My Family History Research

As far as I knew growing up, my dad had three brothers and three sisters, and he was the youngest of his siblings. It wasn’t until I started paying attention to our visits at Saint Stanislaus Cemetery and asking questions about family history that I learned he had an older brother Eugeniusz who died young, and a younger sister Ryta who died as a baby.

These were the children of Antoni Maciejewski (1883-1936) and Marya Szczepańska (1887-1951):

• Zofia Ludwika Maciejewska (13 May 1908-18 Nov 1985)
  • Jack Alva Raymond (2 May 1913-14 May 1979)
• Cecylia Anna Maciejewska (18 Nov 1909-16 Jul 2002)
  • Telesfor Teodor Malinowski (25 Nov 1906-4 Nov 1952)
• Franciszek Józef Maciejewski (2 Apr 1911-2 Mar 1981)
  • Anna Rychnowski (4 Oct 1915-12 Jun 2011)
• Bernard Jan Maciejewski (5 Jan 1913-14 Oct 1985)
  • Władysława A. Łuczak (10 May 1913-23 May 1999)
• Imelda Teresa Maciejewska (28 Jun 1915-3 Dec 2005)
  • Edward Józef Lewandowski (7 Dec 1909-17 Jan 2001)
• Antoni Jan Maciejewski (19 Nov 1917-2 May 1985)
  • Helena Elżbieta Malczewski (11 Jul 1919-21 Oct 2003)
• Eugeniusz Maciejewski (28 Dec 1925-3 Apr 1941)
• Jan Marcin Maciejewski (26 Feb 1928-29 Aug 1995)
  • Stanisława Zuzanna Skrok (8 May 1931-17 Apr 2006)
• Ryta Maciejewska (5 Aug 1929-5 Aug 1929)

Soon after their brother Anthony Maciejewski enlisted in the Army 28 March 1941, 15 year old Eugeniusz Maciejewski became ill. I was told it was a intestinal infection, peritonitis, from a perforated gastric ulcer that was the cause of his death.

A death notice was printed 9 April 1941 in Dziennik dla Wszystkich,“Everybody’s Daily,” the Buffalo, New York, Polish daily newspaper from 1911 to 1957.

On Thursday, the 3rd of April, at 3:15 in the afternoon, he said goodbye to this world after a short and serious illness, blessed with the sacraments, my beloved son and our brother,

In holy remembrance of
Eugeniusz Maciejewski

   The late Eugeniusz was born in Buffalo, N.Y. He belonged to the Society of the Holy Child Jesus of the parish and to the Eucharistic Crusade. He was 15 years old at the time of his death.

Funeral services will be on Monday, April 7th at 9:30 a.m. from the house of mourning at 80 Strauss Street, to Saint Stanislaus Church at 10:00 a.m., and then on to St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr Cemetery.

  For this sad ritual family and friends are invited in mourning.

Marja (Szczepańska) mama; Zofja, Cecylja, Franciszek, Bernard, Imelda, Antoni, Jan, sisters and brothers; Telesfor Malinowski, Edward Lewandowski, brothers-in-law, Anna, Władysława, sisters-in-law, Weronika Maciejewska, grandmother.

The funeral involved the community, and an article was published 11 April 1941 in Dziennik dla Wszystkich.

From a Mourning Card

From the Funeral of the late Eugeniusz
Maciejewski

Eugeniusz Maciejewski, who died last Thursday, April 3rd, after a short but serious illness of only two days, was laid to rest in the presence of many close family members, relatives, friends, acquaintances and school children.
Eugeniusz Maciejewski was a student at St. Stanislaus School, where he was preparing to graduate in June, and looked forward to receiving his diploma with unspeakable joy.
The coffin with the corpse was carried by the deceased’s friends, whom he had won over with his kind embrace and gentle disposition. We were: Eugeniusz Dolata, Emil Jagiełło, Franciszek Kwaśniewski, Jerzy Pełczyński, Robert Falka, Edmund Jagiełło, Bolesław Derenda, and Henryk Łuczak. All the school children, together with their sisters and teachers, formed a line where the funeral procession went to the church.
It was a very emotional moment which will remain indelibly etched in the memory of both the family and the school children.
Eugene died in his prime, aged only 15, but it was God’s will, God gave and God took. May the light of eternity shine on his soul.

Dziennik dla Wszystkich [Everybody’s Daily], Buffalo, New York, 11 April 1941, Page 11

The funeral stone in Section FF of Saint Stanislaus Cemetery in Cheektowaga is prefaced “Drogi Syn,” which means “Dear Son.”

Eugeniusz‘ death was hard on the whole family. Only 13 when his brother died, my father John was the last remaining child at home. In 1941, both his brother Frank and his wife Anna and his sister Imelda and her husband Edward were expecting babies. When their boys were born, they were named after their uncle:

• Eugene Charles was born 6-Aug-41.
• Edward Eugene was born 31-Dec-41.

Sources

• Eugeniusz Maciejewski, Dziennik dla Wszystkich [Everybody’s Daily], Buffalo, New York, 9 April 1941, Page 8. https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83045091/1941-04-05/ed-1/seq-8/.
• Z Żałobnej Karty, Dziennik dla Wszystkich [Everybody’s Daily], Buffalo, New York, 11 April 1941, Page 11. https://nyshistoricnewspapers.org/lccn/sn83045091/1941-04-11/ed-1/seq-11/.
• “Find a Grave,” database, Find a Grave (findagrave.com: accessed 26 March 2021), Eugeniusz Maciejewski; citing cemetery records.