Tag Archives: Kos

Orlo Guy Leininger

Leave a reply

Orlo Guy Leininger
birth: 4 June 1917 in Rockford, Mercer, Ohio to Edwin Anton and Lola May Landfair Leininger
death: 10 December 1996 in Portage, Porter, Indiana
burial: Graceland Cemetery, Valparaiso, Porter, Indiana

marriage: 25 June 1955 in St. Marks Roman Catholic Church, Gary, Lake, Indiana
Dorothy Elizabeth Koss
birth: 14 April 1918 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois to Mara “Mary Violet” and Ivan “John” Kos[s]
death: 4 October 2001 in Dunedin, Pinellas, Florida
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

Children of Dorothy Elizabeth Koss and Orlo Guy Leininger:

  • Living

Ancestor here lived in:

Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Orlo Guy Leininger was the oldest of three children born to Edwin Anton and Lola May Landfair Leininger on 4 June 1917 in Rockford, Mercer, Ohio. By 1920, the family had relocated to Blue Creek, Adams, Indiana. The following year they were living in Pleasant Mills, Decatur, Indiana. The family moved often as his father managed farms. The family settled in Fort Wayne, Allen, Indiana where Guy, as he liked to be called, attended the South Wayne Bethel United Brethren Sunday School in 1926, being promoted from the primary to the junior department. Guy attended Wayne Township schools where he received an honor roll certificate on 20 May 1927. After that school year ended the family relocated to 106 South Washington Street, Hobart, Lake, Indiana where Edwin had found work as a railroad car inspector. Guy joined the Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Sunday School. He was baptized on 29 January 1931 at the First Methodist Episcopal Church in Hobart. On 5 May 1933, Guy successfully completed 8th grade. He matriculated the following year to Hobart Senior High School where he received a diploma on 26 May 1939. His World War 2 Draft Card, completed on 16 October 1940, shows he was living with his parents in Hobart and he was employed at Carnegie Illinois Steel Corporation. He had brown hair, hazel eyes and a ruddy complexion. Guy served in the U.S. Army as a Military Policeman in Alaska between 4 June 1942 and 6 November 1945. His parents had bought the Arvilla Dairy in the mid-1940s, around the time his father began working for the post office in Hobart. When Guy returned from the service he found work at US Steel and helped his father farm. It was at US Steel that he met Dorothy Elizabeth Koss; the two were wed on 25 June 1955 at St. Marks Roman Catholic Church in Gary, Lake, Indiana. They resided in an apartment in downtown Gary and relocated with their infant to one along Lake St. George in Hobart. In fall 1956 they purchased a home at 816 South Main Street. The cottage has been raised. The union was short lived, after one child, the couple separated in May 1962 and Guy returned to live at his parent’s farmhouse on R.R. 2. After his mother died in 1964, Guy’s father decided to sell the dairy and move back to Fort Wayne. Guy purchased the property, working at farming and at U.S. Steel. He married second to the widowed neighbor, Myrna Elizabeth Allgor Schavey on 26 November 1965in Hobart. They had no children together, though she had four from her first marriage and two step-children. He then rejoined the Trinity Lutheran Church in Hobart and received his first communion on 26 June 1966. In 1980, after 40 years as a Loader and a member of USW Local 10, he retired. Guy loved dogs, especially collies. He also operated a pony ride business in the late 1950s through the 1960s. He often was seen driving a surrey in a local parade. By 1984 he was renting his farm land and using the cow barn to hold auctions. He developed Parkinsons Disease and resided at Fountainview Place in Portage where he died on 10 December 1996. He is buried in Graceland Cemetery, Valparaiso, Porter, Indiana, beside his parents.

