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John J. Jurasits (b. Mar 07, 1896, d. Nov 06, 1937)
John J. Jurasits (son of Janos Jurasits and Rosalia Timar) was born Mar 07, 1896 in Szentpeterfa, Vas, Austria-Hungary280, and died Nov 06, 1937 in Northampton, Pennsylvania281. He married Rose Marie Milisits on Jan 17, 1917 in Northampton, Pennsylvania282, daughter of Johann Milisits and Anna Bugnits.
Notes for John J. Jurasits:
My grandfather, John Jurasits, is remembered in a variety of stories from my mom, my aunt, cousins, and local townsfolk in Northampton.
He was born in Szentpeterfa and came to America as a young adult. Apparently, even though my grandmother, Rose Marie Milisits, was from the nearby village of Harmisch which was only a few miles away, he never met her until they both were in America.
Once in America, he had a variety of businesses: from running a "gin joint" on Newport Avenue in Northampton, PA during the "Roaring 20s", to building the house where I grew up in North Catasauqua, to operating a cafeteria style restaurant (also on Newport avenue - where a glass of beer was a nickel and a big plate of my grandmother's crab patties was 50 cents!), to running a respectable grocery business in Northampton. The truck that appears in the old picture which our family owns (the one labelled John R. Jurasits) was the truck which he used deliver his groceries around town.
My grandfather, John, was a big hearted man who was a better friend than he was businessman. After his death, my grandmother went through his books and found out that he had given away much of his groceries "on tick" (on account with IOUs) because people were too poor to pay, but he couldn't bear to see them without food. Predictably, when she went to the people who owed them money...as a young widow who desperately needed the money herself...she had little success in collecting.
My mother, Helen, remembers her father as an extremely gentle man. She never heard him utter a harsh or profane word in her life. As a very little girl, she remembers one incident where her father came home very late from a night out "with the boys" . Her mother, Rose, was very upset and was pretty vocal about letting the good man know it. Instead of getting upset himself, her father grabbed her mother and waltzed her around the kitchen while singing the old song "...It's Three O'clock in the Morning...".
Another early memory is of the trips which she and her father would take to New York via train on many weekends. There they would search for a business partner of my grandfather who had run off with their money and who was never heard from again.
Other weekends would find the family picnicking together on a farm owned by a family friend named Szabarra. My grandfather and grandmother would take my mother and aunt out in their car. It was an old style automobile with a rumble seat where the girls would sit. The picnic lunch would reside in a hamper which was attached to the side of the car. Once at the Szabarra farm, my grandparents would join with their own brothers and sisters and their families over a half barrel of beer and sandwiches. Even across 60 years of distance, it still sounds like their own little piece of heaven...
My mother remembers that even though the family was themselves poor, each evening, when the ice cream truck bell rang, and my mother came running for some change, her father would always dig deep into his pocket and pull out a nickel for the treat !!!
In Austria-Hungary, where he came from, each family has a "house name", the Jurasits family uses Istorkovi (ee-SHTORK-koh-vee). My grandfather's nickname was therefore "EE-STORK".
One of the recurring stories about my grandfather, John, which I have heard from several sources including my mother and aunt, some cousins, and even other un-related people from Northampton who remember him, is the story concerning his appearance. The general consensus seems to be that he was considered "extremely handsome" and "one of the best looking men in town". From the few pictures we have, while he doesn't appear to be very large in stature, and maybe a little on the formal side (most of them are wedding pictures, after all) his features do appear to be very finely chiselled. Especially in pictures of his early youth, one can to see all his purported good looks shining through. From elderly people still living in Szentpeterfa during my trip of November, 1996, came the comment that all the members of my grandfather's branch of the Jurasits family were famous (and maybe just a little bit proud of) their striking blue eyes.
Of course, we all think that these stories are wonderful to hear...especially after all these years and across so many miles.
More About John J. Jurasits:
Godfather: Antal Geosits.283
Godmother: Maria Veszelovits.283
House #: Born in old #76.283
Interesting Note: Very handsome, always happy and very big-hearted to one and all..
Occupations: Tavern Keeper, Grocer, Inventor.
More About John J. Jurasits and Rose Marie Milisits:
Marriage: Jan 17, 1917, Northampton, Pennsylvania.284
Marriage Notes for John J. Jurasits and Rose Marie Milisits:
Marriage ceremony performed by Father Bernard Sommers.
Children of John J. Jurasits and Rose Marie Milisits are:
- +Helen Marie Yurasits.
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