Whoa…I haven’t stayed up past midnight to chase down a genealogy squirrel in a long time. It started with a search to see if my local library offered access to a newspaper site. The library did not. However, MyHeritage© was available. I only have DNA access at MyHeritage© which doesn’t allow me to see records. I quickly entered my great-grandfather’s name, Adam Budny to see if any record popped-up.
Out of the few records referencing an Adam Budny, one caught my eye. An ‘Adam Budny’ was listed as a brother-in-law on a passenger ship entry for a ‘Jozefa Boruczka.’ I click on the record expecting my usual ‘this is not my ancestor’ self-mantra. The entry is from the Record of Detained Aliens on the manifest of S.S. Nieuw Amsterdam for April 19, 1906.
My great-grandfather Adam’s wife is Marianna (Mary) Borucka. The family story handed down was that Mary had a sister named Josephine, Jozefa in Polish, who remained in Poland. I have not been able to find a record of her in my Polish or US research prior to this discovery.
I read across Jozefa’s entry that included the cause of detention, disposition, discharged date and time and the number of meals she received. Just as I was about to dismiss the record, it clicked. The disposition provided the address for the brother-in-law, Box 61, Vandergrift, PA. Adam and Mary had a daughter born in Vandergrift, in 1906.
This can’t be happening. Did Jozefa really immigrate to the United States? The family story that she remained in Poland came down from several of Adam and Mary’s children. Several of these family myths, I have already discredited. Was this another myth that would be quelle?
Jozefa was pulled aside as she passed through immigration and detained. Immigration officials kept a list of those detained and the reason was listed on appeared on the record as she was detained for “To tel $.” The surname spelling may be based on the Polish pronunciation of Borucka. It appears that Jozefa did not have the money to pay her transportation fare to her destination. The notation “to tel $” means that a telegram would be sent to her relative to provide money for the fare. Immigration would then release her with a transportation ticket once the money was received.
Thanks to the Jewish Gen website I was able to find a reference of the various descriptions of why an immigrant would be detained. Plus, how to interpret the Record of Detained Aliens manifest page. https://www.jewishgen.org/infofiles/manifests/detained/
I was very hopeful. I spent the next five to six hours squirreling between FamilySearch© and Ancestry© to find any other records for Jozefa. I was able to locate a marriage record for Jozefa Borucka. The marriage docket had a recording of Alexander Moniewski and Jozefa Borucka marrying on May 13, 1906, in East Vandergrift, Pennsylvania. The witness was Adam Budny. Jozefa married 24 days after arriving on April 19, 1906.
Not able to find Alexander and Jozefa in the 1910 census. Alexander’s Naturalization papers in 1916 list both his wife Ezeffa and daughter, Victoria. Squirreling through other records, Victoria’s birth certificate is located. She was born in East Vandergrift, in 1909. Her parents name appeared to be spelled phonetically, Alex Mainefski for Moniewski and Josephine Barutski for Borucka.
Now searching for the family in 1920 census, I find Alexander and Victoria as lodgers. Then I see Alexander is listed as widowed. Oh no. Moving in an inquisitive manner, I try in vain to find a death record. Well past midnight I come up empty. Subsequent searches reveal no additional records. The death certificate, if it provides Jozefa’s parents names, would likely confirm she is Mary’s sister.
My next steps are to create a research plan. This will include locating the parishes that were in East Vandergrift/Vandergrift, and Ambridge, Pennsylvania. The marriage record should contain the names of groom and bride’s parents. Victoria’s baptism record, to glean any information from the record. And, to locate a parish record of Jozefa’s death.
So close.
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