m. 2nd Myrna Elizabeth Allgor (1922-2011) no children together

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com

Dorothy Elizabeth Koss

Leave a reply

Dorothy Elizabeth Koss
birth: 14 April 1918 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois to Mara “Mary Violet” and Ivan “John” Kos[s]
death: 4 October 2001 in Dunedin, Pinellas, Florida
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

marriage: 25 June 1955 in St. Marks Church, Gary, Lake, Indiana
Orlo Guy Leininger
birth: 4 June 1917 in Rockford, Mercer, Ohio to Edwin Anton and Lola May Landfair Leininger
death: 10 December 1996 in Portage, Porter, Indiana
burial: Graceland Cemetery, Valparaiso, Indiana

Children of Dorothy Elizabeth Koss and Orlo Guy Leininger:

  • Living

Ancestor here lived in:

Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Dorothy Elizabeth Koss was the eldest child of four born to her immigrant parents, Mara “Mary Violet” and Ivan “John” Kos[s] on 14 April 1918 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois. Dorothy was born at her parent’s Pullman housing residence as Mary feared a mixup if she gave birth at a hospital. Dorothy was named after Mary’s younger sister who died before the family emigrated from Austria-Hungary. Dorothy was christened at St. Salomea’s Roman Catholic Church in Chicago on 28 April 1918. By the fall of 1918 the family had relocated to Gary, Lake, Indiana where Dorothy’s father and paternal grandfather had found work with I.I.B. Teaming Company. Dorothy lived with her parents, maternal grandparents, uncle, and aunt at 1521 Garfield Street. After her grandfather’s death during the influenza epidemic, the family moved to 2636 Harrison Street. Dorothy recalled playing on the hill and in the backyard grape arbor as a child. She, along with her siblings, became seriously ill with scarlet fever; the health department quarantined the family. With the help of minority neighbors the children recovered. Dorothy’s father had a leg amputated due to a workplace accident. With money received from his company, US Steel, the family purchased their first home in 1923 at 336 West Ridge Road. The area was farmland at the time. That year, Dorothy had her tonsils removed in a physician’s office. Dorothy recalled that the Ku Klux Klan burned a cross on the sand dune across the street from their home; her family sought shelter for the night in their fruit cellar. Dorothy attended Glen Park Elementary School and Franklin School for her middle school years. She received her first communion at St. Marks Roman Catholic Church on 8 May 1927. While at Franklin, she fell in love with baking and was permitted to assist in the cafeteria. She began high school at Lew Wallace but quit school at the beginning of her junior year. The Great Depression was having an impact on her family. Her father’s work in the mill was cut to one day a week. Her mother had taken in boarders but they, too, had their pay cut. The family garden, chickens and rabbits were not enough to sustain the family. Dorothy felt, as the oldest, that she should get a job. She found work cleaning houses and as a clerk at Ridge Department Store, 3865 Broadway in Gary. By 1938 she transferred to J. J. Newbury Department Store where she also worked as a sales clerk. In 1941 she was hired by US Steel as a Time Clerk/Recorder. She was promoted to Production Clerk and later, to Incentive Clerk. After World War 2, Dorothy decided to relocate to Los Angeles, California. She stayed with friends of her mother’s and found work as a telephone operator in November 1947. Missing home and having difficulty understanding how to pronounce Spanish names, Dorothy returned to Gary and regained her employment with US Steel in the Rail Mill as an Incentive Clerk. It was there she met her husband, Orlo Guy Leininger. They married 25 June 1955 at St. Marks Roman Catholic Church in Gary. The couple rented an apartment in downtown Gary and after their only child was born, rented an apartment in Hobart, Lake, Indiana on Lake Saint George. By fall 1956 they had purchased a small cottage at 816 South Main Street in Hobart. The block of homes is no longer there, having been destroyed in the early 2000s to build a new subdivision. The couple separated in May 1962; Dorothy and her child returned to Gary to reside with her parents. She found work cleaning houses. After her divorce on 27 March 1963 in Valparaiso, Porter, Indiana, she found work at Glen Park Bakery as a Packer. The following year she worked as a Marker at Sears Roebuck & Company in downtown Gary. In August 1965 she found work close to home as a Receiving Clerk with Montgomery Wards & Company in the Village Shopping Center. She was later promoted to Customer Service Clerk. After Dorothy’s father died in October 1970, she took charge of the yardwork at the family’s home. When Montgomery Wards was bought out by Mobil Oil, she received a transfer to St. Petersburg, Pinellas, Florida. Dorothy had always wanted to retire to Florida and the transfer provided her that opportunity in August 1972. She first resided with her child in an efficiency apartment on 9th Avenue North between 8th and 9th Streets. When a new complex was built down the street at 720 8th Street North she became the second tenant. In September 1974 she moved to Brookside Square Apartments. Wards promoted her to Vendor’s Charge Back Clerk and she retired from that company on 30 August 1980. After she retired she became a nanny. In April 1995, she relocated to Heritage Oaks Apartments in Palm Harbor, Florida to be closer to her adult child. Dorothy began experiencing health problems resulting in falls. She moved to a series of congregate living facilities, Fairway Chalet in Tarpon Springs, Long Shadow Inn in Palm Harbor, Manor Care in Palm Harbor, and Mease Plaza in Dunedin. After breaking a hip she was confined to a wheel chair. She also suffered from Alzheimers Disease. Dorothy died at Morton Plant Mease Hospital in Dunedin, Pinellas, Florida on 4 October 2001. Her cremeated remains were interred in her family’s plot in Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Indiana.

