Virginia Rail in Loring Park

I found this guy in the North pond in Loring Park on Monday. Having only seen one in my life, I was pretty surprised to see it in an urban environment. And, it was not as secretive in terms of its movement, parading around on the edge of the grass and digging through the dead leaves for a worm lunch.

Norlands in America Part 3 - Henry Norland

Henry (Olofsson) Norland was a brother to my great grandfather Olof (sometimes referred to as Ole or Ola) Norland. The narrative below was written by his grandson Howard.

Henry Norland - as compiled by Howard Norland

Henry (Heindrick Olofsson) came to America from Sweden in February 1868 with his brother, Ole. In the fall of 1878 the brothers came to Kittson County, Minnesota, where they settled on farms on the banks of the Two River.

In 1902, Henry moved with his family to a homestead in Manitou Township, Koochiching County, Minnesota. He later bought a farm in Canada. In addition to farming, Henry was a construction worker, and helped build the International Bridge at International Falls, Minnesota. He was fatally injured in 1920, when a team of horses he was driving was spooked by a car. The reins became tangled around the wagon axle, Henry fell off, and the horses backed up and sat on his chest. He died on September 22, 1920. (This information gathered from The History of Koochiching County, History of Kittson County, and recollections of Stella (Norland) Searles. All three brothers changed their last name to Norland, but the date and location of that change is not known.

CENSUS: 1880 census: T9, Roll 624, Pg 4, S.D. 3, E.D. 215, Line 36: Kittson
County, MN, Town 161, Range 47.

PROPERTY: Land records in the Koochiching County court house show that Henry homesteaded land in Sections 33 & 34, Town 160, Range 26, recorded 30 Dec 1901.

OBITUARY: From the Rainy River Record, Rainy River, Ontario, July 15, 1992,
quoting an article in the Rainy River Gazette of October 14, 1920.

HENRY NORLAND Brief mention was made last week of the death of Henry Norland, who died as the result of an accident on September 18th. Mr. Norland had been at work clearing on his son's homestead and was on his way home, when he was passed by a car driven by Norman Brown, manager of the bank at Rainy River. The horses were spirited and ran away after the car had passed, one of the reins caught around the hub and this wound around the wheel and threw one of the horses backwards and Mr. Norland forward, the horses stepped on Mr. Norland chest and afterwards fell on him. Mrs. Brown happened to look back and saw the accident and help was secured and the injured man was taken to Rainy River, where Dr. McBane attended to him, but his chest had been crushed in and he lingered along until shortly after midnight of the 21st. Mr. Norland was born at Oferborg, Sweden, on July 21, 1851, and came to this country in 1857. (Ed. Note: Should be 1867)

He was one of those sturdy pioneer who have made the great west and he kept up the work until the last. He was a linguist, speaking several languages and a recognized leader of men.

A member of the party under the noted Gen. Custer, who later with his troops was massacred by the Indians in 1876, he helped in making the survey for the Northern Pacific thru the Rocky Mountains in the early seventies. (He was) in charge of the construction of the Great Northern Railway bridge across the Red Lake River at Crookston.

Leaving the railway he went to work as general foreman for the Crookston Lumber Company and was with the Shevlin companies for years, during which time he constructed three large mills for that company, the mill at St. Hilaire, also the Rainy River Lumber Company mill at Rainy River and the first mill at this place. Besides he constructed the large dams in Thief and the Red Lake rivers near St. Hilaire and was (one) of the foremen on construction of the first paper mill at International Falls as well as on the Shevlin-Clarks mills at Fort Frances.

He was married in 1881 to Miss Carolina Stroberg, and he then moved to Crookston, where he served for two terms as county commissioner of Polk County. Those were the days of the (scrambled) and Mr. Norland was one of the leaders under the then world known Ignatius Donelly the Sage of Mininger. When Red Lake county was set off from Polk, Mr. Norland became the first sheriff of the county and served for two terms.

He took a homestead near Manitou in the Rainy River district in 1901 and lived there until he moved to Spooner in 1906, where the family lived until the fire of 1910, since which time they have lived on the Canadian side near Pinewood. At the time of his death he was serving as reeve of his community.

Quiet spoken he seldom told of his achievements, tho he was a lover of the frontier and hated the sham of modern civilization. Besides his wife, he is survived by the following sons and daughters, Mrs. Mittendorp(sic) and Carl of Manitou, Fred of Central, Otto and Stella of Pinewood, Oscar and John of Edgerton Alberta. One son, Edwin, lies in Flanders fields, where he fell while fighting with the Canadian boys.

The funeral was held on September 25th at Pinewood, Ontario, and he was
laid at rest in Longmore cemetery, a large floral offering from the Shevlin
companies thru Mr. Mathieu, testifying to the esteem in which he was held by
his former employers. The news of his passing is sad to many old personal and political friends all over the state, who sympathize with bereaved family. --NORTHERN NEWS.

