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I became interested in seeking my family roots about five or six years ago. I knew nothing about genealogical research and very little concerning my family background. I began asking for information from my father and mother. They both tried to discourage me in my quest, stating that it would practically be impossible. Mom and Dad, however, finally broke down and provided me with what they could remember about their respective families with dates, names, oral history, photos, and documents. It was not very much; but with the results of their input, I began to consult the genealogical websites on the Internet. Thanks to much assistance from many helpful people, I proceeded slowly and painfully with my search.
Finally, a few years ago, I located Fabisak second cousins in California and Massachusetts, and we began sharing family information, photos, and documents using the e-mail. In this way, I eventually identified my Polish great-grandparents and all their children, including my grandfather, John Samuel Fabisak, They had immigrated to America from Weglew, Poland between 1896 and 1898 in two separate trips and settled in Mount Tom, a Polish immigrant community, near Northampton, Massachusetts. We found them all on the Ellis Island website. Using FamilySearch and LDS Family History Centers, we were also able to trace our Fabiszak family pedigree in Weglew back to 1796. I hardly knew my grandfather and had never met my Fabisak great-grandparents or any members of their family, so it was super to find cousins and research facilities on the Internet that made it possible for me to know something about them. I even, recently, visited my cousins in California and Massachusetts. It was a great experience.
I found my Azorean cousins from names and addresses I had gathered from my mother's sisters and the Internet. I wrote many letters in Portuguese and, after some time, hit pay dirt. I found several Moules cousins and a ninety-five year old great-aunt, my Grandpa Loureiro's youngest sister, Jesuina de Jesus Loureiro. Again, we began to share, and I have been able to trace the Loureiros and Moules back to the early part of the 19th century. My Azorean cousins have invited me to visit them on the island of Terceira, and I intend to do so in the near future.
I also took a computer-based university course on British Isles genealogy because my Brazilian wife's grandfather, Alfred Martin Jardine was English. This research took me to Applegarth, Scotland because his family had its roots with the prominent Scottish Jardine Clan of that area. We were amazed as my research endeavors went back in time to the Battle of Hastings in 1066 with castles, battles, and palace intrigues. I was able to construct a direct pedigree of my wife's English and Scottish family to about 1750, but I found various individuals going back to 1485 on the International Genealogical Index. My wife is now a member of the Jardine Clan Society.
My beloved grandmother, Jeanette Sachs, arrived in America from Riga, Latvia about 1912-13. I have found very little early information about her because she entered the United States with false documents and was very secretive with all the family about her experiences in the Old Country. Apparently, she had been a member of a Zionist or other revolutionary group in Riga and had to flee for fear of being arrested. Her sister, Anna, according to Ellis Island records, arrived in 1909. On the ship manifest, it states that her destination was her uncle's home at "33 Union." This address still exists across the street from Union Square in Manhattan. According to oral information, this uncle's surname was Smulyan. Living with him as son, friend, or boarder was a young man named Victor. About 1910, Victor became a movie projector operator, then, a cameraman, changed his surname to Milner, and, then, went to Hollywood to become a cinematographer. Victor Milner, eventually, won an Oscar for his
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