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com

Ivan “John” Kos[s]

Leave a reply

Ivan “John” Kos[s]
birth: 19 November 1892 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Josip Opos and Katarina Cvetković Kos
death: 20 October 1970 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

marriage: 28 January 1917 in Chicago, Cook, Illinois
Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s]
birth: 18 July 1900 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Josip “Joseph” and Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Kos[s]
death: 5 June 1985 in Scottsdale, Maricopa, Arizona
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

Children of Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s] and Ivan “John” Kos[s]:

  • Dorothy Elizabeth Koss (1918-2001) m. Orlo Guy Leininger
  • Anne Marie Katherine Koss (1919-2006) m. Michael Andrew Milinovich
  • George Joseph Kos (1921-2006) m. Elizabeth Dorothy “Betty” Altomere
  • Mary Louise “Mary Lou” Koss (1931-1999) m. 1st Paul Julius Domonkos m. 2nd Martin Jerome “Jerry” Vavrak m. 3 & 4 Robert Eugene Hamilton m. 5th Philip Savio

Ancestor here lived in:

Gary, Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Ivan “John” Kos[s] was the second son born to Josip Opos and Katarina Cvetković Kos on the 19 November 1892 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary. His mother died in childbirth when he was 9 and his father remarried soon after. As a child, John was attacked as he tried get honey from a bee hive, sustaining over 100 bites. He was not thought to live but he did. Afterwards, his vision was diminished. He had also been born color blind. In his later years, he developed cataracts. At age 17, he accompanied his brother Janko “Stephen” Kos to America. They departed Le Havre, Seine-Inferior, France and arrived in New York via the La Gascogne on 6 April 1909. John had $10.00, was recorded as being 5’3″ with auburn hair, brown eyes, and light complexion. He continued to grow as he was 5’7″ in his later years. He claimed to be meeting a friend, Pavao Kos, in the U.S. John and his brother stated they were going to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where they had secured employment. John worked as a laborer in Pittsburgh and hearing that there was money elsewhere, went to work for the Pullman Company. He took the rails out west and when the job was complete, returned to Pennsylvania. There, he learned that money was to be made in Chicago so he moved there. Meanwhile, his brother who had a wife and child in Austria-Hungary, decided to return home. John loved America and stated he would never return to the old country, which later became Yugoslavia and now, Croatia. Throughout his working life, John continued to send money back to his remaining family members. It was in Chicago while working for Pullman that he met a former villager, Josip “Joseph” Kos[s], a distant relative. Joseph arranged for John to marry his daughter Mara “Mary Violet Kos[s] and they wed in Chicago on 28 January 1917. A child came quickly and the family decided to relocate to Gary, Lake, Indiana where employment was plentiful by late 1918. There, their second child was born the following year. The family lived with John’s in-laws in a rental home at 1521 Garfield Street. He and his father-in-law would bicycle to work at I.I.B. Teaming Company. Both came down with influenza in February 1919, his father-in-law dying from its complications. John became the sole bread winner of a family of seven. The family moved to a home at 2636 Harrison Street. He found work as a laborer with U.S. Steel. One winter night, the men had fallen asleep at work waiting for a shipment of ore to be delivered. As the train pulled in, John realized that one of his co-workers was fast asleep on the tracks. As he pulled the man to safety, John slipped and his leg was crushed. He became an amputee. The home they were living in flooded from the nearby Calumet River so, with the money he was awarded for his heroism from his company, the family purchased a farmhouse at 