Marcin FELEDZIAK Infantry Regiment 171

[egbert]

It was Daniel too - but he must be on vacation, I am sure he is not far away.

P.S I hope you are reading Jans "Frit'z thread" too !! IR16

Some revealing facts

http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=216051

Marcin,

I am sure Daniel just lures around the corner and reads every bit.

I did not read the "Fritz" thread , if you recommend-will do!

[Martin Feledziak]

This crop is from the book "251 Divisions of the Germany Army which participated in the war 1914-1918"

I am using it to put a possible time line together for my Grandfather number (6) below.

I am working backwards from his hospital picture which has a date 28th June 1918.

So logic dictates that he would have picked up a frontline injury in either May- June 1918. It could also have been a more serious injury from an earlier incident. But I will guess it was a recent injury.

from the latest verlustlisten I see him attached to Infanterie Regiment 171.

so

At that time he would be part of the 115th Division, 229th Brigade.

the crop below has their unit De-Training ( getting off a Train ) in St Quentin on 22nd May 1918. It does some marching about, for a couple of days, reliving the 37th Division near Longpont on the Aisne battlefront on the night of 2-3 June.

He must have been wounded during action at around this time as he would have been trained off to hospital in Nurnburg before the Allied counterthrust at Corcy in July.

Depending on how well he recovered in Hospital he could have returned to his unit and faced the rest of the war in the misery that was Verdun.

There is a regimental history available for the 171'ers which could support this page but it is hard to get hold of and would also be in German.

So for the time being I will have to wait for more information.

[JWK]

Martin,

I think you have to go a little further back.

From http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/2._Ober-Els%C3%A4ssisches_Infanterie-Regiment_Nr._171

I read that the "171'ers" apparently were involved in "the battle of Soissons and Reims", from 2nd to 13th June 1918.

He's on the Casualty-list for 5th July 1918, as "lightly wounded", so that would coïncide.

What happened before and after for the 171'ers :

26th July-9th December 1917 : static battles at Sereth and Susita

From 10th December 1917 on : armistice on the Romanian front

1918

Untill 11th April - Armistice on the Romanian front

12-17 april : transport to the west

18th april - 2nd June - Reserve "of the OHL" (Sorry, don't know what that means)

2nd June - 13th June : Battle near Soissons and Reims

14th June- - 4th July - Static battles between Oise, Aisne and Marne.

So either that battle, or one of the "static battles" following it.

I'd put my money on the Battle near Soissons and Reims. Fritz e.g. was also only mentioned in the Verlustliste one month later.

(And was Martin/Marcin born on the 14th of October? My brother's birthday is the 14th of October ! )

[Martin Feledziak]

Jan

Just spotted this "Oberste Heeresleitung or OHL" Supreme Army command

Your Wiki page is a perfect fit for the entry in my cropped page. Both sources agree with the dates and particularly 2nd June 1918. Your Wiki identifies

Soissons and this is bang on with Longpont. So I agree that this is the most likely location for his wounding and it must have been early June.

I can only work with just a few scant documents to find clues. Even though he survived both wars he would never talk of his experiences.

Grandfather, Marcin Feledziak, was born on 14th October 1897 in Wrotkow, Then in Prussia, But now back in Poland.

[Martin Feledziak]

By coincidence, whilst perusing a PDF today ( Der Weltkrieg im Bild - Berlin-Oldenburg; 1926 ) I came across this image of some devastation.

It does not indicate a date but it is described as Rue Saint Martin, Soissons.

[ph0ebus]

Back again to see white a bit of progress made....well done!

I was on a hiatus, of sorts, so I apologize for not responding sooner. My son just started school again, and was out and about reconnecting with old friends, and was off the forum a bit. I was also making some headway in researching yet another relation of mine who served with the Prussians (Otto Strauß, cousin of all my other Strauß family, VL'd here), and also digging back into my Wall Street Bombing research.

Kudos, and I hope those medals find a fine frame to be displayed in!

-Daniel

[JOVE23]

Well done on all of this! I am glad to see so much progress.

Apart from my photo of Max, I haven't gotten any other success in determining whether or not his father Vincent was in the Prussian Army.

[Martin Feledziak]

Time to do some house keeping - using the Janet and John Handbook of Imperial Germany this is how I think the Feledziak's fitted into the scheme of things.
I have refered to all of them in this thread and each has one or more entries in the Verlustlisten reports of The Great War German casualties.

