Thursday, March 6, 2014

FINDING KINGA


My great uncle Eugene Stachowiak was married to a woman named Kinga.  This was Eugene's second marriage.  I really don't remember Eugene at all since he died when I was just 6 years old.  Now, I do remember Kinga a little and especially remember her funeral in 1971.

Kinga's funeral was held at Our Lady of the Bright Mount Polish Catholic Church in Los Angeles.  (I devoted a post on my blog to this church in April of 2013).  Since this is a Polish parish, the funeral Mass was recited in Polish.

Well, while I was researching, I decided that I wanted to learn more about Kinga.  I found her listed in the California Death Index.  Her birth date was 6 Jun 1906 and her death date was 9 Mar 1971.  Of course, I also have a funeral card which lists her middle name as Jeanine.  How do I find out more about her without having her maiden name?

On a hunch, I decided to look for her in the Wisconsin Births and Christenings Index with just her first name and birth date.  After all, how many Kinga's could there be born in Wisconsin on that date?  Well, I hit the jackpot -- I found her -- Kinga J. Czerwinski, as well as, the names of her parents -- Albert Czerwinski and Wanda Wozmskiewicz.

Saturday, March 1, 2014

INTERNET RESEARCH WITH A GROUP

I love taking genealogy classes, especially in a classroom setting.  It allows me to not only learn more about a subject that is important to me but also gives me the opportunity to exchange ideas with others interested in genealogy.  So I was delighted to see that the Poway Adult School was offering a class on Internet Research for Family History.  Too many times, in the past, however, their genealogy classes would be cancelled due to low enrollment.

Imagine my surprise and delight when I walked into the class (okay, a few minutes late) to find twelve other eager students already present.  Twelve might not seem like a lot to you, however, typically there are 6 students in these classes.  As we went around the class introducing ourselves, not only were there students of various ages -- 30's to mid to late 70's, but a majority of them had done a little research but desired some training on how to do it properly.

I am looking forward to learning more about research methods and to discussing  tips and findings with my fellow classmates.