A Family Treasure

This blog post is by Schenectady County Historical Society member Phyllis Zych Budka. Phyllis, along with Bernice Izzo, publishes the Project to Discover Schenectady County's Eastern European Roots newsletter which can be found at http://www.schenectadyhistory.org/resources/eer/index.html.

Fig. 1 Honor Roll of St. Adalbert's
from unknown newspaper.

Opening a large plastic box from the attic, I steeled myself for the memories and emotions that would inevitably emerge.  I sat in the January sunshine and went page by page through my husband, Al’s St. Adalbert’s elementary school scrapbook and realized that it was both a family treasure and an historical document.

 As a scrapbook, it is amazingly complete.  Alfred John Budka (1936 – 1992) aka Freddie by family and Al by those who met him “after 7^th grade,” was an only child.  His Mother, Henrietta, kept a record of Al’s kindergarten through 8^th grade years at St. Adalbert’s elementary school in Schenectady, New York.  On Henrietta’s death in 1965, this scrapbook and many other family items, were boxed and stored.

 Al and I grew up in the same Mont Pleasant community, about a mile apart.  Al was more than 5 years older than I and 6 years ahead of me in St. Adalbert’s school.  I was surprised to find myself in his scrapbook in a few places: first, a newspaper article from ~1948 (Fig. 1) “Honor Roll Listed at St. Adalbert’s,” has the name Alfred Budka, grade 7, and me, with my surname misspelled, grade 1.  The picture in Figure 2 was taken about 1949, when Al was in 8^th grade and I was in 2^nd grade.  Also in the picture are my twin cousins, Gerard and Geraldine Zych, who were 2 years behind me in school.  Surrounding the children are the Sisters of the Resurrection, our teachers.  The picture was taken on the 3^rd floor of the school building, the room which served as gym, theater, and the place of our wedding reception in 1964.

Fig 2. All grads of St. Adalbert's School from 1948.

As an historical document, this scrapbook describes the life not only of one person, Alfred John Budka, but also captures the life of the community in which Al and I grew up, a community which no longer exists.

"Mont Pleasant's Main Street": A Look Back at Crane Street

Postcard of Crane Street, ca. 1915. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Postcard Collection. 

In a long letter of reminiscences about the Mont Pleasant neighborhood in Schenectady to Schenectady Gazette reporter Larry Hart, S.S. Stern wrote that Crane Street "always has been Mont Pleasant's main street." Stern listed a number of businesses that populated Crane Street in the 1920s and 1930s, from Hank Fligel's drugstore at the corner of Crane Street and Main Street, to Harry Checheck's department store at Crane Street and Fifth Street, to the Van Dyke Coffee Shop on Crane Street between Fourth Street and Main Street.

The neighborhood was first populated around the turn of the century. Italian and, especially, Polish immigrants flocked to the neighborhood, which was more spacious than other city wards. By 1910, more foreign-born Polish people resided in Mont Pleasant (the Ninth Ward of the city) than in any of the city's other wards. Hungarian and Czech families also moved to the neighborhood during the early 20th century.

The Mont Pleasant neighborhood lies roughly between the CSX railroad line to the west; to the east by Interstate 890; the Rotterdam town line serves as the neighborhood's southern boundary; Broadway serves as its northern boundary. Crane Street runs through the neighborhood, from Broadway to the Rotterdam town line.

Shared here are a number of historic photographs of Crane Street. Interested in learning more about the history of Schenectady through photographs? Visit our Library or contact our Librarian.

The intersection of Crane Street and Van Velsen Street around the turn of the 20th century. "Stop paying rent," a billboard proclaims. "Own your own home -- Buy a building lot." Home construction in the Mont Pleasant neighborhood accelerated around 1900. An Evening Star article from 1899 noted that "the sound of saw and hammer [could be] heard on all sides of the hill suburb." Image from Larry Hart Collection.    

The intersection of Crane Street and Chrisler Avenue, looking south, ca. 1915. From the neighborhood's earliest days, this has been one of Crane Street's major commercial intersections. Image from Larry Hart Collection. 

Mont Pleasant neighborhood residents crowd outside the Empire Market at 1012 Crane Street for the business' grand opening on April 5, 1950. Image from Larry Hart Collection. 

The Crane Street railroad overpass bridge in 1957. The J.C. Dearstine Lumber Company, on nearby Catalyn Street, is visible in the background. Image from Larry Hart Collection. 

