The Major-Gavay Family of Hungary, Part 5
In Part 1, some background information was presented on the Major and Gavay families of Szepsi, Abaúj-Torna, Hungary (now Moldava nad Bodvou, Slovakia) and surrounding towns. Part 2 provided some historical context in which our ancestors lived in old Hungary. Part 3 covered the immigration of the Major and Gavay families to the U.S. Part 4 has the genealogy of the Major family in Hungary and the U.S. Part 5 covers the genealogy of the Gavay family in Hungary and the U.S.
The Gavay Family
Franc1 Gavay was born in Hungary, probably in Abauj-Torna county along the Bodvou River sometime in the 1830s. He married Elisabeth Tomas (or Tamas) probably around 1855. No marriage record has been found in the Hungarian church records, but their names are recorded as the parents of Kalman Gavay, father of Anna Gavay. Franc and Elisabeth had four known children, all born in Szepsi, Abouj-Torna (now Moldava nad Bodvou, Slovakia):
i. Franciscus2 (Frank) Gavay, baptized 30 Oct 1856
ii. Maria2 Gavay, baptized 12 Mar 1860
iii. Rosalia2 Gavay, baptized 22 Aug 1863
iv. Kalman2 Gavay, baptized 29 Jan 1868
The record above from the Hungarian Roman Catholic Church records for Szepsi shows that Kalman (spelled Colomanus) was born January 28 and baptized January 29, 1868 with his parents given as Franc Gavay and Elis[abth] Tomas, both of Szepsi.
Kalman2 Gavay was born 28 January 1868 in Szepsi, Abauj-Torna, Hungary. He died 1 January 1951 in Stamford, Fairfield Co., CT. He married (1) on 20 August 1893, Ilona (Helen) Frankovics (or Frankovits), daughter of Franciscus Frankovics and Agnes Maurzky in Somodi Hungary. She was born 19 May 1869 in Jaszo, Abauj-Torna, Hungary. She did not come to the United States with Kalman and probably died before 1920 in Hungary. He married (2) Bessie or Barbola Gavay in 1921 in Stamford. She is probably the wife of Kalman’s deceased brother, Francis, and is likely the passenger, aged 54, on the 1920 manifest with Eugene Major and Anna Gavay Major. See Part 3.
Marriage record of Kalman Gavay and Ilona Frankovits, 20 August 1893, Somodi Hungary. Although the marriage took place in Somodi, southwest of Szepsi, the marriage record shows that Kalman was from Szepsi and Ilona was from Jaszo (north of Szepsi).
Kalman
was already living in Stamford, Connecticut (on Sound View Avenue) when his daughter Anna Gavay Major and son-in-law Jeno
(Eugene) came to America in October 1920.
From the immigration ship passenger list for Ellis Island, he arrived on June 15, 1899 at age 31 (single) on the ship Kaiser Friedrich out of Bremen,
Germany. Although Kalman married Ilona
in 1893, he lists himself as “single”. Ilona possibly died before 1899? At some
point he must have gone back to Hungary because another ship record has him
arriving again on August 25, 1903 on the Kaiser
Wilhelm der Grosse out of Bremen at age 34 and married. See Part 3.
He went
back to Hungary again, because a ship record says he left New York City on 17 April 1907 and arrived in
Liverpool, England on the ship Carmania. He
may have remained in Hungary until 1910, when he appears on the passenger list
of the ship SS Uranium arriving at
the port of New York City out of Rotterdam, Holland, on 19 October 1910. He is
traveling with his two children Maria,
age 15, and Ferencz [Frank], age 14.
The nearest relative for Kalman and the children are given as Ilona Gavay (wife
and mother) in Hungary, so perhaps Ilona was still alive (?). Kalman is going to Stamford, but the children are going
to New York City to a friend, Lajis Hesaros. See Part 3.
