The Welsh Connection

I do have Welsh ancestry on various sides of my family but the one of the clearest connections is the Jones/Lewis one.

My 3rd great-grandmother (paternal) was Hannah Lewis (married name Jones) born 13 May 1841 in Llangynllo Wales.  Not much is known about her early life before she came to the US with her husband John.

From John's estate records Hannah did not read or write. She and John settled in Alliance, Ohio and had 10 children, the second of which (Sarah) was my 2nd great-grandmother.

I hope to go into John's estate further later this year but what is clear is that it dragged on for a very long time. The family farm was run into the ground and Sarah's husband (known as Uncle Rar) petitioned the court to sell it off. Hannah then relocated to Cleveland to live near Uncle Rar & her daughter (known as Aunt Sarah). She died in 1926 and is buried in Alliance along with her husband. Her son Thomas is also buried with her.

H.D.

This post is going to be short and sweet:)

My book has Hernando De Soto Miles marked out in my book for this week's entry.

H.D. was my Great-Great-Grandfather.

It's long been a mystery as to where his name came from. Hernando de Soto was a Spanish explorer but where did his parents Abraham & Harriet get it from?

What I can tell you about him, echoed by various family members is:

Hernando de Soto is only remembered for one thing - he had foul smelling feet!

There you have it folks!

Digging up old drama

One of my last posts was about my Great-Great-Grandfather, Frank Holan. Unfortunately, I know very little about him.

Various members of my family have voiced regret in not asking my late grandfather more about the family. Grandpa Miles died when I was 3 years old and was suffering dementia in the last years of his life. Even if someone had taken an interest back then, it would have been too late. My Great-Grandmother Estelle (Grandpa's Mom) was a Holan.

Several months ago I started getting emails about Clara B. Holan. Again, I know so little about that side it took me awhile to figure out who we were even talking about. Clara was my grandpa's first cousin.

Although it's not necessarily my family mystery, I inadvertently stumbled into Clara's mess by publishing my family tree online.

The email explained that Clara had a child, Vincent, out of wedlock in the 1930's allegedly fathered by an Italian man (possibly married). In the 1930 census Clara & Vincent are listed as "inmates" at a maternity hospital. She was likely sent away to have Vincent & was expected to return without him. He was named Vincent Wayne Holan but used the stage name Vincent Wayne.

Vincent's Headshot

From what I understand Clara was almost non-existent in Vincent's life. He was a talented musician on the verge of making it big. Perry Como gave him rave reviews. At a concert in 1959 he fell off stage, hit his head, and died. He was 29 years old & left behind 4 children.

Vincent's granddaughter, Tina (she lives in GA I believe), found my family tree & made contact. She wanted to know what I knew about the Holan family, if I knew anything about his father, etc. I reached out to all of my extended family & they all drew a blank on Clara and/or her descendants. It was crushing to have to tell Tina that I couldn't help her in her quest.

If Grandpa were still alive, might he have known something? As men knew so little of "womanly affairs" during this time I doubt my grandfather would have known much. If anyone at all, I think his sister Jessie might have known something. Aunt Jessie & Clara were about the same age. Unfortunately, Aunt Jessie died in 1984.

Months have gone by and then another email arrived. It was from a woman in Ohio named Holly. The email was almost identical to Tina's.

Holly's mother was a child of Clara's born about 4 years after Vincent out of wedlock ( I do not know her mother's first name.) Again, it was the same story - possibly an Italian father. There are not any records showing Holly's mom & Clara living together. Holly's mom was surrendered for adoption.

Clara "raised" Vincent & by all appearances doted on him. She periodically stayed in touch with Holly's mom but it was a very rocky relationship that did not endure.

Holly knew about Vincent - Vincent's family knew nothing of Holly's family. The last email I got from Tina said she'd spoken with her aunt (Vincent's daughter) who was adamant Vincent was an only child.  Imagine having all these cousins out there that you never knew existed, mind blowing.

Clara's grave marker only mentions Vincent ......

Today I put Tina & Holly in contact with each other. I'm not sure if Holly's mom & Vincent are full or half-siblings.

My belief is that ancestry DNA testing might break it wide open to lead us to the father. Now I can't help but wonder how many other children might be out there.

I find it sad that Vincent died so young & Clara treated them poorly. I hope these families can come together, find the answers, and finally heal from the damage.

Where is Uncle Wesley?

Wesley Charles Polachek was born on February 23, 1902 in Cleveland, Ohio (birth place per documents from Mike Polachek). It's often been alleged he was born in Ukraine. He never married or had a family of his own.

He was the eldest Polachek child and was able to read,write, and speak English. Relatively little is known about Uncle Wesley, my grandfather Frank's brother.

The reason I was waiting on this week's post was to get some information from Calvary Catholic Cemetery in Cleveland. Thank you to Linda & Jerry for helping me out. You might recall (here is a refresher if not) my recent post about Louis & Julia (Wesley's parents).  For that reason, I'm sad to say - I've found Uncle Wesley. He was hiding in plain sight.

