The Story:
If so, this answers the question I put on the research agenda about the possibility of siblings. There was at least one.
My evidence is in the 1910 United States Federal Census:
- The two men (Heads of Households) are just three years apart in age. John is 42 and Joseph 39.
- Both immigrated from Austria.
- Both settled in Durham, Androscoggin, Maine.
- But the clincher for me is that both men spell our surname “Elsik” for themselves while spelling their children’s names “Elcik.” This can’t be a coincidence.
10 years are separating their immigration to America. John immigrated in 1891 at the age of 23 and Joseph in 1901 at the age of 30. All seven of John’s and all three of Joseph’s children were born in Androscoggin County, Maine.
Both men used the same given names for their three daughters. They must have had middle names or nicknames as they surely played together. The population of Androscoggin County in 1910 was 59,822 (26,247 in Lewiston, 4,116 in Lisbon, and 1,625 in Durham) John, IV
P.S. It has been almost six weeks since this was posted. Today, I found this item on a genealogy site, which bolsters my argument that John and Joseph were brothers. John Paul Elcik, IV – Editor
“In other cases, brothers who lived near each other would sometimes give their children the same first names. The cousins might have gone by nicknames or middle names to avoid confusion during their lifetimes. It becomes more di
“In other cases, brothers who lived near each other would sometimes give their children the same first names. The cousins might have gone by nicknames or middle names to avoid confusion during their lifetimes. It becomes more difficult 100 years later for a genealogist looking to match the right people to the right spots on a family tree.”