5th Armee - V Reserve Corps
50th Infantry Division.
100th Infanterie Brigade
Fusilier Regiment No39
Kompanie 4 ...........................Martin Feledziak born 1895 (12) POW 1916

5th Armee - XVI Armeekorps
34th Infanterie Division.
68th Infanterie Brigade
Konigs Infanterie Regiment No145
Kompanie 12.........................Andreas Feledziak born 1889 (11) Wounded 1914

5th Armee
Pionier Regiment No29
Kompanie 2..........................Johann Feledziak born 1888 (3) Killed 1915

5th Armee - V Reservekorps
9th Reserve Division.
18th Reserve infanterie Brigade
Reserve Infanterie Regiment No6
Kompanie 13........................Jozef Feledziak born 1894 (9) POW 1916

5th Armee - V Reservekorps
10th Reserve Division.
77th infanterie Brigade
Fusilier Regiment No37
Kompanie 4..........................Johann Feledziak Born 1897 (4) Died of wounds 1917

XV. Corps

General Deimling, Commander of the XV. Corps in the Ypres Salient.

39. Infanterie Division

• 61. Brigade: 126. Infanterie-Regiment and 132. Infanterie-Regiment
• 82. Brigade: 171. Infanterie-Regiment and 172. Infanterie-Regiment

30. Infanterie Division

• 60. Brigade: 99. Infanterie-Regiment and 143. Infanterie-Regiment
• 85. Brigade: 105. Infanterie-Regiment and 136. Infanterie-Regim

7th Armee - XV Reservekorps
39th Infanterie Division.
82nd Infanerie Brigade
From April 1915
115th Infanterie Division
229th Infanterie Brigade
Infanterie Regiment No171
Kompanie 10.......................Martin Feledziak Born 1897 (6) Wounded 1918

8th Armee - I Reservekorps
36th Reserve Division.
69th Reserve Infanterie Brigade
Reserve Infanterie Regiment 61
Kompanie 10 &
Reserve Jager Battalion No2
Kompanie 2..........................Jacob Feledziak Born 1886 (8) Seriously Wounded 1916

Just missing the last section
Armee and Unit
for........................................Anton Feledziak Born 1892 (3) Killed 1917 - No known Grave.

[Svenja]

I have been looking for images of possible POW camps in Castres, France, - where Joseph Feledziak was detained.

Have a look at this thread, there is mentionend a postcard of Camp Castres, and I also added a link to a Feldpost sent from Camp Castres.

http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=140284&hl=castres#entry1338491

The person I am researching is Xaver Schleich of the Bavarian Army, according to a list of the Red Cross he was transfered from Rouen-Croisset to Castres in April 1917.

In the Verlustlisten (German Casualities) he is mentionned as missing in January 1917 and as in captivity in August 1917 (birth date is matching with Red Cross List)

By the way I am also a member of a French Forum about WWI so I have just opened a thread there asking if someone knows more about a POW Camp in Castres.

http://pages14-18.mesdiscussions.net/pages1418/Forum-Pages-d-Histoire-armees-etrangeres/Allemagne/prisonniers-croisset-castres-sujet_812_1.htm

Finally I have found a list of all prisoner of war camps for german soldiers in France with subcamps, places of work, hospitals.

http://digital.staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/werkansicht/?PPN=PPN730056600&PHYSID=PHYS_0042

Regards

Svenja

[Martin Feledziak]

Greetings Svenja.

Those are most interesting Links.

I now see that there were a number of differnt Camps in Castres.

For example, Castelnau'-de-Levis, Cavance or Champagnolles all Tarn region.

I will study this book in more detail.

The page from the Red Cross shows Jozef arriving at The "Depot De Castres" around 4th March 1916.

so from there he could have moved to any of those Sub-Camps.

It would appear that Jozef survied the wars and died in 1970. However 2 of his brothers were killed in 1917, Anton and Johann (4)

( I am still tring to find more about Anton, Number (2) on my signiture below )

Here is an interesting picture I have floating about on my desktop, who knows, Xaver and Jozef could be amongst those poor fellows being marched around town.

Martin.

[Martin Feledziak]

I have never thought to ask on this forum because it is not a Great War question.

However I have learned a great deal of my family history from this very thread.

I am aware that a number of Pals on here have access to various databases which are free to use.

The UK - American marriage database, "Family search" is superb for researching and it is free.

So now I ask is there similar in Germany to help me find when and where my Grandparents were married.

I am Guessing it was in Germany between 1919 and 1923.

Their details are :-

FELEDZIAK (Martin), Wrotkow (Pologne), 14-10-97, NAT, 1328x63 —59.

KARAS (Francoise Stanislava) , Herne (Allemagne), 05-04-05, NAT, 1368 X63— 59.

