Here we have a group photo from 1934 of the wedding of George Cojocar and Mary Banda. The photo was taken on the farm of Nick and Garafira Cojocari. There are 36 people in the photo and I have only named 17 of them. I need your to help identify some of the guests in this photo if you can.
For Monday February 12, 1934 it doesn't look like it was a very cold February day for a wedding. Where is the snow? It seems that most of the early weddings were conducted outside of the farming season when people had the time. This was a party that went on for days! You can read more about a Romanian-style wedding in Romanian Wedding Traditions.
This photo was taken in the farm yard of the groom's parents, Nicholai "Nick" Cojocari (#11) and Garafira “Grace” Cojocari nee Stratinar (#10). The granary that is behind the group was converted into a house and used as the wedded couple's first home.
With your assistance maybe we can document the photo as has been done in Kayville Citizens 1920.
The photo I have is quite small so blowing it up doesn't necessarily make the faces much clearer. If you click on the photo or here you can see a larger version.
I have labelled people with a number on their chest where there was room and where there wasn't room I have just connected the number over their head to them. How many can you name?
List of people in the photo by number:
1. Ion "John" Cojocari was born in what was at the time Bucovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today Județul Suceava, Romania) during 1888. He would have been about forty-six (46) years old in this photo and living nearby to where this wedding was held. John is the Uncle of the groom (#16). He had already been married to Maranda Cojocari nee Tehulka (#4) for 28 years (abt 1906) and father of ten when this photo was taken.
2. Unknown woman. Can't see the face so unless you have this same photo with a list of people we might never know who this was.
3. Unknown. Can't see the face so unless you have this same photo with a list of people we might never know who this was.
4. Maranda Cojocari nee Tehulka was born in Bucovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today northern Romania somewhere) during 1883. She was about fifty-one (51) years old in this photo, mother of ten and was living a short distance from where this photo was taken. Maranda was an aunt of the groom (#16). Maranda had married Ion "John" Cojocari (#1) in about 1906, raised ten children and enjoyed 54 years of marriage until his death in 1960.
5. Unknown woman. Can you name this person?
6. Unknown woman. Can you help me name them?
7. Unknown. Do you know them?
8. Maria "Mary" Craciun Banda nee Comshoi was born in the Transylvania region of Austro-Hungarian Empire (today Județul Brașov, Romania) in about 1890. She was between the ages of forty-four (44) and fifty (50) years old in this photo and lived nearby to where this photo was taken. Maria is the mother of both the bride (#19) and Paraschiva “Eva” Stefan nee Banda (#17) and, after the wedding, Mother-in-Law of the groom (#16). By the time of this wedding Maria had sadly been widowed twice (1927 & 1930) and was mother to nine children. We are unclear whether she was married for the third time by the time of this photo - if she was indeed married maybe there is an Anton Beautal in the photo? Read more in So There We Were, Standing On The Side of the Road
9. Unknown woman. Great hat! Can you name this person?
10. Garafira “Grace” Cojocari nee Stratinar was born in what was at the time Bucovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today northern Romania somewhere) during 1888. She would have been about forty-six (46) years old in this photo and living in the very farmyard where this wedding was held. Garafira is the mother of the groom (#16) and Mother-in-Law of the Bride (#19). Garafira married her husband Nicholai "Nick" Cojocari (#11) in 1909, celebrated the births of eighteen children (fifteen of which were alive at the time of this photo) and they would have celebrated their 25th Anniversary the year of this photo.
11. Nicholai "Nick" Cojocari was born in what was at the time Bucovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today Județul Suceava, Romania) during 1886. He would have been about forty-eight (48) years old in this photo and living in the very farmyard where this wedding was held. Nick is the father of the groom (#16) and Father-in-Law of the bride (#19). Nick was married to Garafira “Grace” Cojocari nee Stratinar (#10) for 50 years until his death in 1959.
12. Constantin "Costan" Ursu was born in somewhere in Romania in about 1899. He would have been about thirty-five (35) years old in this photo and living a short distance away on his farm west of Kayville. Costan was a very close friend to the Cojocari family was honoured to be the Best Man for the bride (#19) and groom (#16). As a further proof of this, Costan and his wife would also be Best Man and Matron of honour at the wedding of this Bride and Groom's daughter Geana twenty years later in 1954. Costan had been married to Frozina Ursu nee Paliuc (#22) for 15 years already when this photo was taken.