GENERAL: The "Compendium of History and Biography" for Northern Minnesota, of 1902, mentions that Henry came to the area around Hallock in the spring of 1878. On 22 Aug 1879, he filed a homestead claim on the following property: S 1/2, NW 1/4, Sec. 1, T161, R49W and N 1/2, SW 1/4, Sec. 1, T161, R49W. (Thompson Township, Kittson County, MN).

CENSUS: 1900 Census: Rocksbury Township, Red Lake County, MN. SD#7, ED#330, SH5, Line 70. Lists Henry, Cary, Linnous, Johnnie, Freddie, Eddie and Stella. OIccupation listed as 'Farmer'. Also states that he owned the farm. This listing also shows Fred, Wilma, and Nina Turnquist, as well as Jonas and Carolina Stroberg. Wilma Turnquist was Henry's sister-in-law. Jonas and Carolina Stroberg were Henry's father-in-law and mother-in-law.

Norlands in America part 2 - Erik Norland

A half brother to my great grandfather was viewed by many as one of the original white settlers in Kittson County. Information about him is contained in the articles that follow.

Erik (Eriksson) Norland

The article below describes the journey of the Norland Brothers in the spring and fall of 1878 as they migrated from the Iowa - Southern Minnesota area to Kittson County, Minnesota.

From the "Compendium of History and Biography"

In the growth and development of Kittson County, Minnesota, the settlers of Swedish birth have played so prominent a part that much space is deservedly given them for a review of their lives in this volume, and it is a special pleasure to mention the first pioneer of the locality of that nationality. Erick Norland, who settled on his farm in Hallock Township in May, 1878. Mr. Norland, was born in Sweden, November 16, 1843, and was the second child and the only son in a family of three children born to Erick and Christina (Olson) Erickson.

He went to America in 1869, and worked in Iowa and southern Minnesota, and in the spring of 1878 went to Moorhead, and from there, in company with his half-brother Henry, and another companion , made a trip down the Red River to Winnipeg, returning to Pembina.

The three men started afoot through Kittson and Marshall counties, which were then almost wholly unsettled, and for about a week they tramped, wading through water and rafting across swollen streams, sleeping wherever night overtook them. Although this was not a pleasing introduction to the country, our subject decided the possibilities for farming were good, and he then filed a claim to the land which he now owns in May of that year, choosing land on the banks of the Two Rivers. This has proven a most productive locality, and he never has regretted his choice. In September, 1878, he again started from Moorhead, taking his wife and household effects in a flat-boat, his half-brother, Ole, and family accompanying them. They moored the boat at the mouth of the Two Rivers and a home on our subject's claim was established for all. These were the first Swedish families in the county, and our subject's home became the stopping place for the Scandinavian immigrants. He became known and proved himself a true friend of the pioneers, and by his knowledge of the country was of invaluable service to them in assisting them to select suitable locations. During these early days he did all in his power to induce the visitor to that locality to become a permanent settler, and might be styled the 'father of his township". He has accumulated a good property, and follows diversified farming with most pleasing results. His improvements of his farm include a complete set of farm buildings, and modern machinery is used for garnering and disposing of the products. His residence is located in Section 2 of Hallock Township, and affords every comfort and many of the luxuries of life.

In 1872 occured the marriage of Mr. Norland and Miss Emma Backman. Mrs. Norland is a native of Sweden also, and with her husband enjoys the reputation of extending hospitality and good cheer to all who enter within her home. She is a lady of culture, and much credit is due her for the fair share she has taken in the management which has resulted in their comfortable surroundings.

Mr. and Mrs. Norland have no children, but their family circle is completed by a child, who bears the name of Ella, who makes her home with them. Mr. Norland, although a gentleman of public spirit and devoted to the upbuilding of his community, takes little part in public affairs aside from lending an influence for good. He does not seek public office and is not a staunch party man politically. His business relations always bear close investigation, and he is deservedly popular.

Records on file at the Minnesota Historical Society in St. Paul, show that Erik Norland received his final naturalization papers from the District Court, 11th Judicial District, Kittson County, Minnesota May 28, 1883.

Norlands in America - Ole and Sophie

Olof (Olofsson) Norland and Sophie (Anderson) were my great grandparents and some of the very early (white) settlers in Kittson County in Northwest Minnesota. Here are a few pictures of them and a brief narrative of their emigration and lives in America.

Olof Olofsson was born on February 6, 1849 in Sveg, Harjedalen, Sweden. The first born child of Olof Olofsson and Kerstin Olofsdotter. His other siblings were Henrick (Henry) Olofsson and Anna Olofsdotter. He also had half brothers and sisters as a result of a previous marriage of Kerstin Olofsdotter to Erik Eriksson. Erik died at the relatively young age of 33 in December of 1846. Children of that marriage were; Margaretta Ersdotter, Kerstin Olofssons, Erick Eriksson & Gunilla Eriksson. Subsequent to Erick’s death Olof’s parents were married on March 25, 1848 in Sveg, Harjedalen, Sweden.

