,
Out Where The West Begins, Being the Early and Romantic History of North Dakota, (St. Paul, The Pioneer
Company, 1920) Zena Irma Trinka (yep, a Bohemian in
her own right as her parents emigrated from Bohemia)
wrote the following:
“In the spring of 1880, the nucleus of another Czech
settlement developed near the present site of Lidgerwood. This country had been visited in 1879 by Frank
Bisek of Alexandria, Minn., but he did not settle in
Dakota for some years. These new Czech settlers came
from Iowa, where they had made their homes since their
arrival from Bohemia in 1871. But five consecutive
years of crop failure in Iowa, caused by chinch-bugs
and rust, forced the Czechs to seek a new location.”
Soon a small party of settlers, which included Peter
Polda, Matt Kouba, John Kouba, Albert Heley, John
Kadecka, and Joseph Factor left Iowa in prairie schooners drawn by oxen and headed out to Dakota territory,
over 450 miles away. One of the men in this group of
Czech settlers, Peter Polda, began writing a series of
newspaper articles in Czech extolling the virtues of
this area as the perfect place to raise wheat. Soon more
Czechs began to arrive from Michigan, Minnesota, Illinois, Iowa, Ohio, Nebraska, and Wisconsin. Surnames
included Wacha, Blazek, Melonousky, Speral, Voyek,
Sheleny, and others. Trinka also writes that “Between
the years of 1871 and 1910, the Czech population of
Richland County increased to three hundred and six
persons, all of foreign birth.” In Ethnicity on the Great
Plains, (edited by Frederick C. Luebke, 1980, University of Nebraska Press), Bruce M. Garver further points
out in his chapter Czech-American Freethinkers on
the Great Plains, that the vast majority of Bohemians
settled along the immediate eastern edge of both North
and South Dakota.
As I read this the ‘ah ha’ light went off in my head.
Now I could see a distinct line between Protivin, Iowa
and Lidgerwood, North Dakota that my ancestors fol-
Naše rodina
Page 85
lowed. Things were indeed starting to line up with
chock full of Bohemian names such as Vizralek, Stuky,
František.
Kocurek, Novotny, Parizek, Novak, Voyek, Trinka, and
Currently Lidgerwood is a wonderful, rural town
others.
of 675, close to the shores of Lake Tewaukon and the
It must have been something for these early LidgTewaukon National Wildlife Refuge. According to City
erwood settlers. There are legends of families walking
Auditor, Ms. Kristin Schafer, the community thrives
all the way from Big Stone Lake, Minnesota to Lidgon its’ ‘small town
erwood in 1885 and,
feel, where everyone
as you would expect,
knows everyone, and
throughout the hisschool classes are
tory of Lidgerwood,
small and personal’.
winter plays a huge
Lidgerwood’s
part. None of the
most notable resident
many harsh winters
may well have been
seem as dire as the
Ida Bisek Prokop Lee
blizzard of 1888. This
(*1902 - +1990). Ida
multi-day storm left
is a renowned North
more than 500 dead
Dakota artist, born
and the then-thriving
in North Dakota of
cattle industry of the
Bohemian parents,
Northern Great Plains
married to a fellow
destroyed. Luckily,
Bohemian, and who
many of the farms in
lived most of her life
the area were focused
in Lidgerwood. Ida
more on agriculworked in multimeture than large scale
dia and produced the
animal husbandry and
The Kotchian Carnival, named after the Czech family general mernow famous “Prairie
they made it through
chandiser, J. A. Kočian on Main Street in Lidgerwood, ND. Courtesy of
Pictures” style of art
the impacts of that
Lidgerwood Community Museum.
as well as the worldwinter.
famous busts of a
Fire also plays
man and woman of each of the major Native American
a significant role in the history of Lidgerwood. The
tribes of North Dakota.
Centennial book, Lidgerwood – Yesterday, Today &
Given the history of the Bohemian people’s love
Tomorrow 1886-1986 reports that from 1902 to 1983
of learning and holding education in high regard, you
several major fires plagued the city. However, in spite
won’t be surprised to hear that one of the notable, early
of substantial property losses, only one life was lost. It
Bohemians in Lidgerwood decided to make her mark
is interesting to note that the book also states that many
educating the children. In 1896 May Chezik, a “daughof the buildings lost were rebuilt with money from ‘frater of pioneers in the Bohemian settlement near Wahternal organizations.’ I just bet you that one of those
peton” (perhaps related to that very first Albert) arrived
was the Bohemian fraternal organization, the Západní
to teach the children of Lidgerwood in an old wooden
Česko-Bratrská Jednota, (Z.Č.B.J.).
structure. May stayed in Lidgerwood and taught her first
In 1888, the August Heřman Lodge #30 of the
students. Then she taught their children. Then she taught Česko-Slovanské Podporující Společnost (ČSPS) was
their grandchildren. May Chezik taught school in Lidgorganized in Lidgerwood. Nine years later, Lodge #30,
erwood for over 50 years. The story is told that at comwould join the newly established ZČBJ, more commencement in 1925 she was given a diamond ring that
monly known as the Western Bohemian Fraternal Orwas paid for with money raised from across the United
ganization, as one of the original founders of the new
States and even Europe. Those folks KNEW what a Bo- Western organization. Lodge #30 was actually the only
hemian treasure they had in their teacher!
founding Lodge from the State of North Dakota. Started
In 1908, the Lidgerwood Monitor, the local paper,
with 15 Charter Members, the Lodge grew quickly and
reported on student accomplishments. Again, the list is
became a focal point for all the Bohemian settlers in the
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Naše rodina
community. These member’s names ring true reminding us of some of those earliest Iowan settlers: Busta,
Hobza, Krupecka, Kruchek, Kocian, Marishka, Parizek,
Polda, Riba, Trinka and Wacha. In 1908 the Lodge
built Bohemian Hall in Lidgerwood. Bohemian Hall
was “the” early landmark in Lidgerwood and quickly
became a very popular social center for the entire community. Not only were Czech language plays performed,
but sporting events and the high school commencements
were held there. On the celebration of the 19th year of
Czechoslovakian independence, more than 1,000 Bohemians gathered to celebrate at Bohemian Hall with a
production of Stari Blazni. Who were the actors in this
play? Folks with surnames of Bahka, Kodat, Staroba,
Bednar, Prokop, and Bisek.
Sadly, in July 2010, Bohemian Hall in Lidgerwood
collapsed under the weight of especially heavy rains.
This precious piece of history is now gone like so many
of our historic structures on the prairies and elsewhere.
Thankfully we are blessed to have classic photos of the
Lodge building to recall the prominent role it played in
town.
Religion also played a significant role in early
Lidgerwood for the Bohemian settlers. In 1886, the first
church was built in the town and named after St. John
Nepomucene, the great Czech saint and martyr. Initially
a mission church, it was first served by Father Vencel
Dvorak. This building was destroyed by fire in 1905 and
for two years services were held in Wagner’s Opera Hall
until the church was rebuilt. As recently as 1933, Father
John Turek, born in Bohemia, said the Mass first in
English followed by his then saying the Mass in Czech.
Over the decades the Bohemian presence in Lidgerwood has begun to fade a bit. Families moved on,
younger members left the community in search of jobs
far from the farms and fields, and the Bohemian taproot
simply faded from the memories of many.
However, the Bohemian presence is not gone altogether. Lidgerwood is currently known as the Kolache
Capital and Sandy Banish, the Kolache Queen this year,
will honor her Bohemian grandmother as she holds
court over a Kolache Baking Contest during the 125th
anniversary of the founding of the town. You also can’t
miss Bohemian Cemetery, established 1889, with its
wrought iron sign proclaiming Česko Národní Hřbítov.
Plus just down the road a piece is Calvary Cemetery
(known locally as Catholic Cemetery). There, adjoining
the undulating fields of wheat and in a small copse of
spruce trees, is the eternal resting place for my cousin
František Seraphinus Knechtl, his granddaughter Emma
Svestka and other family members.
Of course there are also folks like me who are stirring up the pot of Bohemian history and memories in
this wonderful community.
From my initial discovery of my family relationship
to František Seraphinus Knechtl, I have discovered his
and Lidgerwood’s histories, the fact that František died
there in 1924 and I am now blessed with photographs
of his final resting place. I also have become familiar
with the branch of his family that settled there via his
step-daughter, Elizabeth Polansky Svestka, and his
granddaughter, Emma Malek Svestka, daughter of his
daughter, Antonie Knechtl Malek. It is very exciting
for me to see the name Svestka on signs around town
(Frank Svestka donated funds to help renovate the youth
recreation area not too long ago) and that the surname is
still present in Lidgerwood today.
My journey to Lidgerwood whetted my appetite
and I will greatly enjoy it as I continue my efforts learning about František Seraphinus Knechtl’s entire family.
Now I know this will include the family of Barbora
Knechtl Panosh who settled in Protivin, Iowa, now that
I know my great grandfather Vicha helped raise funds
for Antonín Dvorak’s trip from Cleveland to Spillville.
Anna Knechtl Kostohryz and her family who settled
in St. Paul, Minnesota, especially since I lived there
for over 30 years not knowing family was always just
around the corner, and the family of Marie Knechtl Ruzicka who settled in Yukon, Oklahoma, entitled ‘The
Czech Capital of Oklahoma.”
I guess I better gas up the car, plug some new coordinates in the GPS, and hit the road before I write about
those communities and their wonderful Bohemians now
that 46° 4’ 29” N 97° 8’ 59” W, Lidgerwood, North Dakota, is in my rearview mirror!
Acknowledgements:
The author would like to acknowledge the special assistance given to him by the following:
• Bruce Lynn, volunteer, Lidgerwood Historical Society.
• Gene Kovarik and Ed Samec, volunteers, Czech Heritage Partnership
• Kristin Schafer, City Auditor, City of Lidgerwood
Their assistance, help, and friendship truly made my
work effortless and this article all the better.
Naše rodina
Continued on page 88
Page 87
About the Author:
Scott Phillips hails from the Midwest, currently calling
NW Indiana home along with his wife, children, and
grandchildren. He has been working in genealogy for
the past five years and calls it ‘my sweetest passion’.
He has traced each of the branches of his and his wife’s
families back to the 1600’s in Cornwall, Bohemia, and
Italy. Scott has written about his efforts in Slovo for the
National Czech and Slovak Museum and Library, the
blogs for Myheritage.com and GenealogyBank.com,
the website CzechmateDiary.com as well as for CGSI.
You can follow Scott on his Facebook page at Onward
To Our Past or on his blog at http://onwardtoourpast.
blogspot.com. You can also email Scott at [email protected].
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Corrections to Bohemian Literary Society of St. Louis Article Published in June
2011 issue
Corrections to the Bohemian Literary Society of St.
Louis article which appeared in the June 2011 issue, pp.
41, 43-51.
The information in the paragraphs preceding Footnotes
4, 8, 11, and 24 are direct quotes. The indication that
these are direct quotes was inadvertently obscured during the editing process. The editor regrets the error.
Page 45, The Holy Cross nuns were from Choryně,
Moravia, NOT Choceň, Bohemia, as stated in the article.
Future Themes for Naše rodina:
December 2011...LDS Resources for Genealogists
March 2012...Probate Records and Wills
June 2012...Slovaks of New Jersey
September 2012... Using Online Czech and Slovak Archive Records
Your articles are welcome, although not all can be published
E-Mail articles or inquiries to Paul Makousky at [email protected]
or send by U.S. Mail: 8582 Timberwood Rd., Woodbury, MN 55125-7620
Page 88
Naše rodina
Czech Settlements in
North Dakota
By Paul Makousky, Editor Naše rodina
Dakota was a territory from 1861 until 1889 when an
Act of Congress divided North and South Dakota with
North Dakota becoming the 39th State in the Union.
North Dakota consists of 45 counties with Czechs scattered throughout. Many of the Czechs who settled in
North Dakota did so under the Homestead Act of 1862,
where a settler could claim 160 acres of land from the
federal government. The requirement for eligibility
included agreeing to live on, and farm, the land for five
years, and becoming a US citizen.
The Czechs began to settle in the area of North Dakota well before North Dakota became a state primarily
due to the Homestead Act of 1862 and partly because
of drought and/or locust that made farming very difficult in other areas of the upper Midwest at the time.
Czechs settled on waste prairies that had never
been touched by a plow. “The first Czech colonists still
found herds of buffaloes roaming about the unbounded
prairies. Shabby sod shelters and log cabins have gone
The second building of St. Adalbert’s Czech Catholic Church
and charming and expensive buildings please the senses in Wahpeton, North Dakota. Photo courtesy of Institute for
everywhere.” (1)
Regional Studies, NDSU, Fargo (2000.509.97)
“Matěj Lorenc (aka Matthew Lorence) and Vojtěch
Čižek (Albert Chizek) were the first Czechs to settle in
The Czechs settled in Lidgerwood in Richland
North Dakota, leaving Muscoda, Wisconsin in March
County, located 36 miles southwest of Wahpeton around
1871 and arriving in Richland County near Wahpe1881 and 80 of their families lived there in 1900. The
ton.”(2) Matthew Lorence later obtained 40 acres of land Czech Catholic church of St. John Nepomuk was built
from the Fargo Land Office in the SW ¼ of the SW ¼ of in 1887. For further information on the Czechs in LidgSection 28 in Township 133 N 047 W on April 12, 1887. erwood refer to the article in this issue called, 46°4’29”
This was under authority of the March 3, 1873 Timber
N 97°8’59” W: How Did Genealogy Ever Bring Me
Culture Act (17 Stat. 605). See the US Land Office Cer- Here? The little village of Wyndmere in Richland
tificate printed from the Bureau of Land Management
County had 35 Czech families around 1900.
website.(3)
“The first Czech to settle in Walsh County near
“Fellow Czechs in the year after included Tomáš
Manitoba in 1879 was František Votava, born in VyKoza, born in Krč near Vodňany, Václav Mikeš, a nahlavy near Hluboká, the České Budějovice region.” He
tive of Vienna; František Dolejš, born in Krč, Josef Sthad been living near Spillville, Winneshiek County,
luka born in Hlavatce, Jan Velhartický, born in Krč and
Iowa since 1856.”(5) According to the Bureau of Land
Vojtěch Formánek whose son is a physician and patent
Management Land Patent Details, Frank Vottawa obdrug maker in Chicago.” (4)
tained 160 acres of land from the Montana State Land
By 1900 there were settled in Richland County,
Office in the NW ¼ of Section 15 of Township 156N
whose seat is in Wahpeton, over 100 Czech families.
