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| Recent Commentary | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Sunday August 18, 2013 I received several pieces of information about the Karas family from Martin and Sarka today. As of today, we are only missing TWO generations between Jirik Karas (b.1629) and Josef Karas (b.1712). It can be difficult deciphering much of the data. It turns out that Josef Karas (b.1738) and this wife Katerina had a child named Vaclav who died at age 5. This Vaclav was born in 1773 and died in 1778. However, Josef and Katerina had another child in 1787 who they also named Vaclav. The Vaclav born in 1787 is our ancestor. Saturday June 29, 2013 Several weeks ago, I asked Martin and Sarka to search the archives to identify several more Karas generations back before Matej Karas Sr. Martin and Sarka provided a number of new findings. They were able to go back three more generations from Matej Karas Sr. I have included all the newly identified family members in the Karas Family Tree section of this website. As part of their findings, Martin and Sarka discovered that Vaclav Karas (b.1787) served in the 28th Military Regiment that fought against Napoleon in the Battle of Leipzig. Lastly, within the interpreted vital records that Sarka provided, there is a wealth of information about many newly discovered family members along with the people they married and the years. In those vital records, we learned of the unfortunate suicide of Antonin Karas' (b.1886) son Antonin. Antonin Karas Jr is buried in an unmarked grave in the St. Nicholas Church graveyard in Skuhrov. Sunday June 16, 2013 Today I received an email from a gentleman by the name of Tracy Morris. Tracy came across this website while searching for genealogy information on the internet. Tracy is the grandson of Bob Riddle (son of Ann Karas Winters). Both Tracy and myself were very interested in learning more about each other's families so we arranged a phone call today. Tracy shared many details and told me the names of several of the descendants of Ann Karas Winters. I enjoyed learning more about Bobby Riddle. I have included some of the details of the stories Tracy shared with me in the section on this website under Ann Karas Winters. Wednesday June 5, 2013 As I was on FaceBook today, I saw a photo of Jan Dolezal (my Third Cousin Once Removed) in the Olesna Fire Brigade competition. A noticed a photo is his FaceBook album of a woman with the name of Tereza Dundackova from Olesna. I reached out to Tereza using FaceBook and discovered she is the Great Great Great Grand Daughter of Matej Karas Sr. Just like Jan Dolezal, she is also my Third Cousin Once Removed. Tereza is the daughter of Jaroslav Dundacek and she has one brother named Philip. I look forward to learning more about Tereza and her family. Saturday May 4, 2013 I have been enjoying Madeleine Albright's new book, Prague Winter. In her book, she shares details of how the Czech people working in the factories during Nazi occupation during World War II would work to sabotage the Nazi war machine. The Nazis were utilizing many of the Czech factories (including Skoda Works) to build their war arsenal. The Czechs working in the plants would work to sabotage the Nazi war effort by putting sand in the fuel tanks of the vehicles being produced in the Czech factories. As I was reading Albright's book, I began to reflect on my time in the Czech Republic in 2012 with the Milichovsky family. I recall that Karel's grandfather was one of many Czech workers forced to work in the factories assembling Nazi tanks and other vehicles. Thursday April 25, 2013 When I was in the Czech Republic visiting family and friends, many there made reference to the classic Czech book, The Good Soldier Svejk. Books 2-4 in the book series were written by Jaroslav Hasek while he was living the village of Lipnice nad Sazavou which is a very short distance from the village of Babice where my grandfather Bohumil Soucek was born. Hasek spent hours at the Czech Crown Inn in Lipnice nad Sazavou writing The Good Soldier Svejk. While in the Czech Republic, our good kind Milichovsky friends took my sister Kae and myself to the Czech Crown Inn for lunch. Tuesday April 23, 2013 On April 12, 2013, I received an email from a gentleman by the name of David Lane. David came across this website while searching for genealogy information on the internet. David's wife, Cathey Langpaul Lane, also has Czech ancestors. Through his research, David learned that the Langpaul family was from Dolni Krupa which is just a few miles from Olesna. After reviewing his records, David also learned that Vaclav Langpaul in Cathey's family tree was married to a Marie Karasova from Olesna. Because of the close proximity of birth dates, it's highly likely Marie Karasova is the sister of Vaclav Karas (born in 1825) in my family tree. Vaclav Karas was my great grandfather's grandfather or my three times great grandfather. Additionally, David mentioned that Ladislaw Langpaul is the grand nephew of the famed Czech artist Jan Zrzavy from the village of Okrouhlice adjacent to the village of Babice where my grandfather Bohumil Soucek was born. Ladislaw is currently working to preserve the home and school of Jan Zrzavy in Okrouhlice. This school is the same school where my great grandmother, Marie Souckova, and her sister siblings attended school. Marie Souckova was born in 1885 and Jan Zrzavy was born in 1890. Both Marie and Jan would have been at the Okrouhlice school at the same time. More Commentary |
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| Location of Origin | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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On December 10, 1909, Matěj Karas Jr boarded the passenger ship S/S Köln in the port city of Bremen, Germany. Matěj was alone.
His wife, Marie Karas (Souckova), and their four young boys remained in their home back in the Bohemian Kingdom.
Matěj was 26 years old in 1909 and had recently received encouragement from a long time family friend to join him in the United States.
John Cerveny was living in Nebraska in 1909 and was to serve as Matěj’s primary point of contact once he reached the United States. John was about 12 years older than Matěj and had immigrated to the United States in 1890. Most likely, John Cerveny was employed by one of the several Meat Packing Houses in Omaha. In 1909, the Meat Packing industry was booming. The cattle business was robust and an abundance of meat was being driven north from Texas to Kansas and Nebraska for slaughter in order to supply beef to a growing country with a thirst for red meat. The lure of a better life in America appealed to Matěj. Economic conditions in rural Bohemia were poor in 1909 and Matěj believed that he could provide for his family more adequately by striking out for America. His hope was that he and his family could save enough money in the short term to allow Marie and their four boys to quickly join Matěj soon after he arrived in America. Shortly after Matěj boarded the Köln in Bremen, the ship proceeded north up the waterway to the North Sea through Bremerhaven, Germany. From the North Sea, the Köln made its way to the Atlantic Ocean. Ultimately, the ship navigated to and through the Gulf of Mexico to arrive in Galveston, Texas on December 20, 1909. Upon arrival in the United States, Matěj filled out all the necessary paperwork required of all immigrants. One of the many questions asked was “where are you from?” Matěj listed Volesna, Bohemia as his place of origin. Additionally, there are a number of other documents for Matěj Karas Jr with many other alternate spellings for his birth location including Vel Olsna, Wollessna and Wolesna. Today, the modern country of the Czech Republic does not possess a village by any of the aforementioned names. However, as many rural Czechs are accustomed to, Matěj was simply speaking the Czech language he was familiar with. According to Czech language historians, the introduction of the consonant V on the front of words beginning with the letter O was introduced into the language during the fourteenth century. Additionally, V is often defined as “in” or “at” which means it assists with defining location. Therefore, Matěj was essentially stating that he was from the village of Olešná in the Bohemian Kingdom. The Czech language is extremely complex and diverse. The language has evolved over the centuries. During the Austro-Hungarian and Hapsburg dynasties, the Czech language was under fire and German was the primary language of the Bohemian Kingdom. During this period, the Czech language was primarily used by the peasants in the rural parts of the country. It would not be until the mid 1850s that the Czech language was formalized and taught in schools. However, many rural Czechs (like the Karas') continued to use many of the ancient language usage forms. So, where, exactly, is the village of Olešná located in today’s Czech Republic? Unfortunately, there are currently thirteen villages in the Czech Republic that possess the name Olešná. It would take some research to help identify definitively which village of Olešná that Matěj originated from. To help determine the correct Olešná village, it’s important to consider that Matěj’s wife, Marie Souckova, was born in a village named Babice. There are four villages in the Czech Republic named Babice. It’s highly likely that the two villages of Olešná and Babice would be required to be very close in proximity due to the rural nature of Matěj and Marie’s lives and their inability to travel too far from their homes in the late 1890s. Some Czech genealogists believe that the village of Olešná in the Central Bohemia (Stredoceský kraj) region within the Rakovnik district (about five miles north of the town of Rakovnik) was the Olešná that was commonly referred to as Volesna. It’s possible that Matěj could have been from the Rakovnik District because it is only 62 miles from a village named Babice. This particular Babice is located in the Central Bohemia Region in the Praha-vychod District. However, 62 miles would have been a considerable distance to travel during the late nineteenth century. Therefore, the village of Olešná in the Stredoceský kraj region was most likely not Matěj’s home. There is another Olešná in the Southern Bohemia (Jihoceský kraj) Region within the Písek District which is close to another Babice located in the Prachatice District in Southern Bohemia. However, once again, it’s likely the distance between the Olešná and Babice villages in this region was still too great. Finally, there is a village of Olešná in the Vysočina Region southeast of Prague. Additionally, there is a village of Babice within 6 miles of this Olešná in the Havlíčkův Brod district. Of the thirteen Olešná villages in the Czech Republic, research identified three Olešná villages in the Czech Republic that could be the birth place of Matěj Karas Jr. ... Olešná, Central Bohemia (Stredoceský kraj) Region, Rakovnik DistrictAfter narrowing down the birth place of Matěj to three possible options, I received a tip from a genealogist to try searching for the Karas surname on the genealogy.com website. On Friday July 1, 2011, I found the following post on genealogy.com by a gentlemen named James R. Karas living in Independence, Missouri … The following are names in my family tree that came from Hamburg, Germany or Bohemia Czech Republic. If you have any information or are related to them please contact me. Thank you.Upon learning of this information, I immediately began using maps.google.com to locate the County of Nemecky in the Czech Republic. I had no success finding this county so I utilized wikipedia.com to search for the Regions and Districts in the Czech Republic. Shortly thereafter, I came upon a wiki page with details of the Havlíčkův Brod District in the Vysočina Region. At the top of the wiki page was the following information… Havlíčkův Brod, Německý Brod until 1945 is a town in the Vysočina Region of the Czech Republic. It is also the capital of the Havlíčkův Brod district. It is located on the Sázava River in the Bohemian-Moravian Highlands and has a population of 24,321 as of 2003. It belongs to the historical land of Bohemia.With the information obtained from James R. Karas along with the confirmation of the county using wikipedia.com, I now had the home address for both Matěj Karas Jr and Marie Souckova. Olešná 35, 580 01 Olešná, Czech Republic |
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| Vysočina Region, Czech Republic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Vysočina Region is the area in the southeast portion of the Czech Republic located about 1 hour from Prague.
The Karas, Soucek and Michal ancestors all originated from this region.
Below is a great video showing highlights of the Vysocina Region.
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| Town of Havlickuv Brod in the Vysočina Region, Czech Republic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The town of Havlickuv Brod is located in the Havlickuv Brod district within the Vysočina Region.
The Karas, Soucek and Michal ancestors all lived in small villages near the town of Havlickuv Brod.
The town of Havlickuv Brod (previously known under its German name of Nemecky Brod) is the town where all our ancestors would visit in order to shop for their essential needs.
Additionally, the train station in Havlickuv Brod would have been the launching point for the Karas family emmigration from Bohemia in 1909, 1912 and 1922.
Below is a wonderful video montage of old photos by Miroslav Straka depicting the history of the town of Havlickuv Brod.
