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As follows are recollections of John and Anna Page. Contributions to these recollections were made by: John and Anna Page's daughters Elizabeth Jordan and Anna Ulrich and their grandsons Harold, Herbert, and Edward Jordan, and Harry (Bud) and Ray Ulrich.
John Page
- John Page was born Johann Pajewski in Danzig, West Prussia about 1865. John didn't know his exact birth date so he chose January 1. His relatives would all gather that day at his home to celebrate. His grandson, Ed Jordan recalled they passed around a bucket of beer at the table that day for everyone to fill up their glasses.
- ß John mentioned to his grandson Ed that the town he was from in Germany had a very large toy factory. He also told Ed that one of Ed's B-17 missions was to his hometown. While this would appear to be a great clue, none of the towns on Ed's mission list appear to be anywhere in West Prussia. Ed Jordan's missions to Germany include Berlin, Ruhland (possibly near Dresden), Leipzip, Saarbrucken, Peenemunde, and Brandenburg.
- Ed Jordan recalled hearing that when John landed in New York City from Germany that someone put a stack of pencils in his hand and told him to sell pencils on the street. It is not known whether he was in New York a few days or a year before moving on.
- Ed Jordan recalled hearing that before John came to Chicago he was employed as a lumberjack in Michigan. He believed it was either Bay City or Saginaw. It is not known whether this was for a season or for several years.
- John Page brought his son-in-law, Herbert Jordan, into his construction business for short time. They called it J/P Construction for Jordan/Page Construction. One of their specialties was putting basements under existing houses. This involved jacking up the house, using teams of horses to drag the dirt out, and then building a foundation under the lifted house. This was probably a part time effort for Herbert as he always had other jobs such as a streetcar driver or mailman. Herbert learned his carpentry skills through working with his father-in-law. Later in life, Herbert went into the home contracting business in California.
- According to Bud Ulrich, John Page was fond of wearing blue work shirts.
- John was short in stature about 5 foot 3.
- Ed Jordan recalled that John enjoyed playing a game called Klaberjas where you banged your fist on the table.
- When they were older, John and Anna Page both had wooden rocking chairs. Ray Ulrich now has these chairs.
Anna Page (nee Gainowski)
- Anna Page was born December 3, 1871 in Danzig, West Prussia, Germany. She said she came to this country with her parents when she was age 15. This suggests a year of immigration of about 1886.
- Elizabeth Jordan recalled hearing that her parents were farmers and left because of bad potatoes.
- Ann Ulrich said that her mom Anna Page burned all the pictures of herself and her relatives. How sad. So far the only early ones found are for John and Anna's engagement and wedding.
- Ann Ulrich recalls that when her brother John Jr. died at age 15 months that he was waked at the house. She recalls that he died of obstruction of the bowels.
Page Memorabilia
The following items of memorabilia have been found which originally belonged to the John and Anna Pajewski/Page Family.
- Ray Ulrich has John's and Anna's rocking chair.
- Ray Ulrich has John and Anna's original wedding picture.
- Dave Jordan has one of John's screwdrivers.
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