053 W on November 20, 1882. This was under authorA total of 15 Czech families live in Wahpeton. In 1884
ity of the April 24, 1820 Sale-Cash Entry (17 Stat. 605).(6)
Czech Catholics in Wahpeton purchased four lots, and
“Votava selected the sections along the Park River in
in 1885, they constructed a church consecrated to St.
the Nash-Hoople vicinity as the area most suitable for
Adalbert.
settlement.”(7)
Naše rodina
Page 89
Certificate of land ownership issued by the the Land Office
at Fargo, Dakota Territory to Matthew Lorence.
Page 90
Naše rodina
“In the spring of 1879
Frank Kouba came from
Cresco, in Howard County, Iowa to file a homestead in Section 9 of Walsh
Center Township.”(8)
“Other early Czechs in
Walsh county include: Antonín Vavřík (aka Anthony
Wavrik) from Němčice,
Moravia; Jan Kostohryz from Křešťovice
(Chřešťovice) near Písek;
Václav Velek from Kluky
near Písek; Vojtěch Machart from the Netolice region; and František Rumreich born in Němčice, the
Ivančice district, Moravia.”(9) F. Rumreich operated a hardware store in
Pisek and Erhart Rumreich
was a Physician.
“The village of Pisek,
Walsh County, North
Dakota had 132 residents
in 1900. Pisek is nine
miles from the little village of Veseleyville. The
first building in Pisek
was constructed by Jan
Lovčik who had arrived
with his parents from the
neighborhood of Spillville,
Iowa. On July 25, 1894
the Czech Catholic church
of St. John Nepomuk was
consecrated.”(10)
“Veseleyville, Walsh
County was founded in
the fall of 1881. The first
Czech Catholic church in
Walsh County was constructed there in 1881.
Only 20 Czech families inhabited the town then. The
church was consecrated to
St. Lucas (Luke).”(11)
“Bechyně (mail station of Lambert) is located
about 22 miles from Pisek and was established in 1888.
Conway, six miles south of Pisek was founded in 1886
and had about 50 houses in 1900. Park River another
town with Czech inhabitants is eighteen miles north of
Conway. West of Pisek lie the Czech colonies of Lambert, Praha and Lomice (in Czech it is Lomnice).”(12)
Another group of Czechs established a community in Lomice, in Sauter Township and in neighboring Shepard Township. The first Czech settler
Thomas Pesik (Tomáš Pesek) came to the area in
1886 from the village of Lomnice near Třeboň,
Czechoslovakia. By 1888 Frank Kvasnicka, Joseph
Kubart (Kubrt), Albert Herda (Hrda) and the Bina
brothers, John and Lawrence, had arrived. When
a mission was finally founded in 1934, the local
Czechs erected an impressive church of rock gathered by the congregation from their own farmlands.
Joseph Vítek who had learned rock masonry in his
native Czechoslovakia, supervised the work. Also
Czechs settled in Grafton and Voss.(13)
“Czechs” on pages 306-325 or the article “Immigration
of Crimean Czechs to North Dakota” by Bern Pavlish in
Ročenka, published by the Czechoslovak Genealogical
Society International, 2006.
Altogether in the year 1900 there resided about
8,400 Czechs in North Dakota according to Habenicht.(15)
One town not mentioned by Habenicht in his History of Czechs in America is Bottineau, Bottineau
County with a population in 1990 of 2,829. The county
is located in the very north central part of North Dakota
along the border with Manitoba, Canada.
In 1902 two great great aunts of CGSI member
Debra Minar Driscoll moved to Bottineau. Anna Washta
(Vašta) Bliss who was married to a Civil War Veteran,
Andrew J. Bliss moved to Bottineau as a widow with
her children. Anna, along with the help of her children
farmed 480 acres.
Frank and Mary (Washta) Yellen (Jelen) moved to
a farm one mile west of Bottineau. Mrs. Yellen died in
October 1934 at age 75 years according to her obituary. She was born September 20, 1859 and came to the
US at age 18 with her sister Anna, settling in St. Paul,
Minnesota. In 1881 Mary Washta married Frank Yellen
at New Prague, Minnesota, later moving to Renville
County, Minnesota. St. Paul, New Prague, and Renville
County Czechs all shared in common immigrant roots
from South Bohemia.
Information on these families and descendants is
published in a book by Lewis Johnson called, I Married
a Lady – a History of the Bliss and Related Families,
published in 2008.
Further information about the town of Bechyne,
North Dakota can be found in an article in this issue,
“The Beginnings of Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church
at Bechyně, North Dakota.”
In the year 1900 near Dickinson, Stark County
resided about 130 Czech families who lived on farms.
This became the third largest Czech settlement in North
Dakota. The Czech village is called New Hradec where
the Czech Catholic church of Saints Peter and Paul was
founded. Most of these Czechs did not emigrate directly
from Bohemia or Moravia, but had lived for a generation or two in the Crimea, Russia.
Czech Catholic Churches and Priests in
A place called Czech-ohrad, about 100 miles north
North Dakota:
of Crimea is where the settlement to North Dakota
originated. Their group settled in Dickinson in 1887,
followed by several major immigrations extending over a
Adresář českých katol. Kněží v Americe (Addresses of Czech
period of twenty-five to thirty
Catholic Clergymen in America) (16)
years. According to historians the Russian influence is
Ballon, Tomáš
St. Jan Nepomuk Pisek, Walsh County, ND
clearly seen in the adobe type
Bubík, Emil
Huff, Morton County, ND
architecture of homesteads in
Elšík, Jan S
St. Lucas
Veselyville, Walsh County, ND
New Hradec.(14)
Henn, Alphonsus, O.S.B.
Karlsruhe, McHenry County, ND
Further information on
Janda, Alois
St. Adalbert
Wahpeton, Richland County, ND
the Dickinson and New HraMikolášek, Václav
St. Josef
Lankin, Walsh County, ND
dec Czechs can be found in
Smoley, J. C. Calio, Cavalier County, ND
the book, Plains Folk, North
Studený, Aug., O.S.B. St. Vaclav
Dickinson, Stark County, ND
Dakota’s Ethnic History,
Studnička, J. F. Hankinson, Richland County, ND
which has a section on the
Turek, J. N. St. Jan Nepomuk Lidgerwood, Richland Cty, ND
Naše rodina
Page 91
Adresář českých katol. osad v Americe (Addresses of Czech
Catholic Parishes in America) (17)
Bechyň (Lankin R.D 1), Walsh County, ND Bremen, Eddy County, North Dakota
Brickett, North Dakota Conway, Walsh County, North Dakota Dickinson, Stark County, North Dakota Lankin, Walsh County, North Dakota Lidgerwood, Richland County North Dakota Nakoma, Cavalier County, North Dakota New Hradec, Stark County North Dakota Pisek, Walsh County North Dakota Stirum, Sargeant County, North Dakota Veselyville, Walsh County, North Dakota Wahpeton, Richland County, North Dakota Wyndmere, Richland County, North Dakota Community of Ss. Peter and Paul
W. Schimmel in New Rockford, ND
J. McDonald in Michigan City, ND
Father J. Simpson in Larimore, ND
St. Vaclav, Pastor Augustín Studený, O.S.B.
St. Josef, Pastor V. Mikolášek
St. Jan Nepomuk, Pastor J. N. Turek
Mixed Community, Pastor J. Churchill
Ss. Peter and Paul, Pastor Jos. Výtisk
St. Jan Nepomuk, Pastor Tomáš Ballon
St. Vincent, Pastor J. M. Stanton
St. Lucas, Pastor Jan S. Elšík
St. Adalbert, Pastor A. Janda
St. John Baptist, Pastor Herman Wilkes in Mantador, ND
The NDSU Libraries – Institute for Regional Studies and University Archives in Fargo, North Dakota has
a website at http://library.ndsu.edu. Available databases
on that site for genealogy use include the Dakota Territory 1885 Census Index, the North Dakota Biography
Index, North Dakota Naturalizations, Fargo Forum
Obituaries, Cass County Marriage Licenses, 1870-1944;
Probate Records 1876-1944; and Divorce and Civil Cases, 1870-1942. Other databases include the following
newspapers, Fargo Forum 1879-1995, The Spectrum,
1896 - , and The Record, 1895-1905.
“Dakota Territory 1885 Census Index,
Institute for Regional Studies, NDSU” (18)
The North Dakota State University (NDSU) Institute for
Regional Studies headed a statewide cooperative project
to index the entire original Dakota Territory 1885 Census schedules for the counties that today form North Dakota. The database contains over 151,500 names. Each
entry includes: name, age, nativity, occupation, county
of residence, and exact location of the entry in the census schedule.
Using the Institute’s online database I was able to
extract all persons whose birthplace or country of origin
identified as Austria or Bohemia. The list contained 912
residents. I wish to give thanks to fellow author, Paul
V. Svercl for pointing me to this database. Shown on
the next few pages is a breakdown of the number by
nativity, as well as the surnames found in each county.
The spelling of many names is not the original Czech
Page 92
surname. I have listed a likely original spelling for some
names which are listed in brackets following the spelling extracted by the NDSU students from the handwritten entry of the census enumerator.
The province of Bohemia belonged under the
Austria-Hungary Dual Monarchy from 1867 until the
end of World War I in 1918. Thus when the US census
takers recorded the birthplace or country of origin of the
residents in his enumeration district he may have been
given Austria or Bohemia depending on the individual
providing the information. So if you see a family name
but it states Austria for the birthplace or country of
origin that does not mean your family was Austrian, it
more than likely was Bohemian. Barnes County (Bohemia 4)
Herdlesker (Hrdlicka), Maresh (Mares)
Buford County (Austria 5)
Blake, Kovarik, Rhodes, Winkler
Burleigh County, City of Bismarck (Austria 3)
Bass, Blewel, Melvin
Cass County, including Fargo, Tower City, and Casselton (Austria 20, Bohemia 24)
Andrews, Annis, Barron, Beckercheck (Bekrcek),
Belina, Blazl, Burrow, Fencil, Frislie, Kinkey, Markov, Milner, Motall (Motl), Muselin, Nofe, Nove
(Novy), Peihauck, Pirlke (Pirkl), Ritke, Rubener,
Schrethr, Schulsinger, Skalicky, Spear, Spiro, Stangler, Swartke, Waseck (Vasik), Weber, Wenzel,
Zideck (Zidek)
Naše rodina
Cavalier County, including Calio and Nakoma (Austria
10, Bohemia 8)
Brejina (Brezina), Holjman, Provda (Pravda), Seama (Zima), Stollsack
Dickey County (Austria 5, Bohemia 7)
Hady (Hejdy), Heffner, Heller, Hofler, Iceburg,
Jarabeck (Jerabek), Kubeclek, Mouer, Stekel,
Foster County (Austria 7, Bohemia 2)
Albus, Lutz, Marbes, Pepple, Shieb, Wiltschka,
Zhradick,
Grand Forks County, including Grand Forks and Falconer Twp. (Austria 4, Bohemia 8)
Barta, Bena (Bina), Carbin, Fischer (Fiser), Hofer,
Mortal, Rindskoff, Schub
Griggs County, Cooperstown (Austria 2, Bohemia 1)
Pfiefer, Retslaff (Retzlaf), Stangler
Kidder County, Dawson (Austria 18)
Fritsch, Fritz, Gilk (Gilg), Kessler, Neisner
LaMoure County (Austria 1)
Abehofir
Logan County (Austria 5)
Helmet, Van Druin
Morton County, including Huff (Austria 10, Bohemia
32)
Bahm, Behme, Bender, Fink, Heisler, Jerebek (Jerabek), Kahovec, Kral, Kuller, Miller, Nemecheck
(Nemecek), Raak, Rasluck, Schmeidel (Smidl),
Slavick (Slavik), Stasne (Stasny), Stetinar, Wiener
Nelson County (Austria 1)
Kreuger
Pembina County, St. Joseph (Austria 1)
Restler
Ramsey County, Devils Lake (Austria 9, Bohemia 1)
Budde, Kaufman, Kohn, Mancill
Ransom County (Austria 3, Bohemia 12)
Cincia, Herdina (Hrdina), Masck (Masek), Minick,
Nimitz (Nemec), Spindler,
Richland County, including Wahpeton, Abercrombie,
Sheyene, Wyndmere, Lidgerwood, and Hankinson
(Austria 56, Bohemia 247)
Angera, Ball, Bando, Bashak (Bosek), Bauman,
Baumer, Baznak, Beizeck, Benesh (Benes), Benish (Benes), Bezinka, Bisek, Bjorzake, Bloodjack
(Blodget), Boyuk, Britala, Brozvich, Bruzek, Bryla,
Bushofsky (Busovsky), Busta, Chernich (Cernik),
Chezik (Cizek), Chiposa (Ciposa), Chizeck (Cizek),
Dalisy (Dolejsi), Deitzel, Dolesha (Dolejsi), Ellis, Factor, Factory, Fasmand, Faster, Fayott (Fajt),
Faytt (Fajt), Fermaneck (Formanek), Fish, Fix,
Foreman, Formaneck (Formanek), Formenack (For-
manek), Fuga (Fuxa), Gaukler, Genzsreh, Habza,
Harland, Healy, Hearn, Henhena, Herjina (Herina),
Holeck (Holecek), Holicek (Holecek), Horner,
Hrdleska (Hrdlicka), Hshluine, Huskor, Jehaley,
Junak, Kabala (Kabela), Kabederett, Kabetich, Kadaska (Kadecka), Kadetska (Kadecka), Kaditska
(Kadecka), Kamz, Kasper (Kaspar), Kassek (Kasik), Katchian (Kocian), Kebela (Kabela), Kedan,
Kilutz, Kinko, Koba (Kouba), Kochla, Kodan, Kohetek, Kolchian (Kocian), Kortscheauer (Kucera),
Kotschcaur (Kucera), Kracker, Kruchek, Kutchelow, Landa, Lashovesky (Lesovesky), Lawrense
(Lorenc), Lene, Leshovsky (Lesovsky), Mahatha,
Matenk, Matjeck (Matejcek), Matojcek (Matejcek),
Mattecen, Matuska (Matouska), Mehud, Meltenaftsky, Mernick, Meyer, Mikesch (Mikes), Miksche,
Milas, Noak, Nolla, Novak, Novetny (Novotny),
Novotney (Novotny), Nowak (Novak), Okorn,
Pariseck (Parisek), Parizeck (Parisek), Parizek
(Parisek), Pechwash (Pecvar), Perasig (Parisek),
Phillips (Filips), Piland, Pirkl, Polda, Robela,
Rubish (Rubes), Schild, Schromodta (Hromadka?),
Schuk, Schule, Selany, Selenka, Senka, Silena, Sitaisch, Skubis, Smabak, Smaller, Stebor (Stibor),
Stenner (Stinar), Taller, Tonkey, Troctor, Turrick
(Turek), Vovzak (Vavrek), Wacha, Wagner, Wanek,
Watchey, Wells, Yana, Youngbraun, Zalayor, Zatick
(Zatek), Zlutycky (Zlutecky)
Sargent County (Austria 3, Bohemia 17)
Banish (Banes), Bought, Dusbabak (Dusbabek),
Fish, Horges, Karzmorz, Kobosh, Lawrence (Lorenc), Muskewoch, Smith
Stanton County (Austria 10)
Gebauer, Lepewski, Lepowski, Nasiner, Schenk,
Stark County (Austria 1)
Brown
Stutsman County, Jamestown (Austria 18, Bohemia 1)
Aubrecht, Benson, Botata, Brand, Brunsqueler,
Dvocak (Dvorak), Herelius, Mutz, Quird, Seiboldt,
Stanka, Stefanis, Vendland, Whitcomb
Traill County, Cummings (Austria 1, Bohemia 4)
Baumrak (Baumruk), Hisnek, Rachac, Rutter, Stoska (Staska),
Villard County (Austria 1)
Schaff
Walsh County, Grafton, Park River, Pisek, Veselyville,
Lankin (Austria 6, Bohemia 344)
Arbot, Barta, Bartusla (Bartuska), Bazal, Bena
(Bina), Beneda, Bosh, Brozios, Bulzicka, Burianek,
Byna (Bina), Capouch, Chromy, Clian (Chlan),
Naše rodina
Page 93
Coldan (Koldan), Couba (Kouba), Covin (Kovan), Creeley (Krejli), Deorshak (Dvorak), Dusak
(Dusek), Dusek, Dvorak, Dworvak (Dvorak), Era,
Filaw, Franek, Fulpa, Harejo, Helt, Herchevey,
(Hrcevy), Hlavac, Hobot (Chobot), Hodny, Houdek,
Houska, Howser, Infeld, Janousek, Kalas, Karnik,
Kasobat, Kerian, Kerin, Kolsons (Kolcenc), Konkel, Kotaska, Kotusk, Kouba, Kralky, Krevnek
(Kravnik), Kril (Kral), Kronlik, Kuba, Kubal
(Kubel), Kubesh (Kubes), Lamae (Lamay), Leinhart (Linhart), Lovcek, Lovchick (Lovcek), Lovine,
Lust, Machart, Mackhart (Machart), Marousie,
Marsh, Martin, Mateck (Matejcek), Matejcek,
Minoskey, Mott, Novak, Panzar, Paour (Paur), Peterka, Petrik, Pie, Polonki, Polowski, Pozer (Pozor),
Reylick, Rose, Rumruch (Rumreich), Ruzicka,
Salobo, Seburu, Sedivy, Shuvernek (Severnik),
Sleama (Slama), Smith, Snayder (Snajdr), Sobolo,
Sobrolek, Sokosh, Solitos, Soukup, Sponar, Story,
Stroble (Strobl), Svercle (Svercl), Svoboda, Swaddo, Swartz (Svarc), Tiasko, Tupa, Ulmann, Umpaw,
Urbin (Urban), Valck, Vasick (Vasek), Vavroski
(Vavrosky), Vigtasa, Voilk (Volek), Von Gorres, Vorachek (Voracek), Vorent, Votava, Walafa, Walleck
(Valek), Wavrek (Vavrik), Wolfe
Endnotes:
1. Habenicht, Jan History of Czechs in America.
Translated by Miroslav Koudelka. St. Paul,
Minnesota: Czechoslovak Genealogical Society
International, 1996. p. 245.
2. Ibid, p. 251.
3. U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of
Land Management, General Land Office
Records. Document Search by State and
County for Matthew Lorence, North Dakota,
Richland County. www.glorecords.blm.gov.
4. Habenicht, page 251.
5. Ibid, p. 252.
6. U.S. Department of the Interior. Search for
Frank Vottawa Land Record.
7. Sherman, William C. Plains Folk: North
Dakota’s Ethnic History. Fargo: North
Dakota State University, Institute for
Regional Studies, 1988. p. 313.
8. Ibid.
9. Habenicht, page 252.
10. Ibid.
11. Ibid, p. 254.
12. Ibid, p. 255.
Page 94
13. Sherman, p. 314.
14. Sherman, p. 317.
15. Habenicht p. 255.
16. Hlas. Kalendář pro české katolíky v Americe. St.
Louis, Mo.: Tiskem a nákladem “Hlasu”, 1927.
Adresář českých katol. Kněží v Americe, pp. 264268.
17. Ibid. Adresář českých katol. osad v Americe, pp.
268-280.
18. NDSU Libraries – Institute for Regional Studies and
University Archives, North Dakota State University,
Fargo, ND. “Dakota Territory 1885 Census Index.”
Website: http://library.ndsu.edu/db/census. Search
parameter by Nativity: Austria and Bohemia.
About the Author:
Paul M. Makousky is a founding member of the
Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International from
its beginning in 1988. He served almost 8 years as
CGSI’s first Treasurer and has served the last 16 years
as Publications Chair and Editor of the quarterly, Naše
rodina. Paul has been the volunteer Chairman for most
of the CGSI’s biennial Genealogical and Cultural Conferences, including the 2009 Cleveland Conference
and this October’s St. Louis Conference. He has traced
his Makovský family back to their ancestral village of
Borová near Polička in the Czech-Moravian Highlands.
Paul, along with his wife Deb and daughter Katie live in
Woodbury, MN.
A Gingerbread style house from the 1870s in Komárov, South
Bohemia.
Naše rodina
Gustav Frištenský, 18791957, Preserving the
Czech Legend
cording to family members Frank Fristensky, Jr. was a
popular and likable person among his colleagues, peers
and friends. He passed away in 1971 in New York City.
Alois, who remained in his native Czech Republic, had seven children (Anne b. 1877, Gustav b. 1879,
Karel b. 1881, Marie b. 1882, Josef b. 1885, Frantisek
b. 1885, and Pavla b. 1889). Gustav was apparently very
By Frank Fristensky
sick at the age of one, as was typical of many infants in
those days. He was taken care of by their village’s natuToday, more than a half-century after Gustav Frištenský ral healers who saved his young life.
died his name symbolizes strength, fairness, and a well
Documenting Gustav’s life in Europe was the easy
balanced lifestyle. Not only in his native Czech land
part of our research because of the many publications
and in Europe, but also as distant as South and North
and his own writings that are in possession of the famAmerica the name is still enjoying status.
ily. Gustav experienced a hard life in his childhood.
There are many books, articles and television proHis father took over the grandparent’s farm. So, being
grams in circulation in the Czech Republic about Gusthe oldest son, he was expected to help his parents run
tav Frištenský, but there was never anything published
the establishment. At times he even had to skip school
or any research done by the Fristensky family. For this
entirely to help out, but the schoolmaster understood.
reason my cousin (who lives in Gustav’s former home
From his early childhood he was blessed with a strong
in Litovel) and I decided several years ago to do our
physique. At the age of six he was able to lead an ox atown research work. We collected his memorabilia, stotachment without any difficulty. At age twelve he was
ries from people, historians, related web sites and other
tossing bags full of grain (about 110 pounds) into the
sources. Our goal is to publish a comprehensive life sto- granary and restraining horse’s legs with his bare hands
ry about his travels and competitions around the world.
during their shoeing. It was at this point he realized his
Well, let me begin with his short life story.
natural strength and thus began to cultivate it. In order
Gustav was born May 7,
to intensify his work1879 in Kamhajek, Bohemia
outs, Gustav fashioned
(Czech Republic) to Alois and
simple dumb bells and
Kateřina Frištenský. Father Alois
kettle bells from heavy
was the third oldest of ten chilgranite and metal rods.
dren and one of six boys, five of
The stronger the young
whom left in the 1880-90 period
Gustav (called Gusto)
for the United States. “Thank you
became, the more
Alois for keeping the Czech genfrequently he missed
eration alive!”
school. When he was
Of the Frištenský boys who
14, the family started
left Bohemia for the United
thinking of his future
States, all settled in New York
as the farm work could
City. One of the young men,
now also be done by
The four Frištenský brothers.
Frank (František) was accompahis younger brother
nied by his wife and their young
Karel, the second son
son, Frank, Jr. Frank, Jr. became a policeman with the
of the family. It was decided that Gustav would become
New York Police Department receiving gradual promoa blacksmith.
tions into the police hierarchy. In June 1945 as ActAs fate would have it, Gustav’s co-workers were
ing Deputy Chief Inspector he accompanied General
jealous of his strength. As a practical joke they hid
Dwight Eisenhower during his victory and welcome
a glowing horseshoe within a pile of old ones, and
parade in the New York City streets.
ordered Gustav to put them away. Unsuspecting, he
In the mid 1950’s, because he spoke Czech well,
grabbed the still glowing horseshoe burning his palm to
Frank Fristensky, Jr. was assigned as a personal security the bone. The pain was terrible, not only physically, but
agent to the visiting Czech president Edward Beneš. Ac- emotionally. Gustav could not get himself to return to
Naše rodina
Page 95
the anvil. Instead,
he redirected his
life path, which
led him in 1898
to the Schoeffer
butchery in Brno,
then mostly populated by German
inhabitants. There
the young man
learned how to
slaughter cattle,
and due to the additional “strength
training” he got
from working, he
soon was able to
outscore his opponents in wrestling matches and
weight lifting.
Gustav Frištenský on international wrestling card for matches held at Madison Square Garden,
In 1899 Gustav
New York.
started to wrestle
in Brno, representing the Czech Club Hellas. It was here that he was
Back in Brno he was praised for his victory in the
introduced to the secrets of the wrestling competition.
championship, but he was fired from his job at the
In 1901, Frištenský became the champion of Moravia.
butchery. The traditional German company Schoeffer
A year later, in Prague, he upset the undefeated Czech
would no longer employ a “Czech bully.” From there
champion Smejkal for the amateur crown of the Czech
on, the freshly baked amateur European champion
lands.
would not find employment as a butcher. For a half year
In order to attend his first European championship,
he supported himself as a model for picture postcards,
which took place in Rotterdam (Holland) on February 8, posing in the image of ancient mythic gods. At the end
1903, Gustav had to finance his attendance on his own.
of 1904 he turned professional and accepted an invita“At the Hellas Club they did not believe I could do any- tion from George Lurich (Russian professional chamthing among the best wrestlers from all over Europe,”
pion) and traveled to St. Petersburg and Helsinki, where
Gustav recalled with a smile, “so I took out my savings
his glorious thirty-two year long professional wrestling
and went.” In Rotterdam the matches were fought tooth
career began.
and nail. The roundabout of matches started one day
Now, finding out all or at least most of his whereat 2 PM and would end the next morning at 5 AM. Out
abouts in the world during his competitive 32 years (and
of the 112 competitors in attendance, Gustav weighed
documenting it), is the challenge that we are facing.
the least (200 pounds), he also lacked the crucial interSo far we have compiled this information:
national experience necessary to be successful, did not
1904 - 1910 – mostly wrestled at tournaments in
eat for many hours, and couldn’t afford a hotel room.
Russia, Scandinavia and throughout Europe.
Despite these drawbacks, pinning one opponent after
1911 - Tournaments in South America
another without a major rest period, he emerged on top.
His final opponent was Danish champion Eggeberg (260 1912 - Europe
1913 - 14 – North America, Tournaments in the USA
pounds), Gustav lifted him up over his head, spun him
and Canada
around, and then threw him on to the ground like a rag
1914
- 1918 WWI
doll. Early that morning Bohemia had its first European
1918
– to the end of career in Europe
Champion.
Page 96
Naše rodina
Left: Frank Fristensky (left), police inspector
for the New York Police Dept, 1950.
Below: Gustav Frištenský, European wresting
champion. Note the Moravian, Bohemian and
Silesian coats of arms on lower left.
The main research on my part is targeted towards
Gustav’s North American journey. There is sporadic
information about his US tournaments in the issues of
the Czech “Sportovni listy” journal. Other very valuable
information resources are the archives of the former
Czech newspapers published by Czech communities
such as in Chicago, New York, Boston, Cleveland and
others. In July, I am planning to visit the University of
Minnesota’s archives that house the Czech-American
periodicals from that time where I am hoping to find
valuable information.
Furthermore, I spend much time on the computer
researching archives of American newspapers published
in cities where Gustav competed. However, the pages
that are describing his competition are mostly in very
poor shape and thus sometimes not readable.
The last resource I am working on is contacting
web sites all over the world that contain anything on the
history of wrestling, strong men and in particular, sport
museums. Also, there are many individuals who are
collecting historical information, pictures, old books,
etc. from this time. Through this experience I met many
individuals who are aware of Gustav’s accomplishment
and thus are a very valuable source of help. Completing
this proud family legacy is important to us because we
would like to preserve it for all generations to come.
The role models of the celebrated Gustav Frištenský
were Jan Žižka and Bivoj, ancient heroes from Bohemian history. Both would be proud of their admirer. After
his death on April 4, 1957 his close friend and renowned
Czech writer Peter Bezruc composed an epitaph for the
family:
“Champion in many bouts
Astonishing many,
Farewell forever,
Dear Gustav Frištenský.”
Epitaph by Petr Bezruc 1957
Compiled by Frank Fristensky, Durango, CO, April
2011
Naše rodina
Page 97
Professor Jozef Novák’s
80 Year Anniversary
By Marek Rimský
At the end of last year one of the most significant figures in Slovak archival science and in auxiliary sciences
of history, professor PhDr. Jozef Novák, celebrated his
birthday anniversary. A book of memoirs was published
on that occasion. One of the professor’s students, docent
Juraj Roháč, helped to compile it and afterwards the
book was published by the Slovak Genealogical and
Heraldic Society in 2010.
In the beginning, the thin book takes us to a little
Slovak town - Vrútky, where Jozef Novák´s life journey
began, exactly on the 22nd of November 1930. According to the author´s delightful conversation and his vivid
memories we can easily imagine the atmosphere of the
inter-war period.
The astonishing surprise was Novak´s confession
he has never been interested in his own roots and his
genealogical tree. He has known his ancestors only
up to the generation of his grandparents but he is a
significant personality in that field, moreover he is a
founder of the Slovak Genealogy and Heraldry. These
two auxiliary historical sciences can not be separated,
even though Novák is known in Slovakia especially as a
heraldist, but he used to call himself a genealogist too in
his memoirs.
The professor’s childhood was not simple and easy.