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| The Villages of the Havlíčkův Brod District | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| The Karas Homes of Olešná | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Karas Homes of Olešná through time... House #5 1893: Birth place of Jan Karas 1895: Birth place of Vaclav Karas House #10 2000: Home of Marie Karas (b.1922) House #12 1853: Home of Vaclav Karas (b.1825) 1853: Birth place of Vaclav Karas 1855: Birth place of Jan Karas 1861: Birth place of Matej Karas Sr (b.1861) House #17 1777: Home of Jakob Karas House #19 1832: Home of Vaclav Karas (b.1787) 1846: Home of Vaclav Karas (b.1825) 1848: Birth place of Barbora Karas 1850: Birth place of Marie Karas House #28 1773: Home of Josef Karas (b.~1760) 1777: Home of Martin Karas (b.1776) 1787: Birth place of Vaclav Karas (b.1787) 1825: Birth place of Vaclav Karas (b.1825) 1838: Home of Josef Karas (b.~1760) House #35 1883: Birth place of Matěj Karas Jr 1885: Marriage location of Matěj Karas Sr (b.1861) and Marie Kolarova 1886: Birth place of Antonin Karas 1891: Birth place of Antonie Karas 1910: Home of Matěj Karas Jr (b.1883) 1913: Birth place of Antonin Karas House #38 1898: Birth place of Marie Karas 1901: Birth place of Marie Karas 1910: Home of Matěj Karas Sr (b.1861) House #44 1888: Birth place of Josef Karas House #49 1930: Home of Josef Karas (b.1888) House #55 1838: Home of Jan Karas (b.1785) House #58 1911: Birth place of Anezka Karas House #59 1930: Home of Anna Karas (daughter of Josef Karas) House #75 1930: Home of Anastazie and Vaclav Karas Sr House #90 2011: Home of Vaclav Karas Jr (b.1934) Olesna - 1838 Land Record (Josef and Jakob Karas land holdings) Babice - 1838 Land Record (Capek Family land holdings) |
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| The History of the Village of Olešná | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The exact date of the establishment of the village of Olešná is unknown.
However, history indicates that people began settling in the area around 1278.
The word Olešná means "to announce".
Since the village served as a common path for many traders and armies on the medieval Haberska Trail Trade Route between Bohemia and Moravia, the village got its name "announce" as a result of being a strategic location for early sightings of marauding armies.
The early settlement suffered many defeats from raiding armies. The Haberska Trail was only 42 miles northwest of the important Amber Road.
After the Hussite Wars, the first owner of the land was Hynek of Žlebu. Hynek possessed the land between 1421 and 1509. It is likely that Hynek was a Protestant Noble since the Hussites were victorious in many areas. It was during Hynek's ownership of the land that serfdom was established. The year 1487 is the year recorded as the beginning of serfdom. In 1509, Nicholas (William) Trcky of Lime took ownership of the area. Trckove of Lipa was one of the most important Czech noble families. William Trcka of Lipa became very rich as a result of the Hussite war when protestant nobles took control of much of the land from the Catholic Church. Once again, serfs worked the land for Trcky. Leading up to the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), there was a great deal of religious tension. The Catholic Church had lost a considerable amount of power over the course of the previous two hundred years and the Protestant Nobility Estates acquired power and property. The tensions in the region finally came to a head when the Protestants revolted. The Thirty Years War (1618-1648) was initiated by the First Defenestration of Prague. The Catholic Church prevailed in the war and the Protestants were defeated. As a result of the war, the population of the Czech lands declined by a third due to war, disease, famine and the expulsion of the Protestants. Upon the expulsion of the Protestants, the Catholic Church looked to reclaim the wealth and land previously held by the Protestants. It was during this time that Emperor Ferdinand II confiscated the property from the Trckové family in 1634. From 1634 until 1651, the area was merged into a new dominion named Habry. Again, serfs still worked the land during this time. In 1651, the son of Imperial General Reinhard from Walmerode sold the estate to John Menclovi of Bernfeldu. Additionally, it was during this time that the Catholic Church sought to restore the power of Catholicism in the region. Archduke Ferdinand II of Austria was a staunch Catholic who wanted to impose religious uniformity on his lands by re-asserting Catholicism as the primary religion. The Hapsburg ruler looked to re-catholicize the land. As a result, the Register of Subjects According to Their Religion was established. The goal of the census was to determine how many people had remained loyal to the Roman Catholic faith, who had become protestant, and whether they were willing to say they would convert to Catholicism. However, history indicates that in spite of the re-catholisation of Bohemia after the Thirty Years War, the evangelicals and catholics in the village of Olesna lived together without hostility or abuse toward each other. It was in this year of 1651 that Jiřík (George) Karas was listed in the Register of Subjects According to Their Religion of the village of Olešná in the Havlíčkův Brod District of the Vysočina Region in the Kingdom of Bohemia. Jiřík was 22 years old and was married to Maruše and had one daughter, Ludmila. Jiřík was born in 1629. Jiřík Karas owned land as a serf under the estate of John Menclovi of Bernfeldu during this time. As a serf, Jiřík's primary responsibility was to work the land of John Menclovi. Secondarily, Jiřík worked his own land. It would not be until 1848 when serfdom was abolished that the Karas family was able to make the working of their own land their primary responsibility. In May 1945 as the Germans were being defeated by the Allies, Czech radio began broadcasting out to the people to "fight the Germans". As a result, a skirmish broke out in Olesna when German soldiers took issue with the people of Olesna flying Czech flags. The people of Olesna fought back and about 20 Germans were killed and buried near the village. After World War II, the Communists worked to assimilate the people of Olesna. Many of the people of Olesna did not accept this well and fought against the changes. The Communists came down hard on the people of Olesna. During this time, there were a number of controversial fires that swept through the village. These fires were the subject of a book called Ohne na Vysocina by author Frantisek Drasner. Attached here are a couple of photos from Drasner's book... Ohne na Vysocina by Frantisek Drasner (book cover) Ohne na Vysocina by Frantisek Drasner (photos) Today, many of the inhabitants of the village of Olesna work at the Solmilk corporation located in Olesna. Others drive the short distance to Havlickuv Brod for work. Below are some ancient maps of the Village of Olesna (provided by Petra Dusatkova)
Additional wikipedia resources on the history of the village of Olesna (translated through Microsoft Translator)... Olesna History Haberska Trail William Trcka of Lipa |
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| Early Documents from the Village of Olešná | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Founding Members of the Village of Olešná (circa 1651) Olešná 1591 - Jiřík Karas Olešná 1654 - Jiřík Karas Olešná 1756 - Adam Karas Olešná 1773 - Josef Karas (house #28) Olešná 1777 - Jakub Karas (house #17), Josef Karas (house #28), Martin Karas (house #28) Olešná 1838 - Josef Karas (house #28), Jan Karas (house #55) |
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| The History of the Village of Babice | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Marie Souckova (my great grandmother) gave birth to my grandfather, Bohumil Soucek, in House #24 in the village of Babice.
We have recently discovered that Matej Karas Jr is not the biological father of Bohumil and that Marie's child was officially registered as illegitimate.
Therefore, my great grandfather (Bohumil's biological father) must have been living in the village of Babice when Bohumil was conceived.
It has become increasingly important to understand the history of the village of Babice in order to understand our heritage.
Below are some helpful documents provided by Karel Milichovský and Svatava Milichovská.
The History of the Village of Babice (Czech Page 1) by Jan Betlach from Svatava Milichovská The History of the Village of Babice (Czech Page 2) by Jan Betlach from Svatava Milichovská The History of the Village of Babice (Czech Page 3) by Jan Betlach from Svatava Milichovská The History of the Village of Babice (English-Interpreted by Karel Milichovský) Below are a couple images of a post card given to me by the Capeks in the village of Babice. The post card probably dates from some time between 1900 and 1920.
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| The History of Michalův Statek (Michal Family Farm) in Pohled' | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Marie Souckova's birth mother was Anna Michalova. Anna was born in Babice #24 in 1866. Anna's parents were Vaclav Michal and Anna Cibulkova.
In the Michal family tree provided by Sarka Kocarikova, it has been determined that Anna's great grandfather was Václav Míchal of the village of Pohled' #16. Václav Míchal is my five times great grandfather.
Today, Pohled #16 is a museum that pays tributes to the peasants who farmed the land.
According to the Michalův Statek (Farm) Museum Website, Václav Míchal purchased the farm in 1788 for 195 pieces of gold.