Martin

[Svenja]

Hi Martin

In the meantime I found more sources with information about Castres and other POW Camps.

But most of them are in German oder French language (I mean the reports for camps in France).

http://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/Camps

http://194.242.233.158/denqPacelli/Dokument2648

Marriages in Germany of the time you are searching are for sure not available online.

They could still be at the registry office or they are in an Archive (I think State Archive).

You need to know in which place the marriage took place.

I'm member in two German Forums for genealogy, so I could ask there about the Archives.

Regards

Svenja

[Guest]

[Martin Feledziak]

Hi Martin

In the meantime I found more sources with information about Castres and other POW Camps.

But most of them are in German oder French language (I mean the reports for camps in France).

http://grandeguerre.icrc.org/en/Camps

http://194.242.233.158/denqPacelli/Dokument2648

Marriages in Germany of the time you are searching are for sure not available online.

They could still be at the registry office or they are in an Archive (I think State Archive).

You need to know in which place the marriage took place.

I'm member in two German Forums for genealogy, so I could ask there about the Archives.

Regards

Svenja

Greetings Svenja.

Thank you for your information. Now I understand that marriage records are not available to search in Germany online, I will try other methods.

Here In the UK we have a free resource which is countrywide, costs nothing and holds many files of information for students of Genealogy

For other readers of this thread in the U.K try the below link. ( This is for family stuff - Not WW1 records )

https://familysearch.org/search

[ph0ebus]

Greetings Svenja.

Thank you for your information. Now I understand that marriage records are not available to search in Germany online, I will try other methods.

Here In the UK we have a free resource which is countrywide, costs nothing and holds many files of information for students of Genealogy

For other readers of this thread in the U.K try the below link. ( This is for family stuff - Not WW1 records )

https://familysearch.org/search

They actually do have a little WWI stuff. Their WWI Draft Registration Card collection is pretty robust and quite useful for researchers seeking information about individuals with a US connection.

https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968530

-Daniel

[Martin Feledziak]

Yesterday I was in Poland and reluctantly went with my Wife and friends to the misery that is Auschwitz Death Camp in Oswiecim.

The day before I was in Krakow enjoying the pomp and ceremony of The Polish celebration of their 1918 independence. Many people do not know that Poland got their country back following the armistice. Only to have it invaded again in 1939.

This was my first visit to the land of my Ancestors.

Again this is not WW1 but My GF was present at the liberation of a WWII death camp ( I do not know which one ) from that camp a badly malnourished boy was adopted into our family.

All these things are linked and we will all do well to remember.

[Martin Feledziak]

Polish National Day Parade - Krakow 2014 - 11th November

[Martin Feledziak]

I have been looking at the trench maps for the area where my GrandFather settled after the war.

This site is north of Douai and is in the area of a coal mine. I don't think it was on the front at any time.

I can see what appears to be a small network of trenches to the right of the cemetery but they are only small and not connected to any other networks.

http://maps.nls.uk/geo/explore/#zoom=15&lat=50.41016&lon=3.05137&layers=101465035

[Martin Feledziak]

I have mentioned these soldiers before and they are at rest in the cemetery as shown in the above post.

Just to the left of the small trench network.

They are the only Soldiers at rest in the cemetery in Auby.

2nd Lt Owen James Butler

Pte 49076 Harold Miller,

7th Bn Norfolk Regiment

[Martin Feledziak]

GWF Member Pat Atkins had a look at these two lonely Norfolk's, I have posted it here so that it is searchable for others.

Pte 49076 Harold Miller, 7th Bn Norfolk Regiment, previously of the Liverpool Regiment, came from Holmes Chapel, Cheshire, in the North West of England. He is listed as "died" on 16th October 1918. Possibly Harold Miller on the 1911 Census who was born in Holmes in 1900 but living in Salford, the son of a labourer on the Manchester Ship Canal.

2nd Lt Owen James Butler is listed as "killed in action". He was born in Newmarket, Cambridgeshire, and is on the 1901 and 1911 Censuses as living in Swaffham, Norfolk, with his family. His father's occupation is given as farm labourer

The War Diary for 7th Norfolks for Wednesday 16th October 1918 reads "The whole front heavily shelled, especially Battalion HQ in Courcelles, 25 casualties being caused". "Courcelles" is Courcelles-les-Lens if they're buried in Auby.

[Martin Feledziak]

Das Infanterie-regiment Nr. 171

This is the book I would like have a look inside.

The imperial war museum in London has a copy, there are several in German libraries and 2 in Australia.

This copy is for sale on-line at 188 Euros, so out of my range.

I only want to look at a couple of pages around the end of May- Early June 1918.