336 West Ridge Road in Gary. It was so far out in the country that the street car line did not travel there. Madison was not an existing street. John, with a wooden leg, relearned to ride a bike to get to work. He grew vegetables and maintained rabbits and chicken to supplement his income. He also grew grapes and was known for his fine wine. Unfortunately, his culture clashed with the laws of Prohibition and the Ku Klux Klan burned a cross on the sand dune across from the family home. John had awakened by their noisy automobiles and got his family to safety, hiding them in the fruit cellar of the home where they spent a cold and frightened night. After the accident, John was promoted to craneman and he continued to be employed at US Steel until the mid 1950s when he retired. John was a Roman Catholic and planted the tree on the west front of St. Marks Church. He would walk there to attend 8 AM Mass on Sundays. He and his wife became involved with the formation of St. Joseph the Worker Roman Catholic Croatian Church. Although John drove a crane at work, his poor vision did not allow him to pass a driver’s license test so he relied on his wife to drive him. John longed to be a U S citizen but he could not read or write; he had learned to use cursive to write his name. His youngest daughter tutored him to pass the citizenship exam. She was rewarded with a new bicycle when he successfully naturalized in 1940 in Hammond, Lake, Indiana. John and Mary had a new home built on the east side of Glen Park after his retirement but their stay there was short as their son, who they had given their Ridge Road home to, had decided to relocate to Florida. John and Mary moved back to their former home where they were joined by his widowed mother-in-law, his oldest daughter and grandchild. In his retirement, Pop or Gramps as he was fondly known, liked to tinker with small appliances. He built a hand held vacuum cleaner in the early 1960s, made scooters for his grandchildren out of old roller skates, and kept their bicycles in tip top condition. John loved to dance and in his younger years, played a tamburitza. He also loved to play cards with his male friends in the neighborhood. He was a member of the Croatian Fraternal Union. John died on 20 October 1970 at Methodist Hospital, Gary, Lake, Indiana of congestive heart failure. He had been suffering with a bad cold for a few weeks before his death. John was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana.

The family had a name change after arriving in the U.S. Manifests show they left Austria-Hungary with the surname Kos. By 1917, however, the name was changed to Koss as is shown on John’s wedding certificate. This submitter asked Mary why the name was changed; she stated that it was a recommendation of a clerk at Ellis Island. He said to think about it as most American names are longer than three letters. The family continued to use the original spelling but as they became assimilated, decided to add a letter to their surname. The name was officially changed for John by court order when he naturalized in 1940. It was at that time that they also Americanized their first names. John’s son, George, changed his name back to Kos while serving in the Coast Guard during World War 2.

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com

Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s]

Leave a reply

Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s]
birth: 18 July 1900 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Josip “Joseph” and Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenic Kos[s]
death: 5 June 1895 in Scottsdale, Maricopa, Arizona
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

marriage: 28 January 1917 in Chicago, Cook. Illinois
Ivan “John” Kos[s]
birth: 19 November 1892 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Josip Opos “Joseph” and Katarina Cvetković Kos
death: 20 October 1970 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

Children of Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s] and Ivan “John” Kos[s]:

  • Dorothy Elizabeth Koss (1918-2001) m. Orlo Guy Leininger
  • Anne Marie Katherine Koss (1919-2006) m. Michael Andrew Milinovich
  • George Joseph Kos (1921-2006) m. Elizabeth Dorothy “Betty” Altomere
  • Mary Louise “Mary Lou” Koss (1931-1999) m. 1st Paul Julius Domonkos m. 2nd Martin Jerome “Jerry” Vavrak m. 3 & 4 Robert Eugene Hamilton m. 5th Philip Savio

Ancestor here lived in:

  • Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Mara “Mary Violet” Kos was born to Josip “Joseph” and Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich Kos[s] on 18 July 1900 in the tiny village of Dubranec, Austria-Hungary. Mary was the third child born to the couple but her older brothers had died as infants. Her parents would go on to have three more children, one who died as a child. Mary learned to read and write Croatian in the village. In later years, the country’s name changed to Yugoslavia and then, Croatia. Her father, a military man serving in the cavalry, was injured by a horse and was forced to leave the service. When she was 9, he left the family and set off for America. Three years later he sent for the family to join him. Mary recalled to this submitter that she enjoyed the trip over the Atlantic in July 1913 on the President Lincoln, entertaining passengers by singing. Her height was not recorded; she had brown hair and blue eyes, though green were written on the arriving passenger sheet. The family spent their first night in their new country in a hotel in New York City. Mary recalled years later she was excited by all the people, noise, and items available for purchase in the stores. Ever the apple of her father’s eye, she told her father he had made the right decision to relocate. Her mother and brother weren’t so sure about that. Mary adapted and embraced American customs, though she was known for her delicate Croatian pastries. Traveling by train, her father had found a temporary residence for his family in a backroom of a church between Adams and Jefferson Streets on West Ridge Road in Gary, Lake, Indiana. He returned to live in Chicago where he was employed. Mary continued her education in Gary and learned English quickly. After a short stay in Gary, Mary, her mother, and brother joined their father in Blue Island, Cook, Illinois where her youngest sister was born. The family had considered moving to Bethlehem or Alquipa, Pennsylvania where work with the steel mills was available but decided to stay in the midwest. The family later moved to the Lincoln Park area of Chicago. Mary acknowledged as an adult that she liked to flirt and that gave her father concern. He took it upon himself to arrange for her to be married to a distant cousin who the family discovered had also emigrated to Chicago. At age 16, Mary wed Ivan “John” Kos[s] on 28 January 1917 at Chicago, Cook, Illinois. Within a year, their first child was born in Pullman housing as Mary feared giving birth in a hospital. She had heard tales of children being given to the wrong family. Although the family laughed at her for years, DNA has since proved her correct. Job prospects in Gary, Lake, Indiana, took the family there by late 1918. The family lived together in a rented house at 1521 Garfield Street. Her father and husband bicycled to their jobs at I.I.B. Teaming Company. The couples second child was born shortly after they relocated to Gary. Difficult times lay ahead for the family as Mary’s father died in 1919 from complication of influenza. Soon after, John was hired by U.S. Steel. It was there that he lost a leg saving a fellow employee from being crushed by an incoming train. John had been the sole breadwinner of the family consisting of Mary, three small children, her mother, her brother, and her sister. The family, living at 2636 Harrison Street in Gary had their home flood from the nearby Calumet River. Their oldest child, Dorothy, recalled in later years that the backyard had a grape arbor, lots of snakes and a hill where the children liked to play. They also became ill with scarlet fever and health officials quarantined the family. With the help of two minority neighbors, Mary was able to nurse the children back to health. The family used money received from the mill accident to purchase their first home at 336 West Ridge Road. It was a farmhouse that Mary later had bricked. The country home was so far out that the streetcar line did not extend there. Mary took in boarders and became an active member of St. Marks Roman Catholic Church. It is not known why the KuKluxKlan decided to terrorize the family shortly after they moved into their new home in 1923. They were immigrants, Roman Catholic, and had minority friends who would visit. They also grew grapes and were known for their exceptional wine they sold which became problematic during Prohibition. Their oldest child recalled the terror of hiding in the home’s fruit celler as the Klan burned a cross on the sand dune across from the family’s residence. Mary became active with the Croatian Fraternal Union and as a soprano, joined Preradovic, a glee club, that toured in Yugoslavia in 1960. She and her husband also helped found St. Joseph the Worker Roman Catholic Croatian Church in Gary. Once her children were grown she became a beautician working for Mike Caulif at a salon on Broadway and 39th Avenue. Mary became a naturalized citizen in 1941. She later found work at U.S. Steel in the sorting mill but due to her short stature had difficulty reaching the platform. John was concerned so she found work at the Ball plant. She left her job shortly after John retired from U.S. Steel. In the late 1950s, Mary and John had a smaller home built on the east side of Glen Park, giving her son their Ridge Road home. Within a year, he had decided to relocate to Florida so the couple moved back to their old homestead. Mary’s oldest daughter and granddaughter, along with her mother, resided there through the 1960s, though the home was put up for sale in 1966. After John’s death on 20 October 1970, Mary continued to be active with her many lady friends. Throughout her life, she enjoyed playing bunco, going to movies, and visiting those that had relocated to California and Florida. After her daughter Dorothy relocated to Florida, Mary sold her home to her former daughter-in-law, Betty Altomere Kos, and moved to St. Petersburg, Pinellas, Florida in October 1973. Her daughter, Mary Lou, had moved to Arizona and after a visit, Mary decided she would move there. She returned to Florida in 1977, living in the same apartment complex, Brookside Square, as her daughter. Due to the onset of Alzheimers Disease, her children decided she should live with her daughter Anne Marie in Pennsylvania in October 1979. Anne Marie had difficulty with the arrangement and after one month, Mary was living with her daughter Mary Lou in Arizona. Mary died in Scottsdale on 5 June 1985 and was interred at Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Indiana.

