Genealogy Forum NEWS
March, 1998

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Eastern European SIG

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Croatian Research
submitted by
GFS Teresa@aol.com

During the 1997 NGS Genealogical Conference in Pennsyvlania, I was walking past some gentlemen and overheard their conversation. I had to stop and correct them. They were talking about Croatian Genealogy, and one said "Croatian research is impossible right now, so I'm concentrating on other lines". I turned and told them, "No, with the initiation of the Internet into Croatia, Research is not only possible, but is much easier than people think. I've gone back 4 generations this year in Croatia".

The key to Croatian research is to remember that NOTHING is impossible.

Just like any other type of research, there are steps that must be taken in America. Here are a few pointers to that research:

1. Croatians, like other ethnic groups, stuck together.
   
2. Croatians came to America not to make THEIR lives better, but to make the lives of their parents and siblings better in Croatia. They often sent 75% or more of their money back home. This was considered a status symbol in Croatia, to receive the most money in the home village from their American brothers and cousins.
   
3. Because they had little money, Croatians lived in Hostels, with horrible living conditions, and small spaces.
   
4. During WWII, Croatians were considered "Security Risks", and many were investigated by the FBI. These files are now available due to the Freedom of Information Act. In fact, if you are missing a Croatian cousin, don't forget to search South America. Often those who were communist sympathizers left North America and headed south.
   
5. Utilize organizations such as the Croatian Historical Society and Cultural Societies.
   
   

If you follow up on these five points of interest, you will find all sorts of information about your Croatian family in America. You will find, during this period, that your family had a difficult life, and their only hope was to make life better for their children and grandchildren, rather than their own. They (in general) missed their homeland tremendously. Most had dreams of returning to their homeland some day. Usually this dream remained
unfulfilled.

As with any other type of research, there are specific documents you must acquire before "moving overseas".

1. Naturalization records.
   
2. Ship Passenger records
   
3. Social security information (if dead).
   
4. Death Certificates
   
   

These documents can give you the following:

1. Birth Date
   
2. Death Date
   
3. Port of Arrival
   
4. Name of Ship and date of Arrival
   
5. Birth location (city of origin)
   
6. Name of American Sponsor (usually a family member)
   
7. Name of closest living relative in Croatia (father's name usually)
   
8. Port of Exit (The entry actually says "place of origin", but in my ancestor's case he listed the port in Croatia rather than his hometown on the Passenger list).
   
   

So, by now you have gone back one generation, at least on the father's side. You have the village your ancestor was born in, his birth date, and know he/she is probably Catholic. So your next step is contacting Croatia, right?

Croatia is difficult especially if you do not speak the language. Most Croatians will assume (especially if your name is Croatian) that you speak Croatian, and your lack of doing so is an insult to them, so they won't answer you. How do you overcome this problem? By using the internet!

How to use the Internet to help you:

1. Search the internet for people of the same surname
   
2. Contact those that may speak English (businessmen, students, university professors, etc). Usually you will get at least one person who is interested in helping. Explain what you are looking for and why. This will take it's own course, and how far it goes depends upon you and those you contact.
   
3. Visit MIRC. There are several Croatians on there. You can also visit some of those vocal chats that are run through the internet. I even learned the REAL pronunciation of our surname by visiting these.
   
4. Visit the Croatian websites (list at the end of this article). Several are extremely helpful, and can help you to make progress.
   
5. If you desire, there are professional research services available. Once you begin putting out your feelers, you will probably be contacted by one of them, volunteering their services. Their prices are rather high, but there are few to choose from.
   
   

Ok, you found someone willing to help you, so what do you ask them? Well first, locate the village of interest. This can be difficult, since many are no longer in existence after WWII. Look for the closest Catholic Church. If the village is small enough, the one with the records you need will not be there, but in a surrounding village. Often there are a lot of records located at the local Catholic Church. In our line, the village no longer existed, and took us 3 weeks and lots of Croatian to Croatian phone calls, where someone was willing to stay on the phone for hours trying to find our now defunct village.

Don't forget the typical birth/death certificates either. While they may not have been issued, the vital records offices did keep records (at least back in 1895), and will give you a certified delayed birth certificate. Here you can find the mother's maiden name. (boy, was I in wonderful luck,, My ancestor Martin Rozic married Mara Rozic, so I'm still researching the same name. Talk about cousins marrying cousins!)

So the real key to genealogical research in Croatia is the spirit of working together. Here you MUST depend on someone else's good graces. What might that person ask in return? It depends on the individual. I have corrected a professor's grammar on her research paper she needed to turn in (that was tougher than it sounds!) I have hosted dinner at my home when a student who helped visited our fine state. Often they ask for money. Just how much
you give depends on you and the individual.

Using these methods I have gone back 4 generations on my Rozic family. The birth records came from the Vital Records area of the next largest village, and the rest came from the local Parish priest. The key is to not give up, and be patient.

http://feefhs.org/frl/cro/edlund1.html - Croatian Research at the Family History Library by Thomas K. Edlund

http://feefhs.org/cro/frg-hr.html - Croatian Genealogy

http://www.durham.net/facts/crogen/ Croatian Genealogy Newsletter

http://www.rootsweb.com/~hrvwgw/ - CroatiaGenWeb

http://www.croatia-in-english.com/rj/ - Robert Jerin's Crotian Links

http://www.geocities.com/aitkenms/croatia.html - Links for Croatian Research

http://www.silba.com/ - Island of Silba

http://feefhs.org/cro/crotowns.html - Croatian Place Names, Alternate spellings (Austria, hungary and Italy) and FHL Microfilm Summary


Good Luck!

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