Below is in excerpt from the museum's website...The genus Michalů was on this farm to the ground according to the entries in the registers of the estate světelského in 1591. Other references are from the inventory of the population after the thirty years ' war from 1651. Then from the tax stopped from 1654 and its revision from the year 1713. The year 1788 bought this farm Václav Michal from monarch for 195 gold, and in 1798 was divided into two halves. One of the holders of this mess about Mathew Michael was in the years 1902-1926 also the Mayor of the municipality.Below are the links to the four pages of the actual contract Vaclav Michal signed to puchase the Pohled #16 farm in 1788... Contract for purchase of Pohled #16 in 1788 by Vaclav Michal for 195 pieces of gold (page 1) Contract for purchase of Pohled #16 in 1788 by Vaclav Michal for 195 pieces of gold (page 2) Contract for purchase of Pohled #16 in 1788 by Vaclav Michal for 195 pieces of gold (page 3) Contract for purchase of Pohled #16 in 1788 by Vaclav Michal for 195 pieces of gold (page 4)
In August 2012, I was fortunate enough to visit Michaluv Statek. Our good friends, the Milichovsky family, arranged for us to meet the mayor of Pohled, Holub. Holub gave us a personal tour of the farm. Below is a link to the images I captured while visiting Michaluv Statek... Michaluv Statek (August 2012) |
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| Bohemian Kingdom Census Records | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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On Wednesday July 13, 2011, I came across an excellent resource. An organization called the Czech Census Searchers has a website, http://www.czechfamilytree.com, who specializes in assisting genealogists with locating Census Records in the Czech Republic. As of this writing, the organization has census records for 1857, 1869, 1880, 1890, 1900, 1910 and 1921. The Austro-Hungarian Empire conducted the census in all these years except 1921 when the country of Czechoslovakia handled the census. The census records included more information each year until, ultimately, all the following pieces of data could be found in the census records… Name and Birth Date of each individual in the household Marital Status Occupation Religion The relationship between the head of household and other household members Place of Birth Accounting of all farm animals Whether or not household members were literate Mental or physical disabilities of household members Unfortunately, the 1880 census records for Olešná were destroyed in a fire. However, Martin Kocarik (my Czech Republic Genealogist contact) was able to locate census records for the following... 1890 Census - Olešná House #35 - Vaclav Karas and wife Katerina 1900 Census - Olešná House #38 - Matěj Karas Sr and Marie Karasová (Kolarova) 1900 Census - Babice House #24 - Josef Soucek and Frantiska Souckova 1910 Census - Olešná House #35 - Matěj Karas Jr and Marie Karasová (Souckova) 1910 Census - Olešná House #38 - Matěj Karas Sr and Marie Karasová (Kolarova) 1910 Census - Babice House #24 - Frantiska Souckova Also, Svatava Milichovská (family friend in Babice) was able to obtain the 1890 census records for house #24 and #38 in Babice. 1890 Census - Babice House #38 - Anna Michalova (pdf document page 1) 1890 Census - Babice House #24 - Marie Souckova and parents (pdf document page 2) |
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| Birth, Marriage, Death and War Records in the Czech Republic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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There are currently seven State Regional Archives in the Czech Republic that house most pre-1900 historic birth, marriage and death records. The Central Bohemian Region (State Regional Archive in Prague) The Southern Bohemian Region (State Regional Archive in Třeboň) The Western Bohemian Region (State Regional Archive in Plzeň) The Northern Bohemian Region (State Regional Archive in Litoměřice) The Eastern Bohemian Region (State Regional Archive in Zámrsk) The Northern Moravian Region (Land Archive in Opava) The Southern Moravian Region (Moravian Land Archive in Brno) The Havlíčkův Brod District contains the villages of Babice and Olešná. It will be necessary to search the Zámrsk Archives in order to find the birth, marriage and death records of our Karas ancestors. In 1997, the Czech Republic began an initiative to digitize all historic records. As of April 2011, the State Regional Archives completion rate is as follows… State Regional Archive in Prague – 35% complete (~10,0500 books in the Region) State Regional Archive in Třeboň – 100% complete (~6,750 books in the Region) State Regional Archive in Plzeň – 70% complete (~11,500 books in the Region) State Regional Archive in Litoměřice – 75% complete (~10,500 books in the Region) State Regional Archive in Zámrsk – 43% complete (~11,000 books in the Region) Land Archive in Opava – 70% complete (~11,700 books in the Region) Moravian Land Archive in Brno – 65% complete (~10,000 books in the Region) The digitized records for each Region can be located at the following URLs… Prague – http://www.soapraha.cz Třeboň – http://www.ceskearchivy.cz Plzeň – http://www.soaplzen.cz Litoměřice – http://www.soalitomerice.cz Zámrsk – http://www.archivzamrsk.cz/ Opava – http://www.archives.cz Brno – http://www.mza.cz The Havlickuv Brod digitized records are not scheduled to be released until 2013.The Zamrsk Archive Plan to digitize. FamilySearch.org is the primary source for locating all Czech ancestry information. There are a considerable number of helpful links within the FamilySearch.org Czech Archives Section. After all Havlickuv Brod records have been digitized, FamilySearch.org will contain all the zip files for download of the Havlickuv Brod Archives. All birth, death and marriage records posted on this web site are from... Statni oblastni archiv v Zamrsku zamek 565 43, Zamrsk Czech Republic 
The Vienna War Records is another helpful resource for Czech Genealogy researchers. Prior to the establishment of the independent country of Czechoslovakia in 1919, the Austrian Empire was a great power. The Kriegsarchiv Wien (Austrian War Archives) contains war records for the Austrian and Austro-Hungarion Empires between 1526 and 1918. This write up by the archive's director Christoph Tepperberg is a great explanation of the history and make up of the archives. Researchers can utilize the search engine on the archive website to locate people who served in the Austrian and Austro-Hungarian Empire military. |
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| Family Timeline and Bohemian History | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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4th Century BC: Celtic Boii tribe settled in land Before New Era: The Marcomanni and Quidi German tribes push out the Boii 6th Century: Slavonic people from the northeast migrate to Bohemia. They are known as Cechen (Czechs) 706: Bohemia pays tribute to Charlemagne. 12th Century: Town of Havlickuv Brod established (under the name Smiluv Brod) 1278: First settlers in the Olešná village area 13th Century: First settlers in Babice village area 13-14th Century: Beginning of the silver mining rush. Silver mining became primary industry in the Havlickuv (Nemecky) Brod district. 1310: Smiluv Brod (Havlickuv Brod) renamed to Nemecky Brod 1340: Prague becomes capital of the Holy Roman Empire 1346-1378: Peak in the prestige and power of the kingdom of Bohemia during the reign of Charles IV. 1348: Emperor Charles IV founded the University of Praque. 1356: Charles IV elected Holy Roman Emperor 14th Century: The Church of St. Nicholas in Skuhrov was founded 1415: Jan Hus was burned at the stake for heresy against the Catholic Church. 1419: First Defenestration of Prague 1419-1436: The Hussite Revolution. Societal structure changed. Religious tolerance flourished and Catholic church declined. 1419-1436: Czech nation and culture flourished and nobility and towns prospered while the Catholic church suffered. 1421: Hynek of Žlebu begins ownership of the estate where the village of Olešná resides 1487: The nobles established serfdom on their estates. 15th Century: Babice Stone Cross (believed to be road sign on old road to Jihlava) established 1509: Nicholas (William) Trcky of Lime begins ownership of the estate where the village of Olešná resides 1526: Death of Louis II at the Battle of Mohácz. 1526: The Hapsburg Dynasty begins. Beginning of Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. The union of the Germanic, Slavonic, and Hungarian provinces. 1526: Hapsburg Dynasty re-affirmed Roman Catholic faith and position of the church as authority. 1563: The Council of Trent, Roman Catholic parishes required to keep christening and marriage church registers 1614: The Ritual Romanorum, Roman Catholic parishes required to keep death church registers 1618: Second Defenestration of Prague 1618: Czech Protestant Estates staged rebellion against the Hapsburg Monarch Ferdinand II. 1618-1648: The Thirty Years War. War between Catholics and Protestants. 1618-1648: Population of Bohemia fell from 3,000,000 to 800,000 due to death or emigration. 1620: (November 8): Emperor Ferdinand defeated the Protestant Estates at the Battle of White Mountain. 1621: Catholicism becomes official religion. No other religions are tolerated. Protestant exiles leave Bohemia. 1627: German becomes official language of Bohemia. The Czech language was repressed. 1628: (April 10) Every person was dutibound to submit the books he owned for inspection to the local parson. 1628: (May 10) An order was issued that non-catholic books should either be burned or handed in into libraries. 1629: Birth of Jirik Karas in Olesna. Jirik is the first recorded Karas in our family tree. 1634: Emperor Ferdinand II confiscates the Olešná land from Nicholas (William) Trcky of Lime. 1634: Confiscated Olešná land is merged into a new dominion named Habry. 1636: First pub established in Babice. 1645: The Treaty of Linz, recognition of four religions: Catholicism, Lutheranism, Calvinism, and Unitarianism 1648: End of the Thirty Years War. Peace of Westphalia established. 1651: The son of Imperial General Reinhard from Walmerode sells estate (Olešná) to John Menclovi of Bernfeldu. 1651: Register of Subjects According to Their Religion was established. This was census to determine who remained faithful to the Catholic Church. 1651: Jiřík Karas listed in the Soupis poddaných dle víry (Notice of the subjects of faith) in soud welkowolessnický (the court of Wolesna). 1654: Jiřík Karas listed in the Volešná Berní rula (The Olešná Tax Record) 1654: Pavel Capek in the Babice Berní rula. He is most wealthy land owner in the village. He is ancestor of biological father of Bohumil Soucek. 1698: 28th Military Regiment founded 1707: The cemetery around the The Church of St. Nicholas in Skuhrov was established 1712: Josef Karas born in Olesna #28 1714: (July 31) Sázava river floods Babice. 42 people in the village of Babice die. 1730: Catholic priests ordered to list non-catholics in their church register 1738: School in Skuhrov established. All Karas children from the village of Olesna attended school in Skuhrov 1738: Josef Karas (son of Josef Karas born in 1712) born in Olesna #28 1756: Adam Karas listed in the Tereziánský katastr (The Land Register) of Olešná. 1763: Cotton textile industry made free trade in Bohemia. This was important because Vaclav Karas was a weaver. 1766: Josef Karas (b.1712) dies in Olesna #28 1777: Josef and Martin Karas listed in Olešná land record living in House #28. Jakub Karas living in House #17. 1780: Beginning of the Czech National Revival 1781: Patent of Toleration established. Prior to this date, no other church could exist outside of the Catholic religion. 1783: The Chapel of St. Florian (patron saint of firefighters) in Skuhrov is established 1787: Protestants authorized to keep their own registers independent of Catholic control 1787: Vaclav Karas born in Olesna #28 1797: Cotton sector in Bohemia introduced first spinning textile machines. 1800-1830: Beginning of the Industrial Revolution in Bohemia (mainly textile) 1802: Abolition of lifelong military service 1800 (19th Century): Havlickuv Brod became industrialized with emphasis on textiles 1803-1815: Napoleonic Wars 1805: Compulsory school attendance applied for children age 6-12 years 1806: Beginning of the Austrian Empire. 1811: Church tower (replaced old bell tower) in the Empire Style was added to The Church of St. Nicholas in Skuhrov 1813: Vaclav Karas (b.1787) fights with the 28th Military Regiment in the Battle of Leipzig against Napoleon's army 1815-1832: Baron Johan Kutshera leads the 28th Military Regiment (Vaclav Karas (b.1787) served under Kutshera) 1825: Vaclav Karas (father of Matěj Karas SR) born in Olešná. Vaclav's profession was weaver. 1828: Katerina Karas (mother of Matěj Karas SR) born in Vesely Zdar, Havlíčkův Brod 1830-1848: Second part of industrial revolution (food and heavy industry). Coal used for fuel. 1832: (March 24) Emperor Franz I decree governed the emigration process from Austria. 1836-1847: Railroads constructed. Increased social mobility. 1838: Josef Karas listed in Olešná land record living in House #28. Jan Karas living in House #55. 1840: Beginning of large scale emigration of Czechs to the United States 1841: Antonin Dvorak born 1848: Revolution against the oppressive Hapsburg Empire 1848: Serfdom abolished. 