Very Funny -- A Horse Tale

This week's #52 Ancestors prompt is Very Funny. There weren't any real storytellers in our family, but we were a small family with limited contact with other family members. I only had one uncle and one aunt, and my great-uncles and aunts all lived a distance away, and we rarely saw them. It is likely that out of all those family members, one of them was a comedian and funny storyteller. But I missed out on that.

One of the few funny stories I remember hearing was from my paternal grandmother. She told me my dad had made up this big story, and he told it to all his friends and teachers. 

Seems he had a horse. And not just any horse -- but a horse he kept in the basement. He had to rush home after school to feed this horse. But he couldn't let anyone see the horse because he'd be forced to give it up if people knew he had a horse in his basement.

Of course, he didn't have a horse in his basement. He didn't have a horse that he kept anywhere. And I don't think he even had a basement.

             My dad (George Robert "Bob" Martin. Perhaps feeding his horse??

Number Thirteen

This week's prompt for #52 Ancestors was Random Numbers. I generated the random number 13. My great-grandmother, Marie Mienciel, is number 13 on my pedigree chart. I know some things about her, but other things are still mysteries. 

I knew Marie just a little bit, seeing her about once a year, but she died when I was ten. My memories are of her sitting on a couch next to her husband, speaking to each other in a foreign language. We called them JaJa and Bousha. (Not sure how that was spelled or who was which.) 

Marie Mienciel (the name is spelled various ways) was born 2 February 1885 in Teschen, Silesia, Austria.[1] She married 14 December 1903 somewhere in Austria to Anton Martinek. He traveled to the US shortly before she did.[2]

Marie came to the U.S. on the SS Kaiser Wilhelm, arriving on 16 November 1909 and landing at Ellis Island. Twenty-five-year-old Marie was traveling with her brother-in-law (or more likely stepson) Kasimir Martinek and three children -- Gustav, aged 4, Anton (my grandfather), 2, and 10-month-old Milada. They were going to Bradley, Ohio, to meet their husband and father, Anton Martinek. Marie was 5 feet 2 inches with a fair complexion, brown hair and brown eyes.[3] 

The new arrivals were living in Bradley, Ohio in 1910 but oddly listed on the census as the Menson family. Andros Menson, aged 37, was a coal miner. Mary, his wife, was 27. The family consisted of Gustava, aged 5; Andy [Anton], 3; Milada, 1 year and 6 months; and Albert, a newborn. Living in the same house was Albert and Cozina Butcher, boarders. I believe this was likely Albert Butzek, soon to play a big part in Marie's life.[4]

Is this the family, and if so, why was the family listed as the Menson family? 

• The family is located where they indicated they were going on the passenger list. 
• Except for the last name and the name Andy, all the other names match the family. 
• The ages are appropriate for the family members.
• The immigration years match their arrival in 1909. 
• There is no Martinek family of similar composition located anywhere else. 

So why use a different name? The enumerator appears to have been a 20 year old native born teacher and may not have understood their accents. They had only been in this country for six months. Perhaps a neighbor provided the information and didn't know what their last name actually was, although most of it seemed too accurate for a random neighbor.. 

One other possibility connects to family stories. Supposedly, Anton/Andros was always one step ahead of the law, and that's why he came to the U.S in the first place. Did he keep up his ways in this country and decide he needed to disguise himself for some reason? Anton Martinek has been and remains a mystery, but his character is described a couple of years later in legal papers.

In May of 1912, Mary Martinek filed for a divorce in Vermilion County, Illinois. The petition noted that the defendant (Anton) had gone out of state and that they did not know where he was. The petition listed the children: Gustava, aged 7; Anton, aged 5; Milada, aged 3; Rudolph, aged 2 and Albert, aged 6 months. [There is unexplained confusion between Albert and Rudolph in a couple of sources.] Mary testified that the defendant had threatened to shoot her, had struck and beat her, and assaulted her repeatedly over the past two years. A divorce was granted, and Mary received custody of the children. Although Anton was ordered to pay court costs, there was no mention of him paying alimony or child support. Perhaps Marie wanted to be free of him totally.[5]

