Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay, 1960's

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Subject: Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay.

Date: 1960's.
Location: Cudahy, Wisconsin.
Occasion: Unknown.
Photographer: Unknown.
Relationship to me: Paternal Aunt and Grandmother

 

In the next few weeks, I will be sharing photographs of my paternal grandmother that were provided to me by my cousin Maria Sworske, that were from her mother Dawn and grandmother Margaret's collection.

 

This photograph was taken in the 1960's or early 1970's. I recognize the apartment of my grandmother. I recognize the wrist watch that she always wore. This photograph was taken in the small kitchen of her apartment. I remember the pots and pans hanging by the small stove and the dinette set to the right that sat by a window. I also remembered she lived near the airport and and you could hear the planes taking off and landing. I know this was an upstairs apartment in a home. I can not remember if it was on Sommers Avenue or Ramsey in Cudahy. I have many fond memories of visiting her and my aunt.

 

I welcome any additional comments or information from family and friends about this photograph.

Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay, 1965

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Subjects: Left to Right: Maria Sworske and Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay.
Date: 1965.
Location: Greendale, Wisconsin.
Occasion: Christmas.
Photographer: Albin Paskowicz.
Relationship to me: Paternal Cousin and Grandmother.

In the next few weeks, I will be sharing photographs of my paternal grandmother that were provided to me by my cousin Maria Sworske, that were from her mother Dawn and grandmother Margaret's collection.

This photograph was taken in 1965. I recognize the house of my Aunt Margaret. I can also remember when Maria was this age. My parents lived close to my Uncle Al and Aunt Margaret, so we spent quite a bit of time together. I have many fond memories of these visits.

I welcome any additional comments or information from family and friends about this photograph.

Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay, 1925

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Subjects: Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay.
Date: 1925.
Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
Occasion: Likely on the birth of her daughter Justine, June 15, 1925.
Photographer: S.Z. Grand Studio, 409 West Mitchell Street, Milwaukee, WI
Relationship to me: Paternal Grandmother

In the next few weeks, I will be sharing photographs of my paternal grandmother that were provided to me by my cousin Maria Sworske, that were from her mother Dawn and grandmother Margaret's collection.

This photograph was taken in the mid 1920's. It is one of the few photographs that I have of my grandmother during this era.

This portrait is quintessentially 1920s, and based on the exact cut of her dress, the photo matting, and her life timeline, this was almost certainly taken between 1924 and 1927 (most likely around 1925–1926, when she was in her late 30s).

What a fascinating, resilient history she had—navigating loss during the 1918 flu, relocating, building a new blended family, and running a boarding house in Cudahy!

The Photo Sleuth Clues:

1. The Iconic Drop-Waist Dress (Mid-1920s)

• The Silhouette: The classic tubular, loose-fitting "drop-waist" silhouette screams the mid-to-late 1920s. Notice how the horizontal seam sits low on her hips with those decorative flap pockets—that specific drop-waist style peaked right around 1924 to 1927.
• Hemline & Neckline: Hemlines rose higher in the 1920s than ever before, hitting just below the knee here. The soft sailor-style shawl collar with the long, dangling necktie or ribbon brooch was an immensely popular afternoon-dress style during these years.

2. Studio & Location (Mitchell Street, Milwaukee)

• The studio stamp at the bottom reads "Grand Studio, 409 Mitchell St."
• Historic Mitchell Street in Milwaukee was the bustling, primary shopping and portrait studio district for working-class immigrants and folks living in nearby South Side industrial suburbs like Cudahy. Even families on very modest incomes would save up a little money to go down to Mitchell Street to get a "good" official studio portrait made for a milestone event!

3. The Art Deco Cardstock Mount

• The heavy grey-green cardstock frame with the ornate green-and-silver arched border and stylized floral motifs is textbook 1920s Art Deco studio matting. Photography studios heavily favored these textured paper mounts between 1920 and 1928.
• A Window Into Her Life
• Even though I mentioned they struggled financially, she looks so neat, proud, and beautifully put-together here. It was very common for women running boarding houses—demanding, exhausting physical labor—to have one or two nice, stylish dresses kept carefully put away for church, family events, or trips to the photo studio.

Given that her daughter was born in June 1925, this portrait may very well have been taken to celebrate her complete family or mark that era after settling into Wisconsin life!

I welcome any additional comments or information from family and friends about this photograph.

Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay, 1970's

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Subjects: Left to Right: Mary Forrai Nowakowski and Rose Pruseks Tusek Forrai Bockay.
Date: 1970's.
Location: Cudahy, Wisconsin.
Occasion: Unknown.
Photographer: Unknown.
Relationship to me: Paternal Aunt and Grandmother

In the next few weeks, I will be sharing photographs of my paternal grandmother that were provided to me by my cousin Maria Sworske.