1848: Karas ancestors now focus on working their own land and are no longer required to work the land of the Manor as a serf. 1848: The village of Olešná becomes part of the German Brod District. Many former serfs begin working in the silver mines. 1850: Commercial and trade chambers founded in important trade and industrial cities. 1852: Approximately 4000 Bohemians emigrated from the Austrian Empire (Bohemian Kingdom). This included legal and illegal emigrations. 1855: The classic Czech work of The Grandmother published. Written by Czech author Bozena Nemcova 1860: (December 22) Josef Soucek is born in Dobrohostov 1861: (September 1) Matěj Karas Sr. is born in Olešná. 1862: (September 4) Marie Kolářová is born in Chotebor 1861: (March 15) Frantiska Milichovská is born in Tis 1867: Beginning of the Austro-Hungarian Empire 1880: School in Okrouhlice established. Souckova children attended school here along with artist Jan Zrzavy 1883: Jan Zrzavy born in Ohrouhlice. The famous artist attended school in Okrouhlice at the same time as Marie Souckova 1883: (January 23 or December 24) Matěj Karas Jr. is born 1885: (February 18) Marie Souckova is born in Babice #24 1890: Peak of Czech emigration from Bohemia to the United States 1904: Volunteer fire corp established in Babice. 1904: Antonin Dvorak dies 1905: (October 12) Bohuslav Karas (aka Bohumil Soucek, aka William Karas) is born in Babice #24. 1907: The Chapel of St. Florian (patron saint of firefighters) in Olesna is established 1908: (March 20) Etta Lucretia Moyer is born. Etta is wife of William Karas. 1909: (December) Matěj Karas emigrates from Bohemia 1912: (December) Marie Karas (Souckova) emigrates from Bohemia 1914: Vaclav Karas (brother of Matěj Karas Jr), Bohuslav Karas and Frantisek Karas attempt to emigrate from Bohemia, but authorities return them home. 1914: Karel Blažek (friend of Karas family) successfully immigrates to the US on May 13, 1914 1914-1918: World War I 1918: The Kingdom of Bohemia becomes the free independent Czechoslovakia 1918: 28th Military Regiment disbanded upon newly formed independent Czechoslovakia 1922: The classic Czech work of The Good Soldier Svejk published. Written by Czech author Jaroslav Hasek 1922: (November 1) Bohumil Soucek, Frantisek Karas and Jan Karas emigrate from Bohemia 1922: (November 11) Bohumil Soucek, Frantisek Karas and Jan Karas arrive in the United States. 1923: Jaroslav Hasek wrote The Good Soldier Svejk (books 2-4) at the Czech Crown Inn in the village of Lipnice nad Sazavou in the Havlickuv Brod district 1924: The Immigration Act of 1924 was passed 1928: (Jan 3) Mike and Mary take out mortgage on Plattsmouth Farm for $2,500 at 8% interest 1929: Village theatre established in Babice 1934: (May 19) Marie Kolarova dies 1935: Babice World War I Memorial (Capek's deaths) unveiled 1937: Farley Karas (son of William Karas) is born in Omaha, Nebraska 1938: (September 19) Matěj Karas Sr. dies in Olešná 1938: (Sept 30) Munich Agreement signed 1938-1939: Czechoslovakia became the Czecho-Slovak Republic for 169 days as a result of the Munich Agreement 1939: (June 26) William Karas becomes naturalized United States citizen 1939-1945: World War II 1939-1945: German Occupation 1942: (Aug 19) Mike and Mary sell farm to Joseph Karas (son) for $1 and buy it back for $1 1942: (May 27) Reinhard Heydrich "The Butcher of Prague" is assasinated by Czech parachutists Jan Kubis and Jozef Gabcik 1942: (June 10) Czech village of Lidice is destroyed by Nazis in retaliation for Reinhard Heydrich's assasination 1945: Marie and Antonin Karas (son of Matěj Karas Sr) move to Travnik in the Sudetenland (worked in Novy Bor) 1945: Nemecky Brod renamed to Havlickuv Brod 1945: (May 5) Czech radio broadcasts go out ... "Come help us everyone! We are fighting the Germans!". 1945: (May 6) Skirmish in Olesna between Czechs and Germans. 20 died and were buried between Olesna and Skuhrov 1948: Communist take over. 1949: Czechoslovakia becomes Communist 1950: Consolidation of all records of genealogical value by the government 1952: Centralization of all genealogical records into state regional archives 1955: (Aug 16) Marie Karas (Souckova) dies in Plattsmouth, Nebraska 1956: (June 25) Inheritance decree. Mike gets farm valued at $8,000 and $204.10 in Mary's checking account 1956: (August 1) Farley Karas weds Marva Jane in Omaha at Bethlehem Presbyterian Church 1957: (Aug 22) Mike sells farm to Chester and Helen Sporer for $6,400 1957: Many Olesna farm buildings set on fire. Village struggles to accept communism. Several inhabitants convicted. 1962: Jana Karas is born. She is the first daughter of Vaclav Karas Jr. Vaclav Karas Sr is Matěj Karas Jr's brother 1966: Matěj Karas Jr dies in Omaha, Nebraska 1966: Scott Karas (son of Farley Karas) is born in Houston, Texas 1968: Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia by Warsaw Pact countries brings an end to the Prague Spring. 1969: (January) Jan Palach set himself on fire during protests against the Communist. 1975: Charter 77 emerged with Vaclav Havel as leader. The group protested the Husak regime. This is seed of the future Velvet Revolution. 1976: Petra Dušátková is born. She is the second daughter of Vaclav Karas Jr. Vaclav Karas Sr is Matěj Karas Jr's brother. 1976: Vaclav Karas Sr (brother of Matěj Karas Jr) dies in Olešná in House #75. 1969: William Karas (aka Bohuslav Karas, aka Bohumil Soucek) dies 1989: The Velvet Revolution 1993: Czechoslovakia becomes democratic state and is renamed to The Czech Republic. Slovakia separates 2002: Floodwaters ravage the Czech Republic 2006: Morgan Karas (daughter of Scott Karas) is born in Tulsa, Oklahoma 2007: Parker Karas (son of Scott Karas) is born in Tulsa, Oklahoma 2011: (July 1) Scott Karas has first conversation with James Karas Jr (grandson of Matěj Karas Jr) 2011: (August 4) Scott Karas has first conversation with Petra Dušátková 2011: (September 19) Scott Karas makes first contact with Jan Doležal (great great great grandson of Matěj Karas Sr through Josef Karas) 2011: (October 10) Scott Karas makes first contact with Walter (Bud) Karas Jr (great grandson of Matěj Karas Jr) 2011: (October 25) Scott Karas makes first contact with the Milichovsky family of Babice 2011: (December 18) Vaclav Havel dies 2012: (January 7) Scott Karas has first contact with Lenka Říhová (Great great grand daughter of Josef Souček, Marie Souckova's father) 2012: (January 24) Scott Karas has first contact (phone conversation) with Frank Karas (son of Frantisek Karas) 2012: (February 3) Scott Karas has first contact (email) with Ondřej Míchal (possible relative of Marie Souckova) 2012: (February 27) Scott Karas has first contact (email) with Barbara Stobbe Fuller (daughter of Agnes Karas Stobbe) 2012: (April 27) Vaclav Karas Jr (father of Petra and Jana Karas) of Olesna dies 2012: (June 10) Scott Karas has first contact (email) with Shirley Warga Dasher (daughter of Bessie Karas and Albert Warga) 2012: (June 28) Scott Karas first face-to-face contact with Barbara Stobbe Fuller and Shirley Warga Dasher 2012: (June 30) Scott Karas first face-to-face contact with Ruth Warga Johnson 2012: (August 6-13) Scott Karas and sister Kae Parker visit the Czech Republic 2013: (January 23) Scott Karas has first contact (ancestry.com) with William Winters (grandson of Ann Karas and Paul Jack Winters) 2013: (April 12) Scott Karas receives first email from David Lane and Cathey Langpaul Lane. Cathey's Czech ancestor was married to a Karas ancestor. 2013: (June 16) Scott Karas has first contact (phone) with Tracy Morris (grandson of Bob Riddle and great grandson of Ann Karas Winters) |
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| Vaclav Karas (1825-) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Vaclav Karas was born on October 9, 1825 (1890 Census) in Olešná.
Vaclav Karas was my great great great grandfather. Vaclav was married to Katerina Karasova. Currently, we do not know how many children Vaclav and Katerina had, but we do know they are the parents of Matěj Karas SR… 1. Matěj SR (b.1861-d.1938) (Birth Place: Olešná) |
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| Matěj Karas Sr (1860-1938) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Matěj is pronounced...M as in "me" ; A as in the u in "cup"; T as in "tee"; EY as in "ate"; Y as in "you".
Matěj Karas Sr was born on September 1, 1861 (1900 Census) in Olešná. His father was Vaclav Karas. His mother was Katerina Karasova. Matěj Karas Sr died in Olešná on September 19, 1938. His wife, Marie Kolarova, died on May 19, 1934 in Olešná as well. Matěj Karas Sr was my great great grandfather. Matěj was married to Marie Kolarova. Marie and Matěj Karas Sr were married on September 28, 1885 in Olešná. Marie and Matěj Karas Sr both died in House #75 in Olešná. Vaclav Karas Sr and his wife, Anastazie, cared for Marie and Matěj Karas Sr in their final years. Matěj and Marie had 5 children… 1. Matěj Jr (b.1883-d.1966) (Birth Place: Olešná) Matěj Karas Jr and his wife, Marie Souckova, had 11 children.
2. Antonin (b.1886-d.????) (Birth Place: Olešná) According to Petra Dusatkova, Antonin and his wife, Marie, had four children...Antonin Jr, Karel, Marie and Božena. The oldest son of Antonin Karas Sr, Antonin Karas Jr, died at a fairly young age in 1945. He was buried in an unmarked grave in the village of Skuhrov. After World War II, Antonin's family moved to the Sudetenland. The family settled in the village of Trávník near Cvikov in the district of Ceská Lípa. Trávník is approximately 50 miles north of Prague. Prior to World War II, approximately 25% of the Sudetenland was made up of Germans. The Sudetenland possessed many glass making factories and the majority of the countries precious metals were mined in this region of Czechoslovakia. After World War II, many German families were expelled from Czechoslovakia. During this time after the war when the Germans expelled from the Sudetenland, many Czechs found job opportunities in the glass factories and mines in the Sudetenland. As a result, Antonin and his family chose to take this opportunity and left Olešná and traveled to the north of the republic to begin a new life after the war. Antonin's family was one of many Czech families who found work at the glass factory in Nový Bor. 3. Josef (b.1888-d.????) (Birth Place: Olešná) Josef and his wife, Marie Kubícková, raised three children (Frantisek, Anna and Joseph Jr) in Olešná. Anna Karas (daughter of Joseph) married Jan Doležal. Anna Karas is the great grandmother of Jan Doležal who is currently 24 years old (as of September 2011) living in Olešná. The local Olešná Pub was owned by Josef Karas. Josef was the brother of Matěj Karas Jr. The Doležal family in current day Olešná are the descendents of Josef Karas. The photo in the lower-left corner of this postcard provided by Petra is Josef's pub. The photo below was taken in 1919 (from left to right ... Anna, Frantisek, Josef Jr, Josef Sr and Marie Kubícková. This is, perhaps, the oldest photo I have of any ancestors. 
4. Vaclav (b.1895-d.1976) (Birth Place: Olešná) Vaclav Karas Sr and his wife, Anastazie Janáková, had three children...Anna, Marie and Vaclav Karas Jr. Vaclav Karas Jr is still living in Olešná (December 2011) and he has two daughters...Jana Veselý and Petra Dušátková. As of December 2011, Petra is 35 years old and Jana is about 47. Vaclav Karas Jr and his family had the very unfortunate event of losing their oldest son Josef in an accident in 1975. Marie (Vaclav Karas Sr's daughter) Dundáčková was an important person in the village of Olesna. She went to the Chapel of St. Florián in Olešná three times a day (in the morning, at noon and in the evening). She rang the Angelus Bell for many years (up to her death). This tradition has survived to the present time.
5. Marie (b.1898-d.????) (Birth Place: Olešná) *** Marie died at a very young age and had no children. |
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| Matěj Karas Jr (b.1883-d.1966) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Matěj Karas Jr was born on December 24, 1883 in Olešná. His father was Matěj Karas Sr. His mother was Marie Karasova (Kolarova). Matěj Karas Jr had three brothers, Antonin, Josef and Vaclav and one sister, Marie.
Marie died at a very young age. Matěj was the only family member that emigrated to the United States. Matěj Karas Jr married Marie Souckova (aka Mary Karas) on May 29, 1906.
Marie left Babice and joined Matěj in Olešná.
Marie and Matěj Karas Jr raised 11 children, however, the oldest child, Bohumil Soucek, was born on October 13, 1905 (about 6 months prior to the marriage of Marie and Matěj). Bohumil's father was listed as "unknown" on the birth record. Although Matej Karas Jr is not the biological father of Bohumil Soucek, it is admirable that he raised Bohumil as his own. 1. Bohumil Soucek (aka Bohuslav Karas, aka William Karas) (b.1905-d.1969) (Birth Place: Babice) *** Bohumil Soucek had three children... William, Lillian and Farley.
According to the 1940 US Census (see image below), William Karas and his wife Lillian (Etta) Moyer were living in Omaha, Nebraska with their children William, Lillian and Farley. The census indicates that he was working as a Watchman in the WPA (Works Progress Administration). Additionally, William's annual income in 1940 while working as a Watchman was $415. A dollar in 1940 had the same buying power as $16.40 in 2013. This means that William's annual salary in 1940 was equivalent to about $6,806 in 2013 dollars. It also appears that William was renting at the time at a monthly rental amount of $7.50 which is about $123 in 2013 US dollars. 
