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Birth: 11 Sep 1894 Enacoval, Czechoslovakia
Death: Jun 1983
Father: John BELLAS (Janos Belasz?)
Mother: Anna FRATE
Misc. Notes
Social Security Death Index: (note
McKeesport is in Allegheny Co.)
JOHN
BELLAS SSN:
172-07-8935
Last
Residence: 15133 Mc
Keesport, Allegheny, PA
Born:
11 Sep 1894 Died:
Jun 1983
OBSERVATIONS FROM SANDRA BELLAS
COFFEY, 9/5/03:
Your SSDI
info on my paternal grandparents is correct.
They lived on Lysle Boulevard in Port Vue. Port Vue is a tiny, generally insignificant,
cemetery-ridden town right next to the very large, well-known (within PA at
least) city of McKeesport.
Although I
knew both of my paternal grandparents, they weren't very talkative about their
lives in the old country; nor were my parents.
Also, I was very young while they were very old and wasn't interested
then in genealogy to ask the right questions.
Grandma Bellas came over to stay with her sister who married into the
Pikula family.
“I am from
the second generation of US citizens. Both grandma and grandpa Bellas were
immigrants. My dad was born here in the states. I broke down one day and sent
money for my paternal grandpa’s Social Security (application) form. Here is the
info:”
John Bellas 914
Lyle Avenue, Port Vue, PA
Present
employer: McKeesport Tin Plate Co. age
at last birthday: 42
Date of
birth: 9/11/1894 Birthplace:
Enacoval, Czechoslovakia
Father’s
full name: John Bellas Mother’s
full name: Anna Frate
Signed on
11/23/36
REPORT OF CONVERSATION, SANDRA
BELLAS COFFEY WITH HER UNCLE EDDIE, 9/5/03:
Grandfather
John Bellas worked at the National Tube Works in McKeesport as a roughneck
(whatever that means). Got a hernia
during the Great Depression so lost his job but got rehired shortly for the
shipping and tagging of pipes. I asked
him about the type of person my grandpa was as a father: "He was tough and always boss and extremely
domineering; he was one of the reasons I took off." He came from Czechoslovakia before the
depression. Worked 12 hours a day.
"Ma and pa had hard lives in the old country and here but they
raised their kids well and tried to steer them in the right direction."
Pa used to
make root beer. It was put into glass
bottles and left in the yard to ferment; afterwards it cooled in the
basement. "Root beer was a big deal
to us because there weren't too many pleasures in life for us." (Apparently there were other pleasures
because he then remembered going to Isaly's to get hand packed ice cream as a
"Sunday party deal".)
(At this
point my dad got on the phone. He teases me when I ask questions. Told me that no dogs or cats were safe during
the depression because my uncles ate them.
Laughed when I believed him, but I said, "You're my father and if
you tell me something, I expect it's true." Couldn't get any more info -
Willie was coming over to take all of them out for dinner.)
JOHN BELLAS: ARRIVAL IN AMERICA:
He arrived
in the port of New York on 23 Jul 1911, from Hamburg, on the ship “President
Lincoln”. His name was recorded on the ship manifest as “Janos Belasz” (which got indexed as “Jams Belasz”). He was
born in what was then Hungary, but his ethnicity was “Slovakian”. His nearest
relative back in Hungary was his father, “Janos B”. His destination is
McKeesport, PA, where he plans to go to a relative or friend who lives at 219
Mulberry, McKeesport. It’s really hard to read the info about the person living
there, but my best shot is “bro in law Miklas Jabon”. (Wonder if anything resembling
that family name might ring a bell for Sandra?) His paid his own passage, is
traveling in “steerage”, and he has $24 in his pocket, and his height is 5’ 8”.
WWI DRAFT REGISTRATION (1917):
He
registered as John Bellas, he lived at 444 Mulberry St., McKeesport, and he
gave his birth date as October 15, 1894. He is an alien, and gave his birth
place as "Scolinos Ung. Hungarian" (not sure about the spelling). His
nationality is Hungarian. He is presently employed, and works as a laborer in
the National Tube Co., in their National Works. He lists a wife as his
dependent, he is married, he is Caucasian. He has had no military service, he
does not claim exemption from the draft. His description is "tall",
of "medium" build, with "light" eyes and "light brown"
hair. He is not disabled. He registered in May, 1917, in McKeesport.
1920 CENSUS, PENNSYLVANIA, ALLEGHENY
CO., MCKEESPORT WARD 1:
Family got
indexed as "Ballas". John and Julia live on Mulberry Alley (per
census taker margin note), and have a daughter "Hellen", who appears
to be 17 months old. John is 25, Julia is 23, and they both are reported to
have entered the country in 1912. John is marked "Alien", meaning he
has not yet acquired citizenship. Both claim they can read and write, and both
can speak English. Both were born in Hungary, and their mother tongue is
Slovak. The same is true for both of their parents. John is a laborer in a
steel mill.
