Skalat Location: Tarnopol district, Ukraine Latitude/Longitude: 49°26´/25°59´
Skalat was a small town of maybe 5,000 half of which was Jewish.

The Horwath's lived just across the road from the schoolhouse. The teacher, whom they called "The Professor", wore a large handlebar mustache and when annoyed, he'd twist the end of it. Margaret's mother frequently gave him milk and eggs (which suggests that they owned cows and chickens). He was very good friends with her brother, Henry, which implies that Henry was the oldest and possibly close in age. Because they were so close to a school, the children were educated and couldn't play hooky.

Typical housing of the times were cottages in the "zre~bowo-sl~upowa" style, a.k.a. a thatched hip roof. The exterior of the farmhouses and buildings are brown - weathered wood. The farm buildings were laid out to form a square or rectangular central yard. The typical farm had a cottage for the family and separate building for the livestock and a barn. A middle-size peasant farm from the second half of the 19th century has an interior consisting of a large room called the _s~wietlica_, a small room, and a sleeping chamber. In the large room there is a large stove called a_sabatnik_ with an open fireplace, bread oven and a special place at the back of the stove for sleeping. In the small room there is a fireplace. The living spaces are whitewashed with blue stenciling on the walls. The fireplace might have a small embroidered mantel cloth. Each farmhouse had a corner of the room set aside for the bed(s). Rich and poor peasant alike followed the same tradition of surrounding their sleeping area with holy pictures and a crucifix. The pictures of Jesus and Mary were hung on the wall and decorated with paper or strawflowers.

We know very little about the Horwath family and their circumstances except that they probably had cows, chickens and lots of fruit trees. They probably owned several acres of land. The house had beds built into the walls and a separate pantry off the kitchen. The bedding included feather pillows and covers. These facts don't sound like a poor family's account. In fact, Margaret had many beaded dresses and purses stored away in a trunk during the 1920's which don't sound like a poor immigrant's wardrobe, either. Many neighborhood people said that her accent was high class, so the possibility exists that the family was at least a little well-to-do before coming over to America.

Margaret said she was a tomboy as a child and would frequently climb up into the fruit trees. Her brother, Henry, would yell at her to stay out of the trees and once left her hanging by her foot when she lost her balance and got it caught in a branch, to teach her a lesson. On another occasion, she crawled up into a cherry tree and fell, biting through her tongue. Her father had probably died sometime while Margaret was young because the stories she told about her brother seemed to imply that he was in charge of the family. Her mother died after Margaret had moved to the U.S.A.

Magdalowka and Skalat were formerly situated in Galicia but are now considered as being in the Ukraine. Both cities are in the region of Ternopol (49n26 25e59)

EMIGRATION:
Margaret left Poland because she hated the Cossacks who were showoffs. She also didn't want to work on a farm and hated war. She boarded a German ship called the Kronprinz Wilhelm in the port of Bremen and arrived at Ellis Island, NY on 9 Apr 1912. The ship manifest lists her as Mazda Horwat (she came in under her sister's name), age 19 and single. Her residence is listed as Moutuka, Galicia. She almost had to return to Europe because she had "Pink Eye" (conjunctivitis). She went into quarantine until it cleared up. Then she lived temporarily with her sister, Anna Gabryluk, in Amsterdam, NY. She was probably there less than a year before moving in with her sister Hedwig Mudry (Mondry) in Cleveland. There, she was sick with pneumonia and almost died. She was operated on under the arms (??? -- not sure what that implies)

OCCUPATION:
Worked as a chambermaid at the Statler Hotel in downtown Cleveland. It was at this hotel that she met her future husband, Frank, who was a window washer and a buddy of Frank Horwath who also worked there. Caroline Myczkowski and Kunigunda Macek were other family members who worked at the Hotel Statler.

AKA: Maggie, Magadalena

Margaret was known as witty and very outspoken.

MARRIAGE:
1. HORWAT, MAGDALINA and MYCZKOWSKI, FRANCIS vol.0098 pg.0035
2. MYCZKOWSKA, MAGGA HORWAT and BORAK, KOSTANTY vol.0152 pg.0207
(Cuyahoga County Marriage License Index)

NATURALIZATION:
22 Mar 1957. Certificate #7798726. Alien #A3370038. Petition #127268.

RESIDENCES:
19__ - Orange Ave. (exact address unknown but near where Tri-C college presently sits)
1920 - 3627 E. 75th St., Cleveland, Ohio (purchased this home and then sold it shortly thereafter)
19__ - Hosmer Ave. (exact address unknown)
19__ - Gertrude Ave. (exact address unknown)
1927 - 6321 Lansing Ave.
1928 - E. 121st St. (behind John Adams High School with a view of the football field)
1936 - E. 118th St.
1937 - 3782 E. 55th St.
1938 - 3912 West 18th
1942 - 1310 Redman Ave. (Two houses were on the property when she bought it, but we know the back house had been moved to that location and not built there.)

DEATH:
Died of stomach cancer.

Will probate #626364 (as Margaret Burak)

OBIT:
Name: Burak, Margaret
Source: Plain Dealer; Cleveland Necrology File, Reel #097.
Notes: Burak. Margaret Burak, residence, 1340 Redmond Ave.; beloved wife of Constantine; dear mother of Bernice Lisek, Helen Warfield, Edward Mitchell, Leonard Burak and John Burak; sister of Ann Gabrylak of Amsterdam, N. Y., and grandmother. Friends may call After 2 P. M. Saturday, at the A. J. Tomon & Sons Funeral Home, 4772 Pearl Rd. Time of services later

BURIAL:
Calvary Cemetery, Sec 21, Lot 136

1. Stanley MYCZKOWSKI b. 11 Sep 1916, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 17 Dec 1917, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; bur. Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA.
2. Bernice MYCZKOWSKI b. 16 Jun 1919, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; c. Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 17 Aug 2002, Parma, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA.
3. Helen Janina MYCZKOWSKI b. 21 May 1922, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; c. 11 Jun 1922, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 30 Aug 2011, Parma, Cuyahoga, Ohio; bur. Riverside Cemetery, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio.
4. Edward (Myczkowski) MITCHELL b. 18 Apr 1926, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 5 Feb 2002, Willowick, Cuyahoga, Ohio.

