My ancestry from Silesia is very rich. My ancestors lived in Upper Silesia for many generations. My ancestral family names include: Lepiarczyk, Kania, Szymura, Jagielka, Groborz, Hennich, Szula, Nowak, Matuszek, Gruszka, Bernacisko, Mathysik, and Duda.
My Silesian ancestors lived in the proximity of Rybnik, Zabrze, Gross Rauden, Gottartowitz, Kleschczow (near Sohrau), and Jankowitz (near Pless). Today Gross Rauden is known as Rudy; Gottartowitz as Gotartowice; Sohrau, Zory; Jankowitz, Jankowice; and Pless, Pszczyna.
It will be a distinct pleasure to communicate with anyone who is related to my ancestral families. I look forward to visiting my Silesian ancestral homeland. I would like to meet "cousins" when I am in Upper Silesia.
I have become acquainted with a magnificent genealogist who lives in Upper Silesia. I recommend him most highly. Please contact me for further information.
Splendid landmarks I remember from Upper Silesia include the magnificent Saint Anthony's Basilica in Rybnik, the castles and grounds in Rudy and Pszczyna, a lovely restaurant and patio cafe in Stodoly, and a memorable night club in Rybnik. Silesian culture is fabulous!
My Lepiarczyk family ancestors lived in the proximity of Gross Rauden, Podbiala, and Stanitz (now Stanice). The church in Rudy is lovely. I am most grateful that baptismal, marriage, and death records have been as well preserved as they are in the church rectory.
Although many Upper Silesians do not speak English, it is easy to feel very welcome in Upper Silesia! My relatives in Rybnik and Rudy are precious. Seeing the home where my father grew up and the school he attended in Rybnik were very impressionable. The graves of many of my ancestors and family members are in the Rybnik Cemetery. I was particularly proud to visit the graves of my grandfather, grandmother, great-grandmother, uncle, great-uncle, and relatives in the Rybnik Cemetery.