Town and Neighborhood Locations

As follows are descriptions of towns in Bohemia, Illinois and Colorado important to the location of the Filipek, the Nemec, and the Sokolik families.

  1. Bohemia
  2. Illinois
  3. Colorado
  4. Minnesota
  5. Also see Filipek Addresses for detailed locations and street addresses through the years.
  6. Also see Nemec Addresses for detailed locations and street addresses through the years.

Bohemia

As follows are text descriptions of towns and locations in Bohemia, now Czechoslovakia related to our Filipek, Nemec, and Sokolik families. Most towns are about 60-80 miles south of Prague and about 20-35 miles from the Austrian border at Gmund. The area seems to have a significant number of small lakes.

Ceske Budejovice

A larger town of about 100,000 just south of Mazelov. It is an important road center, railway hub, and river port and the origin of Budvar (Budweiser) beer. There must have been a significant German presence in this whole area at one time. The town has an inner historic town and a nearby castle. Note the "ice" sound is pronounced "tse". Budejorice is a major rail stop where trains can be obtained southeast to the Austrian border at Ceske Velenice with exchanges to Vienna providing a way that Katherina could have traveled to Vienna to study cooking. Similarly trains can be taken north from Budejovice to Prague and then on to the major ports of Hamburg and Bremen where it is likely Katerina, Vaclav and other Filipeks and Sokoliks sailed to reach America. Katerina's brother Frantisek Nemec was born here. Their parents Martin and Katerina Nemec lived in the city for a few short years in the late 1860s before moving to Lomnice.

Ceske Velenice

This small town of about 4000 is across the Luznice river from Austria and seems to be a gateway to enter or leave this portion of the country. It was part of the town of Gmund under the Austrian Empire. There is a railway center here and it's about 26 miles southeast from Ceske Budejovice. Note the "ice" sound is pronounced "tse".

Frahelz

This town in located about 1 mile north of Lomnice nad Luznici off of Route 150. Martin and Katerina Nemec lived here just after they were married. They had their first son, Tomas, here in 1850 but moved away within a few years.

Hracholuskach

This is the location of the agronomics school Vaclav attended in 1884. It is about 20 miles west of Ceske Budejovice and about 40 miles from Kolence.

Klec

This town is about 1 mile northeast of Lomnice and just north or Route 148. It is the birthplace of Katerina Zelezny, mother of Katerina Nemec. It is about 2km from Kolence.

Kolence

This is the ancestral home of the Filipeks and the location of the farm. It is about 4 miles east of Lomnice on Route 148. It is about 70 miles southeast of Prague. There are two lakes or ponds in the center of town split by the main road.

The following contribution is from Scot.

"As you drive into Kolence from Lomnice nad Luznici (about 6 km away) you're basically going west to east on the Highway 148 (the country road shown in the photo of Ted Curtis with his bike standing in front of the Kolence sign). There are about 15 houses lining the road as you come into town, then when you enter the center of the village there are large ponds on the north and south of the road with houses around them and near them. There's a paved lane that circles the north pond. About a dozen old farmhouses line the paved lane adjacent to the north pond. At the east end of the north pond (on the right if you're looking at the pond from Highway 148) there is a "Jednota," a chain of small co-op grocery stores popular during Communism. The Jednota faces north, toward the paved lane. Across the lane there's a small grassy square and across that, facing southwest back toward the lake and the Jednota is Farm No. 16. There are some old farmhouses on either side of it.

Farm No. 16 is a classic "usedlost" (Czech farm). These were usually built with the farm buildings forming a square with a large courtyard in the middle. Usually you have one or more buildings where the farmer lived at the front, where you normally see the entry gates (one for people, another for equipment). The sides and rear of the square are formed by the barn, stables, stys, workshops, etc. The garden and orchard is usually behind the rear barn, then the fields. There are some big working fields (mostly hay, some corn) immediately around Kolence. There's a dairy farm just behind (north of) the houses lining the north lake.

The old Sokolik Family Farm No. 9 is also located north of the lake facing south toward the lake and paved lane, about 3 - 4 houses west of No. 16 (within a two minute walk of No. 16). It's yellow and may be subdivided into two homes (a different number was on half of it). Its layout is basically the same but with a wider entrance area."