In February 1868 when he was 19 years old, Olof Olofsson and his brother Henrick emigrated to the United States. Shortly thereafter in June of 1869, their half brother Erik Eriksson followed them. For reasons unknown, upon arrival all three of the brothers adopted the last name Norland.

Although the path they took and where they settled at this time is yet to be determined, we do know they were in the vicinity of the Iowa - Wisconsin border area by 1873. In this year it is believed that Olof married Sophie Anderson in Prairie Du Chien, Wisconsin. However, other towns which have been mentioned in that area where they may have lived, worked or were married include MacGregor, Marquette and Cresco Iowa. No official record of the marriage has been found. Sophie was born in February 6, 1859 in Ratvika, Dalarne, Sweden.

While Olof and Sophie lived in this area, they had two girls. Their first child was named Lillie Christine Norland. She was born March 23, 1876 in Marquette, Clayton County, Iowa. A second daughter Annie Norland was also born here on August 1, 1877.

While still living in Hallock Township, Olof and Sophie had two more children, Eva Margaret and Oscar Norland. Eva, born on March 26, 1880, is widely believed to be the first white child born in Kittson County. Oscar was born on May 4,1882.

Shortly after their child Oscar was born, Olof and Sophie Norland relocated to a homestead in Hazelton Township bordering the Middle Branch of the Two Rivers. Ownership of this farmstead eventually passed to their oldest daughter and her family and today is still maintained by Marten and Lilly (Norland) Sjostrand’s descendants.

It was in Hazelton Township where their last five children, all boys were born. In order of birth they were; Axel Theodore born September 7, 1884, Arthur born March 13, 1887, Harry born November 10, 1897, Otto Ferdinand born August 18, 1891, and Alex born November 10, 1897.


Somewhere around the time of the last child’s birth, the family moved to the village of Lancaster, about 10 miles to the North. The house where they resided is still in use today and is located just to the South of the school’s recently constructed new auditorium.

At this time, Olof was known to have taken to heavy drinking and would frequently come home in an agitated state. On many occasions, Sophie would leave the house with her children and hide in the adjoining barn or in a haystack to avoid abuse. At some point Sophie tired of the situation and asked Olof to leave.

Olof consented and ended up living with his daughter Eva and her family. This was at a farm located at the North edge of Lancaster in Granville Township. In 2009 this farm was owned by Faye Lyberg and is located just across highway 59 from the Lancaster Riverside Golf Course.

Olof died in Lancaster, Minnesota on December 23, 1913 as a result of drowning in a shallow pool of water while intoxicated. Perhaps not the most glorious end to the life of an early pioneer.

Sophie, who was often referred to as “little grandma” given her diminutive stature, continued to live in Lancaster in the small house across from the school. She survived by renting out a room in the house to students and others, and of course assistance from her children. She died on February 24, 1936 at her oldest daughter’s (Lillie Sjostrand) home, her previous residence in Hazelton Township.

Sophie (Anderson) Norland’s obituary follows:

At the home of her daughter Mrs. Martin Sjostrand one of the old
time pioneers passed into the eternal rest on Monday, Feb. 24.

Mrs. Sophie Norland was born in Ratvika, Dalarne. She came to this country in the latter part of the seventies and was married to Ola Norland at Prairie Du Chien Wis. In 1879 the couple came to Kittson County, floating down the Red River from Fishers Landing with some household goods and enough lumber to build a shack. Their first stop was at the old Ambrose Jerome place at the mouth of the Two Rivers. Like all the pioneer people they met with hospitality and they remained there for some time until they could get established on the homesteads. The two brothers Ola and Erick each took up homesteads, the latter near Hallock and the former in the town of Thompson. Mrs. Norland like many other pioneer woman suffered a lot of hardships. She worked hard, raised a family of sturdy children and helped make a home for herself and her loved ones.

Her declining days has been spent in Lancaster surrounded by her children
and grandchildren a fitting end to a lifetime of hard work and sacrifice. Mrs.
Norland was at the time of death 77 years and 18 days of age. She is survived by six sons: Oscar, Axel, Harry, Arthur, Otto and Alex. Also three daughters Eva, (Mrs. J. Langford) Lily (Mrs. Martin Sjostrand) and Annie (Mrs. George Hansen) of Thief River Falls. Funeral was held last Thursday, interment being made in Union Liberty Cemetery in the town of Thompson. Peace be to the memory of a good wife and mother a pioneer.

May our Heavenly Father greet you
On that glorious distant shore
True some day we'll all be with you
Have patience Dear and weep no more
End of sorrow will come in Heaven
Rest in the palace, your Lord hath given
A.T.N.

The Robel Family Emigrates

Well, after decades of neglect I have started to update my family history files. In looking over the plastic tubs of books, artifacts, pictures and correspondence, I just have to say the task seems overwhelming at this point. But, with all of the information I have received recently and the new research that has been accomplished by cousin Kathy (Wilebski) Schafer, I thought it was time to get back to it.

