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Sherlock's Genealogical Adventures

Follow Sherlock on his adventures into genealogical mysteries.

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What Can You Learn From A Criminal Record?

General Genealogy

Tim Firkowski

Monday, 28 December 2015

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When we think about our ancestry, we think that our family have been wonderful people throughout history, but never consider

the bad. As a genealogist if we are to be successful in our research, we have to keep an open mind and it helps not to judge. I do not think there is a normal family out there. There is both good and bad that comes out of research, whether it is as simple as an out of wedlock birth or a criminal past of an ancestor. In order to do effective research especially when a brick wall presents itself, we must consider ALL resources for information.

In this case, I am researching for information on Paul. He was born 1918 in the US in PA and reports that when he was 3 years old, he returned to Poland with his mother and a sister that was also born in the US. He had other siblings that were born in Poland, but came to the states with his parents. Paul later returned to the US with a passport issued in Warsaw, Poland. But there is a mystery about what happened to his father. The family story says he died about 1927, but there was no proof.

These are my thoughts - Why would the mother return to Poland without her husband unless her husband passed away. If her husband passed in 1927, and then returned to Poland after, then Paul would have been older than 3 when he left the US. I came across a Sing Sing prison record that I believe belongs to Paul's brother John, which if it turns out is for his brother, then the document holds tons of information that is going to be helpful. There are a number of pieces of information that match what I already know, so at this point I am pretty sure it is for Paul's brother John.

This Sing Sing prison receiving document from 1932 holds some key pieces of information that will help further research. Of particular interest to me is the information about the father. It states that when John was 20 years old, his father passed away. Because I know the birth date of Paul's brother John, that would make the death of the father to be about 1925, This is getting closer to Pauls reported age of 3 years old when he left Poland, but still quite a bit older if his mother left for Poland after her husband Alexander died. If we take into consideration that John could have reported the date a little high and Paul reported his date a little low, then somewhere in the middle it would be highly feasable date of the father's death date.

It is unknown where Alexander died, but I believe I found the family in Ohio in 1920. They had been in PA after they arrived and their children where born in PA. The number of siblings stated matches what is known about the family. If I take the date estimates from what is reported from Paul & John, I come up with a small span of years to research (1921-1925) which I believe will turn out to be somewhere in the middle. I have already looked in PA for a death record and did not find anything, so I am sure it will be in Ohio.

If you click on the image you can view all the pieces of information that are on this prison receiving document.

If you are interested in learning more about Sing Sing prison records and genealogy, you might want to consider a book written by Ron Arons. "The Jews of Sing Sing"

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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).