Genealogical Gems

March is Women's History Month and as such Geneabloggers' prompt today is: Do you have marriage records for your grandparents or great-grandparents? Write a post about where they were married and when. Any family stories about the wedding day? Post a photo too if you have one. My paternal grandparents - Joseph and Anna Kurenda Ruczhak - were married at Holy Ghost Ukrainian Church. They were married on 16 July 1939 at the Coatesville church. They were supposed to be married the year before but Baba's father - John Kurenda - passed on 27 February 1938 so it was pushed back a year due to the period of mourning. The photo at left is their wedding party. My maternal grandparents - Lloyd and Mary Welsh Still - were married in the rectory of St. Mary's Roman Catholic Church in Phoenixville. She was Roman Catholic and he was Presbyterian at the time so they could not be married in the church. They were married on 21 October 1939. I do not have a photo of their wedding ...

The Rt. Rev. Mitrate Hilary H. Wroblewsky, his wife Mary, his parents and her father are all buried here together in Holy Ghost Ukrainian Cemetery where he was pastor from 1932 to 1950. It was d uring Rev. Wroblewsky’s pastorate, on 28 October 1940, that the charter of the church was changed to read "Ukrainian Orthodox Church of the Holy Ghost of Coatesville, PA". We had previously been a Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church.

Marian B. Kish of Coatesville Marian "Minnie" B. Kish, 97, of Coatesville passed away on 13 April 2013 at Pembrooke Nursing Home. She was the wife of the late Ely T. Kish who passed away in 2004. Born on 27 September 1915 in Coatesville, she was the daughter of Phillip Bohatel (1895 - 1966) and Elizabeth Marchewka Bohatel. Marian worked for Wallick's Dress Factory. She was a member of Holy Ghost Ukrainian Orthodox Church where she was deeply involved, serving as treasurer for many years. She was a member of the Ladies Auxiliary of the West End Fire Co. No.3 and several bowling teams. Also she was an ardent crossword puzzle fan and loved going to Atlantic City. Marian is survived by a son, Thomas E. Kish of Nanaimo, B.C., one grandchild, two great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. A funeral service will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, 19 April, at Holy Ghost Ukrainian Church, 399 Charles St., Coatesville. Interment will follow the service at Holy Ghost Ukra...

When searching for your family, search for the church history as well. Not all churches made the paper often but from time to time, the local newspapers carried information about a church that included family information! I attend the Holy Ghost Ukrainian Orthodox Church in Coatesville, PA. Daddy went here until he and mom married and he converted to Catholicism shortly after I was born. His parents were baptized here and married here and were buried here. Their parents all went here as well. My great grandfather's (Panko Hruszczak) uncle and aunt (Onifer & Rose Pomanko) attended here before that. However, we did not all attend the Holy Ghost Ukrainian Orthodox Church. Over the years, the church itself has changed. Newspaper accounts from the Daily Local, the now defunct Coatesville Record and Village News all shed light to the parish's history over the years. The Chester County Historical Society keeps clippings of all the churches, surnames, and various other infor...

Church Record Sunday is a weekly prompt for GeneaBloggers which describes a specific church record or a set of records held by a church or denomination and how they can assist genealogists. I wish that today - being St Patrick's Day - I had some great records to share from my Irish ancestors. Sadly I really do not. I do have the baptismal records from both my paternal grandparents and my Uncle Nick as well as marriage records for my great grandparents at the Holy Ghost Ukrainian Church. Church records are especially helpful on Daddy's side of the family. The Baptismal Register reveals that Gigi (my grandfather) father is Pantalemon Hruszczak and Pelagia Matys. It lists Gigi's birth as 12 January 1918 and his baptism as 20 January 1918. Gigi was actually born on the 5th but the use of both the Julian and the Gregorian calendar here explain the date discrepency. It also reveals that my great grandfather (referrred to as Panko) is from Prusy, Sambor in Galicia Austria. Be...

Palm Sunday 2012 Holy Ghost Ukrainian Orthodox Church Coatesville, Chester County, PA