ContentsScope and Contents of the Collection
The Sroka Family of Chicopee, Massachusetts, by Gary Sroka (English) n.d. Sroka family weddings, baptisms and deaths (Polish) 1842-1898 Birth certificate for Anna Babiec, b. 1892 (Polish) 1892 Wedding certificate for Jozef and Anna 1909 Application for travel passport for Jozef (Polish) 1912 Affidavit confirming age, residence, etc. for Anna (Polish) 1913 Employment documentation in various cheese factories 1905-1910 Military documentation (Infantry Log Book) card #37 1905-1912 Photo (photocopy) of Jozef Sroka in military uniform of Austro-Hungarian Empire n.d. Payment book, Society of St. Joseph, Chicopee 1913-1960 Letter from Janos Dvorzsak in Hungary to Jozef (Hungarian and Polish) 1926 Letter from Jan Sroka, Kosice Slovenia to ? 1932 Pay stub, Walt Manufacturing Company, Springfield 1943 |
Sroka Family Papers, 1842-1980sFinding AidFinding aid prepared by Linda Seidman.Encoding funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.2003
Administrative InformationAcquired from Gary Sroka, 1988, via Stanley Radosh as photocopies. Family retains originals. Processed by Linda Seidman, 1988. Preferred CitationCite as: Sroka Family Papers (MS 216). Special Collections and University Archives, W.E.B. Du Bois Library, University of Massachusetts Amherst. The collection is open for research. Return to the Table of Contents Biographical NoteJan Sroka was born in Poland on July 14, 1882, the eldest child of Szczepan Sroka. Jan lived and worked on the shifting border between Austria and Hungary mainly as a cheese maker from 1902-1912, although in 1905 and 1912 he was active in the military. On June 10, 1909 Jan was married to Anna Babiec, born January 21, 1892. Matilda, the first daughter of Jan and Anna, was born in 1910 and soon afterward the young couple decided to emigrate to the United States. Jan arrived on Thanksgiving Day in 1912, and Anna and Matilda arrived in March of 1913. Upon arriving, Jan worked at Hunts meat packing firm in Springfield, Massachusetts, and soon bought a house in nearby Chicopee. Four children were born in the United States, Filomena in 1915, Mieczyslaw in 1916, Alice in 1918 and Irene in 1922. Anna was a seamstress, and during the Great Depression both she and her daughters worked in textile factories in Chicopee and Springfield. To support the family, Jan and Anna farmed as well. Return to the Table of Contents Scope and Contents of the CollectionDocuments and photographs carried by Jan and Anna Stroka from Poland to the United States in 1912 and 1913, respectively, as well as family papers from 1913 to 198?. Most of the papers are in Polish, German and Hungarian, although some are in English, Ukrainian and Russian. Documents include birth and wedding certificates, military and employment documentation, residential and passport applications, an affidavit confirming age and residence, photographs, and lists of baptisms, weddings and deaths. Family papers include a family history written by Gary Sroka, grandson of Jan, which traces five generations of the Sroka family; correspondence, photographs, payment book for the Society of St. Joseph (Chicopee, Massachusetts), pay stub from Walt Manufacturing Company, and a news clipping. All materials exist as photocopies. Return to the Table of Contents Search TermsReturn to the Table of Contents
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