Mary Nazar’s mother Catherina (Catherine) Progorowicz was born in Dobra, Podkarpackie, Poland on April 8, 1888. Today, Dobra (which translates to “Good” in English) is a small village of several hundred people that lies on east bank of the San River approximately 12 miles north of Sanok and 30 miles west of the Ukraine border. However, at the time of Catherine’s immigration to America, it was much larger (i.e., approximately 1500 inhabitants).
Per church records, Catherine (1888-1971) was born as an illegitimate child to Maria Progorowicz in House #224. Maria had at least two other children whose father(s) are also unknown: Mary (1894-1942) and Marcus (1897-?). From discussions with a local researcher, approximately 10% of all births in this region were identified in the Catholic Church records as being “illegitimate” meaning that the father was unknown or was known but not married to the mother at least 9 months earlier.
Limited information exists relative to the family in Dobra due to the events surrounding WW II, especially Operation Vistula as discussed on the Ukrainian Background page. There is a wonderful website (The Dobra Gzlachecta Society) which provides historical information relative to the village prior to the forced relocation of residents in the late 1940s. The website also contains genealogical records and many pictures.
Based on a visit to Dobra in September 2019, there are no Progorowicz’s living in the village, nor any known descendants living there. Based on research, the surname Progorwicz is very uncommon and today is mostly found in Poland and United States. The below map from nazwiska-polskie.pl shows the current distribution of Progorowicz in Poland with it being centered in the area surrounding Dobra and northern Poland near Ostroda where residents were forcibly relocated following WW II.
Below is a summary of what has been found relative to key family members from Dobra. While there are some gaps in available records in Dobra, based on collective information found in The Dobra Gzlachecta Society and Genealodzy websites, the family tree was able to be constructed.
Maria Progorowicz (Mary Nazar’s Maternal Grandmother)
Maria was born in ~ 1865 to Andrzej (Andrew) Progorowicz and Barbara Czomko in Dobra (no birth record due to gap in records). Andrew and Barbara marry in Dobra in 1853 and have at least 6 children: Anna (1854-1863), Joseph (1864-1927), Maria (1865-?), Justyna (1866-?), Helen (1868-1876), and Wojciech [George] (1876-?). Joseph and George immigrate to America and are discussed in more detail below.
Maria has three known children: Catherine (1888-1971), Mary (1894-1942) and Marcus (1897-?). However, no marriage or death record for Maria can be found. Catherine and Mary immigrate to America and are discussed in more detail below while no additional records other than a birth record can be found for Marcus.
As shown on the Family Tree page, going back to the 1700s, Mary’s father Andrew descends from the following surnames: Gbur, Niemiec, and Progorowicz. The only record found in Dobra relative to Andrew is his marriage to Barbara in 1853 (see below).
Descendants of Andrew’s sister Zofia also immigrate to America in the early 1900s. Specifically his grandnieces Francisca Progorowicz (Pysar) [who arrives in Shamokin, PA in ~ 1904] and Rose Progorowicz (Drahn) [who arrives in Scranton, PA in 1912] marry and raise families in America. Rose’s obituary from the July 10, 1965 Scranton Tribune is provided below.
As shown on the Family Tree page, going back to the 1700s, Barbara Czomko descends from the following surnames: Czomko, Kastzelan, and Szaban. In addition to her marriage to Andrew in 1853, a birth record was found for Barbara in December 1834. Finally, Andrew Chomko, original owner of the Chomko Funeral Home at 262 Railroad Ave, Scranton and where many Ukrainian family member funerals were held, is a descendant of Barbara’s brother Joannis.
Joseph Progorowicz (Mary Nazar’s Maternal Great Uncle)
Per his naturalization paperwork, Joseph was born on March 18, 1864 in Dobra (no birth record found in Dobra). He marries Anna Siedlecki in Dobra ~ 1892 and they have 4 children before immigrating to America in 1904 where they have a son John. Their 5 children are: Michael (1894-1954), Louis (1897-1977), Mary (1901-1998), Stella (1904-2001), and John (1910-1994).
Joseph departs Hamburg, Germany on March 30, 1905 aboard the SS Cedric (see below) and arrives in New York on April 17, 1905 when Joseph is 41 years old. He does not appear to be traveling with anyone else and has only $3 to his name. The family follows Joseph to America a year later.
Per Joseph’s immigration record, his point of contact in America is a person in Yonkers (unsure if this person is a relative of Joseph or Anna but Joseph’s brother George lists as his contact a brother-in-law in Yonkers when he immigrates in 1907). Joseph declares his intent to become a naturalized citizen in 1911 in Olyphant, PA but does not appear to have completed the process. His declaration paperwork shows that he was 5ft 2 inches tall, 135 lbs with brown hair and blue eyes.
The first record of the family in America is the April 1910 Census where they are living on Pancoast St in Dickson City, PA. Their son John is born 5 months later. The family subsequently moves to Binghamton, NY where Joseph dies at age 63 on October 16, 1927 (obituary from October 17, 1927 Binghamton Press and Sun Bulletin).