2. Frantisek (aka Frank Karas) (b.1907-d.1976) (Birth Place: Olešná)
On Saturday February 4, 2012, I received a letter from Frank Karas (son of Frantisek Karas). Frank included some photos of Olesna House #38 taken in 1997 by one of his family members. Letter from Frank Karas Olesna House #38 in 1997 (before remodel) Frantisek Karas birth record (interpreted) 3. Jan (aka John Karas) (b.1908-d.1976) (Birth Place: Olešná)
John lived most of his life as a single man, but did marry in 1964 to Alicemay Maxine Lanyon. Prior to his marriage, there is knowledge that John spent much of his time around his sisters living in Plattsmouth. John apparently would frequently have dinner with his sisters in their homes. 4. Vaclav (aka James Karas) (b.1909-d.1970) (3 years old in 1912 when immigrated with Marie Karas) (Birth Place: Olešná) *** James had at least two children... Betty (b.1933) and James R Karas Jr (b.1936).
According to the 1940 US Census (see image below), James Karas and his wife Alice Ruge were living in Omaha, Nebraska with their two children Betty (b.1933) and James R (b.1936). It appears the census incorrectly has James' birth place as Nebraska when in fact he was born in Bohemia (Olesna, Havlickuv Brod) in 1909. The census also indicates that he worked in the Machine Shop of a Meat Packing plant. This is consistent with the fact that many of the Karas men worked in the Meat Packing industry. Additionally, James' annual income in 1940 while working at the Meat Packing plant was $1,144. A dollar in 1940 had the same buying power as $16.40 in 2013. This means that James' annual salary in 1940 was equivalent to about $18,761 in 2013 dollars. The value of James' home was recorded as $2,800 in 1940. This would make it valued at $45,920 in 2013 dollars. 
5. Mary (b.1913-d.1995) [Mrs. Donald Schultz] (Birth Place: Nebraska)
Mary was the eldest girl of Mike and Mary Karas. Mary was born on November 13, 1913 and died in Michigan on April 24, 1995. According to the 1930 census, Mary was living in Omaha with her husband Donald Schultz and his father August Schultz. Mary was only 16 years old when she married Donald. Donald was four years older than Mary and he is listed as 20 years old in the 1930 census. Donald was born to August and Josie [Festler] Schultz on December 11, 1909 in Northfield, Rice, Minnesota. August was the son of German immigrants. According to the 1940 US census, Mary (age 26) and her husband Donald were living in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie, Iowa with their 6 year old son James. Like many of her siblings, Mary Karas was listed in the census with an 8th grade education. Donald was employed by a Wholesale Dairy company working as a Milk Tester at an annual income of $1,800 (about $30,000 in 2013 US dollars). 6. Joseph (b.1915-d.1997) (Birth Place: Nebraska)
Joseph was born on July 25, 1915 and died on September 10, 1997 in Omaha, Nebraska. According to the 1940 US census, Joseph was working as a Farm Hand in Lewis, Pottawattamie, Iowa for the Paul and Amanda Pavelich family. Lewis, Pottawattamie, Iowa is approximately 10 miles east of South Omaha where most of the Karas family (Joseph's siblings) worked and lived. Joseph made $240 (about $4000 in 2013 dollars) in 1939. It's reasonable to assume Joseph's room and board was paid for by the Pavelich family since Joseph was making such a small wage. Joseph had an 8th grade education which appears to be fairly common for several of the Karas men during this time. The reason is unknown, but in 1942, Mike and Mary Karas (Joseph's parents) sold their Plattsmouth farm to Joseph for $1 and then subsequently bought it back from Joseph for $1. At the time of this transaction, Joseph is listed as single. However, there is knowledge that Joseph has a son named Joseph Jr. Ancestry.com has a record of a Joseph Karas born on August 26, 1953 who is very likely the son of Joseph. This would have made Joseph Sr about 38 years old at the time of Joseph Jr's birth. There are a number of residence records for Joseph Jr living in South Omaha in the 1990s...[2205 Jones St Apt 210, Omaha, NE, 68102-3048 (1993)], [701 S 22nd Bld7a, Omaha, NE, 68102 (1996)], [1316 S8th St 3, Omaha, NE, 68108], [1500 Pine St Apt 904, Omaha, NE, 68108-3547], [2315 Hardy, Omaha, NE, 68102 (1996)]. 7. Ann (b.1917-d.1990) [Mrs. Paul Jack Winters] (Birth Place: Omaha, Nebraska)
Ann Karas was born on March 15, 1917 in Omaha, Nebraska. She was known as Anna in the 1930 census at the age of 14, but all other records found have her listed with the name Ann. Ann was the seventh of eleven children. Ann had a son named Robert (Bobby) Riddle in 1934 who was ultimately raised by Ann's parents Mike and Mary Karas. Residence records in 1939 and 1941 have Ann living in Omaha at the age of 22 and 24 respectively. However, in 1953 her residence changed to Pendleton, Oregon. It appears that Ann lived in Oregon for the remainder of her life up until her death in 1990 in Hermiston, Oregon. The year of marriage is currently unknown, but at some point, Ann married Paul Jack Winters. Paul was born on March 15, 1912 and passed away in 1980 in Hermiston, Oregon (same residence as Ann at the time of her death). In 2013, I came in contact with Tracy Morris (grandson of Bob Riddle). Tracy shared a number of stories with me. He mentioned that Bob Riddle was a boxer and also spent time in the US Navy. Tracy mentioned that Bob was a large man standing around 6 ft 5 inches tall and 220 lbs. Bob has spent the majority of his life as farmer. Bob worked as a ranch foreman for a number of years in Oregon. 8. Bessie (b.1918-d.1976) [Mrs. Albert Warga] (Birth Place: Omaha, Nebraska)
Bessie's birth name was Bozema. Bessie married Albert Warga when she was 18 years old. Albert was 40 years old when the two were married. Bessie and Albert had a four year daughter, Ruth, when the 1940 census was taken. Bessie and Albert were living in Plattsmouth, Nebraska near Bessie's parent's Mike and Mary Karas in 1940. 9. Agnes (b.1920-d.2000) [Mrs. Theo Stobbe] (Birth Place: Omaha, Nebraska)
The 1940 US Census indicates that Agnes was single living in Council Bluffs, Pottawattamie, Iowa near her sister Mary. Agnes was 21 years old in 1940 and working as a waitress earning $800 in 1940. Agnes was renting in 1940 and her monthly payment was $12/month ($196 in 2013 dollars). 10. Ruzenka (Rosie) (b.May 6, 1923-d.October 14, 1923) (Birth Place: Omaha, Nebraska)
11. Helen (b.1923-d.1970) [Mrs. Paul Edward Aita] (Birth Place: Omaha, Nebraska)
Helen Karas was born on December 4, 1923 in Omaha, Nebraska. Helen was the youngest of eleven children of Mike and Mary Karas. As an adult, Helen's residence is listed as Omaha, Nebraska until 1952 when her home changed to Santa Ana, California. Helen married Paul Edward Aita in 1945 and the two eventually adopted a girl named Jenny. Helen died at the very young age of 47. About four years (1974) after Helen's death, Paul's residence changed to Pendleton, Oregon. Paul must have been good friends with Ann Winters and her husband Paul or a good friend of Ann's son Bobby Riddle because Pendleton was their home as well. Paul Aita was born in 1925. His parents were Ben and Marie Aita of Council Bluffs, Iowa. Paul had four sisters (Dorothy, Arlyne, Margaret and Joan). Below is a photo of the Karas sisters in October 1963. From left to right...Jenny Aita (adopted daughter of Helen Aita), Helen Karas Aita, Bessie Karas Warga, Agnes Karas Stobbe, Mary Karas Schultz. 
Below is a photo of the husbands of the Karas sisters while at Marie Souckova's funeral in Nebraska in 1955. From left to right...Don Schultz (Mary), Theo Stobbe (Agnes), Paul Edward Aita (Helen) and Albert Warga (Bessie). 
Matěj Karas Jr immigrated to the United States in December 1909. Matěj Karas Jr came from Volesna (per his immigration document), Bohemia. A village by the name of Volesna does not currently exist in the present day Czech Republic. The correct village name today is Olešná. Czechs have had a custom of adding a “V” on the front of several words. The use of the V in front of olesna was a type of old slang. After further research, I found that Matěj Karas Jr was from the village of Olešná located in the Havlíčkův Brod district of the Vysočina region of the modern day Czech Republic. Upon arrival in the United States in December 1909, Matěj Karas Jr listed John Cerny as his person of contact in the US. John Cerny immigrated to the US in 1890. On both John and Matěj's immigration records, John was know as John Cerny. However, John's real last name was Cerveny. He was known as John Cerveny Sr in the 1910 US Census. He was known as John Cerveney in the 1920 US Census and he was known as John Cerveny in the 1930 US Census. Additionally, John's son Frank served as a pallbearer at Matěj's funeral in 1966 and was known as Frank Cerveny in the funeral program. Therefore, I'm confident that John's real last name was Cerveny. Furthermore, in the Olešná 1838 Historic House Record we see a Jan Cerveny and a Josef Karas living in adjacent houses. I believe this is further evidence that the Cerveny and Karas family friendship goes back several generations. Matěj's good friend, John Cerveny, was born in the Bohemian Kingdom in 1871. John immigrated to the US in 1890. He was married to Antonia Vodicka (b.1875-d.) and the two had seven children (John, Frank, Charles, Mary, Joseph, Annie and Sylvia). Did John work at one of the meatpacking companies in Omaha? I assume somehow that John was able to reach Matěj in the Bohemian Kingdom to tell him about the economic opportunities in Omaha. John died some time between 1920 and 1930. John was listed in the 1920 census, but was not present in the 1930 census. In the 1931 City Directory, Antonia was listed as a widow (to John).  James (Vaclav) Sr, John (Jan), Joseph, Frank (Frantisek), William (Bohumil Soucek) In 1919, Matěj Karas Jr was working at the Cudahy Packing House in South Omaha. During his time at the plant, Matěj was involved in an elevator accident. He injured his face and right leg. On April 8, 1920, Matěj's right leg was amputated between his hip and knee. As you can see below in the Nebraska Department of Labor write up, Matěj received $12/week for the accident. According to the US Department of Labor, the average weekly salary in 1919 was $25. Matěj received about half that amount for approximately three and a half years as compensation for the accident. 4-30: Mike Karas vs. Cudahy Packing Company, Omaha.Below is a photo of the Cudahy Packing House in South Omaha where Matej lost his leg and where many of the Karas men worked. The plant shutdown in 1967. Walter Karas Jr remembers visiting Matěj on his farm and seeing Matěj's wooden leg. 
Below is the hospital bill for Mike's time spent in the hospital when his leg was amputated... 