This photograph was taken in the late 1970's. I recognize the house of my Aunt Mary. During this time, my grandmother spent quite a bit of her time with Aunt Mary. I have many fond memories of visiting her and my aunt.

I welcome any additional comments or information from family and friends about this photograph.

Unknown Wedding

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Subjects: Unknown couple.

Date: 1950's.

Location: Wisconsin.

Occasion: Wedding.

Photographer: Joseph F. Forrai.

 

I came across this 8 x 10 photograph amongst my father's belongings. I have emailed it to several of my cousins to see if they could identify the couple. My father considered himself an amateur photographer, and this might have been an extra print from a wedding that he photographed.

 

I welcome any additional comments or information from family and friends about this photograph.

 

My Cousin Dorinne Green wrote on a Facebook comment: It might be Mary Benson and Donald Borgwardt. Donald would be a second cousin to Caroline and me. Donald and Mary divorced, don't know when, and both are deceased, don't know the date. Caroline might be able to make a more positive ID. Cheers.

 

I have since sent the photograph to my Cousin Caroline, but have not received a response.

Peace On Earth, 1972

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Subject: Louis and David Forrai.

Occasion: Christmas.

Date: 1972.

Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Photographer: Joseph Frank Forrai.

Relationship to me: Brother.

For the first four weeks in December, I decided to post the Christmas cards that my parents started sending in 1960. I think almost everyone is familiar with the photo holiday cards that some folks choose to send.

You may wonder where my father had these cards made? My dad had a dark room in the house where we lived. Photography was my dad's hobby since the 1940's. Each one of these cards were hand made.

How was the photograph taken? In the early years my dad used a portrait camera. There was a long cable attached to the camera. He routed it so it would not appear in the photograph. He would squeeze the button to take the photograph. In later years, he had a 35mm camera with a built-in timer. My father always used a tripod, and it would take him a good deal of time to set up for these annual photographs.

This photograph was taken in the hallway of our home on Scharles Avenue.  We moved into this house a few days before Christmas 1968. The cat in the picture is Fluffy, our yellow tabby cat. He was a sweet, smart cat. My father taught him to fetch. There were a couple of large poinsettia flowers at the top of the signs that were cut out of the photograph.

It amazes me how many of my relatives and friends of our family have hung onto these photographs. I am not the only one with a collection!

Cheers 1971

Merry Christmas 1970

Happy Holidays 1969

Greetings Forrai's 1968

Season Greetings Forrai's 1966

Season's Greetings Forrai's 1965

Greetings Forrai's 1964

Season's Greetings Forrai's 1963

Season's Greetings 1962

Merry Christmas 1961

Best Wishes 1960

Cheers! 1971

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Subject: Louis and David Forrai.

Occasion: Christmas.

Date: 1971.

Location: Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Photographer: Joseph Frank Forrai.

Relationship to me: Brother.

For the first four weeks in December, I decided to post the Christmas cards that my parents started sending in 1960. I think almost everyone is familiar with the photo holiday cards that some folks choose to send.

You may wonder where my father had these cards made? My dad had a dark room in the house where we lived. Photography was my dad's hobby since the 1940's. Each one of these cards were hand made.

How was the photograph taken? In the early years my dad used a portrait camera. There was a long cable attached to the camera. He routed it so it would not appear in the photograph. He would squeeze the button to take the photograph. In later years, he had a 35mm camera with a built-in timer. My father always used a tripod, and it would take him a good deal of time to set up for these annual photographs.

This photograph was taken in the basement of our home on Scharles Avenue.  We moved into this house a few days before Christmas 1968. It was during this year that my father finished off a room in the basement with wood paneling and a tile floor. This room was considered the office and work room for most of the year. When we had a large gathering, we even used it as a dining room, as the kitchen was at the top of the stairs. The cat in the picture is Fluffy, our yellow tabby cat. He was a sweet, smart cat. My father taught him to fetch. The Santa heads were stockings that my grandmother gave us one year, filled with candy and small toys.

It amazes me how many of my relatives and friends of our family have hung onto these photographs. I am not the only one with a collection!

Merry Christmas 1970

Happy Holidays 1969

Greetings Forrai's 1968

Season Greetings Forrai's 1966

Season's Greetings Forrai's 1965

Greetings Forrai's 1964

Season's Greetings Forrai's 1963

Season's Greetings 1962

Merry Christmas 1961

Best Wishes 1960