The Search for Number 16, part 2

Read The Search for Number 16, part 1.

The simple effort of joining the Burgenland Bunch led to an almost immediate welcome email from one of the members. I replied back and quickly explained why I was there and what I hoped to find.

A cordial email exchange ensued where I laid out my sob story of how I was looking for Cecilia's mom. I knew Cecilia had immigrated to the U.S. and landed in Pennsylvania. However, all my attempts at research in that state had led nowhere so I was attempting to search in Austria instead.

Fast forward a few more emails and another door opened. In one reply, I was given the names of Cecelia's parents and grandparents. Bam! Just like that. My new Burgenland Bunch friend even provided the FHL microfilm numbers where she found the information.

Well, you know me...even though I had the names, I needed to see them in order for this quest to be complete. So I placed my order for films and waited. Wednesday night, I received the phone call that said my films were in town.

Naturally, I cleared the calendar on Thursday afternoon and moseyed on over to the family history center. Given the area and history of the era, these records were in Hungarian. Still, I had Cecilia's birth date so how hard would it be to find her record and the name of my Number 16? Turns out it was quite easy:

May I introduce you to Cecilia Kurta of Borosgodor, my Number 16 and great-great grandmother.

Also in this set of records was confirmation of a marriage between Cecilia Kurta and Janos Joszt AND the names of their parents. Just like that, this line went from my most troublesome to my most advanced in Europe.

Whew! But now that I have this information, what do I do with it? Well it turns out that my grandmother never knew the names of any of her grandparents. It also turns out that her birthday is Friday. Why not tell her about my discovery then?

That's exactly what I intend to do.

The Search for Number 16, part 3

The Search for Number 16, part 1

In all of my family history research, there has always been a brick wall that frustrated me. I did not know the name of my maternal grandmother's grandmother. That means that on a standard five-generation family tree chart with me at the center and places for the names of my 16 great-great grandparents, there was always a blank at the bottom of the chart where a name should be.

Now there are a lot of wonderful charts and artworks available where genealogists can create five-generation family trees. I've been frustrated for years that I couldn't take advantage of those items (especially the handcrafted ones) because I did not know the name of Number 16. I didn't want to spend all that money only to have a blank space at the bottom.

Back in December, with the encouragement of a friend, I committed to finding that 16th great-great grandparent.  I had a daughter's maiden name as well as a possible Austrian village hometown. What I didn't have was any experience searching this area of the world or any idea how to proceed with this task.

The first effort I made was to list everything I knew about my Number 16's daughter, Cecelia Yost, in a blog post. I didn't get any immediate response, but at least the details were out there.

Cecilia: my great-grandmother and daughter of Number 16

I did receive an email in regard to a post I made on a message board. The person said he/she had lots of information on the village of Inzenhof and the Jost family name. Great, right? Well I couldn't get any questions answered. I don't know if it was a language barrier or what but this lead didn't pan out.

Admittedly, it was the resolution I made (as well as some good-natured teasing from friends) that got the ball rolling. I found this neat website called the Burgenland Bunch, which detailed genealogy information in the area where Cecelia was supposedly born. I joined up for free, gave out all the information I had and hit send.

That simple effort opened a door...

Read The Search for Number 16, part 2.
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