Some Kadetsky family history from Poland

I checked out the Jewish Family Finder on JewishGen.com (a fascinating site which anyone interested in their Jewish family history should use) and found a researcher in Poland also looking into the KADETSKY surname. I contacted him (with the wonderful help of a fellow Genner who translated our correspondence) and got the following answer from him:

Dear Jenni,
Sorry for not replying earlier but I very often travel and I am very busy. Yesterday I came back from Switzerland and the Czech Republic.
If you are interested in your family history from today Poland and today Ukraine you should know not only the history of the Jewish people in Europe but also history of the Eastern Europe at least from XVI-XVII. Before you obtain such knowledge I would like to provide you with basic information. Having analyzed overnight all surnames and dates which you have mentioned in your letter I confirm that we are related to each other.
However we encounter one major problem. It would be a very time consuming task to establish when our family history converged.
It is undoubtedly a fascinating subject, but it requires historical knowledge about Polish, Austrian, Prussian and Russian states.
I don’t know if you realize since when the Jews from Biezun and neighboring villages were required to use the surnames and who named them?
Biezun was a Polish-Jewish town founded by the nobility family Dzialynski. I guess, in 1760, its ownership was transferred to the Zamojski family. In 1767, they brought the Jews. It was a very common practice among the Polish nobility and earlier among the Polish kings.
If Polish nobility wished to build and to develop cities and towns they had to bring the Jews as the law prevented nobility from performing any work or running any businesses. If a nobleman soiled his hands with work he was stripped of his title and became a peasant. Peasants were just slaves, they could not learn how to read, write or calculate. Only Catholic priests and some townspeople were literate.
Therefore the Polish nobility had to hire others to work.

In the 18th century due to political reasons Poland was partitioned by 3 countries: Prussia, Austria and Russia. At the beginning Biezun was included in Plock district in Prussia.

In accordance with the Prussia King’s edict dated 17.04.1797, every peasant and every Jew was given his own unique surname as so far they used only names and father’s names (patronymics), sometimes place of origin.

In Plock surnames were assigned by a famous composer Hoffman in 1802. Hoffman, as an officer and a military musician was penalized for drunkenness and transferred to provincial Plock. In that way in 1802, Hoffmann, who was always drunk, was ordered by the King to assign surnames to the Jews. It is quite interesting as the procedure was quite comical but sometimes offensive surnames were given.

It should be kept in mind, that your family who originated in Ukraine came also from Poland as this territory was a part of Poland until so called Chmielnicki uprising. Later on partitions of Poland often divided families.

However, the history of families from today Poland, especially from Biezun and neighboring shtetls can be traced by analyzing surnames from Prussian districts, especially from the years 1802 or 1803 onwards.

The following rule was applied: if one family who lived in a village or in a town was given a surname, then other not-related people were not given the same surname. New-born babies were given names after late grandfathers, grandmothers, uncles, brothers etc.

The Jews started to settle down in this part of Poland in the 15th and the 16th century. Firstly they were brought to Gabin, then to Drobin, Dobrzyn nad Wisla, Dobrzyn nad Drweca, Lipna, Sierpca, Zuromin, Wroclawek, Kikol.

If my grandparents were born in Biezun, in 1880, were married and then moved to Golub, Dobrzyn, Zuronim, Lipno, Sierpiec, Lubicz, then they were related to each other “many times”.
Therefore surname Kadecki comes only from Biezun but it spread to the entire region and at the end of 19th century can be found in America. The same rule applies to the surnames like: Czarnobroda, Czrnoœliwka, Dobroszklanka, Pedziwiatr , Cipa czy te¿ Pêdzidupa.

The above rule did not apply to Jewish names of historical significance such as Rapaport.

Therefore if you wish to research your family history you should understand the Jewish history in this part of Europe before and after Holocaust.

Your point of view depends, of course, on your religious and political opinion. Historical knowledge of anti-Semitism and Holocaust is also essential.

Contrary to the popular belief, the latest research shows that approximately 50% of the Polish population has Jewish genotypes, although they are both Polish nationalists and Catholics.
They are also often Anti-Semitic.

I am positive, that many your ancestors live in today Poland and in former Soviet Union, but sometimes they do not know that. Often people of East Europe consider a word “Jewish” as offensive. Moreover it is sometimes destructive.

