John/Pete/Paul LaPatka

John and Mary LaPatka of Chewton, Lawrence County, Pennsylvania, had a total of sixteen children, three of which died at birth or in infancy.

Their fourth child, John LaPatka Jr, was born sometime in 1904-1905 while the family was residing on Plum Way in Chewton. He died at birth and was apparently buried at St. Teresa’s Cemetery (usually called Hoytdale Cemetery) located off Route 18 about a mile north of Koppel. His grave was apparently unmarked.

Their eleventh child, Pete LaPatka, was most likely born in the first half of 1917, just before the family moved from Plum Way out to the farm on Tony Dytko Road. I believe he died about a week or two after birth. It is said that he was buried at St. Teresa’s (Hoytdale) Cemetery - presumably at the foot of the grave of his brother Mike LaPatka. However, a check of the Pennsylvania Division of Vital Records reveals no birth certificate is on file for a “Pete LoPatka/LaPatka” born between the years 1911-1919. Perhaps he was born at a different time? More on this later.

Their last two children, twins Paul and Pauline, were born on October 17, 1926, out on the farm on Tony Dytko Road. Both children were born with serious health issues. Pauline had heart problems but survived into adulthood. Paul had some unknown ailments and was very sickly. Mary was very weak after giving birth and family friend Agnus Woloszyn helped care for Paul. He passed away on Sunday, October 31, 1926, when he was only seventeen days old. It is said that he cried so much that it seemed he literally cried himself to death. A funeral service was held at St. Teresa’s Church at Hoytdale on Tuesday, November 2, 1926. Afterwards he was buried in St. Teresa’s (Hoytdale) Cemetery. Years later, George Teck, the husband of Josephine LaPatka, fashioned a small steel cross and it placed it on Paul’s grave.

MY TAKE:

Definitively proving where the LaPatka babies are buried is a difficult matter. The burial locations of siblings Mike LaPatka (stone engraved as LoPatka) and Anna (LaPatka) Concilla are clearly marked by large headstones, but the gravesites of two of the three babies are unmarked. St. Teresa’s Catholic Church, originally constructed in 1871 and rebuilt after a fire in 1900, burned down again in 1944 and unfortunately all the cemetery records were lost in the fire.

I believe Paul (died 1926) is buried where most say he is: in the plot with the small steel cross marking it. I am not sure what year the cross was placed there by George Teck. George Teck and Josephine LaPatka were not married until 1944, so let’s assume it was approximately twenty years after Paul’s death. Someone has lightly etched Paul’s name on the cross as well.

The question of where John and Pete are buried is a bit murky. Irene (LaPatka) DeMarc told me Pete was buried (in a small coffin placed sideways) at the foot of Mike LaPatka’s grave and .was apparently interred that way because he was not baptized. However, since Mike lived until 1923 it seems more likely that Paul (died 1926) would be buried there than John (died 1904-1905) or Pete (died 1917). Was Pete cremated or disinterred and buried with Mike over twenty years later? That seems unlikely. It’s a very curious situation.

The plot where John is said to be buried is near the clearing where the church once stood. It is unmarked but sits in a slight depression suggesting that the spot was dug up at one time long ago. I have been told that mother Mary LaPatka would lay flowers on this spot from time to time before she passed away in 1952. Perhaps John, who died long before Pete and Paul, is buried here and Pete is actually buried with Mike? I placed a small wooden cross and a plastic flower arrangement at this spot in early 2009 and will see that a more permanent marker is set here in the future. Deciding what to put on the marker is a much more vexing issue.

St. Teresa’s Catholic Church, originally constructed in 1871 and rebuilt after a fire in 1900, burned down in 1944 and unfortunately all the cemetery records were lost in the fire. The Hoytdale location was abandoned as an active cemetery in the early 1950’s and the new St. Teresa’s church (and associated Catholic school) was stood up again in Koppel, where most of the parishioners lived.