I knew he had been in an accident; however, I wasn't sure exactly where his remains ended up. To start, I do need to divulge a few facts. I've spent hours trying to figure out more about this accident. I was only able to get fragments out of Aunt Arlene such as "Wesley", "truck", "run over" and the rest of the family was useless. How/why was he hit? Was it truly an accident? Was the driver drunk? Was it just too dark out? I've tried to obtain the full accident report - I would like to at least know the name of the person that took his life - but it's been destroyed.

Id#: 0280392Name: Polachek, WesleyDate: Nov ? 1950Source: Cleveland Press;  Cleveland Necrology File, Reel #064.Notes: Polachek, Wesley, beloved son of the late Louis and Eva, brother of Mrs. Mary Hasychak, Mike, Mrs. Katherine Ziccardi, Mrs. Martha Lynch, Steve, Frank the late Nick. Friends may call at the Lester J. Gallagher Faneral Home, 9615 Miles Ave. Funeral Saturday, Nov. 11, services at Holy Name Church at 9 a. m.

At 1:15A on November 8, 1950, Wesley was walking home from work. Wesley worked as a bowling alley janitor. He was on Broadway about 100 feet south of Jones Rd when he was struck by a truck in Cleveland. This is approximately less than 1/4 mile from Holy Name Catholic Church (where my family attended services and his funeral was held). He was also nearly home - his home at the time of the accident was less than 1/2 mile away. Uncle Wesley almost made it home that night.

Autopsy Report

Wesley was pronounced dead on arrival at St. Alexis, mostly due to head injuries. His remains were identified by his brother Mike.


From his death certificate I learned his SSN & applied for his paperwork. This revealed the middle name Charles.

Additionally, I learned he was interred at Calvary. But ... where was? where was he at?

Going back and forth with Calvary from the west coast is tedious to put it best. So when I found out where he was, I was shocked - as was my mother.

Wesley's Death Certificate

At Calvary, we know where most of the family is. I've been to visit various family members multiple times. My mother can even pick out "Baby Lynch" (her Aunt Martha's) children's graves. (We think there are 6 or so.)

Before I reveal where Wesley is, I wanted to share what my mother said:

"My mom knew where everyone was. We went over there. Why didn't she say anything? She never talked about Uncle Wesley."

Turns out -

Wesley is buried double deep with Louis & Julia. In the 64 years since he died his name was never added to the grave marker (you can see the grave from my previous post). We've all been over there but never knew he was there. While trying to find him I even asked my cousins who came up blank. It's sad we were visiting a grave to remember Louis & Julia but we were unintentionally forgetting someone. The good news is, we can change that going forward.

I'd like to think this was not intentional, not the result of bad blood between the siblings. My best guess is that they were either " going to get around to it " or squabbled over who was paying, doing, organizing, etc what. Wesley was the first sibling that died that they had to deal with. Nick died while Louis, but not Julia, was still alive but the government took care of that. Louis had died by the time Wesley had - the burden was on the shoulders of the siblings.

Who knows the reasons, they have all passed away.

So to my extended family - the next time you stop by to visit Louis & Julia - lay some extra flowers for Uncle Wesley.

František

I'm a bit late but I've been busy!

This week my book said write about Frank Holan. He was my 2nd Great-Grandfather.

Frank was born František Holan in Bohemia (modern day Czech Republic). I don't know much about him except he was born on October 30 (same day as my brother!) and he was a musician.

I wonder what he played!

The Ukrainian Connection

It's quite a coincidence that this week my notebook said write about Louis Polachek.

Louis was my great-grandfather and his homeland, now known as Ukraine, is in the middle of all out chaos right now.

I want to start by saying I've always felt drawn towards him as if he was a kindred spirit. Growing up, my mother would tell me they were having parades for me in Russia on my birthday. In reality, they were having parades for May Day - not my birthday! Two years ago I found some documents on Louis that left me shell shocked. We share a birthday, May Day babies. That might explain a few things!

Louis Polachek (C) flanked by sons Frank & Steve Polachek.

He was born Luka G Pawleczko in Staryi Sambir, Ukraine on May 1 ca. 1872 to Alec Polachek & Stella Storlecka. He was born Byzantine Catholic and his parents allegedly died at an early age. His marriage to my great-grandmother Yulia was arranged. At the time the region was known as Austria-Hungary aka Galicia.

Staryi Sambir is about 1 hour west, via car, from the Polish border. A good general history can be found here. 

Staryi Sambir's distance to the capital Kyiv.

Louis never attended school and could not read, nor write his native language.

He reportedly served mandatory military service for the Russian Empire. I do know that once he made his way to the U.S. he worked with an open hearth at U.S. Steel's Cleveland plant. A friend helped Louis secure a job as a palace guard and with the help of a Polish prince, he was able to save money to leave for the United States. He reportedly came first then sent for Yulia. They traveled from their village to Bremen, Germany and entered the Port of NYC.

