I was blessed to visit Poland in 2017 and 2018. When I visited the village of Strzegowo, where my Great-Great Grandmother came from, I located the graves of her parents and was surprised to see her sister, Stanisława Weronika Zielińska, was buried in the same grave. Unfortunately I have not been successful in locating what happened to my Aunt Stanisława or her family. I am hoping for some help in attempting to possibly learn more.
Here is what is known about Stanisława Weronika Zielińska :
• She was born on 24 January 1902 in Niedzbórz to Szczepan Zieliński and Julianna Łazarewicz.
• She married 10 October 1933 in Strzegowo to Jan Lubański, son of Antoni Lubański and Janina (possibly Joanna) Borkowska. Jan was born after 1907 in Gradzanowo Koscielne, in Gmina Siemiątkowo. I have located several of Jan’s siblings and believe his parents and some relatives are buried in Gradzanowo but I am not entirely certain.
• A daughter, Janina, was born after 1933. It is unknown if they had any other children.
• Stanisława dies sometime between 1940 and 1945. The marker that is on the grave of her and her parents states that she is 42 years old when she died, which would make her year of death 1944, however, when I visited the grave in 2017 I was able to see the original grave marker which I believe lists a date of death as 2 February 1942. The ages for her parents, Szczepan and Julianna, were also incorrect.
• It is unknown what happened to Jan Lubański. It is unknown if he remarried or had any other children or where his whereabouts are. I have searched databases to see if he was ever apprehended by the Gestapo or perhaps a victim of the Nazi’s. A search with the Archives in Mława confirmed that the surname Lubański does not show up in any documents in relation to war-time casualties.
• A friend of mine from Sierpc helped me reach out to the local parish in Strzegowo. I was able to see the register for the death of Stanisława’s mother, Julianna, however the Parish Priest stated that he was unable to locate any records of death for Stanisława from 1940 to 1945. The Civil Registration Office advised that they also had no records for this time period to help shed light on where she died, whether it was in Strzegowo or somewhere else.
• Several photographs in my Grandmother’s possession before her death in 1970 show a female named “Janina” with her fiancé, Alek. The photographs appear to be from the 1950s/1960s and I believe it is possibly Janina Lubańska. The photograph of her fiancé, Alek, shows him in a Polish Airman’s uniform and there is a year written on one of the photos indicating the 1960s.
• The Mother of a friend of mine from Warszawa was able to visit the Civil Registration Office and confirm that Janina Lubańska passed away on 17 November 2012. I requested a copy of the death record, or at least to confirm the basics of her death but was denied as I was not immediate family. We did learn that she died in Warszawa. Her place of burial remains unknown.
• My Grandmother had another sister and several nieces and nephews who resided in Strzegowo for many years. I have reconnected with a cousin in Drogiszka, north of Niedzbórz. He did not recognize the individuals in the photographs belonging to my Grandmother and did not know anyone with the surname Lubański/Lubańska.
I understand the privacy laws in Poland are strict and options are sometimes limited, but, my question is, is there anything else I can do to try to locate what happened to my Aunt and her daughter? I feel like I am running out of opportunities to locate what happened and discover the truth.
Any help is greatly appreciated.
Pozdrawiam,
Justin Dombrowski
Sorry about that. I was under the impression her married name was "Lubańska". Unfortunately, the Warsaw Cemetery database requires a surname. You can use a birth or death date to verify that person but her married surname is a must.