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Visit to Grudziądz, Poland

Poland Traditions & Interest

Tim Firkowski

Thursday, 04 February 2016

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It has been a while since I have posted about my trip to Poland in August of 2015. With little time to continue blogging while I was in Poland, I opted to continue writing about it after my return. I will continue to write posts over the year.

I left my family in Poznań early in the morning so I could reach my next stop in Grudziądz, which was a three hour drive. My friend and genealogy collegue Aleksandra Kacprzak lives in Grudziądz, which is situated on the Wisła River. Aleksandra has had the opportunity to visit me twice here in the US & I have worked with her in Poland, but I had yet to see her hometown. When Aleksandra heard I was coming to Poland, she invited me to visit her hometown.

I met with Aleksandra & had some cake & coffee which was followed up with a tour of historic Grudziądz. Aleksandra is very knowledgable about the rich history of her hometown of Grudziądz. Aleksandra & her friend Mariusz who is a historian, have written a book about it's history and published it in Polish, 12227567 981783831901483 6787027416092324532 n-1

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erman & English. Grudziądz is about 700 years old. I had the opportunity to see the famous granaries, visit the remnants of what would have been one of the largest brick castles in Europe. It would even rival Malbork castle in Malbork, Poland.

I later learned that my father's Uncle - Antoni Firkowski served in the Calvalry that was based in Grudziądz. My father's cousin Maria Dankowska supplied me with a photo of my Great Uncle Antoni in his military uniform from about 1939.

After a late lunch and some shopping, we returned to Aleksandra's home, where she prepared our evening meal. Her friend Mariusz came over and we ate dinner and had some interesting conversations about history and genealogy. Although my visit to Grudziądz was short and only lasted the day, I had a wonderful time and enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about some history of Poland. I then left late in the evening to meet up with my second cousin in Toruń.

I have added a few photos from my visit to Grudziądz at the bottom of this Blog post. Enjoy!

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About the author

Tim Firkowski

I have been doing genealogy research since 2002 & have worked full time as a Professional Genealogist since 2008. I specialize in Polish and American-Canadian Genealogy. As a member of APG, I was the 2010/2011 President of the New England Chapter of the Association of Professional Genealogists (NEAPG). I have Certificates of Completion for studies in "Foundations of Forensic Genealogy" and "Advanced Forensic Genealogy Techniques". I have been a volunteer librarian at the local Family History Center, and a genealogy research consultant at “Ask the Expert” Ancestry Road Shows. I have traveled to Poland numerous times & researched in churches and archives. At conferences and special events, you may find me dressed up in my Sherlock Holmes outfit, or my Kujawy (the folk costume from the region in Poland where my ancestors came from).