This would classify them as first wave Ukrainian immigrants. According to Case Western Reserve's online database, those that came during this period, came for opportunity. They had seen jobs advertised with great salaries. Some came as strike breakers. Overall, most came to earn money and intended to return home. They never did. Louis & Yulia settled in Newburg Heights in Cleveland due to the large "Old Country" community.

Of his journey to America, not much is known. A cousin of my mother's may have some documents in her garage. His Smith Act Registration says he came in 1902 on the SS Moltke.

Smith Act Page 1

Smith Act Page 2

I do believe that he had sisters and that is something I am still working on. His grave has the original spelling of the family name along with an Eastern Orthodox Crucifix.

Eugene for a Car

Initially, I wasn't going to write this post. I was going to ask another family member to write it but I felt so compelled to share my stories of him.

The last family funeral I attended was the sudden death of my uncle in 2007, almost age 60. Although he was my uncle via marriage, he'd been married to my aunt much longer than I'd been alive.

He met my Aunt Linda while they were studying at Kent State. Writing this made me realize I'm not sure exactly how they met. How long did they date? Did he talk to my grandpa before proposing? Was it a long engagement? He had a knack for telling stories, I'd have loved to have heard his version of events.

Dave Morgan
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on Sep. 19, 1948 Departed on Jul. 10, 2007 and resided in Cadiz,, OH.
Visitation:	Thursday, Jul. 12, 2007 - 9:00 pm
Service:	Friday, Jul. 13, 2007 11:00 am
Dave Morgan, 58, of Cadiz, died Tuesday, July 10, 2007 at the Cleveland Clinic. He was born September 19, 1948 in Pittsburgh, PA, a son of Lois Russell Morgan of Cadiz and the late Eugene D. Morgan.

Dave was an Exploration Geologist and a Land Agent for Consolidation Coal Company for 28 years. He was a member of St. Teresa's Catholic Church in Cadiz; the Harrison County Community Improvement Corporation; and he coached Hot Stove Baseball in Cadiz for many years. 

In addition to his father, he was preceded in death by an infant brother, Drew. 

Surviving, in addition to his mother, are his wife, Linda Miles Morgan; a daughter, Cherilynn Morgan of South Park, PA; a son, Dewey Morgan of the home; a sister, Bernadette (Dennis) Barrett of Pittsburgh; a brother, Dane (Debra) Morgan of Cadiz; eleven nieces and nephews; one great niece; and a special friend, C.D., a Jack Russell Terrier. 

His name was Eugene David Morgan, II. He was a husband, brother, father, uncle, friend, geologist, baseball coach, jokester, and over all - a great guy. Just don't call him Eugene - it was Uncle Dave, always Uncle Dave.

Growing up the adults would wager us kids if we named our first child after Uncle Dave, he would buy us a car. No, not Dave. Uncle Dave's real name the adults would say "Eugene?". When we would accept they would all laugh. Uncle Dave would say bring him a child and then he'd pay up. As Aunt Robin liked to point out, he never said what kind of car it would be. For all we knew it was a clunker that would be be hauled off of Uncle John's place.

He built "bunny mobiles" for his property and pet bunnies. He would offer to pay me $20 if I could hold the electric fence for 60 seconds - I never could.  Uncle Dave told very funny stories about his in-law's aka my grandparents. He loved to bust my grandmother's chops. Once, I saw this personally and I'll never forget the look on her face .... his heart was always in a good place with his jokes.

Each time he would smile and give that salt of the earth laugh from deep down in his belly.

It wasn't until after he died, several years later in fact, I learned he'd been sick. The death wasn't as sudden as I thought or had been lead to believe. It was cancer. Of what, I'm still not clear.

I painstakingly recorded the time of his death in my journal. I remember thinking I did not want to forget a single, no matter how small, detail. Tonight I realized how glad I was that I did that. As I was re-reading my journal I read things I'd forgotten about.

He (Uncle Dave) was admitted to the Cleveland Clinic's ICU last week. He had liver & kidney failure. They had to insert a breathing tube and he began aspirating bile. One of his eyes was dilated but they didn't know why. The next day his blood pressure was uncontrollable and Aunt Linda was given "the talk", as my father calls it, by hospital personnel. Aunt Linda thinks he is improving but I attribute that to her positive nature. The thought of her beloved leaving her is surely incomprehensible right now. Uncle Dave took his last breaths around 2am. My cousin Cher says he passed peacefully. I hope to god that is true.

I'd of course love to ask him about meeting & marrying Aunt Linda. When or how did he know she was the one? (Side note: I am biased but Aunt Linda is pretty special!) Was he on campus during the Kent State Massacre? What did he remember? What propelled him toward geology?

My biggest regret is not talking to him more, especially in the time leading up to his death, but I was lucky enough to call him my uncle.

I found this photo after his death & shared it with most of my family. It brings a smile to my face & is in a frame on my dressing table. I look at and remember him each day.

Left to Right: Grandpa Miles, Uncle Dave (holding Cher, Cher is holding me), Dewey,  Uncle Tom (holding Emily). Circa 1988 - 855 Roanoke Rd Cleveland Heights, Ohio.

Happy Valentine's Day Uncle Dave! I miss you & love you.