In looking at my notes and the "facts" that I had in my files, I see that it's time to set the record straight in terms of a lot of rumors and other assorted stories. Since Grandma Mary is somewhat of an icon for our family, I thought I'd start with her and pull the facts together as best I can. As I was piecing things together this morning, all I can say is it was very interesting. And if you recall all of the stories that Grandma was famous for, it may provide the flavor you need for the facts that will be presented.

First off, Mary Robel was born in a little village named Komorowka in what is today the Ukraine back on April 19, 1888. Many of you also know that her family was part of a settlement of Czech families that relocated here at the urging of the Catholic church. Her roots and that of our Chod ancestors are from the Klenci, Czech Republic area.

In any event, due to a number of factors such as the occupation by foreign forces, lack of economic opportunity among others, Mary and many of her siblings were forced to find greener pastures. Apparently America/Canada offered those opportunities.

FYI, from what I have found, Mary was the 6th of 7 children of Fredrick Robel and his wife Maryanna Nejedli. Of the children, the first 2 boys remained in the old country, John and Jacob "Jack". The remaining 5 children emigrated to America and Canada.

Of the remaining siblings of Mary, the oldest was Thomas who went to Winnipeg. FYI, this is the grandfather of our Hallama cousins who live in Grande Pointe, Manitoba. And without their help in this effort over several decades, would almost certainly not have occurred. Thanks to Agnes, Mildred and Ed for all of their patience and contributions of knowledge. For the record, Tom came over at the age of 14 in September 1898.

Following Tom in order of birth were Veronica, Anton "Tony" Robel, Marianna "Mary" Frances, and William "Frank".

According to the Hallamas and Jennie Koss (Robel), Tony Robel followed the year after in 1899. And lastly Frank Robel came a little later with his sisters Mary and Veronica. Another tidbit about Veronica is that she ended up in Chicago and died at the age of 19. I have included a picture of the Robel brothers that came to the new world so you can see if any of the current batch of cousins and offspring bear any resemblence. Also Tony Robel's wedding picture. I will continue more on Grandma Mary's adventures in the next blog.

Simon Wielebski and Marianna Donajkoska marriage record

Another artifact along with the translation from Kathy. This one is the marriage record for Simon and Marianna Wielebski
___________________________________________________________________________________
Year and Day of Marriage-- Feb. 20, 1843
Name of Priest performing Marriage--Antonius Ryttersky?
Name of the Couple and Location --Simon Wielebski and Marianna Donajkoska
Laskownica
?? In relation to parents--juveniles (meaning young man, youth)
Age of man --28
Age of woman --21
Consent of parent/guardian--parents
Dates proclaiming banns of marriage-- 5, 12 (Dec. 5) 19, 2 (Feb. 19)
Witnesses to the marriage--Valentinus Dunelski??
Michael Bettu ?? (writing is illegible)
____________________________________________________________________________________

Antonia Januzek's birth record

Here is the birth record of great grandma Antonia Januzek with translation of Polish again by Kathy Schafer.
________________________________________________________________________________
First half of document:

The first 7 is the number of entry, the i.d. is the repeat or ibid. sign for the month of January recorded above,
Day 17, Hour 1 noctis (means 1 in the night) all referring to date and time the child was born.

The next two columns indicate if it is a boy or a girl born-- the first half a legitimate boy child, the second half, an illegitimate boy child. Second column, first half--a legitimate girl child, the second half, an illegitimate girl child. The priest has numbered each individual column for the month. So Antonina is the 4th legitimate girl born in the month of January. Boys in January are counted separately. Apparently, those who died at birth as in the girl entry above Antonina were not numbered.

Name of the place from where they came -- Kosztowo. The day of baptism -- 17 January.
Name of the recipient of baptism --Antonina.
Column off the end of the page is ibid. of the name of the priest written above performing the baptism.

2nd half of document:

The married name and the maiden name of the father and the mother --Thomas Januzyk and Marianna Budnik.

Religion of father and of mother -- Catholic.
Society status and profession of father -- auriga means charioteer.
Name and society status of Godparents-- Michael Malich, col. (abbreviation for colonus which means farmer) and Hedwig Buchholz? or a feminine form of Budnik??? fam. (within the family?)
Possibly Hedwig Buchholz was correct and not a form of Budnik, her occupation being within the family but not necessarily of the Budnik family.
___________________________________________________________________________

Franceszek's Birth Record

I also wanted to pass along "Frank's" birth record which Kathy found shortly after we returned from Poland. As you have gathered from reading the blog post of that trip, we did get a chance to visit the village of his wife, Antonia Januzek. Frank's place of birth was not very far away, but alas we did not have the information during the trip.

Also, we did visit another neighboring town where Marianna Donajkoska was born. Again, all within 15 miles of each other.

I guess this is pointing to another trip back there to visit the ancestral villages. We'll see.