1. Leonard Thomas BURAK b. 18 May 1929, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 22 Apr 2005, Parma, Cuyahoga, Ohio.
2. John BURAK b. 15 Dec 1930, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; d. 3 Aug 1991, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; bur. Holy Cross Cem., Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA.

The surname was originally spelled HORWAT by this family. The ending "H" was added later.

HORWATH origins (or Horwat or Horwatt)

[info provided by dbabic@tethys.phy.hr]
Many of historicians agree that a tribe of (probably) Iranian origin, named Hu-ur-vatha (probably meaning friend) came to the area around todays Krakow in 6th or early 7th century. They were asimilated by Slavs of this area, but gave their name to surrounding Slavs, and organized them in something what later in todays Croatia became a nation. It is worthwhile to note that many experts in Slavic linguistics claim that it is impossible to construct the name "Hrvat" by using solely Slavic linguistic rules.

By the legend (mentioned also in chronicles of Constantin Porfirogenet, a Byzantium ruler) todays Croats (in Croatian - Hrvati) came to western Balkan peninsula in the first half of the 7th century, and were led by seven brothers and two sisters, of which the most important was one with the name Hrvat.

In Croatian history, the first homeland of Croats, in south Poland, is called "White Croatia". I have found a support to this idea in one German book, where in 11th century there is "Kroatien" in todays Croatia, but also a province in Kingdom of Poland called "Chrobatien". Of course, this name for the area around Krakow ceased to exist later, and has no real meaning today. So, contrary to the Hungarian name Horvath, which is closely related to todays Croats, any north-Slavic name of this sort is just a memory on the ancient times, and cannot be related to todays Croatian nationality.

[opposing viewpoint provided by armata@vms.cis.pitt.edu]
I take the opposite view. Surnames developed so late in Poland, even more so for the peasants than the nobles, that I find it hard to relate a Horvath surname in Poland that was probably chosen or assigned in the late 1600-1700s to the White Croatia of 1000 years ago. As you point out, this term passed into oblivion long ago without a local trace. Also note the spelling, especially the -th ending, which is not found in Polish. For what it's worth, this looks to me like a clearly Hungarian name, referring to Croatia. That it wound up in Poland is not at all surprising, given the proximity of the 2 countries and the heavy trade they carried on in the old days (e.g., a Croatian carter named Horvath in Hungarian bringing up a wagon of Hungarian wine to Poland could have decided to stay in Poland, got married & started the line). Joe armata@vms.cis.pitt.edu

[further thoughts provided by spiridan@ASAHI.COM.AU]
Also, there is some evidence, of semi-legendary nature that the Hrvati, or Croats, emerged from the Bug-Dnieper-White Carpathian region at the time of the great Slavic mgrations, and part of the nation remained behind in this region, thus giving their name to place names, regions and people.


SKALAT
City and railway station in the Pidvolochysk district on the Hnyla river. Population: 5,000. First mentioned in documented sources in 1564.

CASTLE, 1630. Once surrounded by a deep ditch. Towers with battlements are located on the defensive walls. Large sections of the castle have been preserved.

1) Encyklopedia Powszechna T. 23. Rok 1866.
2) Encyklopedia Powszechna Krowlewstwa Polskiego T. 10. Rok 1889.

According to the 1866 "Encyklopedia Powszechna," Skalat was originally under
Russian rule. In the second half of the nineteenth century, Skalat is under the
jurisdiction of Galicia, near the Ganila River. An old fortress, built in the sixteenth
century for defence purposes, made the city well-known. During this time, there
were about 3000 residents.

"Encyklopedia Powszechna," published in 1889, has more details about the town.
At the end of the nineteenth century, Skalat was a district (Miasto Powiatowe) in
eastern Galicia, southeast of Ternopol. In 1870, there were 4952 residents, 2553 of
them Jews.

According to Korpetnicki in "Geography of Galicia" from 1786, Skalat was the
property of the Terlov family of Czecanowicz. The property was transferred to the
Poniatowski princes and they sold it around 1869 to a Jew named Ziskind
Rosenstock.

Ziskind Rosenstock was a famous Jew in his time and a baron. One of his
descendants, Alexander, became a Christian. He sold the Skalat lands. In 1920,
Josef Tenenbaum bought the Novosiolka lands from him.

I had been told Margaret's mother's first name was Michalene but her marriage license (for Kostanty Borak) lists her mother's name as Margareta Dolkowski.

1. Henry HORWATH b. , , , Poland; d. , , , Poland.
2. Frank Peter HORWATH b. 15 Apr 1888, Magdalowko, , Tarnopil, Poland; d. 1958, Cumberland, , Maryland.
3. Anne HORWATH, [twin] b. 11 Jul 1890, , , , Poland; d. Jun 1971, Amsterdam, Montgomery, New York,USA.
4. Magda HORWATH, [twin] b. 11 Jul 1890, Skalat, , , Poland.
5. Agnes Jadwiga (Hedwig) HORWATH b. 15 Oct 1891, , , , Poland; d. 23 Jul 1946, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA.
6. 1. Magadalena (Margaret) HORWATH b. 22 May 1895, Skalat, Skalaja Podol'skaja, Ternopil, Ukraine; d. 17 May 1962, Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA; bur. Cleveland, Cuyahoga, Ohio, USA.