Question about surname changes during immigration

caprice49:

Peter

Could you help me decifer an address on www.ellisisland.org - registration is free My great uncle Stefan Rybinski arrived in New York on Prinz Friedrich Wilhelm vessel January 16th 1910. The ship's manifiest provides an address which I'm finding difficult to decipher. 1008 Second Street - but cant read the rest. Or even if you decipher the surname that may help. We're trying to trace relatives, and for a long while have been searching in Chicago and just by sheer luck discovered Stefan came through New York.

Every1LuvzAngieThreads: 1 Posts: 11 Joined: Jul 13, 09	Jul 17, 09, 07:22 / #
I haven't gotten the most welcoming responses on this site but Imma try again anyways cuz I don't like to judge a whole site on a few negative ppl....but here we go... My grandma was born here but my great grandma was pregnant with her on the boat over lmao....they got here in 1920... anyways, long story short. When they arrived at Ellis Island they made them change their surname to something more American....so my grandma's surname was changed to Vitek. I am not aware of the original spelling of the name because my grandma has memory problems and don't remember exactly what is was...my question is this...is there any way I can find out? Or am I screwed? I really would love to know more about her family that they left over there when they came to America...any help would be great, and plz enough with the stupid rude comments, its unnecessary. Thank you to anyone who can help me in advance! :)

Grzegorz_Threads: 80 Posts: 6,104 Joined: Nov 16, 06	Jul 17, 09, 08:08 / #
Every1LuvzAngie: so my grandma's surname was changed to Vitek It could be Witek... but that's just a thought... To be sure you would have to find their documents issued in Poland or something...

barkko	Jul 18, 09, 22:14 / #
Did your great grandparents ever apply for US citizenship? Their Polish name could appear on those documents. If they had other children who were born in the US their Polish name might have been recorded in the Church Baptismal records. Have you looked at any of the Ports of Entry with name variations? What year did they arrive and where did they come in? Another surname variation could be Witkowski. It's a search well worth doing. Who knows what you'll find.

PeterThreads: 5 Posts: 291 Joined: Mar 31, 07	Edited by: Peter Jul 18, 09, 23:46 / #
Would'nt the passenger manifests which were filled out BEFORE the ship arrived in the US have the correct name and spelling? You'd need to know what day they arrived on and what ship though just to narrow the search range. It also could be that the surname was mis-spelt on the arrival entries which has hampered my own searches.

Polonius3Threads: 963 Posts: 4,552 Joined: Apr 11, 08	Jul 19, 09, 10:59 / #
The name could not have been Vitek, because there is no v in Polish. So somebody changed it -- either some Ellis Island official, an employer or the immigrant himself. Vitek would be a logical phoentic respelling retaining the original pronunciation. There arer more thn 13,000 Witeks in Poladn mainly inhbaiting the country's southland. WItek is short fro Witold, a popular Polish first name adapted from the Lithuanian Vytautas. But it could have also been shortened from Witkowski (42,000 users in Poland), probably a toponymic nick from one of the many localities in Poland containing that root (Witków, Witkowo, Witkowice, etc.). But that shortening presuposses that the name-changer knew something about Polish, namely that the rooit of Witkowski is Witek. An Irish or WASP US Immirgration official may not have known that.