1925 DECLARATION OF INTENTION:
He filed a
declaration of intention to seek citizenship on 12 May, 1925. At that time he
lived at 413 Water St., McKeesport, with his wife Julia. This got him a
Certificate of Arrival, issued 12 April 1930, confirming his arrival
particulars (see above).
1930 PETITION FOR CITIZENSHIP:
This tells
us a lot about John, including the fact that his name was originally Janos Belasz – confirming
above immigration info. He reports he applied May 12, 1925, under the name John Bellas and he lives at 914
Lysle Avenue, Port Vue, McKeesport, Allegheny Co., PA. His occupation was Laborer. He was born in Enacovce, Austria Czecno Slovakia,
on September 14, 1894 and his
race is Slovak. His wife is Julia and they were married September 16th 1916
at McKeesport, PA. She was born at Nacinovia,
Czecho Slovakia on February
16th 1893, and she entered the USA through New York in 1912.
They have 6
children: Helen (born Mar 12
1918), John (Mar 8, 1920), Margaret (Dec 23, 1922), Larry (Feb 25, 1924), Edward (Nov 16, 1927), and William (Mar 5, 1929).
He says he
emigrated from Enacovce
through Hamburg, Germany, to New York, under the name Janos Belasz, arriving on July 23rd 1911 on the vessel President Lincoln.
1930 CENSUS, PENNSYLVANIA, ALLEGHENY
CO., PORT VUE:
(Family was
indexed as “Belles”, even though original census image actually appears to show
“Bellas”. Quality of the copy is terrible.)
John is age
36, Julia is age 37. They own their home, worth $1200(?), they don’t own a
radio, and they do not live on a farm. They were married when John was 22 and
Julia was 23. They are able to read and write. They, and all their parents,
were born in Czechoslovakia. Before coming to the United States, their language
was Slovak. John came to the US in 1911, Julia in 1912. Whether or not they
were naturalized, and whether they spoke English, are both illegible. John’s
job is as a laborer in a steel mill.
There are
six children living at home. Helen is 12, John is 10, Margaret is 8(?), Lydia*
is 6, Edward is 3 and some months, William is 1 and some months. Helen, John
and Margaret have been attending school, and Helen and John can read and write.
All the kids were born in Pennsylvania.
*(About Lutzie/Larry/Lydia/Milan:
The family apparently called this fourth child “Lutzie”, and still do. But
that’s an unusual name, and maybe the transcriber of the 1930 Citizenship Petition
thought he heard “Larry”. And maybe the 1930 census taker thought he heard
something like “Lydia” – and concluded it must be a female name. By the
1940 census, the teenager apparently decided the name “Milan” was easier. And
“Milan” is what he used when he applied for Social Security. Until advised
otherwise, I’m going to call him “Lutzie Milan Bellas”!)
1940 CENSUS, PENNSYLVANIA, ALLEGHENY
CO., PORT VUE:
Here’s the
basic data:
NAME AGE YEAR STATUS BORN
John Bellas 45 1895 Head Cz
Julia Bellas 47 1893 Wife Cz
Helen Bellas 22 1918 Dau PA
John Bellas 20 1920 Son PA
Margaret
Bellas 18 1922 Dau PA
Milan Bellas 16 1924 Son PA
Edward
Bellas 13 1927 Son PA
William
Bellas 10 1930 Son PA
Frank Bellas 4 1936 Son PA
They own
their home, worth $2200. John and Julia report their place of birth as “Czch
Slovak”. It appears John has been naturalized, but not Julia. They have a 6th
grade education. They live in the same house as they did in 1935. John is a
laborer in a steel tube mill, works a 40 hour week. Daughter Helen does
housework, worked 40 hours. Son John is an upholsterer, worked 23 hours.
Note their
next door neighbors are the Pikula family, headed by George and Mary, and their
7 children. Sandra reports (see earlier note) that Mary Pikula was Julia’s sister.
Mary is age 55, so she is about 7-8 years older than Julia. (See also Julia’s
immigration records, below.)
WWII DRAFT REGISTRATION:
John Bellas
lives at 914 Lyle Avenue, Port Vue, Allegheny, PA. He was born 11 Sep 1894 in
Enacovce, Czechslovakia (believe that would now be Iňačovce,
Slovakia?) His wife is Julia Bellas, and he works for National Tube Works,
McKeesport, PA. He is 5’7” tall, weighs 205 pounds, with brown eyes, brown
hair, and ruddy complexion.
Marriage: 16 Sep 1916
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Spouse: Julia
PAVELKO
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Birth: 13 Feb 1893
Death: 8 Apr 1988
Misc. Notes
JULIA BELLAS SSN:
162-50-5966
Last
Residence: 15133 Mc Keesport, Allegheny, PA
Born:
13 Feb 1893
Died:
8 Apr 1988
State
(Year) SSN issued: PA (1973)
Here’s her
immigration data:
Name: Pavelko*, Julia Ethnicity: Hungary, Slovak
Place of
Residence: Natafalva, Hungary Date of Arrival: April 15, 1913
Age on
Arrival: 20y Gender: F
Marital Status: S Ship
of Travel: Pannonia
Port of
Departure: Carnaro, Triest, Austria
*Indexed as
“Pavelleo”
DETAILS FROM
VIEWING THE ACTUAL MANIFEST:
She appears
to be traveling alone. She is a laborer, and able to read and write. She
reports that she has never been in the USA before and that she has $17 (?
number hard to read). She is going to meet her brother-in-law “Pikula ___” in
Molbery (?) Alley, McKeesport, PA. She is 5’ tall, dark complexion, fair hair,
blue eyes.