George Progorowicz (Mary Nazar’s Maternal Great Uncle)
Wojciech (George) was born in ~ 1876 in Dobra (no birth record found in Dobra). He marries Anna Stalony in Dobra ~ 1900 before he immigrates to America at age 31. George departs Bremen, Germany in March 1907 aboard the SS Main (see below) and arrives in New York on March 24, 1907. He does not appear to be traveling with anyone else and has $20 to his name.
Per his immigration record, George’s point of contact is a brother-in-law who lives in Yonkers (his brother Joseph also listed a point of contact in Yonkers). His wife Anna arrives 2 year laters on July 8, 1909 aboard the SS Lincoln and lists her point of contact as George living in Jersey City. She travels with a Michael Demkowicz from Dobra who also lists a point of contact in Jersey City.
George and Anna are first found in America in the 1910 Census living at 711 Scranton St, Scranton where George is listed as a fireman. They are also found in the 1920 Census living at 112 Barret Ct where George is listed as a coal wash shovel man. George and Anna have at least 6 children in Scranton: Mitro (1910-1910), Andrew (1912-?), Frank (1914-?), Josephine (1915-2001), Mary (1916-1917), and John (1918-1918). However, no record can be found of the family after the 1920 Census with the exception of Josephine who marries someone with a last name of Gbur and dies in NYC in April 2001.
Catherine Progorowicz (Mary Nazar’s Mother)
Per church records, Catharina (Catherine) was born April 8, 1888 in Dobra (House #224).
Nothing is known of her life in Dobra before her immigration at age 17; however, the below picture was taken in Dobra ~ 2 years prior to Catherine’s birth showing what clothing was typically worn (source: The Museum of Folk Architecture in Sanok, Poland).
The following picture (also taken at the Museum of Folk Architecture in Sanok, Poland) is of a home that was typical for the area surrounding Sanok which is near where the Progorowicz family lived. Of note is that there is no chimney to the house as this was the basis for taxes at the time (i.e., the smoke just exited into the house and roof area).
Catherine immigrates to America at age 17 leaving Hamburg, Germany on November 4, 1905 aboard the SS Batavia (see below) and arriving in New York on November 18, 1905. She has $9 to her name.
Catherine travels with 7 other people from Dobra including 4 other women heading to Scranton (Anna Hynko, Cecilia Niesiewicz, Anna Hryeiniak, and Kasha Hnatusko) and the Piotrowski family (Anna, Katharina, and Michael) heading to Olyphant, PA. As there are many Dobra’s located in Poland and Ukraine, I was able to use these collective surnames to identify the correct village, including finding the coresponding birth records of Anna Hynko and Cecilia Niesiewicz in Dobra. In addition, multiple DNA matches in the area surrounding Dobra confirm this is the correct location. However, I am unsure as to how many, if any, were relatives of Catherine.
Per Catherine’s immigration records, her point of contact was her brother-in-law Joseph Bucyzuski in Scranton. Since Catherine was a 17 year-old single woman at the time, this would imply that she had an older sister. However, I cannot find any record relevant to Josef in Scranton or a sister in Scranton or Dobra. Catherine becomes a naturalized citizen on July 27, 1920 along with her husband Thomas.
The first record of Catherine in Scranton is in the 1910 Census where she has married Thomas Nazar (~1907) and has 1 child. Catherine and Thomas would have 4 children: Charles (1908-1982), Peter (1911-1972), Olga (1913-2001), and Mary (1915-1963). Below is a picture from ~1913 with the 2 oldest children Charles and Peter.
Between 1910 and 1930, Catherine and her family live at various houses on Mt Vernon Ave (between 863-870) before moving to 1124 Farr St where Thomas Nazar had built a family home. Catherine dies on May 10, 1971 (obituary from May 10, 1971 Scranton Times-Tribune).
Mary Progorowicz (Mary Nazar’s Maternal Aunt [Mother’s Sister])
Mary was born ~ 1894 in Dobra (no birth record found in Dobra). She leaves Dobra at age 14 and boards the ship SS Grosser Kurfust (see below) in Bremen, Germany on September 5, 1908 arriving in New York on September 15th. She is listed as 4ft 9 inches tall with blonde hair and gray eyes and $3 to her name.
Per her immigration record, Mary’s point of contact was her brother-in-law Nazar at 328 Meridian St in Scranton. Mary does not become a naturalized citizen as her husband did not complete the process until after her death (June 29, 1943).
In 1914, Mary marries Andrew Pepper who is from the same Ukrainian village as her sister Catherine’s husband Thomas (see details on Andrew on the Nazar page). They have three children: Peter (1914-2010), Myron (1916-2002), and Anna (1918-2003) and live at either 883, 885, or 887 Mt Vernon Ave in all available records. Mary dies at age 48 in Scranton on February 5, 1942 (obituary from February 6, 1942 Scranton Tribune).
Dobra Today
In September of 2019, my family and I were able to visit Dobra via a tour arranged through Dorosh Heritage Tours. While we were unable to find any family members in the area for reasons described earlier, it was an extraordinary experience to meet and talk with several villagers and hear their stories. Of note is that the old village cemetery which existed prior to the forced relocation in the 1940s is now a forest with only a few headstones left. Several pictures of this visit are provided below.