_____________________________________________________________________________________
Zelazno (Z with a slash) is the village listed as Franceszek's baptismal village which I found today. I went to the museum and two films were in and I slowly viewed the first one which took 3 hours. Then the second one I noticed Joannes Wyliebski and Catherina Lewandowska and photocopied that since these names were given to me in the Dalke information from Wisconsin Wielebski's. So I thought could this be the film they are on and I fast forwarded to 1854 to November 15 and there was a Franciscus but the second page was missing. I scrolled forward a number of frames and the other torn page was there and there were the parents names Simon Wilebski and Marianna Donajkoska. I was so excited that I found the certificate--FINALLY! On this reel it is funny almost all the different spellings of the name Wilebski that we have seen I think are on it. I have to go back and spend another days work on it. I have it until August 19 in Roseau. I ordered another one also which I have until August 22 for the same area Sadki (Sadke). So I will see what more I can find.
There was only 45 minutes for me until I had to pick up Katie at school so I wasn't able to do an extensive view today of this reel. I found Franceszek, Thomas and a child born inbetween Thomas and Francescek names Michael. But not John, Peter or Agnes. So they must have lived in some other village first before they were here. But I'm happy that we found Franceszek at any rate. _____________________________________________________________________________________

Simon Wilebski's birth record from October 1815

Here's another document which I may have passed along to a few of you. It is the birth record of Simon Wilebski, who is Frank Wilebski's father. That would be my great great grandfather.

The translation provided by Kathy (Wilebski) Schafer is also included. Without her diligence, help and contacts, I don't know where we would be in this quest. Mega thanks again Kathy for making this a reality.

You may also notice that Simon's parents are listed, that of Casper Wielebski and his wife Margaretha Nawrot, who are my great great great grandparents, and yours of course too. Note he was a shephard. The previous post includes their marriage record.

FYI, this is just the tip of the iceberg so to speak. Kathy has researched many of the LDS films that were a part of the Poznan project. And we have records regarding many many more of the Wielebski clan from Poland and those that came to the new country. Stay tuned and again hats off to Kathy.


_______________________________________________________________________________
Anno Millesimo Octingentiesimo Decimoquinto-- In the year 1815

die vigisima secunda Octobris -- day 22 October

Ego Caspar Crzembke, Vicarius Ecclesiae Parochiales Jutrosimensis -- Casper Crzembke, Vicar of the Ecclesial Parish of Jutrosin

baptisavi Infantem nomine --baptized/baptism of the infant named

Simonem -- Simon

Caspari Wielebski, Ovilionis, et Margariltrae de Nawrot
-- Caspar Wielebski, shepherd and Margaretha Nawrot

legitimorum Conjugum filium de villa Pawlowo --
legitimate union family from/of village Pawlowo

Patrini fuere -- Godparents
Laurentius Wielebski et Marianna Nawrotowa de villa Pawlowo --
Laurenty Wielebski and Mariianna Nawrot of village Pawlowo
_______________________________________________________________________

More artifacts

Carrie suggested that I start posting some of these artifacts on my blog site. So, I will starting with this one. This is the marriage record of Caspar Wielebski & Margaritha Nawrot. These are the parents of Syzmon Wilebski, who is my great great grandfather. That being said, this is my great great great grandfather and ggg grandmother. How's that.

The rest of the comments below are those from our cousin Kathy (Wilebski) Schafer who continues to dig into the LDS films to find this stuff. Hope you enjoy.





As far as the wedding translation--
Village Silec Day 25 October. The next line Pramilsis pramittendis, nulloque impedimento detecto. I haven't looked the words up but I think it means parents permission given, no impediment detected to make the wedding null or void. I am only guessing on this for now--later I may try find out more the exact meaning. Ego Vincentuis Laniowski--I, and name of priest, performed the blessing of Matrimony for Honorable juvenile Caspar Wielebski from Silec and Margaritha from Szymanki. The word behind Margaritam I wrote to Teresa Knap to ask about--it is written in Polish I think because of the slash across the second letter l. I don't think it means her last name but instead I think it means her position in the community but I am not sure. The base word Wladac (slash through l and mark over c) in Polish means to rule in my dictionary. Also wladza (slash through l) means authority; power; rule-- and with e with a tail instead of a at the end-- it says to be in authority or in control. The last part rzonka may be a feminine form of woman child or daughter, I've heard that before in other words denoting the feminine or woman (I looked and the Polish word for woman is zona) so because of the Honesta before Caspar and that word behind Margaritha I think it means her family had a role in authority in Szymanki. Or otherwise a role in managing the estate in Szymanki. Shepherds also could manage herds of estates from what I have read with different degrees of importance on the estates. The Wielebski's from Caspar down were listed as Ovilio or Shepherds on the baptismal records.
The bottom names are the witnesses. Testes fuerunt. Andreas Nawrocki/Nawrot was a brother I think.
So for now much of this is guessing and until I hear back from Teresa Knap (which may take some time) she doesn't always answer her e-mails--I will let you know for sure then. Kathy

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Notice Silec (in some places Sielec) spelling instead of Siebec (which I had on Magdalena and Agnes' birth records). You will have to change it--sorry. I had misread handwriting of "mano" in the Latin-- it should be "mane" which meaning morning. So the hour born was in the morning. I figured that out before I had sent the last e-mails.