13. Unknown man. Can you help me name this person?
14. Unknown man. Can you identify them?
15. Joseph Stefan was born in 1914 in nearby Kayville. He would have been twenty (20) years old when this photo was taken. Joe was single at the time of this photo but in a couple of years he would marry Paraschiva “Eva” Stefan nee Banda (#17) and his mother-in-law will be Maria "Mary" Craciun Banda nee Comshoi (#8) making him, eventually, a brother-in-law to the bride (#19).
16. George Cojocar was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1910. He was seventeen (17) years old in this photo, just days from his eighteenth birthday when he married Mary Banda (#19). He lived at his parents farm before the wedding and after the wedding he and his new wife moved into a granary in the farmyard. George and Mary would be married for forty-nine years (49) until his death in 1984.
17. Paraschiva “Eva” Stefan nee Banda was born in 1916 maybe in Disley or Regina, Saskatchewan and would have been about sixteen (16) years old in this photo. Eva was living with her parents on their nearby farm at the date of this photo. Eva was a daughter of Maria "Mary" Craciun Banda nee Comshoi (#8) and sister to the bride (#19). She was still single at the time of this photo but in a couple of years she would marry Joseph Stefan (#15)
18. Vasile "Wesley" Cojocar. This is a complete guess on my part. Tell me I'm wrong. Vasile "Wesley" Cojocar was born on the farm of his parents Ion "John" Cojocari (#1) and Maranda Cojocari nee Tehulka (#4) in 1910 as their first-born. Wesley was twenty (20) years old in this photo. The groom was his first cousin. Wesley purchased a farm of his own during the same year (1934) as this wedding. In the photo we can also see his wife of two years, Mary Cojocar nee Donison who would have been six months pregnant with their daughter Doreen at the time.
19. Mary Banda was born near Disley, Saskatchewan on her parents farm where they briefly lived in 1916. In this photo, like her husband, she was seventeen (17) years old but celebrated her eighteenth birthday fourteen days later. She was likely working in the area as a servant and living with her widowed mother Maria "Mary" Craciun Banda nee Comshoi (#8). She would give birth to their only child Geana nine months later and enjoy forty-nine years of marriage until George's death in 1984.
20. Unknown man. Seems to be the escort for Annette "Anna" Golka nee Cojocar (#23). The more I look at this I think this might be Tom Banda but I can't be sure. If this is indeed him, he is the bride's oldest brother, born in 1914 and was twenty (20) years old at the time of this photo. He was single at the time of this photo and would not marry for another two years in 1936. It makes complete sense for him to be in the photo.
21. Unknown man. Can you help me name this person?
22. Frozina Ursu nee Paliuc was born in Bucovina in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today Frătăuţii Vechi, Județul Suceava, Romania) during 1901. She would have been about thirty-three (33) in this photo and living a short distance away to the west of Kayville with her husband Constantin "Costan" Ursu and their ten (10) year old daughter Mary Ritsco nee Ursu. Frozina is the Matron of Honour at this wedding.
23. Annette "Anna" Golka nee Cojocar. Sister of the groom (#16). She wouldn't marry Benjamin “Ben” for a couple of decades. I don't know who she is with in this photo (#20).
24. Unknown man. Do you know them?
25. Unknown woman. Can you identify them?
26. Nick Neamtu. Brother-in-law of the groom (#16) and married to Verona "Vera" (#29).
27. Unknown man. Do you know this person's name?
28. Unknown man. Can you help me name them?
29. Verona "Vera" Neamtu nee Cojocar. Sister of the groom (#16). She was already married to Nick #26.
30. Unknown man. Do you know their name?
31. Unknown girl. Can you identify them?
32. Unknown girl. Do you know this persons name?
33. Unknown older man. Can you help me name them?
34. Unknown boy. Do you know their name?
35. Mary Cojocar nee Donison. All I can say is that it sure looks like her. It makes sense for her to be there. Mary was born in 1912 probably on her parents farm about ten kilometres to the northwest of where this photo was taken, She was about twenty-two (22) years old in this photo and was would have been six months pregnant with their daughter Doreen at the time. Her husband of two years Vasile "Wesley" Cojocar (#18) is the groom's first cousin.
36. John Cojocar. I am not 100% sure this is him but John seemed to have the same expression in many of the photos I have. John is brother of the groom (#16) and it makes sense that he was there. He would have been single in this photo however the following year he would wed Leonora Petrescue. Maybe she is in this photo too?