In 1922, Matěj Karas Jr was living in Omaha, Nebraska at 3611 Monroe Street. We know this because his sons Bohumil Soucek, Frantisek and Jan Karas put this address on their immigration documents. The sons noted Matěj Karas Jr as their point of contact in the United States. Around the year 1925, Matěj Karas Jr and his family moved to Rock Bluffs (about 6 miles south of Plattsmouth), Nebraska. We know this because Mary Karas' (Matěj's wife) death certificate indicates she had been living in Rock Bluffs for the 30 previous years prior to her death in 1955. Mary and Matěj's address in Rock Bluffs was R.F.D.#1, Box 39. After Mary's death in 1955, it appears that Matěj Karas Jr moved back to Omaha. On Matěj's death certificate, his address was 4920 South 25th Street in Omaha. Additionally, the death certificate states he was at this address for the previous 10 years. So, it was very near the time of Mary's death that Matěj began living at the South 25th Street address. Between about 1862 and 1912, many Nebraskans on the prairie lived in dugout homes. There was speculation that Matej and Marie may have lived in a similar underground house while living in Rock Bluffs (about 6 miles south of Plattsmouth), Nebraska. However, by the 30s, 40s and 50s (when Matej and Marie were living in Rock Bluffs) these underground homes were not in widespread use. According to Frank Karas Jr, Matej and his family lived in a conventional home in Plattsmouth. In 1940, Matěj (Mike) Karas Jr and Marie (Mary) Souckova Karas were living in the East Rock Bluffs Precinct (Plattsmouth), Nebraska. According to the 1940 census, Mike and Mary's address was R.F.D.#1, Box 39 (enumeration district 13-4) . The 1940 Census indicates that Matej's occupation was farmer. It also appears that a grandson named Bob Reader (age 5) was living with Mike and Mary. At this time, it is unclear who Bob's parents were. Additionally, the value of their home is listed at $350. $350 in 1940 would be worth about $6,000 in 2012. Also noteworthy on the 1940 census page containing Mike Karas is the presence of his daughter Bessie along with her husband Albert Warga and their four year daughter Ruth. Mike and Mary lived in East Rock Bluffs between 1925 and 1955 (30 years). Below are a couple links with details on the location of the Karas farm... 2314 Young Road, Plattsmouth, Nebraska Location of Karas Family farm Today, the 2314 Young Road address is the home of New Dreams Dairy Goats... New Dreams Dairy Goats website New Dreams Dairy Goats FaceBook page Here are some helpful links with information about the history of Rock Bluffs, Nebraska... Rock Bluffs, Nebraska Wikipedia Rock Bluffs, Nebraska History The History of Cass County 1940 Plattsmouth, Nebraska Map (upper left) 1940 Plattsmouth, Nebraska Map (upper right) 1940 Plattsmouth, Nebraska Map (lower left) 1940 Plattsmouth, Nebraska Map (lower right) Matěj Karas Jr died on Sunday February 13, 1966 in Omaha, Nebraska. The pallbearers at his wedding were James Budka, Frank Cerveny, Frank Kulisek, Walter Luksa, Steve Patera and Emil Zeleny. Matěj's wife Mary Karas died about 11 years earlier on Monday August 15, 1955 in Plattsmouth, Nebraska. The pallbearers at Mary's funeral were Paul Aita, Jim Karas Jr, Stanley Karas, Don Schultz, Theo Stobbe and Albert Warga. |
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| Marie Souckova (b.1885-d.1955) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Marie Součková was the wife of Matěj Karas Jr. Marie was born in house #24 in the village of Babice in the Havlickuv Brod district on February 18, 1885 and died in Plattsmouth, Nebraska in 1955.
Marie's father was Josef Souček and her birth mother was Anna Míchalová. Josef Souček and Anna Míchalová were married in house #24 in Babice on February 12, 1884. Anna Míchalová died on October 9, 1888 at the age of 22 while giving birth to her second child. Marie was only 3 years old when her mother died. Marie's father, Josef Soucek, died on December 16, 1904 in house #24 in Babice as a result of emphysema. Soucek Family Vital Records (Interpreted) Josef Soucek and Anna Michalova Marriage Record Josef Soucek and Anna Michalova Death Records Anna was born in Babice House #24 in 1866. Her parents were Vaclav Michal and Anna Cibulkova of Babice #11. Anna's great grandfather was Vaclav Michal of Pohled House #16. Anna had three siblings...Josef, Jan and Marie. Michal Family Tree Michal Family Birth Records After Anna's death, Josef Soucek married Františka Krajičkova. Josef and Františka had five children together ... Katerina (born October 18, 1891) Josef (born November 21, 1893) Jan (born June 23, 1896) Františka (born March 9, 1900) Vaclav (born March 31, 1904) Josef Soucek died on December 16, 1904. At this time, his five children (other than his adult daughter Marie) were all recorded as orphaned. Vaclav was less than 1 year old. Frantiska was 4. Jan was 8. Josef was 12 and Katerina was 14. Their mother Frantiska was still living and the children's godfather, Jan Michal, took a vow of guardianship for the children. Jan Michal was the brother of Anna Míchalová.
Below are some great photos of the Soucek family (Marie Souckova's siblings and their descendants) provided by Lenka Říhová and Barbara Stobbe Fuller. Refer to the Soucek Family Tree to help understand the family relationships.
Marie immigrated to the United States in 1912. According to James R. Karas, on the journey from Bohemia in 1912, Marie was robbed. All her money and emigration paperwork (including her birth certificate) was lost at this time from this unfortunate incident.
In an attempt to learn more about Marie's mother Anna Míchalová, I decided to search for descendants of Anna still living in Babice. I came across an online Czech Phone Book that allowed me to search for family members of Anna still living in Babice. I found a woman named Dana Milichovská and wrote her a letter. On October 25, 2011, I received an email from a Karel Milichovský. I, apparently, had the last name of Anna incorrect. Karel's family surname is Milichovský, not Míchalovi. However, the Milichovský family (Karel and his mother Svatava) has been extremely helpful with helping me find information and photos on the Soucek and Míchalovi families. Additionally, Svatava has found that the Michal family came to Babice in the 19th century from the village of Pohled which is just a few miles away from Babice. Svatava has located the Michalův statek website which is the farm of the original Michal family that was settled beginning in the year 1591. It's highly likely that Marie Souckova's mother, Anna Míchalová, is part of the Michal family of Pohled. In 1992, house #24 was purchased by a Mr. Zdeněk Valenta and his family from the last known Soucek in Babice (Josef Soucek who died in 1991). Josef Soucek's sister, Milena Součková Brzoňová, sold the house to Mr. Valenta in 1992. Mr. Valenta is a glass maker and has recently refurbished house #24. He makes beautiful glass and his work can be found on the Sklo (Glass) Valenta Website. According to Svatava Milichovska, Milena Součková Brzoňová has two daughters.. Svatava recently contacted the Krásná Hora Cemetary to help locate the graves of the Soucek and Míchalovi families. #229 has been identified as the grave of Václav Souček (last Soucek buried in the cemetary) who was a carpenter who died in 1970. Svatava also found the grave of Frantiska Souckova who died in 1952. The Souckova Family would have attended church in the village of Krasna Hora. All family members were baptised here. The image below was probably taken some time between 1900 and 1920. Krasna Hora Church around 1900 |
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| William Karas (aka Bohumil Soucek) (1905-d.1969) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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There are many things we know about William Karas. His mother was Marie Souckova from the village of Babice (House #24) in the Havlíčkův Brod District of the Vysočina Region in the country of Bohemia. He was born in the village of Babice (House #24) in the Havlíčkův Brod District of the Vysočina Region in the country of Bohemia on October 13, 1905. William Karas' birth name was Bohumil Soucek. His father was listed as "unknown" on his original birth record. Matěj Karas Jr married Marie Souckova on May 29, 1906 and cared for William Karas until he was an adult. He was known as Bohuslav Karas in the 1910 Bohemian Kingdom Census while living in Olešná (House #35). He had three uncles – Antonin, Josef and Vaclav. He was the oldest of 11 children (5 boys, 6 girls). He attempted to emigrate from Bohemia in 1914 with his two brothers, Frantisek (Frank) and Jan (John) and uncle Vaclav, but were sent home. He immigrated to the US when he was 17 with his two younger brothers, Frantisek (Frank) and Jan (John) on November 11, 1922. His occupation when he entered the US was “laborer”. He had $100 in his pocket when he landed on US soil. He became a naturalized US citizen on June 26, 1939. He married Etta Lucretia Moyer in 1928. He had three children with Etta… William J. Karas, Lillian Karas and Farley D. Karas. He was the grandfather of nine grandchildren. William J. Karas had three daughters and Farley D. Karas had four daughters and two sons. He died in Nebraska on December 19, 1969.
Guardianship records indicate that my grandfather, Bohumil Soucek, was not the biological son of Matej Karas Jr. Bohumil's mother was Marie Souckova of Babice #24, but Bohumil's father was listed as "unknown" on his birth certificate. Bohumil's guardianship record indicates that he was illegitimate and that Matej Karas Jr did not take steps to record Bohumil as his legitimate son. However, it is admirable that Matej Karas Jr married Marie Souckova and raised Bohumil as his own. According to the guardianship record, a gentlemen named Vaclav Capek (a peasant living in Babice) took a vow of guardianship for Bohumil on November 29, 1905. However, it is not clear whether or not he is the father. Additionally, Jan Michal (brother of Anna Michalova) was listed as Bohumil's godfather. Below are the comments of Martin Kocarik (our Czech Genealogist) about the significance of Vaclav Capek on the guardianship record... The relation of Vaclav Capek with Bohumil Soucek is not specified in the document. Most probably he is not father. Being father he would be mentioned in the column 3. On purpose I translated the previous record of Petr Josef to show you the note about legitimacy if the father confessed paternity. Sarka talked about the issue with the archive specialist and was told that it is quite clear that father is unknown. There must be some reason why Marie did not declare Bohumil’s father and lost her title to aliments. May be the father was a landlord she worked for and she got compensation out of court to avoid shame on a small village. That was not easy to have out of wedlock child that time. But please note this is only our presumption. Normally the marriages used to take place in the place of bride’s residence. This is not the case. Marie may be did not want to draw attention to herself in Babice-Okrouhlice or simply her parents did not have enough money. I think that Vaclav Capek was godfather or employer.Bohumil Soucek attempted to emigrate from Bohemia in 1914, but injured his knee and was sent home. This incident occured just prior to World War I so I believe there were some undesirable circumstances that occured at the Hamburg Rail Station. Bohumil and his two brothers, Frantisek and Jan, eventually made it to the United States on November 22, 1922 (see emigration story for details). |
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| Farley Karas (1937-) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Farley Karas is the youngest child of William Karas. Farley has two siblings - one brother, William, and one sister, Lillian.
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| Scott Karas (1966-) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Scott Karas is the youngest child of Farley Karas.
Scott has five siblings - one brother, David, and four sisters, Cindy (Kuglin), Kae (Parker), Colleen (Wohlford) and Diane.
Dayna and Scott Karas Family (November 2011) Dayna and Scott Karas (November 2011)
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| Morgan Karas (2006-) and Parker Karas (2007-) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Morgan and Parker Karas are the children of Scott Karas.
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| Emigration from Olešná to the United States of America | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Matěj Karas Jr was the only one of the five children of Matěj Karas Sr who emigrated from Bohemia. In 1909, Matej Karas Jr and family were living in Olesna #75. It is believed that this home was considered a homeless shelter where multiple families lived. Prior to residing in house #75, an Olesna village outsider named Novotny came to the village and swindled many people out of there money and homes. As a result, the Matej Karas Jr family were subjected to living in house #75 for the very poor. Details of the circumstances surrounding this unfortunate incident are unknown. However, this could have been a major contributing factor as to why the Matej Karas Jr family left for the United States. Matěj Karas (aka Mike Karas) was the first of our Karas ancestors to immigrate to the United States. Matěj traveled from his home village of Olešná, Bohemia to the town of Havlickuv Brod to board a train that would ultimately deliver him to the port city of Bremen, Germany. Below is a photo of the Havlickuv Brod Train Station taken in 1906 (just three years prior to Matej boarding the train in 1909)... 
