Hi,
I'm researching my family's line of Stephen Joseph Vajda men who lived in Bergen County, New Jersey for most of the 20th century. My great Grandfather, Stephen Sr. (born in NY State 1898-1987) married Anna Justina Yurina (born 1899? in Slovakia, parents Joseph and Ustina Yurina). Stephen Joseph Vajda Sr. said that the line of SJV's goes back further than he could remember, yet I've hit a brickwall trying to locate any older SJV's. Also interested in the Yurina family I've mentioned. Given the timespan these people immigrated they are sometimes refered to as Austrian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, or Bohemian due to the shifting political boarders (Austria-Hungary came and went, Czechoslovakia formed).
My current theory is that SJV Sr.'s father was the Stephen White (where White is an Americanized version of Vajda) who lived next door to the Yurina family as reported in the 1910 US Census. It's a stretch, but Stephen White had a son Stephen the correct age to be my great-grandfather SJV Sr. and it explains why SJV Sr. was called senior. His dad kept White. The White pare
nts also report Slovakia as their place of birth. As far as I know, White is definitely not a Slovakian name. I just hope SJV Sr. got the name right, because there are a ton of different spellings. I could be way off with this though.
Sound familiar to anyone? Please email me at
jvajda@gmail.com.