F is for Fathers

Clockwise from top left: paternal grandfather James Pointkouski, great-grand Joseph Bergmeister, great-grand Louis Pater, my dad, great-grand Joseph Zawodny, maternal grandfather Henry Pater

Continuing the Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge…F is for Fathers! I had a lot of different ideas for the letter “F”. Would I write about Family in general, or cheat and use Family Photographs? Or how about the Faith of my ancestors? Or the only “F” surname I have in my tree, Fischer? Or maybe the few Farmers among my ancestors? No, there was only one choice in the end. I’m one of the few American bloggers participating in the challenge, and I’ve been posting my efforts each Sunday.  This particular Sunday we celebrate Father’s Day in the United States, and what would family history be without fathers (and mothers)?

Signature of my 2nd great-grandfather on an 1866 baptismal record from Warsaw: Stanisław Piątkowski, ojciec (father)

As I’ve researched my family history, I’ve encountered many kinds of fathers. There were the prolific, such as my 3rd great-grandfather, Jakob Bergmeister, who fathered fifteen children in nineteen years. Back then, the infant mortality rate was much higher, so many of those children died. In more recent times, my one great-grandfather raised six children and my 2nd great-grandfather brought his six to the United States from Poland. I can’t think of any fathers who had only one child, but several had only two. There were young fathers, like my great-grandfather Louis Pater, who was only 18 years old when my grandfather was born. There are also some older fathers, such as my brother and our grand-uncle – both were both less than 3 months shy of 50 years old when their sons were born. Unfortunately in that same grand-uncle’s case, Joseph Perk, he is the only father on my family tree to be deceased when his child was born (one week later). Some fathers in the family lived long lives and got to know their grandchildren, while others died young and barely knew their own children. Some worked hard to provide for their families while others stumbled. But all of the fathers did their best – it’s what fathers do!  Here’s to all of the fathers on our family trees!

[Written for the weekly Family History Through the Alphabet Challenge]