A year later, in June of 1913, twenty-eight year old Mary Martinek (maiden name listed as something like Mincereu or Mincceau) married thirty-six year old Albert Buczek. They were both residents of Georgetown, Vermilion County, Illinois. It was Albert's first marriage.[6] 

In 1920, the Butcek family was still in Georgetown with four more children: Amo, aged 6 (Camille or Amil), Wilma (Vilma) aged 3 years 11 months, Nellie, aged 2, Steph, 4 months. Also living with them was a brother Charlie  Butcek.[7] 

By 1930, the family had moved to Chicago where Albert was working in a can factory, probably the Continental Can Company. The household consisted of Mary, aged 45; Anthony, aged 23; Lila, aged 21; Rudolph, aged 20; Albert, aged 18; Amel, aged 16; Vilma, aged 15, Nellie aged 13; Steffie, aged 10; Olga, aged 6 and Tillie, aged 2. All the children were listed as Butzeks, the spelling they would use going forward, even though they were not all Butzeks.[8]

In 1940, the family lived on Beach Avenue in Chicago. Albert was working for the can company and only their three youngest remained at home -- Stephanie, aged 20, Olga, aged 16, and Tillie, aged 11.[9] 

In November of 1940, Marie filed an AR-2, Alien Registration Form. She listed her name as Marie Butzek but noted she had also used the name Marie Mienzel (maiden name) and Marie Martinek (1st marriage). She listed her birth date as 2 February 1885, born Teschen, Silesia, Austria.  She was described as 5 foot 3 inches, 125 pounds, with black hair and blue eyes, differing from her arrival record of brown hair and brown eyes. She indicated she had a husband and eleven children living in the U.S. and had not been arrested.[10]

The family continued living on Beach Avenue in Chicago. In 1950, Albert and Mary lived with their married daughter Tillie and her husband James Clifford. Their daughter Olga, her husband William Coyle and their daughter Nancy lived on the second floor of their duplex. Albert was still working full-time at the can company as a janitor.[11]

The rest of Marie's life was spent attending to her children and grandchildre. She died 21 December 1961. He obituary gave her maiden name as Minchel, yet another spelling. It listed all her children: Gus, Lila Fishman, Rudolph, Albert jr., Amel, Vilma Wells, Rose Wiora, Stephanie Owens, Olga Coyle, Tillie Clifford and the late Anton. She had 30 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren (of which I was one).[12] Her beloved husband Albert lived another six years, dying in 1967. By then, the great-grandchildren count had increased to 20. [13] 

Marie's life started out challenging. She was likely pregnant when she traveled across the ocean to a new world. Traveling with three young children and an 18-year-old stepson would not have been easy. She likely already knew of her husband's temperament and what she'd be facing. As a Catholic, asking for a divorce must have taken all the courage she could muster. And yet she did -- and thrived. 

It's unclear as to whether she knew Albert Butzek before they came to America. It's possible. But when they married in 1913, they built a long and successful life together. The children by her first marriage never used the name of Martinek once Anton and Marie were divorced. They always considered Albert as their father and they didn't talk about their early life. When I started my genealogy research, no one even mentioned to me that Butzek was not my grandfather's real name until I had been researching for several years. They just weren't interested in talking about Marie's first husband and their father. 

---------------------------------------------

[1] "Alien Registration Form," digital image, AR-2 Form received from NARA via email 10/30/2024. Marie Butzek, #5207067, US Department of Justice, Immigration and Naturalization Form.

[2] Information provided by various family members.

[3] "New York, Passenger and Crew Lists (including Castle Garden and Ellis Island)," digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com/discoveryui-content/view/4005310250-7488 : accessed 17 March 2019), citing NARA microfilm T715, Roll 1373. Kasimir is listed as a brother-in-law but states he's going to meet his father Anton which would make him Marie's step-son.

[4] 1910 U.S. census, Jefferson County, Ohio, population schedule, Lincoln Precinct, e.d. 112, sheet 2b, dwell. 27, fam. 31, Andros Menson household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 15 April 2024).

