Dad's family
My Father's family in Poland 1900's -
He had a large family originally from Brzeg, Brodnia, Glinno area.
Dad's younger brother died in the first World War, his photo always on the mantle piece, now on the same old sideboard at my house.
His father ran the family farm near Brzeg, but sadly he was an early victim of the German invasion of Poland in 1939, when he was shot.
His mother lived on well into her 90's but sadly he never got to see her before she died. He did visit the family in the early 1990's just once, the first time since 1939!
Many of these photos I have never seen before I scanned them.
It was quite a journey of discovery and like the army pictures of my dad, once you get to see a few you can spot a Krawczyk a mile away!
Dad told me once his father actually threw him in the small river near the village so he could learn how to swim, a little harsh - different times.
His brother Antoni famously owned a Printing comany in Kalisz, even having a book written about it.
The Krawczyk chin dimple which I found both his mother and father had?
Recently I discovered a lot more about his family going back at least 200 years.
It must have been a very hard life before the first world war never mind what came later. From my research a lot of familes lost their children very young and not many survived beyond their 30/40's.
I am still investigating these images, it will no doubt go on for years but at least I have something to start with.
Looking at the map of Poland it is obvious to see the small circle of towns where both my parents came from and both families apparently knew each
other before the war - Brzeg, Kalisz, Glinno, Glowno, Krakow, Lodz, Wrocław, Częstochowa.
My dad had a good reputation as a kind decent man,
something I can definitely vouch for even after the horror of war.
Click the images to enlarge.