His father came from Krompachy and he worked as
a clothier in Vrútky. His mother had a salon and worked
as a tailor. The family situation taught him to be humble
and sensitive. He spent only part of his childhood in
Vrútky. In 1941 he decided to study at Piarist school in
Trenčín for eight years. The school had at that time a
very good reputation and had excellent teachers as well
as graduates. Since it was a boarding school for a young
boy it meant he was able to take care of himself. His
study in Trenčín was interrupted by World War II, so
the 1944/1945 school year he attended in Martin (city
near Vrútky, a major national centre for the Slovaks, the
seat of the Slovak’s Matica Slovenska). After the war he
returned to Trenčín and he graduated there in 1950.
Page 98
Naše rodina
Štefan Pozdišovský was
Professor Novák is the auTown crest or seal for Jozef Novák’s
a pedagogue at the gymnasium
thor of many significant heralhometown of Vrútky, Slovakia.
school and at the same time
dic and genealogical - heraldic
he was a director at Trenčín
publications. His attention was
Museum and he was responmainly drawn to urban coat of
sible for the archives of the
arms in Slovakia and later to
former county of Trenčín city.
noble family heraldry in SlovaHe was a very important perkia (previous in Hungary). No
son for Novák and he greatly
one has dealt with this issue
influenced Novák´s future
before him. Among the results
life. Pozdišovský allowed the
of his work is the substantial
young gymnasiast to work durmonograph “Slovak urban and
ing his study in the archives
town coat of arms” published
so Novák as a student could
in 1972 and two volumes about
earn some extra money. He had
noble family crest published in
a chance to get deeper into this
1980 and 1986, besides them,
issue and became familiar with
there is a large number of scithese materials while studying
entific studies in journals and
them. It helped him in his future
various contributions to the confercareer and throughout his life. Beences.
sides that Pozdišovský proposed and
It is worth mentioning that the
persuaded Novák to attend the newly estabbook of memoirs has a very meaningful title
lished department “archives“ at Faculty of Philoso“Heraldist without coat of arms.” It strictly reflects
phy, Comenius University in Bratislava.
the scientific attitude of Professor Novák to that field.
The study of archival theory as well as other auxilHe tries to point out that current “armorial boom“ in
iary sciences of history (heraldry, genealogy, sphragisSlovakia is under the influence of commercialization.
tics, palaeography, chronology, metrology, numismatics, Docent Roháč added an expressive and moving note
diplomacy, etc.) according to Novák´s words perfectly
addressed to professor that he is not a heraldist without
“fitted” him.
coat of arms at all, his coat of arms is clean and respectHe successfully graduated in 1955 and he remained able at the same time.
at the faculty as a teacher and he spent his entire sciEditor’s Note: The book, Erby a Vlajky Miest v
entific career there. At the beginning he worked as an
Slovenskej republike was co-written by P. Katous, J.
assistant for Professor Alexander Húščava, a founder of Novák and L. Vrteľ and published by the Ministry of
the Archives Department at the Faculty in Bratislava,
Culture of Slovak Republic in 1991. The town crest of
the first of its kind in Slovakia. Húščava was another
Vrútky shown here was published in this book.
prominent personality in Slovak historiography. Young
Translation of this article by Peter Sabol.
Novák was accredited to teach heraldry by a decision
made of his professor Húščava. Besides that over the
About the Author:
course of his further educational activities at the univerMgr. Marek Rímský is a private historian and professity he was teaching sphragistics, chronology, numissional genealogy researcher from Košice, Slovak Rematics, palaeography, analysis of Hungarian documents,
public. In 1998 he finished his studies at the Prešov
introduction to the study of archival science, auxiliary
University in Prešov, the Faculty of Philosophy, the
sciences of history for historians and diploma seminar.
department of history and auxiliary historical sciences
Genealogy was added to the curriculum in 1968 after
and archive studies. Besides genealogical researches he
an improved political situation in Czechoslovakia, beworks on different projects concerning mainly historical
cause it was a scientific discipline which was mainly
industrial architecture in Slovakia. His interest is also
concerned with the aristocracy and it did not follow the
historical demography, genealogy and heraldry of noble
communist ideology at that time.
families.
Naše rodina
Page 99
St. Louis Conference,
Down to the Wire
published St. Louis area Czech genealogy books.
There will also be professional genealogists, travel
consultants, and various genealogical and historical
organizations.
By Paul Makousky, Conference Chair
If you haven’t already done so, please make
sure to submit your registration for the St. Louis
Conference, October 26-29 at the Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel. For those with roots in the St.
Louis area this might be a once in a lifetime opportunity to get so much information about the history
of the Czechs and Slovaks and how the ethnic communities grew together and then dispersed.
We have three available tours, and our ethnic
neighborhood tours on Wednesday and Thursday
October 26 and 27 are almost certain to be full or
nearly full by the time we get to October 1st. To
check on the availability of tour openings please
e-mail me at [email protected]. We will
begin a waiting list if and when the tours fill.
On Thursday we have more activities planned
than any past Conference. We have a full day of
10 breakout sessions on mainly St. Louis topics,
but also Beginning Genealogy and Cultural topics.
Helene Cincebeaux will have another Mini Exhibit
of Bohemian, Moravian and Slovak Folk Costume
(kroje).
We have our Regional Networking Sessions
where attendees will hopefully meet others who
share a common ancestral village and share information about trips to the home country, historical
documents, use of researchers or town historians,
online records, and more. Please be sure to e-mail
your list of ancestral villages to me using the email address above. We will start out with a limited
number of area tables, so people may have to split
into smaller groups after the initial gathering.
We have a wide variety of vendors who will
sell imported products including glass and Christmas ornaments, handmade folk art, history books,
maps, language aids, cemetery books, cookbooks,
t-shirts, Czech and Slovak music CDs, and recently
Page 100
The list of vendors include: Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International, CSA Fraternal
Life (Major Sponsor), Gifts and Crafts International (Daniela Mahoney), Czech Music Alliance
(Sister Anita Smisek), Missouri History Museum,
St. Louis Genealogical Society, Lisa Alzo (author
and lecturer), Miroslav Koudelka, Jan Dus, Michal
Razus, Polish Roots (Paul Valasek), Deborah Truitt
(Czech Glass author and collector), Czech Republic Crystal (Dave and Margaret Swartz), European
Trading Company (Vladimir and Nadia Cinadr),
Stitched for You (Diane Ryan), Jefferson County
Genealogical Society, Fenton Historical Society,
Sidonka Wadina (Slovak Master Wheat Weaver and
Egg Decorator), Heritage Tours (Mark Bigaouette),
Slovak Folklore and Heritage Society Int’l (Helene
Cincebeaux), St. John Nepomuk Church, Czech
and Slovak-American Genealogy Society of Illinois, Friends of the Bohemian National Cemetery
(of Chicago).
We encourage all attendees to register for
rooms at the Sheraton Westport Chalet hotel to help
the society achieve complimentary room nights.
Staying at the hotel is also very beneficial to the
guest as you get more quality time networking and
interacting with fellow researchers, and you will
feel less rushed. Call 1-800-822-3535 to reserve
your room and make sure to tell them you are in the
Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International
room block. You can also reserve online by visiting
the CGSI’s website and going to the St. Louis Conference page under the Accommodations section
and click on the Reservation hyperlink.
If you have something of interest for the CGSI’s Silent Auction at the Conference we would
love to hear from you. Donations will be accepted
through October 5th.
See you in St. Louis!
Naše rodina
History of Sokol Saint
Louis
been assassinated only a week before. Plans went ahead
for gym classes for boys. The volunteer instructors were
Vostrovský, Procházka and Mr. Kořínek.
The Civil War had caused economic and other upheaval in St. Louis. The location of the city, considered
excellent at its founding, had become a problem. It lay
near the boundary between North and South with river
traffic blockaded and further immigration cut off. After
the war was over, life in St. Louis was still so unsettled
that some Czechs moved on to cities with a faster
growing Czech population. Primitive living conditions
caused a cholera epidemic in 1866. There were other
difficulties in keeping the new Sokol afloat. The rather
low ceiling of the building on 10th Street was not adequate for gymnastics. Other locations used in the next
few years were makeshift, often with low ceilings as
well. Better facilities and equipment were a significant
expense. In the early 1870s, a German turnverein instructor was hired. At one point there was an attempt to
combine a Sokol club for younger men with Slovanská
Lípa (Slavonic Linden Tree), a cultural club founded in
St. Louis in 1859.
The original Slovanská Lípa members were never
comfortable with that idea, so in 1875 the original
Sokols pulled out and reorganized for the fourth time.
By Marcella Milcic
Since 1850 a community of Bohemian (Czech) immigrants had been growing in an equally fast-growing
city on the Mississippi River. The new Americans were
arriving in New Orleans and then taking a steamboat
upriver to St. Louis, Missouri. In 1862 patriotic Czechs
founded an organization in Prague they called Sokol
(Falcon) to provide gymnastics activity for its members. They also provided cultural and character building education so that, should the Czechs someday find
themselves independent from their Austrian rulers,
they would be prepared for nationhood. The founders
chose the falcon because they considered it a noble bird
and did not wish to use the eagle as a symbol. Only
three years later, inhabitants of Bohemian Hill, south
of downtown St. Louis, not only were aware of the
Prague Sokol, they decided to start a Sokol of their own.
The local Czech newspaper Pozor announced a meeting to be held February 14, 1865 at 1502-04 South 10th
Street. This site was a building
constructed shortly before by Jan
Mudroch and Rudolph Kysela to
provide a venue for Bohemian
plays and entertainments.
Jan B. Erben presided and
enthusiastically addressed the
sizeable crowd. At that meeting
65 of those present signed up for
membership in the new Sokol
organization. Karel Procházka
and Jaroslav Vostrovský were
also considered founders. The
first officers were President, M.
Kovanda; Vice-president, V. Vojta; Secretary, Karel Procházka;
Treasurer, C. Černý; and gymnastics director Jaroslav Vostrovský.
The Executive Committee also
included Jan B. Erben and Jan
Mudroch. An entertainment was
planned for April 22. Enthusiasm
was dampened on that day because the President of the United
Sokol St. Louis building exterior from 1915. Photo courtesy of MarStates, Abraham Lincoln, had
cella Milcic.
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Page 101
1865-1915 V. K. Tříska wrote of a meeting in November 1882 at which only seven men were present--not
enough to fill a slate of officers and board members for
the new year. Mr. Tříska, a relatively new member, later
gave a rousing speech to revive those who were ready to
give up yet again. Not long after that, the local lodges of
the Č.S.P.S. (Česko-Slovanské Podporující Společnost)
began to plan a fine, three-story Národní Síň (National
Hall) for Czech activities. Sokol purchased a $100 share
in the building. The cornerstone was laid in 1889, and
the building opened at Dolman Street and Allen Avenue
in 1890.
We can imagine that the
Czechs of St. Louis, finally
and proudly holding their
meetings and entertainments
in such a building of their
own, could sustain a level of
enthusiasm that would carry
forward the Č.S.P.S. lodges,
Sokol, and the other lodges
and clubs for a long time. Unfortunately, the space allotted
to Sokol for gym classes was a
lower level room, and not the
grand, two-story space which
served as an auditorium. In
early 1894 a committee was
formed to look into the purchase or construction of another hall. Very soon news came
that the Union Capitol Hall
at 9th Street and Allen Avenue
was for sale. Sokol had often
rented space there in the past,
Here is what the former building of Sokol on 9th Street and Allen Avenue
so members were very familiar
in St. Louis looks like today. It is called Smile Lofts, rented out as Apartwith it. It too had a grand, twoments. It was a soda pop factory in between times and one of the drinks
story high space on the second
was named “Smile.” Photo by Marcella Milcic, July 2011.
floor which would serve as
the gymnasium as well as the
largest entertainment space.
inferred that the inclusion of the young ladies in Sokol
On May 31, 1894 the Sokols moved into their very own
activities helped the unit stay afloat this time.
hall.
During this first decade of Sokols in America, units
By this time Czech men in Europe were learning
were starting up in other cities as well, and a Národní
the Sokol system of gymnastics and its instruction.
Jednoty Sokolské (National Sokol Organization) was
Such men could be hired to come to American cities
organized in 1878. Dues as well as death benefit premiand serve as fulltime teachers. In 1895 August Tesař
ums to a national organization were an added expense
became both gymnastics instructor and resident manwhich did not appeal to all St. Louis members. In the
ager of the hall and remained a number of years. Karel
th
50 anniversary book Památník: Těl. Jednoty Sokol
Eliášek and Joseph Paskovský were two other favorite
(Fortunately there was always someone who would not
give up on Sokol.) Some members were taken with the
idea they should purchase a Sokol banner from Prague.
In 1876 a group of 15 young ladies, presumably daughters and sisters of members, organized themselves in
order to raise money for the banner and have some fun
at the same time. Soon they were a singing group, too,
and this was the start of a Vlasta auxiliary which, while
clearly part of Sokol St. Louis, would continue to meet
separately from the men and maintain its own treasury
and fund raising activities until the 1990s. The banner
was soon purchased and eagerly awaited. It could be
Page 102
Naše rodina
teachers. A major
their relatives back
gymnastic activity
in Bohemia. In the
of Sokols in Europe
meantime travel
and in America was
between Bohemia
a “slet” to which
and America was
participants came
interrupted. Many
from other cities to
Sokol members
perform together
became involved in
callisthenic routines
fundraising for an
they had learned at
independent Czech
their home gymnasination. With the
ums. St. Louis gymend of World War I
nasts were traveling
came the formation
to slets as early as
of Czecho-Slovakia
the 1870s. In 1904
and the long awaited
a slet was held in
independence of the
St. Louis, not coinhomeland. This new
cidentally the year
name inspired many
Sokol St. Louis’s male gymnasts, from around 1915. From the Sokol
of the city’s hosting
in the community to
Pamatnik (Memories) booklet, courtesy of Marcella Milcic.
both a World’s Fair
stop calling themand the first modern
selves Bohemians
Olympic Games outside of Europe.
and start calling themselves Czechs.
The nearly thirty years at 9th Street and Allen AvSoon, however, the St. Louis Sokols would meet
enue were filled with as many as six plays a year, choral a new challenge. The United States Constitution was
and instrumental musical activities, long hikes into the
amended to prohibit alcohol. Both the Sokol Hall and
country, picnics, balls and dances. St. Louis Czechs
the National Hall suffered a serious loss of barroom
seeking entertainment could easily find it at St. John
income. Changes in federal law cut off most new immiNepomuk Church, St. Wenceslaus Church, the Sokol
gration, an important source of new members. In 1922
Hall and the National Hall. In addition there was anthe Czech community reached a difficult decision--the
other Sokol unit, Mount Pleasant, founded in 1902 for
Sokols sold their hall for $20,500 and used $15,000 of
those who had already moved much farther south of Bo- the proceeds to buy into the National Hall. Sokol now
hemian Hill. St. John Nepomuk Church and its offshoot held the majority of the shares and all other shareholdSt. Wenceslaus Church were motivated to provide their
ing organizations the balance. From that day on the gym
parishioners with many activities similar to what the
classes took place in the second-floor auditorium.