Lomnice nad Luznici

This town of about 2000 is on the Luznice River and is about 13 miles northeast of Ceske Budejovice and about 6 miles northwest of Trebon via Route 150. Lomnice is at the intersection of Routes 150 and 148. Lomnice is also less than 2 miles west of Kolence on Route 148 and less than a mile from Klec.

The Martin and Katerina Nemec family moved here about 1870 and remained the rest of their lives. Our Katerina Filipek (nee Nemec) was about 8 when she moved here with her parents. Thus she lived relatively near her future husband Vaclav Filipek of Kolence. Of note is that Lomnice is about 20 miles northwest of the Austrian border at Gmund/Ceske Velenice via road, similar to the 20 miles that Jeanne Jordan remembered her Grandmother Katherine Filipek telling her. Rose Filipek (nee Skoblik) was also born here in 1900. Lomnice is probably where Katherine Filipek and Rose Filipek both went back to over the years to visit relatives.

Mazelov

This town is about 6 miles west of Lomnice, via 148 and another road. It is also about 2.5 miles northeast on Route 3 from Ceske Budejorice and then east about .6 miles. This is the birthplace of Katerina Nemec in 1862. It is also the birthplace of her father Martin.

Novosedly Nad Nezarkou

This is the location of the parish church and the cemetery for the Filipeks . The town is about 1.5 miles east of Kolence on Route 148.

Sevetin

This town is about 1 mile east of Mazelov.

Stara Illina or Stara Hlina

This town is about 4 miles northeast of Trebon on Route 34. It is thought that this is where Mary Novak, wife of Frank Nemec was born.

Trebon: This town of about 10,000 is on a rail line and is about 13 miles northeast of Ceske Budejovice. The town has a brewery. This is where the registration records are located and it seems to be one of the larger towns near Kolence and Novosedly. It is located at the intersection of Route 34 and Route 150. Trebon is northwest of Ceske Velenice about 15-20 miles. Nearby Trebon is the CHKO Trebonsko nature preserve, part of the lake district and a bird habitat. The area is renowned for canoeing on the Luznice and Nezarkou rivers, and also for biking.

Zablati

This town is a few miles northwest of Lomnice nad Luznici on Route 148. It is the birthplace of Vaclav Filipek's mother, Katerina Ceckova.

Czechoslovakia Locations

  1. A useful link for locating towns in Czechoslovakia is ShtetlSeeker
  2. A useful map link is: Seznam Mapy

 

Illinois

Chicago and Riverside

James and Katherine Filipek settled in Chicago, Illinois in the 1880s. Except for about 5 years from about 1895 to 1900, they lived at various locations between 24th and 30th and between LaSalle and Emerald. Generally John and Theodore Sokolik were with them except that John stayed in Chicago when the Filipeks and Theodore went to Colorado.

Around 1905 John Sokolik left the group and moved about 5 miles south to 6813 S. Emerald and shortly after that to a more permanent home at 6827 S. Union. This was the beginning of a trend as we believe Larry and Mary Barrett started their new home at 7328 S. Union around 1911. Then after James died in 1914, Katherine and her sons joined Larry in this home.

As follows are links to Chicago area maps for our Filipek, Nemec, and Sokolik families.

  1. Chicago Southtown - from 22nd to 36th Street. This page includes addresses and maps for the Filipeks, Nemecs, and Sokoliks.
  2. Chicago Mid South Side - from 50th to 87th Street. This page includes addresses and maps for the Filipeks and Sokoliks.
Riverside

Around 1920 Theodore Sokolik moved to Olmsted Road in Riverside. Later, Katherine and her son John and Rose Skoblik all moved to Olmsted Road next to Theodore in Riverside. Around 1925, James Filipek moved to Addison Road in Riverside. After John and Rose were married, Katherine moved to Burlington Road. Riverside is about 8 miles west of the old grocery store and was a strong Czech community at the time. It is believed that John Sokolik continued to live in Chicago for a while.

As follows are links to Riverside area maps for our Filipek and Sokolik families.