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Thanks Mom!!

On my last trip to the Northland, Mother and I went for a little drive around the country. Our last destination of the day was Florian. I of course wanted to see if the last marker was in place. As we headed South, Mother remarked how the last time she remembers being at Florian was when Dad played softball. Guess that would be a mere 70 or so years ago by my calculation.

Upon arriving at the Florian cemetery, we saw the marker for Antonia was placed and the extra etching on the "front" side was completed. So, for all intents and purposes we have finally accomplished what we set out to do about 15 years ago.

FYI, the final bill for the 2 markers came to $6,217.81. I did receive about $150 extra from various cousins as a result of the flowers for Aunt Ella's funeral. And, most recently (last week), I received a contribution from Mother in the amount of $500. I also believe a portion of the reunion fund will go toward reimbursement of these costs. But, that is up to the current holders of the funds, Peggy and Joey.

Any interest in trying to do something similar for Frank's brother Peter and his wife who are buried in Kroze. Or something a little more elaborate for Grandma Mary Wilebski? Let me know, and of course open the checkbook.

Fred

Florian

Having spent several hours placing Franczek's marker with the help of Joey and Peggy, I pleaded with them to accompany me to Florian. Since I had never been to that cemetery and only vaguely knew what to expect via cousin Kathy (Wilebski) Schafer, I was pretty nervous. As always, Joey and Peggy agreed to follow us down there.

Upon finding the cemetery, I looked around trying to find the existing grave marker. I at once saw a cross that looked identical in shape to the one that was on "Frank's" grave at Kroze. And, since I saw it in amongst other relatives such as the Kuznias and Kazmierzcaks, I was 90% certain I had found it. But, I told our placement guy, I wanted to be sure.

Kathy had indicated that Mike Kuznia, who lived nearby, would be there to meet us. Alas, no one was around, so I ended up going to the rectory where I met the deacon. I explained my plight and he provided a map of all the graves. This was a good thing since upon finding Antonia's name, it was on the opposite side of the cemetary.....Thank you lord Jesus!

When I finally located the site, Joey and Peggy were pulling up in their Sunday go to meeting sedan and joined us. I also went back to the deacon to see if we couldn't have a local "expert" tell us if we were doing things correctly according to their rules. The deacon called Mike Kuznia and he promptly showed up with his son in law in tow. Mike was a great guy, and of course knew about us and our family since Tom Wilebski was married to his aunt. He explained that before uncle Tom left for St. Paul and the railroad job, he was a carpenter in the Florian area and also was responsible for many of the early cement grave markers in the area. Who would have known?

O.K. so far so good. But again we were faced with the dilema of the original cross. When we tried to jiggle this one loose, it would not budge. Darren shoved his shovel down a couple feet behind the cross and hit cement. His and our thoughts were they have poured a huge slab of concrete and that we would never be able to budge this baby. The prospects that were available to us then were not all that great, since we would be forced to put the new marker on the other end of the grave. And that meant it would be almost out of view and under a row of spruce trees. Realizing the goo that oozes from spruce trees unabated over the months and years, gloom descended upon our small group.

Thankfully, Peggy kept insisting that we move the existing monument, or at least try to see just how much trouble it would be. I have to say knowing Mrs. Peggy for as long as I have, I have come to appreciate her mild mannered insistence. I'm sure the Stennes guy rolled his eyes, but we listened to Peggy and it was a good thing. As we came to find out later, the cement that Darren hit was the outline of the grave. And here's the funny part, or unusual at least. Since there were some very dramatic sand storms in this area during the depression in the late 20's and early 30's, the graves had accummulated an additional foot and a half of dirt since Antonia was buried. Amazing!

Upon digging out the original cross, we found additional inscriptions. Joey was quick to get a bucket of water and clean it off so that after we placed it, it could be read. I've included a couple of pics of the before and after.

The only other issue that arose was in connection with the placement of the new marker. Since the majority of the "fronts" of the markers faced East, that would mean to comply our marker would be viewed primarily by the spruce trees and would not be viewable to someone entering the cemetary. So, the dilema was how could we circumvent this implied rule without offending the locals. The Stennes guy came up with a solution. He said that for a few hundred more U.S. dollars, he could bring the stone back to the shop and put some limited wording on the back side to comply, while still retaining all of the good stuff and the picture on the side most people would see....our "front" side.

Executive decision made amongst the cousins and the stone was heading back to the shop for the additional lettering. While the stone did not get placed on Monday, we are led to believe it should be done in the not too distant future.

Should any of you ever have the opportunity to make it to this graveyard, you will probably notice there are more of our relatives buried here than at Kroze. Although other than Antonia and Paul, there are no others with the last name of Wilebski. But, you will see a ton of Kuznias, Kazmierzaks, Prices, etc.

FYI, Peter Wilebski's son Paul buried not too far away from Antonia.

Hope you enjoy the pictures and the story of the end of this 15 year quest to honor our great grandparents. And yes, we can use any donations you can spare to reimburse the family member that fronted this endeavor.