[5] Copies of divorce records in author's possession. Vermilion County, Illinois Circuit Court, File #11246.

[6] Copy of marriage record in author's possession. Vermilion County, Illinois, Marriage license #25878, 9 June 1913, p.237, #6.

[7] 1920 U.S. census, Vermilion County, Illinois, population schedule, Georgetown, e.d. 182, sheet 21a, dwell. 499, fam. 507, Ivan Butcek household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 5 February 2023). it is unclear why Albert is listed as Ivan but that may have been his birth name.

[8] 1930 U.S. census, Cook County, Illinois, population schedule, Chicago, e.d. 16-1392, sheet 20a (inked), dwell.290, fam. 376, Albert Butzek household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 15 April 2024).

[9] 1940 U.S. census, Cook County, Illinois, population schedule, Chicago, e.d. 103-1969, sheet 2a, visit #29, Albert Butzek household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com : accessed 31 August 2024). 

[10] Alien Registration Form.

[11] 1950 U.S. census, Cook County, Illinois, population schedule P1, Chicago, e.d. 103-2925, sheet 4, dwell. 30, Albert Butzek household; digital image, Ancestry (https://www.ancestry.com: accessed 17 Noveberm 2024). Note that Albert Butzek cannot e found in the Ancestry index. 

[12]  "Butzek," Chicago Tribune, 22 December 1961, p. 46, col.4; digital image, Newspapers (https://wwwnewspapers.com : accessed 17 November 2024).

[13] "Butzek," Chicago Tribune, 14 December 1967, p.72, col. 6; digital image, Newspapers (https://www.newspapers.com : accessed 11 August 2024).

Cultural Traditions - Or the Lack of Them

This week's #52 Ancestors prompt was "Cultural Traditions." I was clueless (as I frequently am.) In our family, we don't really have any cultural traditions that have been handed down.

We've never had any big holiday traditions. Although there are things we always do the same each holiday, these are not really cultural traditions. It's mainly just the things we've created over the past years. None of these things can be really tracked back to our ancestral culture. 

Some people have specific ornaments they put on their trees that represent their culture. We never did. Some people have special dishes they fix from recipes handed down through the generations. We never did. When I got married, we decided to start our own traditions. But most of those didn't survive and none of them came from our cultural roots.

Maybe it was because, as kids, we didn't really know what our culture was. We had some Southern roots, but growing up in Chicago, we sure didn't feel Southern. My mom's paternal family was from Eastern Europe. But her dad died when she was a child, and we weren't close to that side of the family. So, no traditions were passed down. My dad's family had Eastern European, English, and Scottish roots. But again, most of that family lived in Iowa, and we weren't close. So, none of those traditions were passed down. 

I suspect that many families have encountered the same thing. Distance from their cultures resulted in a lack of traditions being passed down. It's a bit sad.

Those Colorful Characters

This week's #52 Ancestors prompt is "Colorful". While I do have some colorful characters in my family, the prompt made me wonder about the people in my family who had names of color. And I did find a few of them. 

The first name I encountered was BLACK. None of these were direct ancestors but were by marriage and from Scotland. I had some very distant BROWNs. Again, most of these were from Scotland, but some were from various places around the U.S. Brown was a common name - I had quite a few in my database. 

I encountered a couple of CHERRYs that married into my McClerran family including a Henry Clay Cherry. I found a couple of GOLDs and GOLDENs that married into the family and a couple of GRAYs. 

Barbara GREEN, born about 1760 in North Carolina, was my 5th great-grandmother. She married Thomas Travis and together they had at least 11 children. One of their sons, Thomas Travis, married my 5th great-aunt Elizabeth and then ran away with her sister Margaret. It was a scandal that deserves its own story.

Of course, I have some LEMONs that married into the family (in more ways than one) and found a couple of SCARLETs. I have one lonely TEAL who is unrelated but married into the family. Lastly, there are some WHITEs who married into the family.

Of course, my family is more colorful than this, but looking through the list for these people with names of colors was a quick and fun exercise!!