“freethinkers” at the Sokol Hall and National Hall were
A popular activity with some Sokol members had
offering. The churches tried hard to keep their flock
been excursions on foot to the countryside, often to a
from the influence of the secular organizations. At both
destination known only to a few of the organizers. Sothe Sokol and National Halls the resident managers opkols also had attended picnics at rural sites. Now that
erated a barroom while their wives provided lunch and
the Sokol unit was again trying to share equitably a
supper. Immigrants just arriving in St. Louis were dibuilding with other groups, and the money was there,
rected to one hall or the other for a meal and orientation a place in the fresh air of the countryside just for Soto their new community. A powerful tornado on May
kol members was a priority. In 1923 K. Jeřábek and A.
27, 1896, severely damaged the Sokol Hall (and nearly
Matoušek located a farm for sale near Kimmswick in
destroyed St. John Nepomuk Church), but money was
Jefferson County about 20 miles from the city limits.
raised for repairs, and everyone carried on as before.
Although there were Czechs living in this area, that fact
Sokol celebrated its 50th anniversary in 1915 with
may or may not have entered into the decision. There
a celebration, speeches and publication of the abovewas a train between St. Louis and Kimmswick, and
mentioned Památník: Těl. Jednoty Sokol 1865-1915.
the growing number of automobiles in the Czech comWorld War I had begun, and the Czechs in America
munity made the distance feasible. By January 1924 a
could not help but think about the possible outcome for
committee was established to organize the development
Naše rodina
Page 103
of the “Camp.” Member and architect
Rudolf Weinberger drew up the plans.
The actual purchase took place February 24, 1924. Soon Sokol members
were working in every spare moment
putting up a two-story building, planting trees and developing the farm site
for their own use. Soon there was a
swimming pool filled with natural
mineral spring water. In August 1925
for one week 16 boys camped at the
site with gym instructor Karel Eliášek.
The next year girls were welcome,
too, and some years children’s camping went on for five weeks at a time as
Vlasta members cooked all the meals
and both men and women served as
counselors. During the Depression
some members were available to work
at the Camp or serve as counselors
because they were unemployed. The
decade of the 1930s ended with the
Sokol St. Louis young women gymnasts with their instructor, Joseph Paskovský
taken circa 1913-1914. Photo courtesy of Marcella Milcic.
shock of the Nazi occupation of the
homeland and the onset of World War
II in Europe.
The national Sokol organization, now called Ameri- Camping as well, and every child learned to swim.
can Sokol, recognizes St. Louis as the first unit and Feb- Those involved in dramatics and singing performed
ruary 14, 1865 as the date of its founding. Thus in 1940
Smetana’s “Bartered Bride” and other operettas and muSokol St. Louis was honored to be the host of a District
sical comedies. Professor Joseph Stanovský, for over 50
Slet to mark the 75th anniversary. A slet committee was
years organist and choir director at St. John Nepomuk
formed with John Reiner as chairman, and plans went
Church, became Sokol choral director as well. A large
forward for a grand celebration. On the evening of June
number of younger Sokol men (and three women) found
29, a program featuring a one-act opera in Czech and
themselves in the Armed Forces, and three men gave
other entertainment was held in the 4,000 seat Kiel Optheir lives. A brass plaque listing all their names is still
era House adjoining the downtown Municipal Auditoon display at the American Czech Educational Center.
rium. On Sunday afternoon, June 30, there was a parade
The gymnastic and cultural activities continued
from the National Hall to the Municipal Auditorium.
through the 1950s with the dramatic activities bolstered
The slet exhibition, featuring gymnasts from other cities by the arrival of several refugees from Czecho-Slovain the central part of the United States, immediately fol- kia. Sokol and the other shareholding lodges jointly held
lowed. Slets are customarily held in outdoor venues, but fundraisers to maintain and renovate the building. Over
this was the first slet held in an air conditioned buildthe years many members had moved from Bohemian
ing. The United States Senator from Missouri, Harry
Hill to seek newer housing. Others remained living
S. Truman, was a featured speaker. John Reiner later
nearby, but some of them were forced out by the conreminisced on his sitting and conversing with the future
struction of a segment of highway south of downtown
33rd President of the United States, and how gracious he St. Louis.
was.
In 1959 there came news of further interstate highBy 1940 the gym instructor was another Czech-born way construction which would swallow up the National
and trained athlete, Frank Příhoda. He was well liked,
Hall. There was nothing to be done but fight for equitawould teach full time until 1965 and remain in St. Louis ble compensation and then look for land or another hall
the rest of his life. He was always present at Children’s
to purchase. Land was found southwest of the National
Page 104
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Hall but still within the city limits. After much fundraising and the loan of money by members, the summer of
1965 saw the opening of the American Czech Educational Center at 4690 Lansdowne Avenue. The Sokol St.
Louis majority ownership arrangement carried over to
the new building.
With crisis comes opportunity, and renewed enthusiasm. A number of people who had gone to gym as
children and then grown up and “moved on” returned to
participate. Ongoing fundraisers to pay down the debt
on the new building drew performers for a new style
of variety shows and dinner theater. Czech plays were
disappearing due to a loss of actors who could speak the
language and the loss of an audience, as well.
In the 1970s the members’ attention turned to the
Camp. It needed some renovation, including the swimming pool. Some members enjoyed the mineral water;
others thought the rotten egg smell was terrible. Instead
of repairing the pool, Sokol built a new one right outside the main building with water supplied by the community water department. To this day the Camp is loved
by all those who grew up spending at least one week
there each summer. Members can come most days to
swim for free or pay a small fee for guests. Some, however, occasionally question the expense and the time
spent by too few workers on upkeep. Sokol St. Louis is
one of the last units to still have a Camp. The national
Sokol organization has rented it several times for a
summer camping and leadership experience for young
adults. (Editor’s Note: Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota maintains a camp in Pine City, Minnesota located
some 66 miles north of their Historic ČSPS Hall in St.
Paul).
One of our older members who is the last of the
post-World War II refugees asked recently, “Why has
Sokol survived?” In the June, 2011 meeting he made
each person present try to answer the question. Many
Czechs in St. Louis struggled with assimilation and
learning English, while others moved on into the American mainstream. For the immigrants and their children
as well, who did not quickly assimilate and who did not
participate in church activities, Sokol as well as lodges
and Slovanská Lípa provided fitness activities, many
other outlets for spare time, including entertainment and
opportunities for personal growth. Later generations
continued to belong and participate as part of a family tradition. Sokol St. Louis has welcomed many new
members from the broader American community to its
family friendly environment. After 146 years the first
Sokol in America remains a thriving, relevant organiza-
tion in St. Louis today.
About the Author:
Marcella Milcic has been a member of the St. Louis
Sokol unit for over 50 years. For 15 years she held the
office of either Financial Secretary or Treasurer. As a
member and officer of the Czech School Board of the
American Czech Educational Center, she has managed
an adult Czech language class. She encouraged her father, William C. Milcic, in his writing and translating
for American Czech Center (St. Louis) newsletters and
the Hospodář publication. Before retirement, she was a
high school Spanish and mathematics teacher. At present she is a member of the Local Planning Committee
for the 2011 CGSI Conference.
SOURCES:
Habenicht, Jan. History of Czechs in America.
Translated by Miroslav Koudelka. St. Paul, Minnesota:
Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International, 1996.
pp. 40-41. Text in English.
Klobása, Antonín. My Life: Autobiography of Antonín Klobása. Translated by William C. Milcic. St.
Louis, Missouri, 1974; reprinted, 1993. p. 22. Text in
English.
Král, Joseph. “75 Years of T. J. Sokol, 1865-1939,”
in 75th Anniversary, Gymnastic Ass’n. Sokol St. Louis.
St. Louis, Mo., 1940. pp. 11-21. Text in Czech.
Milcic, William. “History of Sokol St. Louis, Mo.,”
in American Sokol Jubilee Slet, St. Louis, Missouri,
1865-1955: Souvenir Program. St. Louis, Mo., 1955.
unpaged. Text in Czech and English.
Milcic, William. “100th Anniversary of Sokol St.
Louis, 1865-1965,” in American Sokol Centennial,
1865-1965. St. Louis, Mo., 1965. unpaged.
Moravek, Norma. Echoes of the Past: Fifty Years at
Sokol Camp. St. Louis, Mo., 1974. pp. 1-3.
The Sokol Saint Louis Newsletter. St. Louis: Sokol
St. Louis, March 1967-May 1975. Material taken from
various issues.
Tříska, V. K. “Těl. Jednota Sokol, St. Louis, Mo.“ in
Památník: Těl. Jednoty Sokol 1865-1915. Chicago, Illinois: Národní Tiskárna, 1915. Text in Czech.
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Page 105
Slate Of Candidates for
Office 2012 – 2014
Executive Committee (3-Year Terms)
The Czechoslovak Genealogical Society
International (CGSI) nominating committee, appointed by President Ginger Simek, including
Chair Eugene Aksamit (past president), Suzette
Steppe, Barb Vermeer, Joyce Fagerness and Tony
Kadlec, recommends the following slate of candidates for office beginning January 1, 2012. The
slate was approved by the Executive Committee
at its regularly scheduled meeting on Tuesday,
August 9, 2011.
All positions carry three year terms that are
staggered such that approximately one-third of
the positions are open each year. The Executive Committee and the Board of Directors are
responsible for meeting the various needs of our
members. The smooth operation of the day-today activities of the society depends on volunteers whether in society leadership positions or
on special projects. We strongly encourage and
always need members to volunteer their services
to CGSI. You may notify any Officer or Director
of you interest at any time – please consider volunteering next year!
A vote of the membership on the slate of candidates will take place on Saturday, October 29,
2011, during the Annual Membership Meeting
held between 3:30 and 4:30 at the Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel, 191 Westport Plaza, St. Louis,
Missouri.
If you would like to cast a vote but are unable
to attend the meeting, you may request a proxy
ballot from Tony Kadlec, Corresponding Secretary, by writing to CGSI at PO Box 16225, St.
Paul, MN 55116-0225 or by e-mail: research@
cgsi.org. Proxies must be received by October
18th to assure being counted.
Page 106
The Executive Committee, made up of the 6 officers and 9 committee chairs, runs the day-to-day
operations of the society. Committee members
attend monthly meetings at the Minnesota Genealogy Center in South St. Paul, Minnesota.
Executive Committee Nominees:
1st Vice President Recording Secretary
Hospitality Chair
Internet Chair Education Chair Kathy Jorgenson
Minnetonka, MN
Ruth Ahrens
Richfield, MN
Pamela Peltier
Champlin, MN
Scott Phillips
Michigan City, IN
Theresa Dirksen
North St. Paul, MN
Board of Directors (3-Year Terms)
The Board of Directors consists of the 6 officers
and 9 at-large directors. Either one or two of the
at-large positions are filled by Past Presidents.
The directors are responsible for making broad
policy decisions, such as establishing the levels
and rates of membership, recommended changes
to the articles of incorporation or bylaws, approval of major research or funding projects,
filling vacant positions on the Executive Committee, and acquisitions of real estate (if the need
arises).
We attempt to obtain a broad geographical
representation on the board to receive input from
persons of varying backgrounds and interests.
The Board of Directors meets annually in person.
To ensure that we have a quorum (to conduct
business) for the annual meeting, over half of the
15 directors are from Minnesota.
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Board Nominees:
Mary Jane Scherdin, Madison, WI
Carolyn Janka, Virginia Beach, VA
northeastern North Dakota. Bechyně is located
in the township of Perth.
Rendering of Sts. Peter and Paul
Catholic Church in 1912
The Beginnings of Sts.
Peter & Paul Catholic
Church at Bechyně,
North Dakota
By Paul V. Švercl
The author’s research included the six townships of
Cleveland, Latona, Norton, Perth, Sauter, and Shepherd located in the southwestern part of Walsh County,
We are struck with awe that our Czech pioneer relatives successfully managed to settle a
new land where the buffalo once roamed. Their
dreams of having their own lands became real.
They organized and built a church together.
They created families and laid out a future for
their offspring. Their leadership built us a new
community some 8,000 miles away from the
Old Country they came from.
Community Begins -- Bechyně began as
a small group of religious Czech farmers who
wanted a church. Set on the uplands, the prairie consisted basically of a glacial drift plain
with many shallow potholes or lakes spread
between gentle rolling hills and tall grass. Here
and there small groves of trees dotted the spacious countryside. Wildlife was everywhere
and very plentiful.
Our ancestors heard that under the amended provisions of the Homestead Act of 1862,
160 acres of land could be obtained to anyone
who was at least 21 and either a citizen or person who filed for citizenship. This opportunity
included a huge piece of fertile land compared
to those tracts found in the dense areas of
northern Europe.
Many Czechs that came during the 1860s
thru the 1880s settled in the Minnesota area,
since, at about the same latitude as the homelands, it had similar weather, soil, and plants. They had
left their homeland because of unstable economies,
harsh military service, and overcrowding, among other
reasons, and then traveled thousands of miles for a
chance at freedom and lands of their own. Not all of
them had fulfilled their dreams in Minnesota; therefore,
relocation to Dakota Territory could give them another
opportunity. With the availability of rail access in the
early 1880s, families joined the rush to settle the new
frontier. Some of the first Czechs settled in the new
rural communities of Veseleyville, Pisek and Conway
in Walsh County, where survey work had just gotten
underway to layout the township lines and new lands in
western part. Roads into the frontier were primarily old
wildlife trails. Settlers walked a lot to reach their neighbors.
Vital to these pioneers was communication with
their relatives. The postal service made a strong effort to
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Page 107
establish farm post offices about every six miles along
the developing frontier. These included one at Praha
(about 4 ½ miles east of Bechyně) established May
7, 1883, in Section 16 of Cleveland Township, one at
Lambert (a few miles west of Bechyně) on February
13, 1886, in Section 22 of Perth Township, and another
at Latona (north of Bechyně) on February 18, 1884, in
Section 9. Many times neighbors took turns picking up
and delivering each others’ mail.
Bechyně Builds -- As in the Old Country, several
Catholic families would gather together at a farmstead
to sing, dance, play music, and pray for their livelihood
on the new frontier. Sometimes a missionary would say
Mass in Latin and/or Czech at the Praha Post Office
home of William or Felix Ruzicka or at the farm home
of Josef Hodny about 4 ½ miles west of Praha or later
at a local school house. In 1883-1885 as more families settled in the area and joined together, they talked
about plans to form a parish and build a church. Some
neighbors may have disagreed about what should be
done. Non-Catholic neighbors socialized in other ways
with their Czech neighbors. But having the Government
build the church, like in the Old Country, was not an
option in the United States. They held discussions with
mission priests, including Father Francis Pribyl, who
seasonally traveled in the area and said Mass and administered the sacraments.