Mary was barely 5 feet tall and her mother, Anna, was shorter than her. Anna was recorded as being 5′ 2″ at the time she emigrated. Mary was only 12 and still growing which is possibly why she and her brother Joseph had no height information recorded.
The family had a name change after arriving in the U.S. Manifests show they left Austria-Hungary with the surname Kos and were still using that spelling in 1914. Sometime between 1914 and 1917, however, the name was changed to Koss as is shown on Mary’s wedding certificate. This submitter asked Mary why the name was changed; she stated that it was a recommendation of a clerk at Ellis Island. He said to think about it as most American names are longer than three letters. The family continued to use the original spelling but as they became assimilated, decided to add a letter to their surname. It was at that time that also Americanized their first names. Barbara continued to use the original surname spelling of her maiden name throughout her life. Mary’s son, George, changes his name from Koss to Kos while serving in the Coast Guard during World War 2.

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com

Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich

Leave a reply

Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich
birth: 21 December 1876 in Jerebic, Austria-Hungary to Janko and Yalza Elizabeta Cvekuvich Grdenic
death: 14 February 1966 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

marriage: 10 February 1895 in Dubranac, Austria-Hungary
Josip “Joseph” Kos
birth: 24 May 1875 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Nicholas Miko and Kata Trputec Kos
death: 19 February 1919 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

Children of Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich and Josip “Joseph” Kos:

  • Vincent (1897-bef 1900)
  • Thomas (1899-abt 1899)
    Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s] (1900-1985) m. Ivan “John” Kos[s]
  • Josip “Joseph Stephen” Kos[s] (1902-1993) m. Mary Ann Farkas
  • Doro Kos (1904-1909)
  • Barbara Mary Kos (1914-1995) m. 1st Ferencz “Frank” Weigus m. 2nd Joseph Paul Milosevich

Ancestor here lived in:

  • Gary, Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Jana Kata “Anna Katherine,” born 21 December 1876 in Jerebic, Austria-Hungary, was the daughter of Janko and Yalza Elizabeta Cvekuvich Grdenic. Anna’s mother’s nickname, in English, was Blondie, for she was known in the small village for her thick blonde hair. The name of the country Anna was born in has changed since her time there; it became Yugoslavia and later, Croatia. Little is known of her early years. She was married at age 18 to Josip “Joseph” Kos on 10 February 1895 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary. Dubranec was a nearby village to Jerebic. Anna was a homemaker while Joseph served in the Austrian-Hungarian calvary. In their native country, five children were born to the couple, three dying young. After Joseph sustained a medical condition he was released from the military. He decided to make his way to America. He arrived in New York on 17 January 1910. Thus, Anna became a single mother for a time. After establishing himself as a laborer on the railroads, Joseph sent for his wife and living children, Mary and Joseph. He traveled from Chicago, where he was then working, to New York City to meet them upon their arrival on the President Lincoln in July 1913. Emigration records show Anna was 5’2″ with brown hair and green eyes. The family spent their first night on American soil in a hotel in New York City. Mary recalled years later how they window shopped after dinner and were amazed with all the items available for purchase. Anna fell in love with an electric hurricane lamp on display, painted with pink roses. She asked Joseph to purchase it but he said its fragility would not survive the long railroad trip to Indiana where the family was headed. He promised to purchase one just like it when they were settled. Joseph did just that; he made his purchase at Marshall Fields in Chicago and the lamp remains in the family today. While Joseph was working in Chicago, he found his family a room to rent in the back of a church located between Adams and Jefferson Street on West Ridge Road in Gary, Indiana. The family spent their days learning English and the children were enrolled in school. Joseph found a residence in Blue Island, Cook, Illinois and it was there, in 1914 that their daughter Barbara was born. Anna took in boarders, did needlework, and child care to earn the family extra income. By 1917 the family had moved to the Lincoln Park section of Chicago. By late 1918, Joseph and Mary’s husband, John, had found work in Gary, Lake, Indiana so the family relocated there. It was in their rental home at 1521 Garfield Street that Joseph died on 19 February 1919 of broncho pneumonia,a complication of influenza. Mary mourned the loss of her husband for her remaining years. Although she understood and could speak English, she preferred to use her native Croatian. She lived with her adult children, rotating homes, through the rest of her life, assisting them with childcare and later, with taking care of her great grandchildren. She was well loved and known as Granny. In the last years of her life she suffered from dementia and was moved to a convalescent center for a few weeks before her death on 14 February 1966 in Gary. She is buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana next to her daughter Mary and son-in-law John. Her husband, also buried in Oak Hill, was buried in the older part of the cemetery.

The family had a name change after arriving in the U.S. Manifests show they left Austria-Hungary with the surname Kos and were still using that spelling when their youngest daughter, Barbara, was born in Chicago. Between 1914 and 1917, however, the name was changed to Koss as is shown on Mary’s wedding certificate. Joseph’s death record reflects the spelling Koss. This submitter asked Mary why the name was changed; she stated that it was a recommendation of a clerk at Ellis Island. He said to think about it as most American names are longer than three letters. The family continued to use the original spelling but as they became assimilated, decided to add a letter to their surname. It was at that time that also Americanized their first names. Barbara continued to use the original surname spelling of her maiden name throughout her life.
Interestingly, a Tony Kos is buried next to Joseph Koss in Oak Hill Cemetery. No relationship between the individuals has been discovered. Tony’s burial date was 20 November 1934. Cemetery records are not clear as to when both plots were purchased and by whom. Kos is a common name in Croatia, meaning crow or blackbird, so Tony may not be related. Other Kos[s]’ in the cemetery with unknown relationship to this family are Nick Koss 30 Sept 1948 and John Kos 27 January 1934.