PeterThreads: 5 Posts: 291 Joined: Mar 31, 07	Jul 19, 09, 15:31 / #
FYI Every1LuvzAngie, If you search on ancestry for "Witek" this is what you find..... Exact Search Results - Historical Records You searched for Witek Refine your search Historical Records Family Trees Stories & Publications Photos & Maps Find census, immigration, military, vital records and more. Census & Voter Lists 1,416 574 1930 United States Federal Census 460 1920 United States Federal Census 199 1910 United States Federal Census 82 1900 United States Federal Census 33 California Voter Registrations, 1900-1968 » View all 1,416 results Birth, Marriage & Death 2,425 539 Social Security Death Index 305 United States Obituary Collection 164 Cook County, Illinois Marriage Index, 1930-1960 146 England & Wales, Marriage Index: 1916-2005 123 Cook County, Illinois Death Index, 1908-1988 » View all 2,425 results Military 484 138 World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 131 Stars and Stripes Newspaper, Europe, Mediterranean, and North Africa Editions, 1942-1964 67 U.S. World War II Army Enlistment Records, 1938-1946 59 U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942 27 U.S. Veterans Gravesites, ca.1775-2006 » View all 484 results Immigration & Emigration 1,120 641 New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 130 Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934 (in German) 113 Baltimore Passenger Lists, 1820-1948 52 Passenger and Immigration Lists Index, 1500s-1900s 35 UK Incoming Passenger Lists, 1878-1960 » View all 1,120 results Directories & Member Lists 5,237 1,583 U.S. Phone and Address Directories, 1993-2002 1,525 U.S. Public Records Index 1,039 U.S. City Directories 371 Massachusetts City Directories 292 Connecticut City Directories » View all 5,237 results Reference Materials & Finding Aids 25 21 Biography & Genealogy Master Index (BGMI) 2 Spanish-American Family History Guide 1 Bury St Edmunds Abbey Archives 1 Geographic Reference Library

Every1LuvzAngieThreads: 1 Posts: 11 Joined: Jul 13, 09	Jul 28, 09, 10:10 / #
they moved to Pennsylvania when they came here so maybe I can get records from there....

WroclawThreads: 74 Posts: 7,276 Joined: Apr 1, 06 [Moderator]	Jul 28, 09, 17:59 / #
Check the ship's manifest for next-of-kin. The original name may show up there. It may also lead to a new name (grandmother's maiden name, for example, through a brother) or nothing.

caprice49Threads: 4 Posts: 288 Joined: Aug 5, 09	Edited by: caprice49 Aug 6, 09, 13:13 / #
Port officials were known to get surnames misspelt. There are lots of Witek's in Poland.

caprice49Threads: 4 Posts: 288 Joined: Aug 5, 09	Aug 7, 09, 12:29 / #
Peter Could you help me decifer an address on www.ellisisland.org - registration is free My great uncle Stefan Rybinski arrived in New York on Prinz Friedrich Wilhelm vessel January 16th 1910. The ship's manifiest provides an address which I'm finding difficult to decipher. 1008 Second Street - but cant read the rest. Or even if you decipher the surname that may help. We're trying to trace relatives, and for a long while have been searching in Chicago and just by sheer luck discovered Stefan came through New York.

PeterThreads: 5 Posts: 291 Joined: Mar 31, 07	Edited by: Peter Aug 8, 09, 17:21 / #
I'm looking at the manifest and even when magnified it is practically impossible to read, the ink having blotted into the paper when it was written. What little I can decipher is.......... ----- -----islaw --li--wicz 1008 -ec---- & -- (St ??) ----- --- brother il In hindsight after playing around with the magnification........ 1008 Second Street & St Louis ---

PeterThreads: 5 Posts: 291 Joined: Mar 31, 07	Aug 7, 09, 18:57 / #
I'll take a look at it over the weekend and see if I can make anything out.............I have the same problem myself. caprice49: Peter Could you help me decifer an address on www.ellisisland.org - registration is free My great uncle Stefan Rybinski arrived in New York on Prinz Friedrich Wilhelm vessel January 16th 1910. The ship's manifiest provides an address which I'm finding difficult to decipher. 1008 Second Street - but cant read the rest. Or even if you decipher the surname that may help. We're trying to trace relatives, and for a long while have been searching in Chicago and just by sheer luck discovered Stefan came through New York.

caprice49Threads: 4 Posts: 288 Joined: Aug 5, 09	Edited by: caprice49 Aug 11, 09, 17:49 / #
Peter: I'm looking at the manifest and even when magnified it is practically impossible to read, the ink having blotted into the paper when it was written Thanks. I've made some progress (thanks to the help of folks on this website) and found a potential candidate in Baltimore. Now I just need to check that he is the one and only. My family have been looking to trace since the end of WW1. It's just a shame they're not around. See thread Stefan Rybinski. I'm really grateful for your input.