The Box of Photos in the Attic

I knew every inch of my Grandparents house in Stamford, Connecticut. It was built in the early 1900s and was a great place to explore. The cellar was especially spooky and dark with cobwebs and a musty smell of decay. What I found intriguing was a toilet mounted on a platform.  I can’t imagine when it was used and I certainly wasn’t going to approach it.

On the other hand the attic was a bright and cheery place. It  smelled like old wood with a hint of mothballs. It was a two story house but the attic was so large it was effectively  a third story, it even had its own staircase. The first thing you noticed at the top of the stairs was the crookedness of the brick chimney. It leaned to one side. The boards of the roof were visible covered with thin lathing. As I remember it even had a window. While poking around a found a box of old photographs. What a treasure. As soon as I saw these photos I knew I had found something special.

My paternal grandparents immigrated from Poland. I’m guessing this photo was sent from Poland to America to mark the passing of a relative.  The people seem to be emerging from the ground. The photo below actually shows the deceased. These post-mortem photographs were common in the early twentieth century.

Andrew and Adam

Andrew Poltrack (on left) was born in 1853. His older brother Adam (on right) was born in 1854. They lived in born in Białystok Poland. Adam was my paternal great-grandfather. Both of them had great hair. 

Adam and Josephine (Jozefa)

Adam married Josephine (Jozefa) Leszczynski in 1884.  They had eight children. Anthony Robert was the oldest and my paternal grandfather.

Notice how Jozefa and Adam keep the same expression when Anthony steps into the frame. You needed to keep perfectly still for those long exposure times.

They had eight children, Henry, Edward, Mary, Sabina, Anthony, John, Charles (Teofil) and Phillip. 

However they are not identified in the following photo,

Adam died in 1924, Jozefa died in 1935, I suspect that during the exposure they blinked at the wrong time which blurred their eyes. Notice how the photographer tried to correct the shot with some darkroom magic. It looks both of them had glass eyes.

 

When did Półtorak become Poltrack?

Before we continue with our photo album, we need to think about the origin of our family surname.

Somewhere along the way the family decided to anglicize our family surname probably as a way to assimilate into American culture. Półtorak means “one and a half” and refers to a 17th-century Polish coin worth 1.5 grosz. It also refers to a grade of Polish mead made up of one part honey and a half part water (source Wikipedia)

Poltrack is an unusual name, and all of us who carry it will at some point in our lives be called “Polecat”. I wear that moniker with pride.

In my research for this project I often see both names interchanged. On my birth certificate my Uncle Ed and Aunt Marjorie are listed as Półtorak, but I’m a Polecat through and through.

My Maternal Grandparents

My grandfather William Davis Pratt was born in Oswego, NY on April 20, 1874. He served as an officer in France in WWI.  He settled in Bellingham,WA and worked for many years as the Whatcom County Auditor. He was the American Chairman of the Civil Service Commission and a member of the Masons, Elks and YMCA. 

This photo was taken in 1882 when William was 8 and his sister Harriet (Hattie) was three.

My grandmother Edna Viola Byron was a “Mainer” born in Aroostook County. My Mom was her only child. I love this photo of both them, probably taken in 1923.

My Maternal Great Grandparents

Susan (or might be Sarah) Bryon was my Mom’s maternal grandmother. I appreciate the fact that she was not too proper to sit on the lawn to hold her granddaughter.

Armiger Pratt was my  Mom’s paternal grandfather. Besides having a really cool name, he wasn’t adverse to sitting on the ground in his suit to play with his granddaughter. Isn’t this a happy photo?