As talks continued, two neighbors (Josef Hodny
and Frantisek Vobejda) each donated about 3 acres of
land, large enough to build a chapel and create a cemetery on the south side of Section 12 of Perth Township.
The location was named after the village of Bechyně
in southern Bohemia, an area from which some of the
Czech pioneers had migrated. Further talks with Father
Thomas Bily encouraged getting started on plans to
build a chapel. In 1886, Frank Moravec, Sr., an energetic neighbor, spoke up and made an arrangement with
a “local frontier bank” for building monies at 20 percent
interest. A small group of farmers accepted the challenge of Mr. Moravec and together they constructed a
16-foot by 20-foot wooden chapel with a 10-foot roof
height for a cost of $200 (including $113 for lumber). In
mid-1886, the mission chapel was dedicated as Sts. Peter and Paul (the community celebrates annually in late
June) and accepted by Rt. Rev. Martin Marty, O.S.B.,
Vicar Apostolic of Dakota assigned to Sioux Falls. On
June 14, 1889, Mr. Moravec, Sr., who had helped build
two churches, died suddenly and became one of the first
interred at Bechyně cemetery.
Who Were These New “Czech” Settlers? Some of
Page 108
the earliest families that settled in the 6-townships area
during the early 1880s included Bazal/Bazel, Beneda,
Bina/Byna/Bena, Bos/Bosh, Brodina, Franek, Helt,
Hlavac, Hodney/Hodny, Horajsh/Horejsh/Horejsi, Infeld/Enfeld, Kalas/Kalash, Kosobud, Kouba, Kovarik,
Kozojed, Kratochvil, Kroulik, Kubat, Lacina, Machart,
Maresh/Marsh, Matejcek/Matejicek, Moravec, Novak,
Pecka, Pic/Peach, Rose, Ruzicka, Salaba, Soukup,
Svercel/Svercl, Swartz, Urban, Vacek/Wacek, Vasicek/
Vasichek/ Vasigka/Vasick,Vobejda, Volse, Votava, and
Zeman. By 1900, other families had joined those already settled: Cicha, Drevecky, Drtina, Dvorak, Gust,
Harazim, Herda, Hodek, Hrabik, Jechort. Jicha, Jonas,
Kalal, Karas, Klug, Kolda, Kubart, Lala, Maixner/ Majksner/ Majxner, Mares, Masek, Pachl, Pavek, Pesek/
Písek, Pich, Polak, Ryba/Riba, Rysavy, Shirek/Sirek/
Shereck/Sherek, Stejskal, Sticha, Trenda, Vaith/Waith,
Zaradka, Zelenka, and Zizka.
In America, some Czech families changed their surname spellings (i.e., Boš to Bosh, Hodný to Hodny or
Hodney, Matějček or Matějíček to Matejcek, and Švercl
or Švercel to Svercl or Svercel) by dropping the diacritical (accent) marks. Several variances of the surnames
are in the records as well as inscribed on tombstones.
Some of these variations are listed above. Additionally,
a few families decided to shorten their European surname (i.e., Zvánovec or Zvanowitz to Bina).
Expansion -- Sts. Peter and Paul started as a small
mission faithfully serving over 30 families. Some of the
parishioners that came to Bechyně had to travel several
miles one-way in an open wagon or buggy. While many
churches developed in railroad towns, Sts. Peter and
Paul was built a couple of townships away from the
closest railroad route. If the families could not attend
Mass monthly, they at least prayed at home. Sometimes, if priests didn’t come when expected, senior lay
people lead the prayers of the congregation. Some of
these leaders included Bosh, Hodny, Moravec, Pesek,
Ruzicka, Urban, Vobejda, Zeman, and others. Catechism for the children normally followed Mass while
neighbors visited and shared the latest news on the
prairie. Sometimes neighbors that came from afar were
invited for buchty or houska and drinks to join closer
neighbors along the field routes they traveled. Usually
activities were held during daylight hours, since lighting was limited. Except for the barn dances and lodge
socials, attending church was certainly the largest community gathering.
During the 1890s, the townships around Bechyně
continued to entice new settlers. With time, the chapel
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became too small for the membership and plans were
drawn up by Matej Hodek to enlarge the chapel and
raise the roofline. After acceptance by the community,
Mr. Hodek supervised construction of this 40-foot by
32-foot addition which became the Sanctuary; the cost
to complete it was $1,300. By 1897, Sts. Peter and Paul
had become a parish. In 1898, the bell tower was added.
Based on the 1900 Census data, over 100 Czech families had settled in the 6-townships; the Czech population
represented over 650 persons. In 1912, another 10-foot
by 32-foot addition consisting of an entranceway with
wooden steps outside, a second-story rear choir loft, a
20-foot addition to the tower with a lightning rod, and
new siding on the exterior were completed.
Since 1912, Bechyně has seen a church fire, rebuilding, renovation, improvements, and an annex addition.
Bechyně began as a small group of religious Czech
farmers who wanted a church. In June 2011, Sts. Peter
and Paul celebrated 125 years of strong community
commitment!
Community Service – At least 26 priests are known
to have served the Bechyně community since 1883, but
none were ever a resident-pastor. Before 1887, several
missionaries said Mass at local farm homes or school
houses. These priests included Revs. Considia, Cassidy,
Genin, Pribil, Flanigan, McCasey, Bily, and Tyndall.
Priests assigned to Sts. Peter and Paul listed by beginning year of service included Revs. V. Dvorak (1887),
Thomas Rabsteinek (1889), Joseph Bartik (1889), Cyril
Augustinsky (1889), Cyril Votypka (1897), Thomas
Rabsteinek (1898), Francis Just (1902), Aloysium Gaydusek (1909), Thomas Rabsteinek (1910), Wenceslaus
Mikolasek (1911), Jaroslav Tomanek (1950), Ludvik
Svetinsky (1962), John Graven (1973), Daniel Pilon
(1980), George Vasques (1984), Jack Herron (1988),
Donald Cote (1989), Bert Miller (1994), Alfred Allmaras (1996), and Samuel Ezeibekwe (1999). Those beginning in 1973 accepted tri-parish assignments.
Cemeteries and Life Insurance – Limited information is available about the early days of the cemetery
at Bechyně. In 1911, Rev. Mikolasek launched his first
project to formally organize the cemetery. His project
included installing a decorative wire fence around the
entire property with a special entranceway and setting
up cemetery lots for sale at $20 each. The cemetery,
maintained by the parish, surrounds the church with
the oldest tombstones found in the northeast corner and
the newer on the west side. Msgr. Mikolasek was the
longest serving pastor and, at his request, is interred at
Bechyně.
The Bechyně Branch of the Západní Česko
Katolická Jednota (ZCKJ) (Western Bohemian Catholic
Union) Lodge organized and built a hall about 1888
south across the road from Sts. Peter & Paul. This
fraternal organization provided security and ethnic
solidarity for Czech immigrants in America. In 1929,
this branch merged with the Katolický Dělník (Catholic Workman). Recently this hall has been upgraded
through the use of heritage funds for preservation purposes.
Around the 1890s some of the neighbors brought
life insurance policies with the ZČBJ. ZČBJ is short for
Západní Česko Bratrské Jednota (Western Bohemian
Fraternal Association). The group later purchased a
small plot of land 2 miles away in Section 2 of Perth
Township called ZČBJ Národní Hřbítov (National
Cemetery) known locally as Kosobud Cemetery. In the
Walsh County area, ZČBJ organized several cemeteries, including Kosobud, Lomice, Lankin, Conway,
and Písek. In addition to managing cemeteries, those
with halls would sponsor social events during the year.
Machart Cemetery located nearby is still private.
Resources – The author is very thankful to be able
to use historical documents (i.e. land patents, censuses,
naturalization papers, death and birth record indexes,
postal, etc.) maintained on various federal and state
websites and those sponsored by ND University Chester
Fritz Library Genealogy Family History center and ND
State University Institute for Regional Studies & University Archives. Other sources included the Catholic
Diocese of Fargo Archives, Walsh County land records,
the Walsh County Centennial Heritage, http://www.
interment.net, and http://www.rootsweb.ancestry.com.
High of value are the personal interviews of my relatives and use of the Regional State Archive Genealogical Records of the Czech and Slovak Republics.
About the Author:
Paul, originally from near Owatonna, Minnesota, started
tracing his Czech relatives who migrated to Steele
County and those that homesteaded in Dakota Territory
after graduating from the University of Minnesota. He
recently retired as a highway engineer of 45 years, but
remains active in genealogy, civic affairs, and a cathedral choir. He went on a singing tour to Italy in 2001
and on travel to the Czech Republic in 2004 where he
met many of his relatives and his researcher, Jaroslav
Jansa. Currently he is researching and writing about his
ancestors since the middle ages and about the beginnings of Bechyně and Sts. Peter & Paul.
Naše rodina
Page 109
Library Donations
Our special thanks to the following people whose cash donations
and sponsor memberships help us build for the future.
Burham, Duane
Dugan, James W Dzugan, Ken Flynn, Virginia
Haruch, John Haynes, Lydia M
Heaton, Shirley
Helwig, Karen and Russ
Holian, Gail Hollinger, Joanne Belina
Hvizdo, Barbara Ann
Johnson, Barbara Gehrman
Kallal, James J
Kerins, William A Korbel, Susan
Kotval, Pamela Kouba, Ed
Krizan, Simon
Lane, Carolyn Lilly, Jean A
Maroul, Eugene
McKenney, Doris and Doreen
McMahan, Denis
Miksanek, Chris Olson, Phyllis A
Otradovsky, Fred
Parvey, Jo Ann and Charles
Roca, NE
Travelers Rest, SC
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Pollard, Johnna Roztocil
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Svehlak, Joseph V
Swoboda, Linda Trsek, Kenneth
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Vacek, William Visek, Franklin J
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Zapletal, Edward
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We will accept limited advertising. We
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Page 110
Naše rodina
Founded in 1988, the goal of the
Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International is to promote
genealogical research and interest in ancestry for those tracing
their family to the geographic
area encompassing the Czech
and Slovak Republics. Help
continue this legacy by including
CGSI in your will or estate plan.
Contact your legal advisor for
more information.
CZECHOSLOVAK GENEALOGICAL SOCIETY INTERNATIONAL
STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION
DECEMBER 31, 2010
BALANCE SHEET
ASSETS
Cash – Checking $ 12,258
Cash – Savings
$ 29,413
Cash – Petty (for sales) $
210
Certificates of Deposit $ 90,441
Debit card savings account
$
1,140
Cash – Checking (Slovak)
$
370
Total Cash/Investments $133,833
Merchandise Inventory
$ 100,473
Library Collection $ 23,151
Czech Immigration Display
$ 4,599
Czech Genealogy Exhibit
$
1,231
Other Current Assets $
441
Total Current Assets
$129,895
Total Assets $263,728
LIABILITIES AND CAPITAL
Deferred Membership Fees
$ 15,580
Sales Tax Payable $
138
Future Int’l Conference $
150
Total Liabilities $ 15,868
Retained Earnings
$ 253,318
Adjustment from prior year $
123
Current Earnings (Loss) ($ 5,581)
Total Capital (Equity) $247,860
Total Liabilities and Capital
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INCOME STATEMENT
1/1/10 THRU 12/31/10
INCOME
Membership Fees
$ 57,500
Sales of Merchandise
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Library Donations
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3,972
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1,228
Traveling Library
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Ads for Nase rodina
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Current Earnings (Loss)
($
EXPENSES
Nase rodina Sales Expenses Lincoln Symposium Library Expense
Cost of Goods Sold Office Expenses, Insurance Website
Membership Expenses
Bookkeeping, Tax Prep Other Expenses
Total Expenses $
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
36,773
11,042
10,422
9,574
7,352
6,895
5,934
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2,338
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5,581)
Naše rodina
Page 111
The Librarian’s
Shelf
055 Bau St. John’s Cemetery Morton
County, ND By Beth Hughes Bauman and Katherine
Alice Bauman, copyright 1988.
m US ND
She Plains Folk North Dakota’s Ethnic History Edited by William Sherman and Playford
Thurson. North Dakota Centennial Heritage Series.
Published by The North Dakota Institute for Regional
Studies at North Dakota State University, 1986. This
book contains excellent information by chapter on various ethnic groups that settled in the state. It includes a
few pages on Moravian Germans and Bohemian Germans and pages 306-324 are devoted to Czechs written
by Theodore B. Pedeliski. Contains 439 pages with full
index, photos and illustrations.
m US ND 060
By Suzette Steppe
Theme of This Issue: Czechs in
North Dakota
CGSI and the Minnesota Genealogical Society, which
is where CGSI houses it’s library collection, has the following books that contain information useful for Czech
research in North Dakota. MGS also has the following
resources: census records, histories of the state, city
directories, cemeteries by county, genealogical society
newsletters, and much more.
Books:
ND Standard Atlas of Stutsman County, North Dakota, 1930 npl Npulb
m Atlas US
m US ND 006 Kad Pisek: The First Century by
Ludger Kadlec, Chairman. A History of Pisek, North
Dakota and its People. Pisek Centennial Committee,
Grafton, ND: Associated Printers, 1982.
m US ND 011 Sch Wagon Migration-Veseleyville,
D.T. 1880-1881 by Rev. A.A.A. Schmirler. A history of
the Catholic church located in Prairie Centre Township,
Walsh County, North Dakota. Consists of 242 pages
plus an additional 60 or so pages of local ads. Published
in 1981.
025 Jac Transcriptions of St. Johns
Cemetery Morton County, North Dakota by Dorothy
Jackman.
m US ND
m US ND 026 Ber Walsh (County) Heritage: A
Story of Walsh County and Its Pioneers Volumes 1, 2,
3 and 4. 1976 to 1981 by Gunder V. Berg. Walsh County Book Committee, Grafton, ND.
035 Lam Scattered Steeples: The Fargo
Diocese / A Written Celebration of Its Centennial.
Edited by Jerome D. Lamb, Jerry Ruff, and William
C. Sherman. Burch, Londergen and Lynch, Publishers.
Fargo, ND, 1988. 181 pages, with black and white photos.
m US ND
Page 112
074 Cem Cemeteries of North Dakota
Volume 9A Richland County, Wahpeton, ND:, Fargo,
ND: Red River Valley Genealogical Society, 1986.
