Starting this week, we will introduce you to one ancestor each week as part of the 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge. I will begin today with one of our mystery ancestors, Joseph Freibis.
Joseph Freibis was my 3rd-great-grandfather (see pedigree chart). We learned his name easily enough from the death certificate of his daughter, my 2nd-great-grandmother, Maryanna (Freibis) Pionke.
However, his name was the only easy-to-find thing about Joseph Freibis. I don't have a record of Joseph's marriage to Pauline Abraham, and I can't find Joseph's birth nor his parents' names. I don't even know if he was baptized Catholic or if he converted.
Following a trail from his children's marriage records at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church (Chicago), to the indexes on the Pomeranian Genealogical Association website, and finally to the LDS Family History Library microfilms, I found Joseph Freibis' death record in the Puck parish.
I may have only the one record, but fortunately it is a very informative record. Here is what it tells us:
But after basking in the glow of the wonderful depth of information contained in this one record, I was back to the frustration of a dead end search. Where was he born? Not in Puck. Not in Góra where his wife Pauline was born. And after some research I discovered that the marriage records for the relevant years in Góra (and most neighboring parishes) are lost.
As more and more records have been indexed, it has become apparent that very few Freibises lived in the area. I wonder perhaps if they were all from the same family, one that migrated into the area in the early 1800's or maybe late 1700's.
I have found two possible sets of parents for our Joseph Freibis in the Catholic records: Jacob Freibis and Constantia Renka and Johann Freibis and Franciska Słowy. These couples were in the Rozłazino and Luzino parishes (and possibly other parishes as well). It is also possible that Joseph came from a Lutheran family. I have found the Freibis name in the Bolszewo (Bohlschau) Lutheran records indexed on the FamilySearch site.
Here is a map of all known Freibis locations:
View larger map
My strategy for finding Joseph Freibis' birth will focus on searching the center of this area - the parishes of Góra, Luzino, Bolszewo, and Wejherowo. I have already double-checked the Góra records and found no trace of him. Next up: Luzino. Wish me luck!
Edit: since writing this, I have discovered the names of Joseph Freibis' parents, grandparents, and more! Read more here.
Finding Joseph Freibis
Joseph Freibis was my 3rd-great-grandfather (see pedigree chart). We learned his name easily enough from the death certificate of his daughter, my 2nd-great-grandmother, Maryanna (Freibis) Pionke.
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| Maryanna (Freibis) Pionke death certificate |
However, his name was the only easy-to-find thing about Joseph Freibis. I don't have a record of Joseph's marriage to Pauline Abraham, and I can't find Joseph's birth nor his parents' names. I don't even know if he was baptized Catholic or if he converted.
Following a trail from his children's marriage records at St. Stanislaus Kostka Church (Chicago), to the indexes on the Pomeranian Genealogical Association website, and finally to the LDS Family History Library microfilms, I found Joseph Freibis' death record in the Puck parish.
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| excerpt - Joseph Freibös death record, Puck parish |
I may have only the one record, but fortunately it is a very informative record. Here is what it tells us:
- Name: Joseph Freibös.
- Age at death: 36, meaning he was born about 1826.
- Place of death: Polchau (now Połchowo).
- Date of death: 7 November 1862.
- Survived by: wife Pauline née Abraham and children Johann, 10, Francisca, 7, Marianna, 4, Joseph, 1.
- Occupation: cloth weaver.
- Cause of death: emaciation.
But after basking in the glow of the wonderful depth of information contained in this one record, I was back to the frustration of a dead end search. Where was he born? Not in Puck. Not in Góra where his wife Pauline was born. And after some research I discovered that the marriage records for the relevant years in Góra (and most neighboring parishes) are lost.
Finding Freibis: Continuing the Quest
As more and more records have been indexed, it has become apparent that very few Freibises lived in the area. I wonder perhaps if they were all from the same family, one that migrated into the area in the early 1800's or maybe late 1700's.
I have found two possible sets of parents for our Joseph Freibis in the Catholic records: Jacob Freibis and Constantia Renka and Johann Freibis and Franciska Słowy. These couples were in the Rozłazino and Luzino parishes (and possibly other parishes as well). It is also possible that Joseph came from a Lutheran family. I have found the Freibis name in the Bolszewo (Bohlschau) Lutheran records indexed on the FamilySearch site.
Here is a map of all known Freibis locations:
View larger map
- Rozłazino parish - 2 births (1813, 1825)
- Paraszyno - Freibis residence from above births [unidentified dot on map between Rozłazino and Luzino]
- Luzino - 4 births, 3 marriages, 2 deaths indexed (1832-1866)
- Bolszewo - 11 births indexed, Lutheran (1848-1874)
- Góra - for reference, home parish of Joseph Freibis' wife Pauline Abraham
- Żarnowice (top center of map) - 7 births, 5 deaths indexed (1850-1870)
- Połchowo - home of our Freibis family
- Puck - home parish of our Freibis family (no other Freibis records found in that parish)
My strategy for finding Joseph Freibis' birth will focus on searching the center of this area - the parishes of Góra, Luzino, Bolszewo, and Wejherowo. I have already double-checked the Góra records and found no trace of him. Next up: Luzino. Wish me luck!
Edit: since writing this, I have discovered the names of Joseph Freibis' parents, grandparents, and more! Read more here.
Related posts:
Reference: Family History Library film #1456857 (Katholische Kirche Putzig, Taufen, Heiraten, Tote 1860-1874)
Translation credit: Thank you to Michael Pionke for translating the occupation and cause of death on this record! I could not have deciphered the handwriting on my own.
Note: The 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks Challenge started at the beginning of this year, but we decided to join at the midpoint. Since we are doing one ancestor for the paternal side on this blog, and one for the maternal side each week on TreeQuest: The Truth Is Out There, we will end up with 52 after all.
© TreeQuest: An Unexpected Journey 2014.
That is really cool! I love the map! It's amazing to actually see the paths the family traversed. And you were very lucky with that death record (still shocked you can read those things!). Very interesting post. Good luck with the rest of the search!
ReplyDeleteActually I had translation help. I was remiss not to give credit but I shall edit to add it in. :)
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