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Lithuanian Roman Catholic (RC) Ancestor Search Information

5 Jun 1917 WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for Casimir (Charles) Miknevicius [My Grandfather's Brother]

Some Comments:

Within this Draft Board district, it appears that all of the entries were filled out by others (probably the Registrar) and the card was then signed by the person who was registering.

Line 1 (Name; age in yrs); "Charlie Mekniavircz" "23" [His name in Lithuania was "Kazimieras Miknevičius". Lithuanian immigrants with first name "Kazimieras" would typically have been expected to adopt "Casimir" (its U.S. equivalent) as their Americanized first names but often chose to adopt the name "Charles" instead. My "best guess" is that he said his

surname was "Mikniavicz" (as spelled in his signature) and that the Registrar instead wrote "Mekniavircz".] Line 2 (Home address): "27 E. 99th Pl.  Chi, Ill" [27 East 99th Place, Chicago, Illinois]. Line 3 (Date of birth): "— 1894".  [I later found that his actual birth date was 8 October 1893]. Line 4 (re: citizenship status): "Alien" [to a genealogy researcher, this indicates that there is no reason to search for a U.S. citizenship application form (at least within the preceding 5 years)]. Line 5 (Where born): "Russia". [Although this line asks for the entry of the town of birth, only the country has been entered.  At that time, the U.S. government (and other world powers) considered that the lands of the Lithuanian people were part of Russia (the "Russian Empire").] Line 6 (Country of which a citizen or a subject): "Russia". [At that time, the U.S. government (and other world powers) considered that the lands of the Lithuanian people were part of Russia (the "Russian Empire") and that Lithuanians living there were subjects of Russia.] Line 7 (re: occupation): "machinist helper". Line 8 (by whom and where employed): "Pullman Co.".  "Pullman Ill." Line 9 (re: dependents): "No". Line 10 (re: marital status and race): "single".  "caucasian". Line 11 (re: military service): — . SIGNATURE (at bottom of front side of card): "Chalis Mikniavicz".

12 Sep 1918 WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for My Grandfather Julius Normant

Some Comments:

Within this Draft Board district, it appears that all of the entries were filled out by others (probably the Registrar) and the card was then signed by the person who was registering.
Item 1 (Name); "Julius Normant" [spelled correctly!]
Item 2 (Permanent Home Address): "11748 Union Av Chi Cook Ill" [11748 (South) Union Avenue, Chicago,
Cook (County), Illinois].
Item 3 (Age in Years): "37".
Item 4 (Date of Birth): "Feb. 8 1881". [I later found that his actual birth date was 8 February 1883].
[Place of Birth: There was no item on this form that asked for place of birth.]
Items 5-9 (Race): Item 5 (White) has a checkmark.
Items 10-14 (U.S. Citizen/ Alien): Item 14 (Non-declarent Alien) has a checkmark [to a genealogy researcher, this indicates that there is no reason to search for a U.S. citizenship application form (at least within the preceding 5 years)].
Item 15 (Nation of which a citizen or a subject): "Russia". [At this time, the U.S. government (and other world powers) considered that the lands of the Lithuanian people were part of Russia (the "Russian Empire") and that Lithuanians living there were subjects of Russia.]
Item 16 (Present Occupation): "Carpenter".
Item 17 (Employer's Name): "Rock Island Car Shops".
Item 18 (Place of Employment or Business): "124 St and Ashland Ave Chi Cook Ill" [(South) 124th Street and (West) Ashland Avenue, Chicago, Cook (County), Illinois].
Item 19 (Nearest Relative; Name): "Jegveg Normant" [The name "Jegveg" can only be a reference to his wife, whose name in Lithuanian was "Jadvyga". My guess is that the Registrar didn't understand his pronunciation of the name "Jadvyga" and incorrectly entered it as "Jegveg".]
Item 20 (Nearest Relative; Address): "11748 Union Ave Chi Cook Ill" [11748 (South) Union Avenue, Chicago, Cook (County), Illinois].

EXAMPLE 2 (5 Jun 1917 Registration): WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for My Grandfather's Brother Casimir (Charles) Miknevicius

Below is a copy of the WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for Casimir (Charles) Miknevicius, the brother of my grandfather Victor Miknis (available at  https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1942-26305-58766-25?cc=1968530&wc=9FCZ-BZ9:928312901,928713301)

U.S. Sources of U.S. Immigrant Lithuanian's Birth Data

U.S. WWI Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918

The World War I (WWI) U.S. Draft Registration Cards are of interest because they have entries for birth place (5 Jun 1917 and 5 Jul 1918 cards only) and birth date. All males within specified birth date ranges were required to register (but non-citizens were not subject to induction into the American military). There were 3 registrations:

5 June 1917 for men ages 21-31.
5 July 1918 for men who turned 21 after 5 June 1917.
12 September 1918 for men ages 18-45 (born between 13 Sep 1872 and 12 Sep 1900).

Here's a link to more information at FamilySearch.org:

https://familysearch.org/search/collection/1968530

Here's another link for information at Ancestry.com:

http://search.ancestry.com/search/db.aspx?dbid=6482 Specifically, refer to the information below the search box for more information about these records.

EXAMPLE 1 (12 Sep 1918 Registration): WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for My Grandfather Julius Normant

Below is a copy of the WWI U.S. Draft Registration Card for my grandfather Julius Normant (available at

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1961-26305-43961-78?cc=1968530)