The trip to Bremen was 432 miles (721 kilometers). Upon reaching Bremen, Matěj boarded the passenger ship Koln. The Koln departed Bremen, Germany around December 10, 1909 and proceeded north up the waterway to the North Sea through Bremerhaven, Germany. From the North Sea, the Koln made its way to the Atlantic Ocean. Ultimately, the ship navigated to and through the Gulf of Mexico to arrive in Galveston, Texas on December 20, 1909.  S/S Köln (2), Norddeutscher Lloyd Matěj was 26 years when he landed in Galveston. Upon arrival in the United States in December 1909, Matěj Karas Jr listed John Cerny as his person of contact in the US. John Cerny immigrated to the US in 1890. On both John and Matěj's immigration records, John was know as John Cerny. However, John's real last name was Cerveny. He was known as John Cerveny Sr in the 1910 US Census. He was known as John Cerveney in the 1920 US Census and he was known as John Cerveny in the 1930 US Census. Additionally, John's son Frank served as a pallbearer at Matěj's funeral in 1966 and was known as Frank Cerveny in the funeral program. Therefore, I'm confident that John's real last name was Cerveny. Furthermore, in the Olešná 1838 Historic House Record we see a Jan Cerveny and a Josef Karas living in adjacent houses. I believe this is further evidence that the Cerveny and Karas family friendship goes back several generations. Matěj's good friend, John Cerveny, was born in the Bohemian Kingdom in 1871. He was married to Antonia and appears to have had six children (Frank, Charles, Mary, Joseph, Annie and Sylvia). Did John work at one of the meatpacking companies in Omaha? I assume somehow that John was able to reach Matěj in the Bohemian Kingdom to tell him about the economic opportunities in Omaha. Additionally, Matěj listed his mother as his contact person back home in Bohemia. His mother was listed in the immigration document as Mar Karas. Mar appears to be an abbreviation for Marie since Matěj's mother's name was Marie Karasova (Kolarova). The document appears to be short on space and it’s likely the scribe shortened her first name in order to fit it on the page. Three years later in 1912, Marie Souckova made the same trip from the village of Olešná, Bohemia to the port city of Bremen, Germany. Her ship, the Barbarossa, made a similar journey to the United States, but remained north and landed in the city of Baltimore, Maryland in December of 1912. Similar to Matěj, Marie listed her mother, Frantiska Souckova of Babice House #24, as her person of contact back home in Bohemia. Marie's father, Josef Soucek, passed away in 1905 which explains why Marie did not list him as her primary contact in Bohemia. Unfortunately for Marie Souckova (Mary Karas), she apparently was robbed on the ship. James R Karas Jr told me that Marie was robbed of all her documentation and money. This is the reason she never had any documentation (birth certificate, etc) when she arrived in the United States.  S/S Barbarossa, Norddeutscher Lloyd Marie was not alone when she arrived in the United States. Accompanying her was her three year son Vaclav (James Karas Sr). Vaclav was James R. Karas’ father. Additionally, Marie left three young boys behind in Bohemia. Bohumil Soucek was only 7 years old when his mother arrived in the US. Bohumil had a 5 year brother named Frantisek (Frank Karas Sr) and a 4 year old brother named Jan (John Karas). Unfortunately, according to FamilySearch.com, most of the Bremen emigration records have been destroyed. The only records available are for 1920 or later. Below are a few excerpts from ProGenealogy.com (the research arm of ancestry.com) that provides an excellent explanation of the lost Bremen passenger lists. Pro Genealogists Bremen Passenger List Assessment “Due to limited space and to the idea that the emigrants would be lost for their German native country, the Bremen passenger lists were destroyed in 1875, except for the two preceding years, and this procedure was continued until about 1907. The emigration lists from 1905 to May 1914 were preserved.” “duplicates of the lists for 1905 to 1914 were discovered in a shed on the Loyd platform of the Bremen main railroad station” “The students first extracted all entries but it soon turned out that 80 per cent of the emigrants were Slavs, Hungarians or Jews, so the job was limited to Germans or people of German descent.” “The lists in Bremen were totally destroyed in an air raid on 6 Oct. 1944. The duplicates in Stuttgart were probably destroyed when the DAI building was hit by bombs on 12 and 19/20 Sep. 1944. Possibly they were stored for safe keeping somewhere in the Württemberg countryside at the end of the war from where they were not recovered.” Who cared for the three young boys back in Bohemia? According to the Skuhrov School records, Matěj Karas Sr and his wife Marie Kolarova were responsible for registering the boys in school. It appears the boys were cared for by their grandfather and grandmother on the Karas side. According to Petra Dušátková, Bohuslav and Frantisek Karas along with Vaclav Karas (Matěj Karas Jr's brother) and Karel Blažek (Vaclav's friend) traveled to Hamburg in 1914 to emigrate to the United States. However, an incident occured at the Hamburg Rail Station where Bohuslav Karas injured his knee and the boys were not allowed to board the ship and were subsequently sent home to Olešná. It appears, however, that Vaclav's friend Karel Blažek was able to successfully board the ship and eventually reached America on May 13, 1914. Karel was born on August 18, 1893 (two years before Vaclav Karas Sr) and arrived in America when he was 21 years old. Karel's immigration record indicates that he was from Olešná. Karel was later drafted by the United States for World War I in 1917. Karel took on the name Charles Blazek when he lived in the United States. He settled in Santa Rosa, California and was listed as a farmer in the US census records throughout the 1930s and 1940s, however, one census record has him listed as a carpenter. Charles Blazek was married to Mary. Charles died on August 1, 1971 in Santa Rosa, California at the age of 71. His wife Mary was born on November 21, 1896 and died on September 25, 1988 in Santa Rosa, California. Petra Dušátková also mentioned that Karel visited Olesna in 1958 and left the following address for the Blazek family in California...316 A SANTA ROSA AVE, Santa Rosa, California. It would not be until 1922 that the Karas boys would to make it to the United States. Ten years after Marie Souckova reached the US, her three sons arrived in New York on Ellis Island in November 1922. Bohumil Soucek, Frantisek Karas and Jan Karas traveled from their home in of Olešná to the German port city of Hamburg. The three boys were originally listed in the passenger list for the ship Wurttemburg for departure out of Hamburg, Germany on October 26, 1922. For some unknown reason, the actual passenger list record shows the three boy’s names crossed out. Apparently, they were not on the ship when it departed on October 26, 1922. However, six days later on November 1, 1922, the three boys boarded the passenger ship Resolute, headed north through Cuxhaven to the North Sea and made their way across the Atlantic Ocean to New York City.
It took 10 days for the Resolute to cross the Atlantic Ocean to reach Ellis Island in New York. On November 11, 1922 the ship carrying the three boys arrived at Ellis Island. Upon arrival, it appears that Bohumil (age 17) was admitted to the hospital. The reason is unknown. Additionally, Frantisek Karas (age 15) and Jan Karas (age 14) were also “admitted”, but not to the hospital. According to Ellis Island rules, it was common practice for minors to be detained. Perhaps unaccompanied minors were held in a waiting area until an adult picked them up. The two younger boys were isolated from their elder brother until Bohumil was well enough to be discharged from the hospital.
There are a number of annotations on the three boy’s immigration record. Most notably, the abbreviation LPC was noted by their names. LPC stands for “Likely Public Charge” and represented individuals who may have difficulty contributing to society immediately. It is likely that the “minor” designation on the two younger boys coupled with the sickness of Bohumil (the perceived caretaker of the two younger boys) led to the LPC designation. The boys arrived in the US with a combined $300 between the three of them. Bohumil was carrying $100 and Frantisek was carrying $200. All three boys were listed with blonde hair. Bohumil was recorded with brown eyes and the two other boys were recorded with gray eyes. Bohumil was five feet seven inches tall. Frantisek was five feet five inches tall and Jan was five feet one inches tall. The boys listed Matěj Karas Jr as their contact person in the US. The boys eventually made it to Marie and Matěj's home at 3611 Monroe Street in Omaha, Nebraska. |
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| The Karas Eyes | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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During the week of March 26, 2012, I was reviewing the Emigration Story details on this website and something caught my attention.
I noticed in the immigration record that Bohumil Soucek was listed with BROWN eyes and his two brothers, Frantisek and Jan, were listed with GREY eyes.
As we know, Bohumil Soucek was not the son of Matej Karas Jr so those of us who are his descendents appear to primarily possess BROWN eyes. However, many of the descendents of Matej Karas Sr have strikingly beautiful GREY eyes. From left to right and top to bottom...Petra, Tereza (Petra's daughter), Vojtech (Petra's son), Lukas Vesely (Jana Karas Vesely's son), Jana Karas Vesely, Walter Bud Karas, Great Nephew of Walter Bud Karas. 
