Vaclav Hruby

I'm back! School is over, and I've finally had the time to work on genealogy again, so here I am!

We'll start back again with a married-in uncle on my mom's side of the family: Vaclav Hruby.

Vaclav Hruby was born 2 March 1851 in Bohemia to John Hruby and Anna Kostner. According to the 1900 and 1910 censuses, Vaclav immigrated in 1870. I have yet to find him listed on a passenger list this early, but I'm still searching.

Vaclav married Marie Rybar (as you know, many different spellings and variations for this last name) on 19 February 1882 in Cook County, Illinois. Marie was born 12 May 1863 in Pilsen, in what is now the Czech Republic. According to the 1910 census, Marie immigrated in 1880. (Same as Vaclav, no luck on finding her on a passenger list this early yet, but I have found a few of her siblings in 1880. She may have just come on a different boat.) Together, they had at least eleven children:

• Marie Hruby, born May 1876
• Anna Hruby, born March 1880
• Emily M Hruby, born 17 December 1882
• Lizzie M Hruby, born 24 November 1884
• Joseph Hruby, born June 1887
• Jennie Hruby, born 8 March 1889
• Frank Joseph Hruby, born 8 February 1891
• Anezka Hruby, born about 1891
• Vaclav Hruby, born about 1893
• James Hruby, born March 1895
• Bohumil Hruby, born December 1896

Now, they didn't get married until 1882, and there are children listed in 1876. Also, she is not supposed to have come until 1880, so that means I should be looking for her to probably be traveling with at least one child. That may help me find her a little easier, but still no luck yet.

I have found another potential child that seems to be a little too squished in the timeline even though a late-1885 to mid-1886 child would fit in perfectly, so the dates may be just a little off for a couple of the kids:

• Fanny Hruby, born 28 December 1886

Jennie Hruby's death certificate references a sister "the late Mrs. Mamie Faber." I wonder if Mamie is "Marie."

At some point, it seems the family went back to Europe because they are seen together coming back from Pavlov, Breclav District, Moravia in what is now the Czech Republic. They are listed as being Osterreich, which is German for Austrian. They were sailing for Southampton, Cherbourg, New York on the Furst Bismarck on 18 May 1899.

Clipping from Hamburg passenger list

The Furst Bismark was built for the Hamburg American Line. It was an 8,430 gross ton ship. It was 502.6' long. It had three funnels, two masts, twin screw, and a speed of 19 knots. It could hold 420 first-class passengers, 172 second-class passengers, and 700 third-class passengers.

Image from http://www.simplonpc.co.uk/HAPAG1.html#anchor563270

Now... at this point, I seem to hit a snag. Vaclav died 23 May 1916. He is buried in Saint Boniface Cemetery in Chicago. The problem is... I find another Vaclav on a ship manifest in 1923 and he has a daughter Anezka and a daughter Marie. Everything seems to match up except for the fact that he's supposed to be dead and buried. Further research into this matter is definitely needed. I'll leave the "other" Vaclav for another post though.

Sources:

• 1900 Chicago, Illinois U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1910 Chicago, Illinois U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• 1940 Chicago, Illinois U.S. Federal Census (accessed on Ancestry)
• Cook County, Illinois, Birth Certificates Index, 1871-1922 (accessed on Ancestry)
• Cook County, Illinois, Marriages Index, 1871-1920 (accessed on Ancestry)
• Find-A-Grave Memorial, Jennie Hruby
• Find-A-Grave Memorial, Vaclav Hruby
• Hamburg Passenger Lists, 1850-1934 (accessed on Ancestry)
• Illinois, Deaths and Stillbirths Index, 1916-1947 (accessed on Ancestry)
• Death Certificate, Frank J Hruby (accessed on Ancestry)
• New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 (accessed on Ancestry)
• Passenger Lists (accessed on The Statue of Liberty - Ellis Island Foundation, Inc.)
• The Ships List