Kroze Marker Placement accomplished!!

After almost 15 years, the deed is finally done. I was beginning to think just this month that is was not to be with all the fits and starts this project has had. In fact we had 2 different placement dates, and if it wouldn't have happened this Monday, well who knows if it would have gotten done this year.

First off, I want to thank everyone that has provided input on this project. I truly appreciate all of the proof reading and comments. Your support, whether monetary or morale was appreciated more than you may realize.

So how did it finally go on Monday? Well, Joey and Mrs. Peggy agreed to meet me at the Kroze cemetery early Monday morning. It was a cold and blustery day for the middle of August. Our point man Darren Nelson of Stennes Granite arrived about 9am with his son Tanner riding shotgun. After a brief consultation, Darren pointed out the marker was fairly heavy, something on the order of 800 pounds. And, that getting it to the gravesite of Francszek would be a somewhat "monumental" (pun intended) task if he could not manuever the truck with overhead crane closer. In effect, we would have to get it there by hand cart. Neither Joey or I were too enthused about that prospect. The problem as we saw it was that to get the truck closer to the gravesite required us to find a path across existing graves. And many of those were from around the turn of the last century, before those cement enclosures were being used. In other words we were concerned that the weight of the pickup and several ton of granite could possibly cave in an existing grave. Since the majority of the Wilebski clan is not exactly in good graces with the Kroze congregation, we were somewhat concerned about the prospects.

After much discussion, the decision was made to try get the truck closer to the site and take the chance it would not fall into any existing grave. It worked, perhaps due to some unknown force. But again, we didn't damage any graves in the process.

Upon looking at the grave with the original cross, we reiterated our desire to salvage the original marker. This cement cross was constructed by Frank's son Tom, who we found out made quite a few of these monuments prior to his leaving the area to become a carpenter for a railroad in St. Paul.

Darren from Stennes was more than happy to move the existing marker, but was concerned that it would break if we tried to do so. Again, Joey and I agreed to take responsibility if it broke. But we were somewhat nervous. As with everything this day that went right, we were able to free the existing original marker with ease and place it at the back of the gravesite while we installed the new memorial.

All of this went quite well. Throughout the process Peggy was our final word in the placement and alignment of both the new memorial and the replacement of the original cement cross marker. Mega thanks to her and Joey for being there, as I am not sure it would have turned out as well if I were there on my own.

I have attached a few of the pictures of the process for your viewing pleasure.

Oh, almost forgot to tell you that decades ago when our family was still a part of that congregation and our family worked to raise money and clean up the cemetery, a map of the graves was obtained. Suprisingly, Frank's brother Peter Wilebski is buried beside him, but there is no grave marker. For those of you wondering about Peter, he was perhaps the most instrumental person in terms of establishing the Polish community up in Kroze, or Richardville Township. He was the one who enticed Poles, many of which were originally from the Posnan area in Poland, to move farther North. This he did with letters to Polish language newspapers in the Chicago area, and of course via word of mouth to those who had already moved from Chicago to the Wilno/Ivanhoe (Minnesota) area. It's a shame this pioneer of the community lies in an unmarked grave.

FYI, this is also the father of our grandfather Joe's second partner, Antonia. We also believe that Peter's wife is buried not too far away in yet another unmarked grave which is labeled Mrs. Wilebski on the handwritten chart. Perhaps once we finish paying for these 2 stones for the great grandparents, we may want to think of some way of identifying these individuals too. Just a thought.

The next blog entry will relate to our Florian experience.

Praha and home

Our last full day of Eastern Europe was again spent in Prague, or Praha as the say it over there. We were able to connect with Nancy Hugg once again for pivo near the Charles Bridge and got to meet a couple of her friends from Minneapolis who were visiting. Nancy was in the process of packing stuff and giving away things she had acquired during the last year. She was scheduled to take a couple of weeks of travel and then back to Minneapolis on the 15th.

As we strolled around this last day, it was with a little less enthusiam. Perhaps the most came from Susan and Joan when they realized they could still do a little more shopping. I have one picture here of Sue as she posed in front of a statue dedicated to failed ballerinas everywhere. Although many of you know the story, for those of you that don't, Susan was an aspiring ballerina in her youth. Unfortunately that all ended when her brother dropped a six pack on her ankle. And now you know the rest of the story.

Although I was just too tired to take any more pictures, I regret not taking one of a 5 person construction crew in Old Town. We watched as 2 people on the 3rd floor with a hoist and wench attempted to bring up a single bag of cement on a wooded pallet. The other part of the story is there were an additional 3 men on the ground supervising the loading of the one bag and watching it as it inched skyward. Both the patriarch and I looked longingly at the situation and dreamed of being the paid union steward for this local organization.

We got back to the hotel fairly early and spent the rest of the day improving the Pivo economics at the hotel. We continued imbibing and playing pinochle. The only incident of the day was when Susan erected a beer glass barricade which I very appropriately crashed into. Dinner was sumptuous as usual.