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| Family Tree | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Karas Family
Jirik Karas (b.1629-d.) . + Maruse (b.-d.,m.) .. 1 Ludmilla Karas (b.-d.) .. 1 Bartolomej Karas (b.~1655-d.1697) .... 2 Tomas Karas (b.~1674-d.) ...... + Marie Svec (b.-d.,m.) ...... 3 Barbora Karas (b.1707-d.) ...... 3 Anna Karas (b.1710-d.) ...... 3 Katerina Karas (b.1714-d.) .... 2 Adam Karas (b.~1676-d.) ...... + Magdalena Havel (b.-d.,m.1710) ...... 3 Vaclav Karas (b.1709-d.) ...... 3 Katerina Karas (b.1711-d.) ...... 3 Josef Karas (b.1712-d.1766) [Olesna #28] - peasant farmer ........ + Alzbeta Klanecky (b.-d.,m.1737) ........ 4 Josef Karas (b.1738-d.) [Olesna #28] - peasant farmer .......... + Katerina Calta (b.1759-d.,m.1770) .......... 5 Katerina Karas (b.1771-d.) .......... 5 Vaclav Karas (b.1773-d.1778) .......... 5 Anna Karas (b.1775-d.~1781) .......... 5 Martin Karas (b.1776-d.) .......... 5 Anna Karas (b.1781-d.) .......... 5 Josef Karas (b.1785-d.) .......... 5 Jan Karas (b.1785-d.) .......... 5 Vaclav Karas (b.1787-d.~1846) [Olesna #28,#19] - bricklayer ............ + Barbora Kozak (b.1789-d.,m.1818) [Kutna Hora #45,#51] ............ 6 Vaclav Karas (b.1825-d.1910) [Olesna #28] - weaver .............. + Frantiska Pavlas (b.1830-d.~1857,m.1846) [Rozsochatec #22] .............. 7 Barbora Karas (b.1848-d.1848) [Olesna #19] .............. 7 Marie Karas (b.1850-d.) [Olesna #19] .............. 7 Vaclav Karas (b.1853-d.1853) [Olesna #12] .............. 7 Jan Karas (b.1855-d.1855) [Olesna #12] .............. + Katerina Matus (b.1830-d., m.1857) [Vesely Zdar #8] .............. 7 Matej Karas Sr (b.1861-d.1938) [Olesna #12] - day laborer ............... + Marie Kolarova (b.1860-d.1934,m.1885) [Chotebor #262] ................. 8 Matej (Mike) Karas Jr (b.1883-d.1966) [Olesna #35] - day laborer ................... + Marie Souckova (b.1885-d.1955,m.1906) ................... 9 William Karas (aka Bohumil Soucek) (b.1905-d.1969) ..................... + Etta Lucretia Moyer (b.1908-d.1992) ..................... 10 William James "Tony" Karas (b.1930-d.2009) ..................... 10 Lillian Karas ..................... 10 Farley Karas (b.1937-d.) ....................... + Marva Jane (b.1937-d.) ....................... 11 Cindy Karas [Robert Kuglin] (b.1956-d.) ....................... 11 Kae Karas [Gary Parker] (b.1957-d.) ........................... 12 Jeremy Parker (b.1978-d.) .............................. 13 Katie Parker (b. 1998, d.) .............................. 13 Abigail Parker (b.2001-d.) .............................. 13 Alexander Parker (b.2004-d.) ........................... 12 Erin Parker (b.1981-d.) ........................... 12 Kristin Parker (b.1983-d.) .............................. 13 Haylee Johnson (b.2007-d.) .............................. 13 Gage Johnson (b.2012-d.) ........................ 11 David Karas (b.1960-d.) ........................... + Patricia Peters ........................... 12 Kortney Karas [Chris Reyes] .............................. 13 Kaia Reyes .............................. 13 Corbin Reyes (b.2010-d.2010) ........................... 12 Sarah Karas [Chris Shain] .............................. 13 Jaxon Shain (b.2014-d.) ........................ 11 Colleen Karas [Robert Wohlford] (b.1961-d.) ........................... 12 Michael Wohlford ........................... 12 Rachel Wohlford ........................ 11 Diane Karas (b.1963-d.) ........................ 11 Scott Karas (b.1966-d.) ........................... 12 Morgan Karas (b.2006-d.) ........................... 12 Parker Karas (b.2007-d.) ................... 9 Frantisek (Frank) Karas (b.1907-d.1976) [Olesna #35] ..................... + Pauline Vana (b.1907-d.1980) ..................... 10 Richard Karas (b.1928-d.) ..................... 10 Frank Karas (b.1930-d.) ........................ 11 Shannon Karas [Coomes] ........................ 11 Debbie Karas [Krahembuhl?] ........................ 11 Michael Karas ..................... 10 Walter Karas (b.1932-d.) ........................ 11 Susie Karas ........................ 11 Timothy Karas ........................ 11 Terry Karas ........................ 11 Walter (Bud) Karas Jr (b.1956-d.) ........................... 12 Buddy John Joe Karas .............................. 13 Bailey Karas (b.-d.) .............................. 13 Luke Karas (b.-d.) ........................... 12 Kacey Rae Karas ..................... 10 Robert Karas (b.1934-d.2012) ........................ + Carol Sweetwood ........................ 11 Kevin Karas ........................ 11 David Karas ........................ 11 Joseph Karas ........................ 11 Cindy Karas [Patrick Hupf] ..................... 10 Stanley Karas (b.1937-d.) ................... 9 Jan (John) Karas (b.1908-d.1976) [Olesna #35] ..................... + Alicemay Maxine Lanyon ................... 9 Vaclav (James) Karas (b.1909-d.1970) [Olesna #35] ..................... + Alice Ruge ..................... 10 Betty Karas (b.1933-d.) ..................... 10 James (Jim) Karas (b.1936-d.) ................... 9 Joseph Karas (b.1915-d.1997) ..................... 10 Joseph Karas Jr (b.1953-d.) ................... 9 Mary Karas [Donald Schultz] (b.1913-d.1995) ..................... 10 James Schultz (b.1934-d.) ................... 9 Ann Karas [Paul Jack Winters] (b.1916-d.1990) ..................... 10 Bobby Riddle (b.1934-d.) ........................ + Nathaleen (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Robinae Riddle [Disque] (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Twila Riddle [John Wayne Morris] (b.1958-d.) ........................... 12 Tracy Morris (b.1977-d.) .............................. + Tuleshia (b.-d.) .............................. 13 Elijah Morris (b.2012.-d.) ........................ 11 Christopher Riddle (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Charlie Riddle (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Terri Riddle (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Rhonda Riddle (b.-d.) ..................... 10 Paul Jack Winters (b.1941-d.2010) ..................... 10 Mike Winters (b.-d.) ..................... 10 Charles Winters (b.1940-d.2004) ........................ 11 William Winters ..................... 10 Ann Marie Winters ..................... 10 Helen Winters ..................... 10 Stormy Winters ................... 9 Bessie Karas [Albert Warga](b.1917-d.) ..................... 10 Jerry Warga ..................... 10 Shirley Warga [Al Dasher] ..................... 10 Ruth Warga [Bob Johnson] (b.1936-d.) ........................ 11 Sandra Johnson ........................ 11 Cheryl Johnson ........................ 11 Ed Johnson .................... 11 Kathy Johnson ................... 9 Agnes Karas [Theo Stobbe] (b.1920-d.2000) ..................... 10 Judith M (Judi) Stobbe [Pemberton] ..................... 10 Barbara Stobbe [Steve Fuller] ..................... 10 Carol Stobbe ..................... 10 Joe Stobbe ................... 9 Ruzenka Karas (b.1923-d.1923) ................... 9 Helen Karas [Paul Aita] (b.1924-d.1970) ..................... 10 Jenny Aita ................. 8 Antonin Karas Sr (b.1886-d.) [Olesna #35] ................... + Marie Malinova (b.1890-d.,m.1910) ................... 9 Anezka Karas (b.1911-d.,m.1932) [Vaclav Lebeda] ................... 9 Antonin Karas Jr (b.1913-d.1943) ................... + Marta Snokousova (b.-d.,m.1939) ................... 9 Karel Karas ................... 9 Marie Karasova [Bártová] ................... 9 Božena Karasová [Cechová] ................. 8 Josef Karas (b.1888-d.) [Olesna #44] ................... + Marie Rydlova (b.-d.,m.1911) Kubícková? ................... 9 Frantisek Karas ................... 9 Anna Karas [Jan Doležal] ..................... 10 Josef Doležal (b.1936-d.) ........................ 11 Jaroslav Doležal ........................ 11 Dana Doležalová ..................... 10 Jan Doležal ........................ 11 Jan Doležal ........................... 12 Jan Doležal (b.1987-d.) ........................... 12 Tomáš Doležal ........................... 12 Lukáš Doležal ........................ 11 Iva Doležal ..................... 10 František Doležal ........................ 11 Zdenek Doležal ........................ 11 Helena Doležalová ..................... 10 Václav Doležal ........................ 11 Václav Doležal ........................ 11 Eva Doležalová ................... 9 Josef Karas ..................... 10 Eliška Karasová [Machalová] ..................... 10 Václav Karas ..................... 10 Josef Karas ........................ 11 Jaroslav Karas ........................ 11 Female Karas ................. 8 Antonie Karas (b.1891-d.1894) [Olesna #35] ................. 8 Jan Karas (b.1893-d.1896) [Olesna #5] ................. 8 Vaclav Karas Sr (b.1895-d.1976) [Olesna #5] ................... + Anastazie Janáková (b.????-d.????,m.1918) ................... 9 Anna Karas [Štefánková] ..................... 10 Jan Štefánek ........................ 11 Jan Štefánek ........................ 11 Jana Štefánková [Dlouhá] ........................ 11 Markéta Štefánková [Novotná] ........................... 12 Adéla Novotná ........................... 12 Jakub Novotný ..................... 10 František Štefánek ........................ 11 Eva Štefánková ........................ 11 Martina Štefánková ................... 9 Marie Karas [Dundáckova] (b.1922-d.2006) ..................... 10 Josef Dundácek ........................ + Marie (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Jirí Dundácek (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Jaroslav Dudácek (b.-d.) ........................... 12 Tereza Dundácková (b.-d.) ........................... 12 Philip Dundácek (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Jindriška Dundácková (b.-d.) ........................ 11 Josef Dundácek (b.-d.) ..................... 10 Marie Dundácková [Nedvedová] ........................ 11 Miloš Nedved ........................ 11 Olga Nedvedová ........................ 11 Alena Nedvedová ................... 9 Vaclav Karas Jr (b.1934-d.2012) ..................... 10 Josef Karas (b.1958-d.1975) ..................... 10 Jana Karas [Veselý] (b.1962-d.) ........................ 11 Lukáš Veselý ..................... 10 Petra Karas [Dušátková] (b.1976-d.) ........................ 11 Vojtech Dušátko ........................ 11 Tereza Dušátková ................. 8 Marie Karas (b.1898-d.1901) [Olesna #38] ................. 8 Marie Karas (b.1901-d.1924) [Olesna #38] ............... 7 Antonin Karas (b.1867-d.1867) [Olesna #12] ............. 6 Anna Karas (b.1832-d.) [Olesna #19] ........ 4 Adalbert (Vojtech) Karas (b.1740-d.) ........ 4 Magdalena Karas (b.1743-d.) ........ 4 Anna Marie Karas (b.1745-d.) ........ 4 Laurenc (Vincenc) Karas (b.1749-d.) ........ 4 Vaclav Karas (b.1752-d.) ...... 3 Katerina Karas (b.1717-d.) .... 2 Kaspar Karas (b.~1678-d.) ...... + Alzbeta Karas (b.-d.,m.) ...... 3 Simon Karas (b.1714-d.) .... 2 Lukas Karas (b.~1680-d.) ...... + Anna Karas (b.-d.,m.) ...... 3 Jakob Karas (b.1716-d.) Souček Family 1 Josef Souček . + Teresie Činčera . 2 Josef Souček ... + Marie Šmekl ... 3 Václav Souček (b.1858-d.) ... 3 Josef Souček (b.1860-d.1904) ..... + Anna Míchalová (b.1866-d.1888,m.1884) [Babice #24] ..... 4 Marie Součková [Matěj Karas Jr] (b.1885-d.1955) [Babice #24] ..... + Františka Krajičkova (b.1861-d.1952) ..... 4 Kateřina Součková [Lenek Hrdlicka] (b.1891-d.1971) ..... 4 Josef Souček (b.1893-d.1979) ..... 4 Jan Souček (b.1896-d.????) ....... + Ms. Hrdlickova ..... 4 Františka Součková (b.1900-d.) ..... 4 Václav Souček (b.1904-d.1970) ....... + Marie (b.????-d.1977) ....... 5 Joseph Souček (b.1933-d.1991) ....... 5 Milada Součková [Mr. Brzoň and Miloslav Kadler] (b.1934-d.,m.1957) ......... 6 Zdeňka Brzoňová [Říhová] (b.-d.) ........... 7 Lenka Říhová (b.-d.) ........... 7 Roman Říha (b.-d.) ......... 6 Eva Brzoňová [Čapková] (b.-d.) ........... 7 Antonín Čapek (b.-d.) ........... 7 Zdeněk Čapek (b.-d.) ... 3 Marie Souček (b.1863-d.1864) Míchal Family 1 Václav Míchal .. 2 Barbora Míchalova .... 3 Václav Míchal ...... + Anna Cibulkova (b.1831-d.) ...... 4 Josef Míchal (b.1865-d.1865) ...... 4 Anna Míchalova [Součková] (b.1866-d.1888) ...... 4 Jan Míchal (b.1869-d.) ...... 4 Marie Míchalova (b.1872-d.1878) Cerveny Family 1 John Cerveny (b.1871-d.1920-1930) . + Antonia Vodicka (b.1875-d.????) .. 2 John Cerveny (b.1897-d.????) .. 2 Frank Cerveny (b.1899-d.????) .... 3 Joseph John Cerveny (b.1930-d.2009) ...... 4 Daniel Cerveny (b.1954-d.) ...... 4 Diane Cerveny [Ken Rosener] ...... 4 Kathleen (Kathi) Cerveny [Dana Skillstad] ...... 4 Joseph Cerveny ...... 4 Linda Cerveny [Tom Baker] .... 3 Rita Cerveny [Chalupa] .. 2 Charles Cerveny (b.1901-d.????) .. 2 Mary Cerveny (b.1903-d.????) .. 2 Joseph Cerveny (b.1907-d.????) .. 2 Annie Cerveny (b.1909-d.????) .. 2 Sylvia Cerveny (b.1913-d.????) |
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