Includes index. There are also many other volumes of
Cemeteries in eastern North Dakota transcribed by the
Red River Valley Genealogical Society.
m US ND
110 V1 Alphabetical Listing of Naturalization Records for Western North Dakota A-L From
State Historical Society of North Dakota 1991. This listing includes the counties of Adams, Billings, Bottineau,
Bowman, Burke, Burleigh, Divide, Dunn, Emmons,
Golden Valley, Grant, Hettinger, McHenry, McLean,
Mercer, Morton, Mountrail, Oliver, Renville, Sheridan,
Sioux, Slope, Stark, Ward, and Williams.
m US ND
110 V2 Alphabetical Listing of Naturalization Records for Western North Dakota M-Z From
State Historical Society of North Dakota 1991. Same
counties as Volume 1.
m US ND
m FH P027 Pet v. 1 Roots in Czechoslovakia and
Dakota (Koreni v Cechach i Dakota): Vol 1: The
Petrik, Souhrada, Panka, Kocer, Pesa, Vavruska, Matonada-Kalda, Rehurek, Gregor Families. By Vernon
F. Petrik, St. Louis, Missouri, 1991.
Pet v. 2 Roots in Czechoslovakia and
Dakota (Koreni v Cechach i Dakota): Vol 2: The
Petrik, Souhrada, Panka, Kocer, Pesa, Vavruska, Matonada-Kalda, Rehurek, Gregor Families. By Vernon
F. Petrik, St. Louis, Missouri, 1991.
m FH P027
P043 Pet Roots in Czechoslovakia and Dakota (Koreni v Cechach i Dakota): 1993 Supplement.
By Vernon F. Petrik, St. Louis, Missouri, 1993.
m FH
P111 Pav The Paternal Ancestors and Descendants of John Pavlish, Jr. and Mary (nee Urbanec) Pavlish. By Bern Pavlish, Npl.: Npubl, nd.
m FH
Naše rodina
m FH K102 Pav The Paternal Ancestors and Descendants of Frank M. Kadrmas and Agnes (nee Pavlicek) Kadrmas (1649-2004). By Bern Pavlish, Npl.:
Npubl, nd.
m Frgn Cze U012 History of Czechs in America.
By Jan Habenicht, translated by Miroslav Koudelka.
Published by the Czechoslovak Genealogical Society
International, 1996. The author describes the historical
development of Czech settlements on a state-by-state
basis, includes numerous photographs and illustrations.
Maps of states settled by Czech immigrants, showing
counties, are included in the appendix. Also included
are a listing of Czech-American organizations, surname
and geographical indexes.
U042 History of Slovaks in America.
By Konštantín Čulen, translated by Daniel Nečas, edited by Dr. Michael J. Kopanic, Jr and Steven Potach.
Published by Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International, 2007. Konštantín Čulen paints a vivid portrait
of early Slovak life in the U.S. He records in detail the
experiences of Slovak-Americans, their struggles and
triumphs, their strengths and failings, their passions and
prejudices, and their fight to achieve unity and justice
for the Slovak nation, both in America and in their oppressed homeland. Through his rich an extensive use of
early newspaper accounts, letters, eyewitness narratives
and other original source materials, Čulen enables us to
hear the voice of the Slovak immigrant generation. The
result is an absorbing and often dramatic chronicle of
the Slovak-American experience. This book provides an
indispensable resource for understanding the foundations of Slovak life in America. All surnames and place
names are fully-indexed.
m Frgn Cze
New Books Added to the Library Shelf:
m Frgn Cze A146 Jaky kroj, Tak se Stroj, Obrazová
Encyklopedie Horáckých a Podhoráckých Krojů. By
Míla Brtník. Published by Vydalo Museum, 2007. This
book chronicles elaborate and comprehensive illustrations of the folk costumes of the Horácko region. Colorful photographs include old and current kroje and show
details of the embroidery, lace and pieces that make up
the kroj (costume). In Czech.
A147 Frajárka z Kyjovska. By František Synek. Published in 2003. This book shows the folk
costumes of Kyjovsko in southern Moravia. Through
photographs it follows the kroj (costume) throughout
the year, including holidays and local festives. In Czech,
English, German, French and Russian.
m Frgn Cze
m Frgn Cze A148 Slovak American Touches. By
Toni Brendel. Published by Penfield Press, 2008. This
book is all traditions that are Slovak. While half of
the book contains Slovak recipes it also covers Slovak
history, Slovak American ties, various folk arts; wood
etching, metal decoration, lace making, and weaving, as
well as dance and fraternal organizations, and traditions.
m Frgn Cze A149 Slovakia! Traditions Old & New.
By Helene Baine Cincebeaux. Published Best Printers,
Rochester, NY, in 2010. This book takes the reader
through a year of Slovak traditions. These traditions
include artwork and photographs of holiday foods,
kroje, embroidery cloths, and village life. Included are
descriptions of the holidays, festivals and village events
that accompany the photographs.
m Frgn Cze U057 Czechs of Chicagoland (Images
of America series). By Malynne Sternstein. Published
by Arcadia Publishing, 2008. Chicago was once the
second largest Bohemian city outside of the Czech
Lands. Originally settling in the Pilsen neighborhood
and expanding to Lawndale, Cicero and Berwyn the
Czechs flourished in their new home. From enduring the
Eastland disaster in 1915 to the successful election of
Czech born mayor Antonín Čermák, Czechs in Chicagoland depicts how the Czech community and its leaders,
benevolent societies, and charitable and social organizations have shaped and continue to shape Chicago’s
history.
m Frgn Cze M046 Českoslovenští legionáři: rodáci a občané okresu Uherské Hradišté 1914-1920.
Czechoslovak legionnaires from the region of Uherské
Hradišté. By Dr. Jiří Čoupek PhD. A history of the
Czechoslovak Legion followed by a register, by town,
of the legionnaires from the region of Uherské Hradišté.
Following that is an alphabetical list of legionnaires by
name. Some photographs. In Czech.
m Frgn Cze U058 Cleveland Czechs (Images of
America series). By John T. Sabol and Lisa A. Alzo.
Published by Arcadia Publishing, 2009. The Cleveland
Czech community is one of the area’s oldest European
ethnic groups dating back to before the Civil War.
Cleveland, a stopping off point to states further west
grew rapidly with Czech immigrants between 1850–
1870 expanding their neighborhoods. They established
thrift institutions, Czech language newspapers, dramatic and singing societies as well as four Sokol lodges.
In addition to Sokol the Cleveland Czechs continue to
support three Czech halls and weekly Czech radio programs.
Naše rodina
Page 113
U059 Cleveland Slovaks (Images of
America series). By John T. Sabol and Lisa A. Alzo.
Published by Arcadia Publishing, 2009. Slovaks came
to Cleveland to work in the mills and factories. While
establishing their Slovak neighborhoods they founded
many churches as well as fraternal organizations; the
First Catholic Slovak Union of the USA, the First Catholic Slovak Ladies Association and the Slovak League
of America.
m Frgn Cze
U060 Cleveland’s Slavic Village (Images of America series). By Sandy Mitchell in association with the Slavic Village Historical Society. Published
by Arcadia Publishing, 2009. Immigrants settled in the
Slavic Village to live near their jobs in the factories and
mills. The Polish, Slovak and Czech workers came to
the village replacing its original immigrant workers. As
the village grew it became recognizable as an ethnic destination in the Cleveland area. These immigrants established many churches, schools and social organizations
that are still in existance today.
m Frgn Cze
V235 Welcome to the Tábor Region.
This book provides the history of the Tábor region of
South Bohemia as well as interesting places within the
region to visit. It discusses current culture, festivals, and
tourist highlights. Numerous photographs of the area
are included. In English.
m Frgn Cze
m Frgn Cze V236 Most Beautiful Towns, Town
Memorial Preserves. Cultural Heritage of Slovakia Series. By Viera Dvořáková and Daniel Kollár. Published
by Dajama, in 2007. This book is a guide through some
of the most beautiful Slovak towns, providing a traveler with a comprehensive image of each town prior to
visiting. A history along with a walking tour of its most
interesting points of interest is provided for each town.
In English
m Frgn Cze V237 Welcome to Hovězí, 500 Year Village Anniversary 1504-2004. A Collection of Articles
and Stories from Ancient and Recent Times. Translated
and published by Texas Czech Genealogical Society,
2007. This book chronicles the history of Hovězí, including community representatives, community activities,
spiritual life, education, health care, living memories
and current Hovězí life. This village is located in North
Moravia. Includes photographs.
We Lack for Nothing Now. The
Czech Settlement of Steele County, Minnesota. By Michael Wolesky. Published by Wolindoo, 2011. This book
follows the early Czech immigrants from their hometowns and ways of life in Bohemia, through their ocean
m Uncataloged MN
Page 114
voyages and arrival in America, to their settlement in
Steele County. The first Czech settlers to Owatonna arrived in 1855, over the next few decades, many of their
countrymen, often from the same small region of North
East Bohemia, followed and settled in small communities around Owatonna. The new immigrants founded
churches, schools, reading and music societies, and
insurance collectives. Using written and oral memoirs,
county histories, and old newspaper accounts, the book
describes the everyday lives of these Czech pioneers,
the institutions they founded, and the parts they played
in local and national events, from the development of
Minnesota’s creameries to the Civil War.
St. Louis Conference Traveling Library
CGSI will be bringing its Traveling Library to the St.
Louis Conference. It will be open Thursday through
Saturday, October 27th – 29th. Some of the resources that
we will bring include:
● Berní Rula 1654 Bohemian census
● Soupis 1651 Census by Religion in Bohemia
● Leo Baca’s Immigration books
● The History of Czech in America by Jan
Habenicht
● The History of Slovaks in America by Konštantín
Čulen
● And other books that would be appropriate for
the St Louis area
If there is a book that CGSI has in its library that you
would like to see brought to the conference please let
us know. You can view our list of resources at www.
cgsi.org under the library section. You can email your
request to [email protected]. We will do our best to
accommodate the requests.
Are You a Weekend Genealogist?
Are you only able to work on your family history on
the weekends? Are you frustrated that you are unable
to visit the CGSI Library nights on the 2nd Thursday?
Good news, CGSI has added a Saturday afternoon library shift for those who are unable to visit the library
during the week. Now on the 1st Saturday afternoon of
each month, 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m., there will be members of CGSI available at the MGS (Minnesota Genealogical Society) Library to assist you. This gives you
the opportunity to check out all of the resources of the
Library, ask questions, and get help with your research.
Remember the 1st Saturday afternoon of each month –
Naše rodina
we hope to see you at the library!
Library Volunteers Needed
There are many opportunities to volunteer and no experience is required, library training will be provided. This
is a great opportunity to become familiar with all of
the resources available in the library and to assist other
members with their research. There are many great
programs that the CGSI and MGS volunteers are responsible for putting together for their members and the
Genealogical Library is the largest of these programs.
As such it requires a number of people who can donate
their time to keep the library maintained and open to its
members. You can volunteer as often as you like, once a
week or once a month, day or evening shifts. For further
information please contact MNGSVolunteers@comcast.
net or [email protected]
Periodicals
We have issues of various periodicals that have been
donated but are not on the shelves due to space limitations. These are stored in the CGSI office and if you
have an interest in examining them, please contact Suzette Steppe. The periodicals include Hospodář, Ženské
Listy, Jednota, Hlás Národa, Česká Žena and Přítel.
Library Collection Research Policy
CGSI will do research on selected books and reference
material in our library collection. Mostly, these are
books with name indexes or are indexes themselves,
such as Leo Baca’s Czech Passenger Arrival Lists, the
ZČBJ (Fraternal Herald) Death Index, the Nebraska/
Kansas Czech Settlers book, and the telephone directories of the Czech and Slovak Republics.
A nearly complete list of the CGSI’s book, microfilm/fiche, and map collection is available on the website, www.cgsi.org. The collection is searchable by part
or all of the title by using any of the following parameters: “Is equal to”, “Contains”, “Starts with”, and “Ends
with.” The books can also be sorted by title and author.
Another feature of the on-line library collection is
the special notation of those searchable for a fee under
the research policy (discussed later). The notation is
identified with a capital letter “S” in the far right margin
of the book record.
Books may also be searched according to the following categories: “Any,” “Family History,” “Foreign,”
“Maps and Atlases,” “Microfilm/Microfiche,” “Minnesota and United States,” “Tapes,” and “Telephone
Directories.”
We cannot accept open-ended research requests
such as “tell me what you have on the Jan Dvořák
family of Minnetonka, Minnesota.” When making a
research request you must specify which book you want
researched and what family, castle, town, etc, for which
you want information.
The fees for various research are as follows: Telephone Directories of Czech and Slovak Republics
- $5.00 for each surname provided (per directory) per
member, or $10 for each surname provided (per directory) per non-member, plus 25 cents for each address
we find and extract from the book.
Other Sources/Books - $10.00 per half hour of research for members or $20.00 per half hour of research
for non-members. Expenses for photocopies and additional postage will be billed. The minimum charge of
$10.00/member or $20.00/non-member must accompany the request for information.
Copies of St. Paul Archdiocese Church Records
from our on-line database (up to 1934)
• The church name, microfilm number, page number and surname are required
• Members - $5.00 for the first copy and $2.00 for
each additional copy on the same roll of microfilm
• Non-members - $10.00 for the first copy and
$3.00 for each additional copy on the same roll
of microfilm
Copies of St. Paul Archdiocese Church Records Post
1934 (from Films owned by CGSI)
• The church name, person’s full name, type of
record (baptism, marriage or death), and date
or approximate timeframe +/- five years are required
• Members - $10.00 per ½ hour of research
• Non-members - $20.00 per ½ hour of research
Copies of Leo Baca’s Czech Immigration Passenger
Lists from the online database (currently volumes V, VI,
VIII, IX):
• The volume number and surname are required
• Members - $5.00 for the first copy and $2.00 for
each additional copy
• Non-members - $10.00 for the first copy and
$3.00 for each additional copy
Copies of Leo Baca’s Czech Immigration Passenger
Lists not available from the online database:
Naše rodina
Page 115
•
•
•
The full name, port of arrival and an approximate
year of arrival +/- five years
Members - $10.00 per ½ hour of research
Non-members - $20.00 per ½ hour of research
We will continue to provide at NO charge for members, help on deciphering town names on documents,
locating town or villages, providing postal codes, and
advising on correspondence to those in the Czech and
Slovak Republics.
Research is conducted by CGSI volunteers. They
will not be able to interpret any information for you that
is found in a foreign language.
CGSI Library
The CGSI Library holdings are housed within the Minnesota Genealogical Society (MGS) Library which is located at 1185 Concord St N, Suite 218 in South St. Paul,
MN* (Across the Street from the Marathon Gas Station). Parking is available in lots on the north or south
end of the building and on the east side of Concord St.