And she
names her nearest relative as her father,
Mihaly Pavelko who lives in Natafalva, Hungary. (From other family, I
know that “Mihaly” is Hungarian for “Michael”. Also learned that Natafalva,
Hungary is now Nacina Ves, Slovakia, population 1750. That’s about 22 km from Iňačovce, Slovakia, where
husband John was born. Today Iňačovce has about 625 people. See
Google Maps.)
THE SHIP
“PANNONIA”:
Built by
John Brown & Company, Clydebank, Scotland, 1904. 9,851 gross tons; 501 (bp)
feet long; 59 feet wide. Steam triple expansion engines, twin screw. Service
speed 14 knots. 840 passengers (40 first class, 800 third class). Built
for Anchor Line, British flag, in 1904 and named Pannonia. London-New
York, Mediterranean-New York service. Scrapped in 1922.
REPORT OF CONVERSATION, SANDRA
BELLAS COFFEY WITH HER UNCLE EDDIE, 9/5/03:
His mother
loved gardening. Grew beautiful
roses. Didn't do hard labor of digging
but did weeding. (Uncle Eddie asked if I
knew her really well but she was very reserved with my sister and I. I felt closer to my grandpa than her.) She
grew up on a Czechoslovakian farm. Her
sister did marry a Pikula.
Children
(1) John
BELLAS (11 Sep 1894 - Jun 1983)
& Julia
PAVELKO (13 Feb 1893 - 8 Apr 1988)
(2) Helen BELLAS (12 Mar 1918 - )
(2) John BELLAS (8 Mar 1920 - Feb 1959)
(2) Margaret BELLAS (23 Dec 1922 - )
(2) Lutzie Milan BELLAS (25 Feb 1924 - )
(2) Edward BELLAS (16 Nov 1927 - )
(2) William BELLAS (5 Mar 1929 - )
(2) Frank Raymond BELLAS (20 Feb 1936 - )
& Dorothy Louise RASZEWSKI (9 Oct 1932
- )
APPENDIX:
THE PIKULA FAMILY CONNECTION:
CAUTION: BE VERY CAREFUL:
There are two families who lived variously in Port Vue and McKeesport (across
the river from each other). Both families are headed by a George Pikula, both with
a wife Mary, both who named their first two children George and John. Both with
the parents born in Czechslovakia, and with the kids born in Pennsylvania. I
found lots of records for each family, and it drove me crazy until I realized
they were NOT the same family. You DO NOT want the family headed by a George
born about 1880-81, with the third child named Susan. The RIGHT FAMILY is with
the George born circa 1885-87, with the third child named Mike.
Sandra, in
the above, reported that Julia’s sister married into a Pikula family. Then I
spotted that the Pikulas were next door neighbors to the Bellas family in 1940
and 1930, and were nearby in 1920. A
number of things then came together, and I was able to find numerous references
for this Pikula family. And also found there were actually two descendants of
this Pikula family who had posted genealogies on ancestry.com.
This Pikula
family was headed by George Pikula. I found György Pikula’s arrival in New York
on 5 Sep 1900 on the ship “Lahn”. Said he was headed for McKeesport, to his
brother. (And he was apparently followed by another brother, Mihaly Pikula, in
May 1901, who was going to find brother George in McKeesport.) Found George
Pikula’s naturalization records, giving birth dates for himself, his wife, and
6 children.
His wife is
Mary in each census. But the ship manifest names her as “Maria” Pavelko, who
arrived in New York on 10 Aug 1904 at age 18, with occupation “maid servant”.
She is from Dobra, in what is now Slovakia. (That’s about 35 miles from Nacina
Ves, sister Julia Pavelko’s departure point.) And Maria is headed for McKeesport
to find a brother in law (name looks like “Mihaly Tabor”?) The ship is the
“Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse”.
CHILDREN:
(1) George (György) PIKULA (24 Apr 1886 - )
& Mary (Maria) PAVELKO (10 May 1888 - )
(2) George PIKULA (21 Mar 1905
- )
(2) John PIKULA (28 Mar 1907 -
)
(2) Michael PIKULA (16 Aug
1910 - )
(2) Mary PIKULA (abt 1913 - )
(2) Lena (Irene) PIKULA (16 Aug 1918 - )
(2) Helen PIKULA (18 Apr 1920
- )
(2) Elizabeth PIKULA (14 Feb
1924 - )
(2) Joseph PIKULA (abt 1928 -
)
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