The intersection of Crane Street and Chrisler Avenue, looking north on Crane Street, in 1965. Image from Grems-Doolittle Library Photograph Collection. 

Pulaski Day in Schenectady

Monument to Revolutionary War Hero Polish Count Casimir Pulaski, friend of America in the Revolutionary War. The monument can be found near the intersection of State Street and Nott Terrace in Schenectady. Photograph from the private collection of Phyllis Zych Budka.  

This blog entry is written by SCHS Member Phyllis Zych Budka.

Driving past Pulaski Plaza at the intersection of Nott Terrace with State and Albany Streets in Schenectady, my thoughts do not turn to the military exploits of Revolutionary War hero Kazimierz Pulaski honored in a granite monument, but rather to a lost era in my own cultural heritage, Schenectady’s citizens of Polish descent. The monument, erected in the fall of 1953, was the location of annual October ceremonies honoring this Polish hero who fought for freedom in both Europe and the fledgling America, ceremonies that my family and I participated in as I was growing up.

Pulaski Day Essay Contest Winners, October 1955: Phyllis Zych (Budka), 8th grade, St. Adalbert’s School, and Lawrence Ott, 8th grade, St. Mary’s School. Left to Right: Rev. John Harzynski, Assistant Pastor, St. Adalbert’s Church; Lawrence Ott; Schenectady Mayor Archibald Wemple; Phyllis Zych; Unknown; Rev. Ladislaus Guzielek, Pastor, St. Adalbert’s Church; Unknown. The photograph was published in the Schenectady Gazette. Photograph from the private collection of Phyllis Zych Budka.

The discovery among my mother’s keepsakes of the photo of the Pulaski Day Essay Contest I won in the fall of 1955 brought a flood of memories. Luckily, the Schenectady Gazette caption reminded me of the long-forgotten contest topic, the poetry of Adam Mickiewicz. My sister, Elizabeth Zych Kislinger, provided another, slightly later, photo of ceremonies at Pulaski Plaza.

These photos gave me a sense of loss for my cultural heritage that cannot be shared with my children and grandchildren. They also made me curious about the history behind the Schenectady Polish American community’s efforts to commemorate Casimir Pulaski in such a prominent place in the city.

Pulaski Day Celebration, ca. 1956. Pictured are Schenectady city and Polish community dignitaries as well as my sister (first row, far right), my cousin Marjorie Norris Brophy (2nd from left) and my grandmother Victoria Korycinski (back row, right, between flags). Photograph from the private collection of Elizabeth Zych Kislinger. 

In researching the origins of Schenectady's Pulaski Day celebrations on the historical newspaper website www.fultonhistory.com, I was surprised to find a Gazette entry from 1929:

Anniversary of Pulaski’s Death Celebrated in School Auditorium, Large Crowd Attends Exercises Honoring Polish Patriot

A fitting climax to the exercises commemorating the 150 anniversary of the death of Count Casimir Pulaski, which have been in progress here since Thursday when Schenectadians filled the big Schenectady High School Auditorium to capacity to pay tribute to the Revolutionary War hero. (Gazette 10/14/1929, p. 11)

According to a 11/16/53 Gazette article, the Polish Welfare Council petition to the Schenectady City Council to erect the Pulaski monument was adopted on November 15, 1948. The city of Schenectady donated $2,000 toward the nearly $15,000 cost of the monument. The monument is 34 feet long and 14 feet 6 inches high at the center. The General’s statue is 7 feet high.

The Pulaski monument was dedicated on November 18, 1953, complete with a parade from the Polish National Alliance Home on Crane Street to the Pulaski Plaza. Representatives from Syracuse, Utica, Amsterdam, Watervliet, Cohoes, Troy, Albany and Poughkeepsie participated in the festivities, which also included a banquet.

Below are the words inscribed on the monument, words which ring true even today:

Pulaski
Union makes valor stronger

Count Casimir Pulaski, friend of America in the Revolutionary War, distinguished himself on General George Washington’s staff in the Battle of Brandywine, commissioned Brigadier General. Fought at Germantown and other battles in winter 1777-78. By resolution of Congress was authorized to form the Pulaski Legion. Mortally wounded at Savannah, Georgia, and died October 11, 1779.

To the memory of an immortal hero who gave his life in the cause of freedom and thereby left a living message to all Americans. May God grant that the liberty of mankind, which only brave souls win and only vigilance can guard, shall live on with greater vitality. Dedicated by the people of Schenectady.

This memorial made possible by Americans of Polish descent.

