Many researchers have to take family names and figure out from an Americanized version, what the name had been in Europe. However, this is an example of having to go the other way--and how changing up traditional search techniques can help solve a problem.
Sanshuck is a very uncommon name. It is also the maiden name of my great-great grandmother,
Zlata Tzipra Sanshuck Supkoff. Based on the metrical records I have from her hometown of Krasnoye, Ukraine (near Vinnitsa), it appears that
all of Krasnoye's Sanshucks are descended from one person, Yisrael Sanshuck.
I found ship manifests for two Sanshuck brothers from Krasnoye:
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| Itzko Schinzuk Ship Manifest; Liverpool->Maine; March 1911 |
Itzko Sanshuck came first, in 1911. He was heading to New York, was from "Krasnoje, Russia," and had left his wife Tile behind in Europe.
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| Welwel Sinczuk Ship Manifest; April 1913, Page 1 |
Just over two years later, Welwel Sinczuk of "Krasne, Russia" came to the United States. Who was he going to join?
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| Welwel Sinczuk Ship Manifest; April 1913, Page 2 |
Welwel was going to join his brother "I. Sinczuk," very possibly the Itzko who came in 1911. A third ship manifest confirmed the tie between these individuals:
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| Schinzuk/Sintshuk Manifest; 1922; Page 1 |
In 1922, two women (Mindel Schinzuk and Fila Sintshuk) came along with their children to the United States. Their last residence had been in Bucharest, Romania, although Mindel had been born in "Krasnol, Russia," and Fila and all of the children had been born in "Jampol, Russia" (Yampol, near Krasnoye); they were all going to live in Denver, Colorado. And who were they joining there?
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| Schinzuk/Sintshuk Manifest; 1922; Page 2 |
Mindel and her children were going to join their husband/father William Shintzuk, and Fila and her family were going to join their husband/father Isaak Schinzuk, both living at the same address in Denver. This seems to be brothers Welwel and Itzko--and Fila is likely the Tila who was Itzko's wife. So now all I need to do is track them down in the US. Easy, right? Particularly since we know the English names that the brothers assumed, this should be simple.
First I searched for Sanshucks in Denver. Then I did a wildcard search looking for anyone with a last name matching s*n*k in Denver--and then in the United States. Nothing that looked like these families. So where could they be? With a guess that Tila would have taken the name "Tillie," I searched Ancestry for a couple named Isaac and Tillie who were living in Colorado. The second result looked to be a match!
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| 1930 United States Census; Isaac Sincher Family; Denver, Colorado |
In 1930, Isaac and Tillie Sincher were living in Denver with their children Sarah and Jennie--corresponding to the Sonia and Shentzia on the 1922 ship manifest. Searching for Sinchers in Denver now also led to William and family in the 1930 census:
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| 1930 United States Census; William Sincher Family; Denver, Colorado |
William and Mary (Mindel on the manifest) Sincher were living with their son Myer (Meyer on the manifest) in Denver.
This is a great example of how searching by individuals' first names--and leaving out the family name--can compensate for family name changes, misspellings, and poor indexing.
So how do the Sinchers connect with my family? I'm still working on that, so stay tuned!
Note: I just joined Twitter.
Feel free to follow me (@larasgenealogy).
Nicely done.
ReplyDeleteThanks! I'm using your Pickholtz single surname project as inspiration. :)
DeleteOn the first image, the manifest for Itzko, there's also a Meilach Schinzuk, 4 lines up from the bottom. I assume he's the brother Itzko traveled with. Did you find out what became of him? Also, how did you know, in the first place, that Schinzuk was Sanshuck? Was it suggested as a spelling variant in a broad search?
ReplyDeleteWhoa, I missed Meilach! The brother I alluded to was Welwel who came later. Thank you!
DeleteI found them searching for s*n*k from Russia.
And Meilach's father is Leib! Meilach is 3 years younger than Itzko, so they might be brothers or cousins.
ReplyDeleteI saw that--it's a pretty common Sanshuck name. I'm guessing cousin, since William's father on his grave is Yehudah Aryeh. I'm waiting for death certificates as well, so we'll see about all the Sincher boys' parents!
DeleteLeib is often associated with both Aryeh and Yehuda, so I wouldn't count brother out yet.
DeleteTrue. And I'm also wondering if they're all siblings to my gg grandmother whose father was Aryeh Leib.... I'm hoping at least some of their death certificates contain their mother's name as well.
DeleteNice! I love reading about the research paths others follow. I learn so much.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Amy!
DeleteHello Lara,
ReplyDeleteI'm the great-grandson of William and Mary Sincher who lives in Denver. I'm fascinated the research you have found about the Sincher family. William and Mary Sincher had a daughter Rose who married Sam Rotenberg in Denver in 1924. Are you related to the Sincher's?
Hello! I believe I am related to the Sinchers via my great-great grandmother who was a Sanshuck (which was the original name of the Sinchers). I'd love to be in contact to see if we can figure this out (maybe via DNA testing?). Please contact me at laradiamond AT gmail DOT com.
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