Often I have the exact knowledge about person’s background, but I believe that I do not have right to discuss the subject.
Of course your situation is very different.

By the way: 2 years ago my daughter met Gilbert Rapaport at Austin University in TX (USA). He is the Head of Slavic Department. He speaks Russian and Polish fluently.
My daughter told him, that her father has a friend named Rapaport from a town located between Plock and Torun. Professor replied, that it’s impossible as they were very small shetetls and nobody survived Holocaust.
His family emigrated before the I World War from Dobrzyn and Biezun and my friend, Rapaport, 82 years old, (his mother’s maiden name was Dobraszklanka) is his close uncle.
My daughter found such interesting family link, although she knows nothing about Jewish genealogy.
The Jewish family Kadetcki comes only from Biezun. Fischer and Kaufman lived in Dobrzyn nad Drweca. If you wish I can research the subject, which you are interested in and I will send you progressively available information .

Regards and invitation to Poland.

Wlodek Malinowski

Map of area around Poland

This is a map of the area from which the Kadetsky and Hymoff families seem to have originated. I have marked certain cities in green.

On the far left, Plock Gubernia is where Biezun is located, according to a Kadetsky descendent in Poland, the place all Kadetskies originated from.

Israel Hymoff claimed to come from Lublin, Poland, there is another Hymoff family in the US that came from Minsk (spelling on First Papers: Cheyemow) and a Hymoff family in England that came from L'vov. Other spellings that could be related are Chaimow, Heimoff, Chamove, Khaimovitz.

There is another Hymoff family in Brockton, MA, that came from Iasi, Romania. So far we have found no connection.

Hymoff family tree

This is the Israel HYMOFF family tree, showing the descendents of Israel and Adeline, according to the information available to me right now. Please feel free to update and improve on it. Recent contact with newly found relatives will soon yield new data, meanwhile, do share your ideas with me!

As authorisations come in, I will slowly add full names and birthdate to those who wish me to. The rest will remain as they are now, unless the person her/himself requests any change.

The three names in red in the lower left side are children who died in infancy, found in the Boston Vital Records Archives. All were born to Adeline and Israel.

Mystery wedding picture IDENTIFIED!

Among lots of other wedding and Bar/Bat Mitzvah pictures, that my father had, there is this one, and we have not been able to discover who the happy couple are. If you can identify them, please let us know. I know who they are NOT.... as other pictures have slowly been"claimed" by the descendents of the people pictured, but this one is still unidentified!

Linda Kadetsky Levine identified his couple for us:  her grandparents Isaac Kadetsky and his bride Annie Rich AKA Bloom who married on February 1, 1901.

The fact that my father had this picture, indicates to me that the Kadetksy and Hymoff families were in contact at least until then, probably until Adeline (Isaac's aunt and my great grandmother) died in 1918.  

The Hymoff siblings

The Hymoff sisters, Dora, Charlotte, Sara and Grace and half-brother Si Waters - at their late brother Gustave's daughter's wedding in 1950. Si died in September that year, so this is possibly the last picture of him.

These are the children of Adeline (Hadel Esther) KADETSKY WATERS HYMOFF and Israel HYMOFF.

The Hymoff sisters, Dora, Charlotte, Grace and Sara and their brother Gustave, between 1900 and 1905

Abraham Joseph 1879 Kadetsky family tree - incomplete

 The information here has been collected from census records, gravestones, family members and documents and is totally susceptible to improvement. Please send any changes, names, dates, additions or deletions you wish me to make.

Kadetsky gravestones in Chevra Kaduscha Cemetery, Woburn MA and Ohavey Sedek Cem. in W Roxbury MA

 Abraham Joseph and Shifra

Avrohom Yosef son of Yitzchok Hoshua

Shifra daughter of Binyamin

Flora, Abraham and Shifra's only daughter

Annie Rich Kadetsky, wife of Isaac Kadetsky (oldest son of Abraham Joseph)

BENJAMIN KADETSKY our dear father Binyamin Tzvi b Avraham Yosef, d 28 nissan 5679, age 33

Martha Kadetsky Bornstein (oldest daughter of Isaac and Annie Kadetsky) and her husband Jacob Bornstein.