  1. Riverside - This page includes Riverside addresses and maps for the Filipeks and Sokoliks.

 

Colorado

James and Katherine moved to Colorado from about 1895 to 1899 to work on the railroad. James was a foreman and Katherine was a cook for the rail crew. We believe they were went to Pueblo initially but they were also in other towns.

Dawkins

Dawkins was a small town established in 1885 about 10 miles north of Pueblo. In 1905 the town's post office moved to Pinon, possibly the town has ceased to exist except as part of Pinon. On March 18th 1897 James Filipek wrote from Dawkins, Colorado and on December 23rd 1898 John James Filipek wrote to cousin John Sokolik from here.

Pinon

Pinon is a small town established in 1885 about 10 miles north of Pueblo now near Interstate 25. On February 27th 1897 Katherine Filipek wrote from Pinon, Colorado.

Pueblo

Pueblo is about 100 miles south of Denver on Interstate 25. It was formed as a town in 1861 and is drained by the Arkansas and St. Charles Rivers. In the 1890s there was a period of rapid growth and five railroads converged there including the Denver and Rio Grande; Texas and Fort Worth Chicago; Rock Island and Pacific; Atcheson, Topeka, and Santa Fe, and the Missouri Pacific. On January 28th 1896 James and Katherine Filipek were in # 38 Block M, Pueblo, Colorado. We also have photographs of James and Katherine taken a 304 N. Main Street in Pueblo. Theodore Sokolik is shown in the Pueblo City Directory in 1897 as a laborer for the D&RG residing at the Old Union Depot and in 1899 as a Fireman for the D&RGRR. The D&RG is the Denver and Rio Grande. Theodore is also mentioned in the December 23rd 1898 letter from John James Filipek as a fireman on a switch engine in Pueblo.

 

Minnesota

Three children of the Anton and Katherine Filipek Family settled in Minnesota in the 1870s and 1880s. These were Jan and Franceska Filipek, Frantisek and Anna (nee Filipek) Sokolik, and Frantisek and Katerina (nee Filipek) Jana. Key towns of interest are Rush City, St. Paul, and Montgomery.

Montgomery

"Montgomery was founded in 1878 and is located about 10 miles south of New Prague and about 60 miles south of the Twin Cities. A Green Giant Factory was the main industry here for many years. Today's population is 2,399." [CFJ]

The Jan and Franceska Filipek family were shown here during the 1870 and 1885 Censuses. The Sokolik and Jana families lived here during the 1880 Census.

New Prague

"New Prague, Minnesota was founded in 1877 and is located in Le Sueur and Scott Counties in South Central Minnesota about 50 miles south of the Twin Cities. It is about 10 miles north of Montgomery. A third town, Lonsdale is nearby and forms a triangle. Surrounded by farmland (corn, potatoes, beans, etc.) New Prague has also always been the more industrious of the three cities (Montgomery, Lonsdale, and New Prague) with a flour mill being the greatest. Today's population is at 3,560 and still a strong Czech Immigrant Community where Czech is spoken in some local businesses in all three of these towns. " [CFJ]

Theodore Sokolik said he was born in New Prague but we believe he was actually born in Bohemia in 1879. Most likely he didn't know for sure since he was only a few months old when he came. As mentioned above Theodore was in Montgomery during the 1880 Census and in Rush City during the 1885 Census. Perhaps the Sokoliks moved to New Prague and then north to Rush City and Theodore just remembered early years in New Prague.

Rush City

A small town of about 1500 in Chisago County about 50 miles north of St. Paul on the Rush River. It was settled before 1873 and is an agricultural area including grains, cattle, and dairy farming.

The Sokoliks and Janas families lived here during the 1885 Census. Rush City is also where Theodore Sokolik said in his story that he went to stay with his Aunt Katherine Jana (nee Filipek) after his mother died and where Katherine Jana died about 1887. This location is over 100 miles north of Montgomery where the Sokolik and Janas were in 1880 and where Jan Filipek continued to farm.

St. Paul

Now a large city of about 250,000 across the Mississippi River from Minneapolis. It was a major railway center after 1862.

This is where Theodore Sokolik said in his story that his mother Anna Sokolik (nee Filipek) died in about 1886.