Saint Joan has a bit of a phobia about being on time for our flights, so we were out the door on the hotel shuttle bus that took us a whole 2 blocks a few minutes after 7am for our 9:35am flight. In retrospect, it was a good thing we did go early. We stood in line for close to 45 minutes where only 2 agents were working. Mind you there were only 6 other people in front of us. Finally another agent opened up and "helped" us. First she gave us hell for using their web site to try and get our reservations confirmed. Then we were scolded for trying to get seat assignments via the same method. After about 15 minutes she checked our bags, somewhat grudgingly and gave us our boarding passes. As we left her station, she abruptly left. This left the orginal 2 agents with what was now a line of about 80 passengers waiting to check in.

And it gets worse. As we looked at the boarding passes, she issued 2 to me and none to Joan. Guess this was retribution for Joan trying to be so damn nice to this chicklet. I sensed a little anger in Saint Joan's eyes as we looked on in disbelief. Armed with what could have been unmentionable 4 letter words in her arsenal, Joan proceeded back to the counter to one of the 2 agents and promptly got our correct boarding passes. Hey, the look in her eyes would have been enough to scare me. As it turned out, the temporary agent had the last laugh. She issued 3 of the baggage claims to me and none to Joan and Frank who each had 2 bags. At MSP, it was determined that 2 of Joan and Frank's bags did not make it.

In a nutshell, I think much of the Czech economy still operates in union mode with a small dash of the old days of communism thrown in for good measure.

Prior to boarding the plane we did a little more shopping to get rid of those Czech Klotchies. A few reasonably priced $40 airport t-shirts and we were ready to roll once again.

Shopping was again at the top of the list for Susan when we reached Schipol international in Amsterdam. Frank and I went to the gate and waited. We were a little amazed to see the lines to get on the flight. After waiting for a short period, the Patriarch instructed me to go find the shoppers and hurry them up. I did and we were able to make our plane. A couple of things of note were that Northwest had apparently cancelled some flights and people were waiting to get home on standby. And, for some reason security and the interview process you go through in Amsterdam seemed a little more tight than usual. Perhaps it had something to do with the recent Glasgow event, but we will probably never know.

And such ends the cousin's trip to the Czech Republic and Poland. As I may have said before, it was a once in a lifetime trip and very enjoyable by all measures. And, regardless of my comments in these blogs, all members of our crew were great to travel with. I'd do it again, but I can't imagine every getting another invitation after all of these shots.

If anyone wants a CD of all the pictures, just let me know and I'll ship you one.

Posnan - Berlin - Prague

Monday the 25th was another travel day for us. We were greeted early by another knock on our door from Maria wanting to see us off. All 5 of us walked to the train station with bags in tow. Since Dominic was not with us, the conversation between us was tough at best. Maria however had a dictionary and tried her best. We just looked dumb and smiled a lot.

As we waited for the train to arrive, Maria looked at our tickets and tried to tell us something. It was in vein, but we did find out after the fact. Basically we had reserved seats and a compartment, but we jumped on the wrong car. Eventually we found out otherwise and walked the 3 cars back to find our seats. Maria kept pointing in that direction and smiling, but alas we were clueless. I wonder what she must think of her American visitors?

Our train ride this day back to Prague took us through Germany, Berlin being our first destination. If I didn't mention it before, the Berlin train station was something out of Futurama. It had a minimum of 5 levels and shopping galore. Very modern and functional. Much like the Germans themself. "This train VILL be on Time!

While the girls shopped a little more, Frank and I waited for the train. He must look like a local because this little old 90 year old lady came right up to him with a problem about where her train was going to depart from. Frank took it in stride and helped the lady out. I think these acts come from living with Saint Joan a little too long. Nevertheless I have a picture of the Patriach and "Eva".

On our last train ride of the trip, we got on a bullet train and this time our tickets were pretty much of the first come first served nature. We ended up standing for the first few minutes until things settled down. Eventually we found this nice young German kid that invited us into his cube. His cubemate wasn't exactly all that excited about the idea of us 4 joining them, but then again we didn't speak the language, body or otherwise so we barged in. As we tried to converse with these 2, it was obvious they were from Dresden. What wasn't so obvious was which one was most interested in Sue. I've attached the pictures and perhaps you can make the determination.

As the younger man was getting out at Dresden, he told us to watch for some nice scenery just as we pulled out of the station. I've included a picture of that city from the train. In addition, I snapped one more picture of Susan at the station as she tried to hide behind a bottle of pivo. I didn't want to hurt her feelings, but let's face it, it's going to have to be a little bigger bottle.

The last few hours were pretty uneventful as we rolled along the Volta river valley into Prague. Other than me tipping the garbage can where someone had poured part of a beer. It was a mess, but Saint Joan cleaned it up and we stealthfully moved to the cubicle next door.

We arrived a little after 8pm as I recall and navigated the Metro back to our stop at Devijka, then on the 119 bus to our airport hotel. Another fabulous meal and our travelling days were short in number.