MGS Library telephone number:
(651) 455-9057
MGS Library hours:
Wed, Thurs, Sat 10:00 A.M. – 4:00 P.M.
Tue, Thurs 6:00 P.M. – 9:00 P.M.
The second Thursday night of each month is Czech
and Slovak night. The first Saturday afternoon of the
month has been recently added as Czech and Slovak
day. During these hours, the library is staffed by CGSI
volunteers who are there to assist you in locating the
resources you
need in your
research.
*Please do not
send mail to
this address,
instead continue to send it to
the P.O. Box.
Page 116
CGSI’s 2012 Salt Lake
City Symposium
Planning for the CGSI Symposium is well under
way. In the 23 plus year history of the organization
we have never held an event in Salt Lake City. That
will change next year with a symposium planned for
March 16-17.
The most up to date information, including presentation descriptions, speaker bios and hotel information
is currently posted on the CGSI website, www.cgsi.
org.
Some of the top people dealing with data extraction and preservation, and research of the Czech and
Slovak records in the Family History Center will be
speaking at the Symposium. Much help in finalizing
the program was given by Sylvie Pysnak, a native of
Brno, Czech Republic who works in the International
Research Consultation Unit at the Family History Library.
On Friday March 16 the Family History Library will
hold an orientation session especially for our group
from 9:00 a.m. to about 10:00 a.m. After that all participants are free to conduct their own genealogical
research and the LDS library volunteers will be there
to assist as needed. The library is open until 9:00 p.m.
on Fridays, so you have many hours to work.
On Saturday March 17 at the Plaza Hotel the CGSI is
offering a total of 10 presentations in 5 one-hour time
slots starting at 9:00 a.m. and ending at 4:15 p.m.
Lunch will be provided as part of the Symposium
registration fee. The cost has not yet been determined
for registration. An optional dinner and after dinner
presentation by David Rencher, Chief Genealogical
Officer of FamilySearch.org will also be offered.
If interested in attending this one of a kind Czech
and Slovak oriented event in Salt Lake City please
e-mail Paul Makousky at [email protected]
or mail a request to CGSI at PO Box 16225, St. Paul,
MN 55116-0225 and a registration form will be sent.
Or check our website as the form will also be posted
there when the pricing has been determined.
Naše rodina
New Publications completed concerning St.
Louis Area Czechs
●
●
●
Giles, George, comp. Czech Catholic
Cemeteries in Lincoln County, Missouri.
Troy, Missouri: Lincoln County Genealogical Society, 2011.
Kinion, Audrey, comp. An Informal History of the Czechs in Lincoln County,
Missouri. Columbia, Missouri: Digitized
by Stephen M. Archer, 2011.
●
Nahlik, Charles. Saint John Catholic
Cemetery, Imperial/Rock Creek, Jefferson,
Missouri. High Ridge, Missouri: Jefferson
County Genealogical Society, 2010.
●
Nahlik, Charles. St. Philomena Catholic
Cemetery, House Springs, Jefferson, Missouri. High Ridge, Missouri: Jefferson
County Genealogical Society, 2010.
●
Nahlik, Charles. St. Martin United Church
of Christ Cemetery Listing, High Ridge,
Jefferson, Missouri. High Ridge, Misouri:
Jefferson County Genealogical Society,
2010.
Luebbers, George. Hessoun Bohemian
Catholic Orphanage, 1908 through 1954.
Fenton, Missouri: Fenton Historical Society, 2011. (It is approximately 170 pages
in length and will be softcover. The regu- The three publications by Charles Nahlik will
be sold at a special price of $10 at the conferlar price will be $25, but will be sold by
ence.
the Fenton Historical Society at the conference for $20, a special conference price
for attendees.
Membership Form
On the back page of this issue, your membership number and expiration date is printed on the top of the address label.
If your membership is due within the next three months, fill out the following form and return to CGSI.
 Renewal  New Membership No. (on top of mailing label)_________________________
Circle Choice:
Name_____________________________________________________
Address___________________________________________________
City/State_________________________________________________ Zip Code*_ ___________ Telephone (
)___________________ Email_ ___________________________________________________ *Please add your nine-digit zip code. If you don’t know it, look for it on a piece of junk mail.
Make checks payable to and mail to: CGSI, P.O. Box 16225
St. Paul, MN 55116-0225
Naše rodina
Term Individual HouseholdSponsor
1 Year
$25.00
$30.00 $45.00
2 Year
$45.00
$55.00 $85.00
3 Year
$65.00
$75.00 $110.00
Membership Fee $ ______________
First Class Postage $ ______________
Library Donation $ ______________
Total Payment
$ ______________
USA Funds Only
Foreign and 1st Class Add $10 for 1 year;
Add $20 for 2 years; Add $30 for 3 years
Except for Canada
- Copy this form as necessary -
Page 117
Sales Order Form
(All Items Include Shipping Costs)
1
Czech Dictionary and Phrasebook by M. Burilkova, 223 pages
$ 15.00
Czechs Forever, A Biographical Guide, 139 pgs $ 16.00
2
Beginners Czech by Iva Cerna & Johann Machalek, 167 pgs and 2 audio CDs
$ 27.50
22
Folklore in the Czech Republic, a 39 page booklet
including 36 photos of costumes, and a 1:500000
scale map.
$ 22.00
3
Czech/Eng & Eng/Czech Dictionary
by Nina Trnka, 594 pgs
$ 14.50
23
Brief History of the Czech Lands
in English
$ 15.00
4
Czech/English & English/Czech Dictionary
by FIN, Olomouc, CR 1102 pp, hardcover
$ 34.50
24
Tales of the Czechs – History and Legends of Czech people
$ 8.00
5
Slavic Specialties from Pierogis to Kolaches
all of Eastern Europe.
$ 7.25
Map of Czech Grammar, 8 pages showing
nouns, verbs, cases, etc
$ 5.00
Gateway to a New World – Czech/Slovak community in St. Paul, Minnesota’s
West End district
$ 11.50
6
25
Children’s Illustrated Czech Dictionary, 94 pages
$ 17.00
Great Stories in Czech History by Petr Cornej,
143 pgs. Contains 15 stories.
$ 21.00
7
26
Beginners Slovak by Elena Letnanova, 207 pgs
$ 16.00
27
Pioneer Stories of Minnesota Czech Residents (1906-1930)
$ 23.00
8
Slovak-English & English/Slovak Dictionary and
Phrasebook by S. & J. Lorinc, 155 pgs
$ 15.00
28
Czech Heritage Coloring Book
by NE Czechs of Wilber
$ 6.00
9
Slovak/Eng & Eng/Slovak Dictionary by Nina Trnka, 359 pgs
$ 14.50
29
History of Slovakia – A Struggle for Survival by Kirschbaum
$ 22.00
10
Česká Republika Auto map,
1:500000 scale
$ 7.00
30
History of the Slovaks of Cleveland and Lakewood, OH, 301 pgs
$ 25.00
11
Czech Republic Hiking maps
(97 maps in series) 1:50000 scale
$ 7.00
31
Slovakia in Pictures, Lerner Publications, 64 pgs
$ 23.00
12
Czech Republic Tourist maps
(46 maps in series) 1:100000 scale
$ 7.00
32
Slovakia – The Heart of Europe, 55 pgs hardcover
$ 30.00
13
Czech Republic Auto Atlas, 1:200000 scale
Published by Marco Polo
$ 27.00
33
Visiting Slovakia – Tatras by Jan Lacika, 136 pgs
$ 14.00
14
Slovak-American Touches by Toni Brendel
150 Slovak recipes, dance groups, etc. 192 pgs.
$ 19.50
34
Slovak Recipes
By Sidonka Wadina and Toni Brendel
$ 7.25
15
Album of Bohemian Songs
$ 7.00
35
Bohemian-American Cookbook by Marie Rosicky in 1906
$ 14.00
17
Slovak Republic Hiking maps
(58 in series) 1:50000 scale
$ 7.00
36
Cherished Czech Recipes by Pat Martin, 143 pgs
$ 7.25
18
Slovak Republic Tourist maps
(29 in series) 1:100000 scale
$ 7.00
Czech and Slovak Touches by Pat Martin
$ 14.50
19
Slovak Republic Auto Atlas, 1:100000 scale w/postal codes, 176 pp.
20
History of Czechs in America
by Jan Habenicht, 595 pgs
16
21
37
$ 27.00 38
Czech and Slovak Folk Costumes by Jitka Stan-
$ 39.50
kova and Ludvik Baran. In Czech with English
summary. 152 pgs w/ color photos.
$ 49.50
39
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 1, May 1989 (946 surnames)
$ 6.00
40
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 2 Feb 1990 (1250 surnames)
$ 6.00
41
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 3 June 1992 (1719 surnames)
$ 6.00
42
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 4 Feb 1993 (1700 surnames)
$ 6.00
43
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 5 May 1994 (1509 surnames)
$ 6.00
44
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 6 March 1995 (1745 surnames)
$ 6.00
45
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 7 Jan 1999 (1520 surnames)
$ 6.00
46
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 8 $ 6.00
Sept 2002 (1423 surnames)
9/11
47
Czechoslovak Surname Index Vol 9
March 2006 (1451 surnames)
$ 6.00
Name_____________________________________________________________
48
Finding Your Slovak Ancestors
by Lisa Alzo, 385 pgs.
$ 22.50
Address___________________________________________________________
49
Czechs in Chicagoland by Malynne Sternstein,
128 pages
$ 22.00
City________________________ St _____________ Zip___________________
50
History of Slovaks in America
by Konstantin Culen, 411 pgs.
$ 49.50
Item No.
Qty.
Each Price
Totals
Total Amount Paid
Make check payable to CGSI, and mail to Czechoslovak Genealogical Society Int’l.,
P.O. Box 16225, St. Paul, MN 55116-0225. Prices subject to change without notice. Items
may not always be available on demand. Refunds will be made for items which are
not available. Note: Depending on weight, postage outside of the U.S. will generally be
higher. We will bill for any difference in costs.
Page 118
To see photos of these items and
some additional information please
visit our website: <www.cgsi.org>
Naše rodina
NEW!
NEW!
Calendar of Events -Mark Yours
If you have a question write the webmaster at [email protected] or call our number (651) 964-2322 to leave
a voice mail message. Your call will be returned.
September 16-17, 2011 (Friday, Saturday)
26th Annual Dozinky Days Fall Festival
New Prague, MN Chamber of Commerce
Main Street and adjoining side street
Visit the CGSI sales table
Further info: www.newprague.com
September 17, 2011 (Saturday)
7th Annual Carpatho-Rusyn Vatra
“Rusyn Day Festival” 12 noon – 12 am
Shrine of Mariapoch, Burton, OH
Further info: Bonnie (440) 729-2045 or
www.carpathorusynsociety.org
September 18, 2011 (Sunday)
21st Annual Czech and Slovak Festival
Czech and Slovak Sokol Minnesota
Highland Park, West 7th and Montreal Ave
Saint Paul, MN
Visit the CGSI sales table
Further info: www.sokolmn.org
September 23, 2011 (Friday)
Brewnost! 2011
An International Beer Tasting and Fundraiser
Czech and Slovak National Museum & Library
Veterans Memorial Stadium
Cedar Rapids, Iowa
Further info: www.ncsml.org
September 25, 2011 (Sunday)
Czech Heritage Day
Nebraska Czechs of Prague
Prague, Nebraska
Further info: www.nebraskaczechs.org or
Adolph Nemec (402) 663-4988
October 1, 2011 (Saturday)
Annual Czech Festival
Oklahoma Czech Building (5th & Cedar St)
Yukon, Oklahoma (opens at 8:00 a.m.)
Czech Royalty announced at 4:00 p.m.
Further info from Chamber of Commerce
www.yukoncc.com
October 15, 2011 (Saturday)
Annual ACEC Czech Homecoming
American-Czech Educational Center
4690 Lansdowne Ave, St. Louis, MO
Further info: http://www.acec-stl.org/
October 23, 2011 (Sunday) Noon – 6 pm
Czech-Slovak Heritage Assn Annual Festival
Baltimore 45 Association, Inc. Hall
2501 Putty Hill Avenue, Baltimore, MD
Featuring Slavjane Rusin Dance Ensemble
Further info: www.czslha.org or (410) 662-6094
October 26 – 29, 2011 (Wednesday – Saturday)
13th CGSI Genealogical/Cultural Conference
Sheraton Westport Chalet Hotel, St. Louis, MO
Telephone: 1-800-822-3535
Rebekka Geitner, BallinStadt Emigration
Museum of Hamburg will give 2 presentations.
Featuring 2 Czech and 1 Slovak native speaker.
Registration form and Sleeping room info on
Website: www.cgsi.org
November 5, 2011 (Saturday) 11:00 - 6:00
21st Annual St. Lucas’ Slovak Festival
St. Lucas Evangelical Lutheran Church
7100 Morganford Rd, St. Louis, MO
Enjoy holuby, chicken paprikash and halusky
Slovak pastries for sale, live music, etc.
Further info: [email protected]
November 6, 2011 (Sunday) 1:00 – 5:00 pm
18th Annual Slovak Heritage Festival
University of Pittsburgh’s Slovak Studies Program
Cathedral of Learning Commons Room
Further info: Christine (412) 624-5906 or by
e-mail: [email protected]
March 16-17, 2012 (Friday, Saturday)
CGSI Symposium – Salt Lake City, UT
Family History Library and Plaza Hotel
Friday - Library orientation and self research
Saturday - 10 breakout sessions in 5 time slots
Saturday - dinner at Plaza Hotel
Further info: www.cgsi.org
Naše rodina
Page 119
Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International
P.O. Box 16225
St. Paul, MN 55116-0225
Address Service Requested
ISSN 1045-8190
Coming In The December 2011 Issue 
The ABC’s of Using FamilySearch.org

Czech and Slovak Electronic Resources in FamilySearch

Czech and Slovak resources at the Family History Library
(except digitized)

Finding Semon/Simon/Symon Family in Northeast Bohemia

The History of the Czech and Slovak Baptists in North America
Don’t Forget to Register
for the St. Louis Conference!
Hotel Reservations can be made
by calling 1-800-822-3535
Arch and Reflecting Pool
Photo courtesy of St. Louis Convention and Visitors
Commission, photo by Missouri Division of Tourism.
CGSI website: www.cgsi.org
NON-PROFIT
ORGANIZATION
US POSTAGE
PAID
TWIN CITIES MN
PERMIT NO. 7985

Our Family - Czechoslovak Genealogical Society International

Transcription

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