We just found (Pesach 2010) this gravestone at Ohavey Sedek cemetery in West Roxbury, MA, the same cemetery where the Jacob (1817) Kadetsky family plot is - could that be another clue to our connection?   Elijah Rueben Kadetsky died in 1902 aged 4,  from head injuries.  His parents were Abraham Joseph and Celia (Shifra) Kadetsky. 

  

The oldest gravestone in the Kadetsky family plot at Chevra Kaduscha in Woburn:  my great-grandmother:

Adeline Hymoff

here lies buried

our beloved mother Hadel

Ester daughter of R'Yitchak Yehoshua

died 22 Tevet 5679 (12/25/1918)

at the age of 54 years

may her soul be bound in the bond of everlasting life

KADECKI /Kadetsky

The KADECKI surname seems to have been centered around Biezun, Poland and we've found several records to indicate that all KADETSKIES in the US came from that area.

The US records also indicate that the KADETSKIES centered their lives around the Boston area, except for one branch that moved back to NY city.

My great grandmother's brother had his first four children in NY and the oldest of them moved back there and many of his descendents are there.

The KADETSKIES have a plot in the Chevra Kaduscha Cemetery in Woburn, MA, and finally there amongst them, we were able to find my great grandmother's grave. I suppose nobody thought that is where it could be, and I assume, with no basis but intuition, that because she died in the Flu Epidemic of 1918 they wanted to bury her fast and her brother already had a plot. Her Hymoff children were too young at the time, so they didn't recall that fact. She also seems to be the first one buried there, but now there are more than 20 Kadetsky graves.

My greatgrandmother's Hebrew gravestone reads: Hadel Ester daughter of R'Yitchak Yehoshua (in English merely ADELINE HYMOFF) and her brother's says:

Avrohom Yosef son of Yitzchok Hoshua.

His wife's states: Shifra daughter of Binyamin

1900 Census records show that

they are recorded in NYC at 108 Allen Street (well, Adeline is not there, but she must have been close by!) . With them was a "brother in law" named J. Kaufman, who might be Shifra's brother.

Isaac KADETSKY was in the next house down - I doubt it was a coincidence. They are recorded as Kadeskca.
According to these papers, Isaac was born in Russian Poland on July 14, 1854 and was 33 when he signed his first papers on the 19th of some month in 1887. Abraham J was born in 1861 and Adeline in 1866, so they might have been the younger siblings..... or cousins. Jacob was a peddler (born in Russian Poland in Sept. 20, 1853 and age 46 when he signed his pledge in 1899 (although he first applied to become American in 1876 in NY where the record might still be!)

Isaac and Jacob KADETSKY became US citizens in Boston but both stated they arrived in the US via NY. Their families were included automatically in their naturalistion. So we need BMD (birth, marriage, death) records to see who were their spouses and children. Their arrival dates are almost identical: Jacob on July 1, 1871 and Isaac on June 28, 1871, so I assume they travelled together and one mistook the date (or both and they arrived on June 30 - who knows. More research is required to ascertain that fact. I am more interested in relationships than exact dates, so if anyone is willing to find that out and tell me, I will include it.

To date I have reconnected with Abraham's grandchildren and slowly we will try to put the pieces of the puzzle together. I hope as we all share our family lore we can put together a picture of who they were and what their lives were like. Even if we didn't know them, they had a hand in who WE are!

Adeline KADETSKY / WATERS / HYMOFF

My great grandmother Adeline (Esther Hadel) KADETSKY was born in 1866 in Poland, we think in or near the town of Biezun in Plock Gubernia, as it seems that is where all Kadetskies originated. She emigrated to the US with her brother Abraham and his wife Shifra, Scillia or Celia, in 1879 and they lived first in NY and later in Boston.

According to Adeline and Abraham's gravestones, their father was named R'Yitchak Yehoshua.  We have no further information on  him to date.

Adeline married a man surnamed Joseph WASSERZUG and in 1885 had a son called Simon, known as SI WATERS or HYMOFF depending on the sources. She later divorced her husband and in 1889 or 1890 married my great-grandfather Israel HYMOFF. They married in a civil ceremony in 1903, I assume because she still had to finalise her civil divorce . They had five surviving children: Dora (b. 1891) , Gustave (b. 1895), Grace (b. 1898), Charlotte (b. 1903) , Sara (b. 1904), and the Boston vital records bureau has records for other Hymoffs, a baby girl who died in 1897 aged 7 months called Lena, and Rachel born in 1894 for whom no further records have been found to date but we know she didn't survive.

