The Dudeks
In case you haven’t noticed, my latest obsession is exploring the limbs of my family tree. I went on a little road trip this weekend and got more information and photos. This endeavor may give me a reason to visit Poland and revisit Buffalo for the first time in a decade.
I’m almost positive this was taken in Poland, circa 1916. Front row, from the left: Tekla; Edmund; Wojciech (pronounced whoa-ge-wa), also called Adelbert; Helen; Carol; and Stanislaus, they called him Dick. Back row, from the left: Francis; Sophie; Robert, no one can remember his real name; Ignatius, they called him Joe; and Anne.
My grandmother wanted to name me Ignatious after her brother. That would have been great. It would have been hilarious if my middle name was also Marvin, then I could go by I.M. Wild and this website would be www.imwild.com.
This my grandmother at age 20. She had tuberculosis in her twenties and one of her lungs was removed, but she lived into her late 80s.
My sisters and I in Washington around 1979.
8 Comments
Eva Deadbeat said 1676 days ago:
wow! your granny is sooooo beautiful! striking! it is her eyes and what she seems to be saying with them – an important secret…?? wow!
PS thanks for the postcard! a nice addition to my skeleton collection!
S.R. Wild said 1676 days ago:
Yeah, she looks amazing. It always seemed like there was more to her story than what she told us. She was a very stylish lady.
Last night was the first time I saw those photos of her and I was blown away. I’ve been staring at them all day. She looks like my oldest sister (the one holding me in place in the last photo). I’m borrowing them so I can retouch them. Which is funny because she used to hand-color beauty shots before the days of color photos and Photoshop.
I wouldn’t know much about my family if it weren’t for her and her sister because they were obsessive about recording things. There are notes on most of the photos I have from them.
She would have been 99 years old last New Year’s Eve. The last time I saw her was one of the saddest moments of my life. She died two days before my birthday and my grandfather died between Christmas and New Years the previous year—I have a hard time celebrating during those times.
I was wondering if you ever got that postcard. It was a hot day and the beeswax was still warm when I put it in the R2-D2 mailbox. I was afraid it might stick to a letter bound for Istanbul.
Damn, this comment is longer than my original post.
Eva said 1676 days ago:
Your grandmother really is striking. Is there anyway you could research her history more? Might make an interesting project.
I always longed to snoop into my family history more. there are all sorts of hints of weird things and what not. might be nice to interview whoever is still standing?!? time is so finite…and people are so closed lipped.
PS you Do look held in place!
PPS glad my card made it to me before hopping off to Istanbul! It has a most interesting texture…
S.R. Wild said 1675 days ago:
My mom has been my best resource. She remembered all those Polish names. I want to pick her brain again. I remember some of the stories. Everyone in that first photo is no longer standing.
My grandfather painted a mural for the WPA during the Great Depression. I know it’s been destroyed, but there must be photos in some archive.
It wasn’t a relative, but it was still interesting. About ten years ago I interviewed a woman who grew up in Wales during WWII. She told me about taking cover during air raids, waiting in line for bread, and having to carry a gas mask everywhere she went. I have tapes of the interview around here somewhere.
Eva Deadbeat said 1675 days ago:
The faster you can record that info, the better. With no grandparents left, I wish I had gotten more out of them before they checked out.
My grandma was good at writing names on many of her pics but there is SO much behind every photo that I still don’t know. Will probably never know now. I guess I Can make up my own stories.
History is a slippery bastard. Tough to grasp on to and annoyingly tantalizing.
S.R. Wild said 1675 days ago:
My grandparents hoped on the train to cremation station when I was sixteen and I was too young to appreciate this kind of stuff — although, I remember a lot and am starting to remember more. Luckily, a member from every generation ends up being the family pack rat (I think I’m next in line). My mom has tons of newspaper clippings, memories, photos, clothing, etc. I need to over there some weekend and dig through it all. I also need to find out who is still around.
Yup, it’s an addictive endeavor.
caleb d. said 1672 days ago:
so where does the wild part come from — wildovski?
S.R. Wild said 1672 days ago:
Wild comes from my father’s family, the wild side. It was originally spelled Wilde, but the “e” was lost somewhere over the Atlantic. In German it means game, the kind one hunts for. Yes, I’m Polish and German, half of me is always invading the other half.
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