Kalman and Ilona had five known children, all born in Hungary (there may have been a 5th child named Ilona, but there are no records):
i. Mary3 Gavay, baptized 2 Oct 1894 in Somodi, Hungary. She died 26 Jan 1981 in Stamford, Connecticut. She married Stephen Nyitrai, son of John Nyitrai and Mary Elizabeth Gaspar of Norwalk, Conn. on 21 August 1916 in Stamford, Conn. Mary and Steve lived at 47 Sound View Ave., Stamford, Conn. with Anna and Jeno as well as with Anna's father, Kalman. Mary Gavay Nyitrai and her husband, Stephan also lived at 127 Lockwood Ave., Stamford, Connecticut (which they owned). Stephan was a machinist in a lock shop, so he must have had enough money to buy property. They had one son:
a. Ernest4 born 6 Mar 1917, died. 5 Apr 2014 in Stamford, CT. Not married.
ii. Frank3 (Ferencz) Gavay, baptized 10 Dec 1895 in Somodi, Hungary as Ferencz Gavay. He died 21 Feb 1984 in Stamford, CT. He married 29 Jul 1929 Stefanie (Stefanka, Stephany) Margaret Schwetz Gavay (born 20 Aug 1902 in Bradejov, Czechoslovakia, now Slovakia), the wife of his brother Kalman Gavay (1902-1928), after he passed away in 1928. Stephanie was born as Stefanie Schwetz, daughter of Edward Schwetz and Veronika Kosak. She came to the U.S. in 1920 on the ship SS France out of Le Harve, France with her relatives (probably aunt and cousin). Her arrival and naturalization papers have her name as Schwetz and not Svec, which must have been a later addition. Frank and Stefanie (Stephenany, as she was called) had two children, born in Connecticut:
a. Frank4 born 22 Jan 1934 in Stamford, Conn., married Gerri Burr 1 Jul 1962.
b. Vilma4 born 16 Jan 1931 in Stamford, Conn. Not married.
iii. Anna3 Gavay, baptized 12 March 1897 in Somodi, Hungary. She died 13 April 1991 in Darien, CT. She married Jeno (Eugene) Major 5 Apr 1920 in Szepsi, Hungary (see Part 4).
iv. Kalman3 Gavay, born about 1902 in Somodi, Hungary (birth records in Somodi, Hungary only go to about 1900). He died 4 Jan 1928 in Darien, Conn. He married Stephanie M. Schwetz on 29 May 1926 in Stamford (see entry for Frank Gavay). They had one child, born in Stamford:
a. Helen4 born 18 Mar 1927 married John O’Grady. Died 27 Nov 2010.
v. Elizabeth3 (Betty) Gavay?), born in Hungary (?). Possible daughter form Kalman’s 2nd marriage to Barbola Gavay? There are no records in Hungary or U.S. to confirm her birth.
Gavay family photo taken circa 1897 in Hungary. The photo shows Kalman Gavay [standing];
Elizabeth Tomas [old woman, seated, mother of Kalman];Ilona Frankovits Gavay [wife of Kalman, seated]. Child in white dress is probably Maria Gavay (1894) and the boy is probably Ferencz (aka Frank) Gavay (1895). Anna Gavay, born 1897 does not appear, which dates the photo to sometime before March 1897. Very possibly Ilona is pregnant with Anna in this photo.
Wedding picture of Gavay family 29 May 1926 (wedding of Kalman Gavay and Stefanie Schwetz (aka Svec). Back row from left to right: Anna Gavay Major, Jeno Major, Frank Gavay (brother of Anna), Stephen Nytrai, Mary Gavay (sister of Anna and Frank). Bottom row from left to right: Jennie Major, Eugene Major (children of Anna and Jeno), Kalman Gavay (father of Anna and siblings), Stefanie Margaret Schwetz (bride), Kalman Gavay (groom and brother of Anna, Frank, and Mary. After Kalman’s death on 4 January 1928, his brother Frank married Stefanie on 29 July 1929), Ernest Nytirai (son of Stephen and Mary).
Part 6 will explore some DNA aspects of the Major family.
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