A Project to Discover Schenectady County’s Eastern European Roots

Vilnius, Lithuania - Korycinski Family Reunion –– I’m in the 2nd row, center, wearing a red shirt - July 28, 2013. Photograph collection of the author. 

A Project to Discover Schenectady County’s Eastern European Roots
Date: Saturday, November 9th
Time: 10:30 a.m.
Location: Schenectady County Historical Society, 32 Washington Avenue, Schenectady, NY 12305
Cost: Free and open to the public


This blog entry is written by Schenectady County Historical Society member Phyllis Zych Budka.

“To me it is a mystery why I must study history” – those sassy words are the opening line of a poem I wrote for the Mont Pleasant High School Watchtower student newspaper over 50 years ago.  More a fan of my math and science classes, it has taken me until recently to solve that “mystery.”  What changed my attitude?  My retirement pursuit of genealogy and a feeling of responsibility to preserve my more recent family history!

As a result of 5 trips to Poland and 2 trips to Lithuania since 1999, I have records of my maternal and paternal ancestors going back to at least 1800 and, more importantly to me, many “new and LIVING” relatives and friends!  Both sets of grandparents came to Schenectady from . . . well, they spoke Polish but, as I later learned, Poland did not exist when they left their homes in the early 1900s.  I now have an understanding of their reasons for leaving and am most grateful to them for making Schenectady, New York, their home and mine.

Nowy Targ, Poland – Young Adam Zych and his father.  We are probably related, but don’t have the facts yet. –– August 2011. Photograph collection of the author.

The process of visiting the Schenectady County Historical Society library and a visit to the Schenectady City Archives made me aware that, in general, there is very little information available on the thousands who share my Polish heritage.  Thus, my efforts to launch this project with friend, Bernice Izzo.  And, when I opened the box with my parents’ 1930s “Maska” scrapbook, I felt a responsibility to digitally capture and share this combination of personal and community history.

Torun, Poland – Meeting of cousins from both sides of my mother’s family – August 2013.  “Newest cousin” Krystyna (on my right in purple) found me last fall.  She has done an amazing amount of genealogical research and discovered that we are connected on my mother’s father’s side through a female ancestor who died in 1833 in Traki, Lithuania.  “Oldest cousin,” Joanna (next to Krystyna) and son, Wojtek (on my left) – on my mother’s mother’s side - Joanna’s grandmother was my grandmother’s first cousin. Photograph collection of the author.

“Maska,” Polish for “mask,” was a word I heard many times growing up in the 1940s and 50s in the Mont Pleasant section of Schenectady, New York.  The “Maska Dramatic Circle” was where Dad, Stanley Jacob Zych, and Mom, Sophie Victoria Korycinski, met in 1936.  Now, many years later, opening their Maska scrapbook full of play programs, newsletters, news clippings and pictures, I am surprised and delighted to learn more about who they were as young people, before they married in July 1940.

Maska existed from 1933 until 1942, presenting more than 55 plays, all in Polish.  The scrapbook was Dad’s and contains Maska’s first program from Sunday, November 1, 1933.  As I read the contents of the scrap book, both in English and in Polish, I realized that this was more than a family history, more than a recounting of the young adult lives of my parents; it is the history of a community of first generation Americans, the children of the Polish immigrants who came to Schenectady in the early years of the 20th century, before the Great War, hoping for a better life.

“Krewniak z Ameryki,” Sunday, October 6, 1935, at the Polish National Alliance Hall, Crane Street, Schenectady, New York.  Stanley Zych, my Dad, back left with white top hat; Joseph Drapala Sr., kneeling, center.  Photo courtesy of Joseph and Seena Drapala.

The Maska community was largely centered in Mont Pleasant (Schenectady’s 9th Ward).  Few people had cars.  Most members lived in walking distance of the Polish National Alliance (P.N.A.) “Home” on Crane Street, their “theater.”  While I associate the people with Saint Adalbert’s Polish Roman Catholic Church, also on Crane Street, Maska was not affiliated with the Church.

Bernice Izzo and I are leading an effort to share information and discuss what additional help is needed to fill the void – lack of documentation – on the substantial population of Eastern Europeans who came to this area from Eastern Europe who helped to build Schenectady.

Come to the Schenectady County Historical Society on Saturday, November 9th, at 10:30 a. m. to help launch this project.  The meeting is free and open to the public. The pictures included in this blog entry illustrate how I learned to solve the “mystery” and my personal reasons for studying history.