My father's uncle Michael Olar (Mihai)

My grandfather Alex had two older brothers, Michael (Mihai) and Jacob (Iacob). Michael emigrated to Quebec, Canada, in June 1909, and Jacob also seems to have emigrated to Quebec around that time. My grandfather is said to have arrived at St. John, Newfoundland, in May 1907, although it was more likely in 1909 or 1910. He lived for awhile at Montreal, where my uncle John was born 16 Dec. 1910. Michael arrived in Quebec on the S.S. Victorian, according to a Canadian border crossing document of Jan. 1911. According to that document, at that time Michael was living in Montreal and was seeking permission to enter the U.S. and visit a cousin in Baudette, Minnesota. This was just one month after my uncle John was born in Montreal, so it is likely that Michael and my grandfather Alex were then living close to each other.

Here is an abstract of the information about my father's uncle Michael found in this border crossing document:

Name in Full (Family Name, Given Name):            OLAR (alias) ALLARD, MIHAI
Age (Yrs., Mos.):                                  42
Sex:                                               Male
Married or Single:                                 Married
Calling or Occupation:                             Farm laborer
Able to read:                                      Yes
Able to write:                                     Yes
Nationality (country of which citizen              Austria
or subject):
Race or People:                                    Roumanian
Last Permanent Residence (country, city            Canada, Montreal
or town):
The name and complete address of nearest           wife CHRISTINA OLAR, Tereblestie
relative or friend in country from whence               By Sereth, Boukavina
alien came:
Final destination (state, city or town):           Minn., Baudette
Whether having a ticket to such final              No
destination:
By whom was passage paid:                          Self
Whether in possession of $50, and if               $35
less how much:
Whether ever before in the United States:          No
Whether going to join a relative or friend,        Cous. STEFAN CHRISTIMSKI, Box 20, Baudette
and if so, name of relative or friend and
his complete address:
Condition of health, mental and physical:          [Smudged and illegible, but it looks like
                                                   his eyes are mentioned -- Mihai Olar is the
                                                   only person on this sheet not in "good"
                                                   health]
Height:                                            5 ft. 6 in.
Complexion:                                        Fair
Color of hair:                                     Brown
Color of eyes:                                     Gray
Marks of Identification:                           150 [probably his weight]
Place of Birth (country, city or town):            Austria, Boukavina.
Seaport of Landing:                                Quebec
Date of Landing:                                   June 1909
Name of S.S. (ship):                               Victorian
Date of Examination:                               23 [i.e. 23 Jan. 1911]

It is also worth noting that immediately above Mihai Olar on this list there is a certain EFTIMI KRETZUL, who (like Mihai) was a Romanian immigrant from Tereblestie, Bucovina. Also like Mihai Olar, this Eftimi Kretzul was going to Baudette, Minnesota, to visit a cousin. Eftimi and Mihai*** both arrived in Canada in June 1909, but came on different ships -- Eftimi came on the S.S. Willehad and is shown on the Willehad's passenger list as Iftemia Krezul**, while Mihai came on the S.S. Victorian, which arrived in Quebec on 19 June 1909 (however, Mihai's name cannot be found on the Victorian's passenger list, probably because a page is missing). Since Mihai and Eftimi were both from the village of Tereblestie (Tereblecea), they probably knew each other, and they were probably traveling to Baudette together.

However, this document includes a significant detail about Mihai, namely, he is the only person on this list who is stamped DEBARRED. That is, he was not given permission to enter the U.S. My guess is that he was refused admission to the U.S. due to his health and that he didn't have enough money. As I noted above, Mihai is the only person on this list who is not in "good" health.

Another thing that is interesting is that Mihai had an alias of ALLARD, which is actually a French Quebecois surname. Apparently when he came to Montreal in 1909, he either voluntarily changed the spelling of his name to blend in with the French Canadians, or else an immigration official decided to change his name (as immigration officials often did in those days).

But how can we be so sure this Mihai Olar is the same as Grandpa Alex's older brother Michael?

First, he is Romanian, he is an Olar, and he has the right first name: "Mihai" is the Romanian form of "Michael." Second, he is from the village of Tereblestie or Tereblecea, which is where our Olars came from. Third, his wife is named "Christina" -- it is known that at that time my great-uncle Michael was married to Cristina Cosic.

Next, he is 42 years old on 23 Jan. 1911, which means he was born sometime from 24 Jan. 1868 to 23 Jan. 1869. Grandpa Alex's brother Michael was said to be 15 years older than Alex, which means he was born in or about 1868. Michael's living descendants report that he was born in 1869.

Notice also that Mihai is living in Montreal in Jan. 1911. My dad says that is where Uncle John was born in Dec. 1910, just one month before Mihai's attempt to visit Baudette, Minnesota. Mihai was living in Montreal at the same time that my grandparents would have lived there.

Also, Michael wants to visit a cousin in Baudette. When Alex and Rose entered the U.S. in Nov. 1912, the first place they stopped was Baudette -- but they only stayed there for a few days or a few weeks, because before the end of 1912 they had moved to Minneapolis. It is possible that the reason Alex and Rose went to Baudette is because they wanted to visit that same cousin Stefan Christimski.

Finally, Aunt Linda and my dad have told me that one of Alex's brothers followed him to Canada, but didn't stay, later going back home to Bucovina. Aunt Linda thought Alex arrived in Canada in May 1907 (though it more likely was in 1909 or 1910), whereas this Mihai arrived in Canada in June 1909. Notice also that Mihai Olar's wife Christina is back home in Tereblestie. Mihai apparently isn't in the best of health, he's just been denied entry to the U.S. . . . so maybe he gave up on the New World, or maybe his wife Christina (Cristina Cosic) and his children were unable or unwilling to join him in Canada, so he decided to go back home to his wife. If Mihai returned to Bucovina, that could explain why he cannot be found in the June 1911 Canadian Census. Perhaps he left Canada before the census -- unless, that is, his absence from the census is simply due to the census-taker being unable to locate him. My grandparents Alex and Rose also do not appear in the 1911 Canadian Census, even though they reportedly were living in Canada at the time, so Mihai's absence from the 1911 census could just be a mistake of a census-taker.

___________

** "Iftemia" or "Iftimia" is a variation on the name "Eftimi," an old Christian name that derives from the name of St. Euthymius the Great, an Armenian hermit who lived in the late 300s and early 400s A.D.

*** Mihai Olar alias Allard, from Bucovina, is not to be confused with Michal Olar, from Galicia. Both Mihai and Michal arrived in Quebec in June 1909, but Mihai came on the S.S. Victorian while Michal came on the S.S. Mount Temple. Both Mihai and Michal were married farm laborers, and they both are listed as being in poor health, but Michal was 38 years old when he came to Canada, while Mihai would have been about 40 then. Finally, Michal was unable to read or write, unlike Mihai.

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