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George Blahnik and Katerina Blaha
Algoma Blahniks

Special Thanks to Francis Blahnik of Manitowoc, WI

For some time we had thought the Algoma Blahnik branch came from the Loucim farm Branch of the Smrozovice Blahnik genealogy.  When checking the Kewaunee County records office I had found that Joseph Blahnik had written his place of birth on his marriage certificate as "Novy Gdyn".  Francis had been looking for this kind of information, checked out the listing I had found, and seized the opportunity to verify our specific Blahnik connection to Bohemia. He contacted the Institute of Slavic Studies and requested that the "Ancestral Project of the Family Blahnik from the village Starec in Western Bohemia" be compiled.  David Kohout from Prague worked from October 2001 until Feb 2002 to compile this for Francis.  No doubt this was a costly endeavor and yet Francis has been good enough to share the information.
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Francis writes:

    "Last September I commissioned Slavic Research Institute to find the homestead of Geog and Katharine Blahnik, our immigrant ancestors.  I received the results of their efforts on the 8th of March.  They did not live in Kdyne as I thought.  Instead their home was a few kilometers west,  the town of Starz or Starec in German.  They owned #17.  Georg's father Georg, his grandfather , Jacobus, was also born there.  The records they sent go back to 1749 with parents listed before that time. . . "

On April 22, 2002 Francis writes that he sent, "Copies of what the Institute of Slavic Studies sent me.  (There) are translations of the original church records that are written in Bohemian. I received them already translated. . At the time the entire area was of the Austro-Hungarian Empire (and) the official language of which was German. . .(The official papers) were hand-written in gothic script, which few people can read.  I had them translated by a retired German teacher from our local high school.  She first translated the Script into modern German then translated the German into English
   I have since requested the researcher to take some pictures of the village of Starec when he gets into that area.  I think there has been little change since the 1850's. . . Enjoy, Francis"

   

  1. Wenceslaus BLAHNIK married Margaretha KARBAN November 27, 1741 in the Parish Kdyne in Western Bohemia.

  2. Jacobus BLAHNIK born March 12, 1742/43 in Village Hluboka, Bohemia married Maria KAYSER April 25, 1769 in Church of Nicolaus, Kdyne, Western Bohemia

  3. Georgius BLAHNIK born November 01, 1771 Starec #17, Bohemia, Austria-Hungary married Margaretha BLAZEK  (born July 14, 1785 Village Starec No. 12, Bohemia) November 27, 1804 at Parish Kdyne, Bohemia. He died November 26, 1829 Starec #17, Bohemia from tuberculosis.  She died March 16, 1824 in Starec #17, Bohemia also from tuberculosis and was buried in Deanary Churchyard.

  4. Georg  BLAHNIK born November 08, 1813  Starec #17, Bohemia married Katerina BLAHA (born April 19, 1814 from Hradiste #17, Bohemia) on February 10, 1834 at the Parish Lsteni, Bohemia.  According to the Official records No 26,683 To Imperial and Royal Distric Authority!  Permission was, "granted to property owner Georg Blahnik of Starz, District of Neugedein, with his wife Katharina, and their six children Mathias, Jakob, Georg, Josef, Johann and Anna Blahnik for emigration to America,  thus releasing them of the Austrian State Community" dated May 27, 1856.  The family arrived in New York on the Bark Aeoleus our to Breman on September 22, 1856.  Their daughter Anna died on the ship in the passage to America.  No birth records were found for Georg's son, Georg.  But he is listed both here and on ship arrival records.  His birthdate in America was recorded as 1844, but it appears that he was born in 1841 per immigration records. Both George and Katherina died in Algoma, Wisconsin, USA. He January 17, 1894 and Katerina on March 07, 1892.

George, Katerina and their five sons arrived on the ship the Bark Aeolus out of Bremen docking in New York on September 22, 1856.  Francis Blahnik found the reference to this:
Passenger list Bark Aeolus out of Breman. Docked in the port of NY 9/22/1856. Below is from the passenger lists Port of NY Sept 19 - Oct 18, 1856 roll 167 copy #M237
#184 Georg Blahling age 44 from Bohemia to Wiscony
#185 Catharine Blahling, age 40, ditto, wife of above
#186 Mathias Blahling, age 21, ditto
#187 Jacob Blahling, age 19, ditto
#188 George Blahling, age 15, ditto
#189 Joseph Blahling, age 10, ditto
#190 Johann Blahling, age 5, ditto
Photo and description of the ship
Bob Blahnik also found a reference to the arrival in the Leo Baca books.
Note misspellings of the last name and of the State of Wisconsin (Wiscony) George and Katerina had one more son, Anton, born in America in July 20, 1859, a few years after their arrival.

Wenzel Blahnik wrote a brief history as part of his genealogy saying:

"Among the first settlers in the area today known as the Town of Ahnapee were George and Katherine Blahnik.  They and five sons arrived in the United States in 1856 and came directly to northeastern Wisconsin, purchasing 80 acres of timberland in Ahnapee town.

George Blahnik was reared on a farm in Bohemia and married Katherine Blaha, also a Bohemian by birth.  The marriage was performed in Bohemia.

The five sons who arrived in Ahnapee town with George and Katherine were Mathias, Jacob, George, Jr., Joseph and John.  When the Blahnik family left Bohemia in 1855, there was also a daughter.  She however, died during the Atlantic crossing.  Later a sixth son, Anton, was born in this country.

Upon their arrival and their purchase of 80 acres of Ahnapee timberland, the Blahniks began to clear it for farming.  George, Sr., eventually purchased an additional 240 acres, all of which he improved.

The Blahniks experienced many hardships incident to the life of a pioneer.  The buildings which they erected are no longer in existence, but the land became the property of Donald Blahnik, a great-grandson of George and Katherine.  Donald's father was Jacob A. Blahnik.

Katherine died in 1891 and George's death took place in 1893.  They were buried in St. Mary's cemetery, Algoma, Wisconsin."

 

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