Kathy, Here are a couple Ushkurnis references that came up in the Worcester Telegram. (There were others as well but maybe not as relevant.) And yes, there has definitely been a Polish enclave in Worcester since the 1890s. This surname spelling seems so corrupted, though, I'd put as much money on it being Lithuanian as being Polish in origin. A lot of surnames that sound like a Polish-Lithuanian hybrid came from the area around and south of today's Vilnius. Worcester's old Polish neighborhood and old Lithuanian neighborhood are more or less the same neighborhood, which had one Polish and two Lithuanian parishes. Barbara Proko coauthor, The Polish Community of Worcester and the forthcoming Worcester County's Polish Community Paper: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA) Title: Mary R. (Cronin) Ushkurnis, 82 Date: December 25, 2003 WORCESTER Mary R. (Cronin) Ushkurnis, 82, of 14 Fairlawn Dr., died Monday, December 22, 2003, in UMass Memorial Hospital after an illness. Her husband, Edward P. Ushkurnis, died in 1987. She leaves two sons, James E. Ushkurnis and his wife Barbara of Paxton, Michael P.Ushkurnis of Worcester; two daughters, Mary Ann Mercier and her husband Steven of Holden, and Ann M. DiGregorio and her husband Leo of Holden; and three grandsons, Derek J. Ushkurnis of Paxton, Michael L. and Daniel J. DiGregorio of Holden and several nephews and nieces. ... The funeral for Mrs. Ushkurnis will be held on Monday, December 29, from the Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main St., Holden, with a Mass at 10 a.m. in St. Mary's Church, 114 Princeton St., Jefferson. Burial will follow in St. John's Cemetery, Worcester. Calling hours are from 3 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, December 28, in the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Why Me Sherry's House, 1152 Pleasant St., Worcester, 01602; or the American Red Cross, Worcester Chapter, 61 Harvard Street, Worcester, MA 01609 (www.milesfuneralhome.com) Paper: Worcester Telegram & Gazette (MA) Title: MOM-TO-BE TEACHES `HOPE' Date: December 7, 1998 ... Irma Gennaro of Why Me said that for the third year, Ushkurnis Photography of Worcester provided complimentary photographs for each family. ... --- [email protected] wrote: > From: K <[email protected]> > To: [email protected] > Subject: Ushkurnis/Kozakiewicz > > I'm helping a friend in Poland do research in the > US. She knows her > grandmother Dorotea Kozakiewicz came to the US in > 1911. Her destination > was New Jersey but we're following the lead to > Worcester, Mass because > my friend was told her grandmother might have > eventually moved there. In > 1914 one of Dorotea's daughters Jozefa Kozakiewicz > followed her mother > to the US and married in New Jersey. We have not > been able to find her > there in later years. Jozefa married Konstanty > OSZKURNIS (or OSZKURNY, > USZKURNIS, USHKURNIS, etc.) We have found a Peter > Ushkurnis who lived in > Worcester, Mass with his wife and two sons. He was > born in about the > same time as Konstanty. We don't know where he was > born. > > The surname Ushkurnis or variations seems to be > unusual. The only ones > we've found who are in a place the family is likely > to be found is Peter > and his family in Worcester. Konstanty Oszkurnis > seems to have vanished > after the marriage in 1914 but the flu epidemic > followed so closely it's > possible he didn't survive. The Ushkurnis connection > is the only one we > have to the two women we're ultimately trying to > find - Dorotea > Kozakiewicz and her daughter Jozefa Kozakiewicz > Oszkurnis. Any help or > suggestions will be very much appreciated. Is there > anywhere I can look > at obits for Worcester? Are there any Polish > enclaves? > > Thanks! > Kathy > __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Tired of spam? Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around http://mail.yahoo.com