[Martin Feledziak]

They actually do have a little WWI stuff. Their WWI Draft Registration Card collection is pretty robust and quite useful for researchers seeking information about individuals with a US connection.

https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968530

-Daniel

There must be a story here. ( I can't believe what I am reading ! )

This is taking this thread well off topic - ( Still Great War ) But Thomas Bryant Jenkinson is on my family tree. He appears on

that very same database. I get the feeling that his family jumped out of one frying pan into another frying pan but the fire that would be the Great War was still waiting. All citizens of whatever country, if they were male and born 1880 and later were going to face some misery. But their families were going to suffer big time too!

His date of birth is 26 Dec 1886. The registration card states Thomas E Jenkinson, but he has signed it Thomas Bryant Jenkinson.

If it turns out he was called up for service with the American Expeditionary Force, I will start a new thread for him.

I know he Left the UK around 1905 and landed in Quebec, Canada - He later settled in New York, Married the daughter of a German immigrant, drove for Brooklyn Union Coal Company as a chauffer, and very possibly got called up. ( I could not make this up even if I tried )

This is a potted history :-

•Name: Thomas Bryant Jenkinson

•Sex: M

•Birth: 26 DEC 1886 in Longton, Stafford, England

•Burial: 1970 Cypress Cemetery, Cypress Hills, New York

•Social Security Number: 100-09-4274

•Residence: Hollywood, Broward, Florida

•Event: Employment 1920 Chauffer; Auto Truck, Brooklyn Union Coal Company, 240 Morgan Ave, Brooklyn, NY

•Death: 30 JUL 1970 in Florida

•Residence: 05 JUN 1917 291 Central Ave. Brooklyn, NY

•Residence: 1920 Census: Central Ave., New York

I would love to learn if he served in the Great War

Daniel- are you there ?

[ph0ebus]

I am!

I will have to dig into the available sources this evening, and I have a pretty full dance card today. I know where he is buried and was just there recently visiting another fellow for one of my research projects.

Daniel

[ph0ebus]

Martin,

Do you need me to call the cemetery and confirm his burial location and details? It's a local call, so easily done.

The best way to find out if he served, given he was a New York resident, is to write to the New York State Archives. Naturally, they moved everything around on their website, and the bookmark I had no longer worked, but I found the form you need!

http://www.archives.nysed.gov/a/research/res_topics_mi_warsvc_form.pdf

You have a lot of the information you already need, and the cost is only $1.00 US, which is not bad at all. The only issue I see is you do not know which branch of service he may have been in. You can only check one branch at at time, so you may have to resubmit the request 3 times to cover all your bases. The good news is they will only cash your check if they find something.

If they find something, a typical summary of service card will look like this:

Not much, but good, basic information.

I checked find-a-grave and see he is not listed in there, but assuming we can confirm that's where he is, I would be happy to drop in and take a few pictures the next time I am in the area.

I also just remembered that I believe the 1920 (or 1930) Census had a line asking whether the person was a veteran and if so, if they served in the World War they would have the notation WW on their line. If you have access to Ancestry you can find his census records and see if he has that notation or not. if you need me to check Ancestry let me know, and I will run him through next time I am at the library later in the week.

-Daniel

PS Do you have his WWII Draft Card? He was living in Queens by then. You can get it here:

https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F3XC-T4F

[Martin Feledziak]

Hi Daniel,

That is great.

I would be well impressed if you could find his grave. It is very likely that he would be buried with his wife. I find it very strange that he should be laid to rest in

New York given that he appears to have spent his later years of life in Florida. I would expect the cemetery will be fairly large and not easy to locate a grave among all the many others.

But if it is not much trouble then yes please.

I never even considered that he would be up for a possible call up in WW2 and those cards are fantastic and give incredible detail.

I see that Thomas married Amalia Imker in New Jersey in 1910

They had two children.

Thomas Bryant Jenkinson 04 01 1915 Brooklyn New York and

Pauline Emma Jenkinson 10 10 1911.

Thomas Junior married Meta Poppe in Brooklyn in 1937 and had children so I could have distant relatives still living.

Meta's Father was John Poppe b: 15 DEC 1874 in Breman, Germany.

Amalia's Father was Herman Heinrich Imker b: 19 AUG 1848 in Markendorf, Ksp. Buer, Germany.

I use Ancestry and Find my past for searching and usually save my "Hits" for a time when they offer free access. So don't worry about that issue. I will check out my local library and see if I can get it for free.

I will check out the 1930 Census and go from there.

I suspect that he is going to turn out to be a veteran and I can wait to confirm it.

Martin