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com

Josip “Joseph” Kos

Leave a reply

Josip “Joseph” Kos
birth: 24 May 1875 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary to Nicholas Milo and Kata Trputec Kos
death: 19 February 1919 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

marriage: 10 February 1895 in Dubranac, Austria-Hungary
Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich
birth: 21 December 1876 in Jerebic, Austria-Hungary to Janko and Yalza Elizabeta Cvekuvich Grdenic
death: 14 February 1966 in Gary, Lake, Indiana
burial: Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Lake, Indiana

Children of Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich and Josip “Joseph” Kos:

  • Vincent (1897-bef 1900)
  • Thomas (1899-abt 1899)
  • Mara “Mary Violet” Kos[s] (1900-1985) m. Ivan “John” Kos[s]
  • Josip “Joseph Stephen” Kos[s] (1902-1993) m. Mary Ann Farkas
  • Doro Kos (1904-1909)
  • Barbara Mary Kos (1914-1995) m. 1st Ferencz “Frank” Weigus m. 2nd Joseph Paul Milosevich

Ancestor here lived in:

  • Gary, Lake County, Indiana

Other Information:

Josip “Joseph” Kos, the middle son of Nicholas Milo and Kata Trputec Kos, was born on 24 May 1875 in Dubranec, Austria-Hungary. The land area has changed names since his birth there; it became Yugoslavia and now, Croatia. Little is known about his early life in the small village outside Zagreb, Croatia where he was raised. He joined the Cavalry and married Jana Kata “Anna Katherine” Grdenich on 10 February 1895 in Dubranac. She was from a nearby village. The couple had five children together but only two born in Croatia survived childhood. While having his horse reshoed one day, Joseph sustained a kick to his chest. He became asthmatic and was let go from the cavalry. Some family stories say he was kicked in the head and became an epileptic. Regardless, Joseph did not want a future as a farmer and decided to seek his fortune in America. He departed from LeHavre and arrived via the ship La Lorraine in New York City on 17 January 1910 with $20.00; he was traveling to meet a friend Mato Krisanic who resided in the U.S. He was noted to be 5′ 6″ with brown hair and blue eyes. Joseph quickly found employment with the Pullman Railroad Company and was sent to Pennsylvania and later Chardon, Geauga, Ohio. He worked for Pullman, crossing the country all the way to California. He was later transferred to Chicago, Illinois. In1913, he sent fare to his wife and children, Mary and Joseph, to join him in the U.S. Joseph took the train from Chicago to New York to meet his family on 5 July 1913. They spent the night in a hotel in the city and took the train west the following day. Joseph, while staying in Chicago, found an apartment in the backroom of a church for his family on 31 March 1913 in Gary, Indiana. The name of the church has been forgotten but the location was on West Ridge Road between Adams and Jefferson Street. There the children were enrolled in school and the family took English lessons. After a short time, Joseph secured Pullman housing and the family joined him in nearby Chicago. Another child was born to the couple in Blue Island, Cook, Illinois. Daughter Mary wed in 1917 and her new husband, Ivan “John” Kos moved into the small residence in the Lincoln Park area of Chicago. The growing family decided to seek new opportunity in Gary, Lake, Indiana where Joseph and John found work at I.I.B. Teaming Company. By late 1918 the family had relocated to a rented house at 1521 Garfield Street. Joseph and John would bicycle to work. Both became ill during the influenza pandemic. Although John recovered, Joseph’s conditioned worsened into broncho pneumonia. He died at 7 AM at his residence in Gary on 19 February 1919. He was buried in Oak Hill Cemetery, Glen Park, Indiana.

The family had a name change after arriving in the U.S. Manifests show they left Austria-Hungary with the surname Kos and were still using that spelling when their youngest daughter, Barbara, was born in Chicago. Between 1914 and 1917, however, the name was changed to Koss as is shown on Mary’s wedding certificate. Joseph’s death record reflects the spelling Koss. This submitter asked Mary why the name was changed; she stated that it was a recommendation of a clerk at Ellis Island. He said to think about it as most American names are longer than three letters. The family continued to use the original spelling but as they became assimilated, decided to add a letter to their surname. It was at that time that also Americanized their first names. Barbara continued to use the original surname spelling of her maiden name throughout her life.

Submitted by:
Lori Samuelson
Email: genealogyatheart@gmail.com