The Filipek Story

Introduction

Prelude

by Dave Jordan

In December 1977, I wrote The Story of James and Katherine Filipek. Since that time, much new information has been found. In addition other stories about other branches of the Filipek Family have become available. With the creation of Our Filipek Family web pages, I have decided to update and expand the various stories into a larger framework. The resulting, The Filipek Story, is a collection of short stories by various authors about different chapters and branches in the lives of and descendants of Anton and Katerina Filipek. With time, others may contribute their own stories leading to a growing work on the origins and history of the Filipek Family.

The stories are collected into two major parts. The first called Our Origins in Bohemia focuses on our early roots from the 18th and 19th centuries in southern Bohemia. The second part Anton and Katerina Filipek Descendants provides chapter space for each of their descendant branches.

In Our Origins in Bohemia, there are currently three contributions. These include Origins of the Filipek Family, which discusses the early history of the Filipeks in Kolence and the surrounding area. Next is Vladimir Kandl's Four Hundred Years of Filipek Farm Ownership, an interesting list of all owners of the Filipek Family Farm. And next there is Origins of the Nemec Family, which will be of interest to descendants of Vaclav Filipek and Katerina Nemec.

In Anton and Katerina Filipek Descendants sections are provided for each of their children. Within these sections, there are chapters for the various descendant families and in some cases, their descendant families.  As further chapters are written, they will be added.

Of the seven surviving original descendant families, three, the Frantisek and Mary Palecek Family, the Frantisek and Marie Filipek Family and the Jakob and Rosalie Kandl Family stayed in Bohemia. Later, five of seven of the Palecek children and one child of Frantisek Filipek came to America.

Four of the seven original descendant children came to America. Jan Filipek came first in about 1869 to Minnesota and his story is described in The Jan and Francesca Filipek Story. Frank and Anna Sokolik (nee Filipek) arrived in Minnesota a decade later in 1879. Their story is related in The Frank and Anna Sokolik Story. Their son, Theodore Sokolik's My Life as I Lived It relates their early life in America. What little we know about the Frank and Katherine Jana (nee Filipek) is related in The Frank and Katerina Jana Story. Vaclav and Katerina Nemec arrived in Chicago in the 1880s. Theirs is a complicated story of back and forth to Bohemia including a 5-year adventure in Colorado in the 1890s before finally settling down in Chicago in 1900.  Their story is told in The James and Katherine Filipek Story.

While readers may wish to initially focus on stories in their branch, for those interested in every nugget of information on the life and times, you may wish to read the other stories to gain additional insights and find connections between them.

If you wish to make a literary contribution, please contact Dave via e-mail.

Notes

1. Initial Web Publication Date: early 2001
2. Modified: 11/26/2009
3. Desktop Master file: Stories_Filipek