Hymoff children c. 1905

The civil marriage between Adeline and Israel took place in April 1903 (see above marriage record). In 1910 Israel is recorded in the census as being an imate of Rutland State Sanatorium in Massachusetts and Adeline and her children living on Magnolia Street in Boston (see census record on later post) . It gives her maiden name as Zettock, but nowhere else does that name appear, so we will just keep looking for documents. 

Adeline died on Christmas Day in the Flu Epidemic of 1918 leaving her children in the care of her oldest daughter Dora. Simon helped the family out financially, reportedly having inherited a considerable fortune from his biological father.  

Finding information on her has been quite a chore: Adeline's daughters were sad that they did not know where their mother was buried and could not visit her grave, however, we were able to find it, when we least expected to.

Adeline's brother Abraham and his wife had an extensive family and after several years of trying I was finally able to find some of his great-grandchildren and take up contact with them. We are now exchanging information and I am happy to have reconnected the family, which over the generations grew apart. We might set up a reunion one of these days, if we can agree on where on earth to do it!

Why I got into genealogy

Both of my parents kept me well informed on their family history, my mother made up a photo album of family pics for each of her children and we have copied our albums for each other (back then one couldn't scan or copy photos easily). Once I got seriously interested in genealogy I began scanning and e-mailing pictures around and getting other pictures from relatives and compiled quite a few different albums for the different lines. I'll be putting all that stuff on here as I get around to it.

But I want to start with my favourites: My father gave me a box of ancient photographs, but didn't really know who all those people were. One picture always haunted me. I wanted to know who they were and what their names were. Since my great-grandmother Tobei REDLER KRAVETSKY is a family legend (although nobody has been able to tell me exactly why...but almost all her grandchildren have a child named after her, as I also am) and there are good pictures of her and since the woman in my mystery picture is so obviously related to her, I took a good guess that those were her parents. It took five years and a cousin's visit to Odessa to finally find out the names of these two people with the sad eyes: my paternal great great grandparents,

Berko and Iosya REDLER from Kherson Gubernia in the Ukraine.

The other reason I got involved in all this is because my father always told me that I was the last of our name: that his grandfather was an orphan, his father an only son as he was, and so I was the last of the HYMOFFs, except for some relative of that name in Paris, whose connection my father did not know and who we have not been able to find yet.

Since my father was a professional historian, I assumed he had all the facts and that was that. One day I googled him, expecting to only find lots of entries for him and his work. Well , I was right about that, there were over 14.000. Five of me. And, surprise: lots of other Hymoffs!

That of course was a total shock and I began to try to find out who those other Hymoffs were! Since my great grandfather was widowered early, it could have been that he married again and had a new family, but someone would have told me about that, I hope. Or a family feud split up some brothers who never spoke to each other again... and maybe I had lots of cousins I had never met....

Fate would have it that it has been easier to trace those other Hymoffs than it has been to trace mine. So far I have been able to establish that we are not related in the 5 generations since they all emigrated to the US. My ggf Israel Hymoff claimed to be from Lublin, Poland - whereas the other Hymoffs are respectively from Minsk, Belarus; Iasi, Romania and Volhynia Oblast, Lutsk. Technically speaking, they are geographically close enough for some family connection to be possible. But we're working on finding out if that is so.

Israel Hymoff arrived in the USA in June of 1889, as he claims on his "First Papers" for US Citizenship. The other Hymoff families arrived after 1906. I've been in touch with several members of each one of those families (genealogy is great for making new friends) and we have exchanged a lot of information (and jokes).

 

Then there are alterative spellings - that is a whole other matter...

I've also had a lot of help from more experienced genealogists and would like to once again thank you all for teaching me, sharing your experience with me, getting me over rough spots, giving me tips to get information faster, translating documents from Polish and Russian and gravestones in Hebrew for me and bearing with me in this exasperating, but extremely rewarding, hobby!

Israel Hymoff married Adeline (Hadel Esther) Kadetsky Waters around 1890 (civil ceremony in 1903) which links in the Kadetskies - a large tribe that have been very helpful in providing information, although we still have not managed to link "My" Kadetskies to Gary and Mark's.

Happy Hunting to us all!   

Please contact us at:    Kadetskyfamilyhistory@gmail.com