Paul Pavelka

Can anyone verify that Paul Pavelka's family was of Czech origin? Pilot Pavelka was born in the US but there is "general assumption" in some camps that his ancestry was Czech.

I ask because "Zdenìk Èejka" ( aviatika@volny.cz ) is writing about early eastern European aviators, and those whose families originated there, and would like to confirm the origins of Pavelka's family. Any legitimate documentation would be helpful. Dennis Gordon was a little vague on this particular detail.

Thanks!

":O) Willis

[Frank_Olynyk]

Do you have his date and place of birth? Do you know where he was living at the time of the US 1900, 1910, 1920 or 1930 census? Each of those censuses will have the nationality of parents as reported. They can be found, in a searchable form on Ancestry.com (for a fee, of course).

Frank.

[saruffin]

Using my handy-dandy library card for access, I checked the U.S. census for 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930, and a total of only two Paul Pavelkas appear. Both are too old to have been a WWI aviator, and both, incidentally, were born in Hungary. Lots of people don't show up on the census, though, so it's impossible to say anything for certain. Did our Pavelka perhaps have another first name other than Paul?

[TomVrille]

Originally Posted by saruffin

I checked the U.S. census for 1900, 1910, 1920, and 1930, and a total of only two Paul Pavelkas appear. Both are too old to have been a WWI aviator, and ... were born in Hungary. ... Did our Pavelka perhaps have another first name other than Paul?

The Paul Pavelka who flew with the Lafayette Escadrille was actually a Jr., the son of Paul and Anna Pavelka. The results of your census search most likely referred to Paul Pavelka Sr. Following the biography by Dennis Gordon in TLFC, Pavelka's parents immigrated from Budapest to the U.S., so your research of the census entries adds the information that Paul Pavelka Sr. was actually born in Hungary.

Again following Gordon, Paul Pavelka Jr. was born in New York City (Bronx) on 26 October 1890. The only census figures that might identify the younger Pavelka would be the 1900 count for the state of New York. By 1908, Paul Pavelka had left home (by then in Madison, Connecticut), and taken to the road, travelling widely across the US and Canada. At the time of the 1910 census, he was probably in the Canal Zone. Paul Pavelka of the Lafayette Escadrille was killed in a horseback riding accident in Salonika in 1917.

If Pavelka was born at home, with either a physician or midwife attending, there might not be any record of his birth in the New York archives. I know that as late as 1896, birth registration was optional for at-home deliveries at a cost of, I believe, 50 cents.

[saruffin]

I took a closer look at the actual census form for 1900, and sure enough, Paul Pavelka Jr. is listed as the only child of Paul Sr. and Annie Pavelka. Paul Sr. was born in 1866 and Annie in 1871--both in Hungary. They emigrated to the U.S. in 1891 and lived in the Borough of Manhatten, New York. Paul Jr. is listed as having been born in New York on October 18, 1892.

In the 1910 census, the family now lives in Oneida County, Verona Township, New York. Paul Sr.'s wife is now listed as "Barbara" (age 26) and Paul Jr., age 17, still lives at home. In addition, there are now two younger brothers and a baby sister.

Probably more than you wanted, but there it is, right from the official primary source.