“Jaksonas” From Lithuania to America Edward Jackson edited by Anthony Cianciarulo and Irene Jackson Henry December 2002 1 2 “Jaksonas” From Lithuania to America Edward Jackson edited by Anthony Cianciarulo and Irene Jackson Henry December 2002 3 4 INTRODUCTION summer the subject of memoirs arose in conversation with Tony Cianciarulo, and I gave him the draft to read. He not only read it When I came to the United States and learned the language, my but edited them. Later I copied some photos and added them to friends and acquaintances often asked about the circumstances of the draft and then forgot the entire thing. my arrival in this country. Occasionally I told the story to our daughter Irene, our son Ray, and many other people. But once in Marie Manson then sent us a book about her life, so I sent her the a while, questions about our life during the war would come up. draft of my memoirs, and she again encouraged me to finish Several times I had long conversations about the Civil War, them. United States history and World War II with my friend Jim Barrett, and the subject of our adventures in Europe during the In the fall and winter of 2002-2003, our daughter Irene and her ward would come up. Once while I was a member of the husband Bill visited us, and I decided to arrange the memoirs in a Northwest Kiwanis Club, I told the story as part of a program. new format of a half-size page. Irene took the entire thing into her hands, and scanned the photos into the text. They also Later on, Marie Manson and Iris Banks were visiting us at our handled printing and binding as a booklet. cottage and the subject arose again, so we sat and reminisced about the days of our travel. Marie Manson wrote several stories I’d like to thank Tony, Irene, Bill, and all who encouraged me to of her and Elmer’s life and she suggested I should write my story write down the story of those years of turmoil and uncertainty. also. During the winter of 2000, we stayed in Daytona, in the same building with the Barretts, Cianciarulos and the Clarks. My greatest thanks go to my wife Aldona. Tony Cianciarulo was writing his memoirs, and he encouraged me to write mine. In the evenings, when our wives were playing bridge, Jim Barrett would visit me, and again we talked about World War II and the times after the war. After a while I became convinced that maybe I should write about these adventurous times. So I started writing about war-time and our lives just prior to leaving Europe. Later, as my thoughts developed, I recalled that when I was young, I was not interested in my own family’s past. So I expanded the story to include the early years, and a bit about our life in the United States. Then, thinking about our grandchildren, I added a short history of Lithuania, where Aldona and I were born and grew up. I wrote when I had time and eventually developed a draft. One 5 6 THE JAKSONAS FAMILY Ona (Ann - 1861-1939), who was my father’s aunt and was the only one of my great-aunts and great-uncles on my father’s side I I do not know much about the Jaksonas family and how they knew. She died when I was 16 years old. came to settle in Lithuania. The name Jaksonas is not a typically Lithuanian name, and some time in the early 20th Century, my My Father did not talk much about his Grandfather. The only father even investigated changing it to a name that would sound thing I was told is that he was originally Lutheran and was more Lithuanian. Some time ago I asked my father to document baptized and converted to the Catholic Religion on his death bed. some of the family history. He wrote from memory, and started I guess my Great-Grandmother did not want to take any chances with his Grandfather, my great-grandfather. and have her husband die as a Lutheran. My speculation is that he might have been born into the family of a soldier from the Jurgis (George) Jaksonas, my great-grandfather on my father’s Swedish Wars of the 17th century. My Great-Grandfather’s side was born in 1835 in Aleksotas, a suburb of Kaunas on the ancestor could have stayed in Lithuania, married a local girl and south side of the river Nemunas and South of the Old Town. settled down in the Kaunas area. He was a bridge keeper or bridge caretaker. Exactly what he had But the name’s origin may be even more distant than Sweden. to do is not clear. Some time ago I met a Swedish professor at Michigan State University. I mentioned to him that our name was unique for At that time, according to the City of Kaunas map dated 1929, Lithuania and could be of Swedish origin. He said that the name there was probably a wooden bridge to the city, at the location of was not Swedish since in Swedish the diminutive for “John” the Vytautas the Great Church. Later, a new bridge was built and would not be “Jack.” He suggested most likely the name could it is still there today. be Scottish. I was surprised. He married my great-grandmother, Emilija (Emily). It is not Our daughter Irene recently bought a book about the Swedish known when they got married or where and how they lived, but government recruiting Scottish mercenary soldiers to serve in my Father wrote that they had five children. The children were: their army. Considering the Swedish wars of 1655-1657, it is possible that some Scot serving in the Swedish armies could have Jurgis (George), stayed in Lithuania. There are also many records of Scottish merchants and traders in Lithuania as well. Konstantinas (my Grandfather - 1867-1919), My Grandfather Konstantinas married Elena (Helen) Juozas (Joseph), who died when he was only 27 years old, Šveikauskaite. She was born in 1868 and died in Kaunas on December 17, 1946. She is the only grandparent I knew and grew Emilija (Emily), who died in 1918, and up with. They had nine children: 7 8 Ipolitas (Hipolit), who died when he was three years of age and Elena (Helen) was born in 1899. Ona (Ann), who died when she was only two years old. She married Bronius (Brian) Kveseliavičius and passed away in 1977. She had a daughter, Juozas (Joseph), my Father, was next Kristina, who is now living in and was the only boy. He was born Vilnius. in Kaunas on May 22, 1896 and passed away in Lansing, Michigan on May 2, 1987. Aunt Elena and Bronius at their wedding My father Juozas Jaksonas Janina (Johanna or Janine) was born in 1904 and died in 1979. She married Voldemaras (Woldemar) Liakauskas and had a son named Edmundas. He and his family are now living in Šančiai. Aunt Marija on her wedding day Marija (Mary) was born in 1898. She was a seamstress and married late in her life to a Mr. Cimnolonskis, who was Russian. She died relatively young, in 1942. I believe she died of lung Aunt Janina and Woldemara Liakauskas cancer and I remember she was a heavy smoker. 9 10 Emilija (Emily) was born in 1905. She never married and was highly religious. She passed away in 1977. Jadvyga (Hedwig) was born in 1907 and passed away in Russia at an unknown location or date. Ona (Ann) was born in 1906. She married a Mr. Juosapavičius and they Except for Jadvyga and the aunt and uncle who died while still were deported to Siberia together with young, I knew all my aunts on my Father’s side. their two little girls. Her husband died there while working in the forest cutting trees. Eventually aunt Ona and her daughters Jadvyga (Hedwig) and Ona (Ann) escaped Siberia and returned to Lithuania, but were arrested and sentenced to ten years in jail. My aunt Ona passed away in Kaunas in 1996 but Jadvyga and Ona are still living there. Aunt Emilija Jaksonaitė Aunt Ona on her wedding day 11 12 THE VENCKEVIČIUS FAMILY My mother was 15 years old, with no money and a sick mother in a strange town. Fortunately some people in Pskov were kind I know very little about my enough to take them in until my mother could get word back to great grandparents on my Lithuania and get help to go home. Soon after that event, in mother’s side. My grandfather 1916, my grandmother passed away. on my mother’s side was named Leonas (Leon) My Grandfather’s brother, my great-uncle, lived to be 105 years Venckevičius (Venckovich). old and told many stories of his youth. He was born in 1861 and died in Kaunas in 1922, a year One story I remember was about how he managed to stay away before I was born. So I did not from the Russian army “draft.” As you will see later, Lithuania know him. He was a carpenter, was under Russian occupation, and many Lithuanians living on and again not much was ever farm estates were serfs. Serfs were somewhat like slaves in the said about him. My mother United States; their freedom was restricted to one estate and they took care of him when he was were bought and sold. If they could raise enough money, they ill and he died of cancer at the could buy their freedom.