PHILIPECK

The Philipsek Surname

Note from Louis D Welna (LDW): The spelling of the surname Philipsek has several variations. While Sister Julianna spelled it ‘Philippczik’, the spellings ‘Philippczyk’ and ‘Philipczyk’ are found in the Mechnitz church records. In Twardawa, the following spellings are found: Philipsek, Philipciek, Philipczik, Filippchic, Filiptschik, Filipffchik, Filipczyk, Fillipczyk, Philippozyk even Flilpska”. The spelling of the surname on the Suevia’s ship’s manifest was ‘Phielipscheck’. Florence Center introduces some older history with perhaps an older spelling, ‘Philipsic’, but I did not find that particular spelling in the Twardawa records. The correct Polish pronunciation is: ‘Phil LEEP chick’ although in Holdingford it was pronounced ‘FLIP sick’.

Mechnitz is the German spelling while Mechnica is the Polish spelling. Mechnica’s birth, marriage, and death records begin in 1790.

The Ancestral TownsNote from LDW: Until I went to Poland, we all thought that our ancestral town was Mechnica, Poland,

Prussia, in Upper Silesia , but it is really the town of Twardawa, a few miles away.

Mechnica

Entering the town of Mechnica, you can see the church spire under the sign.

The village of Mechnica is located in the district of Koźle about 11 miles north from the town of Koźle. In the13th century, Mechnice belonged to Bożogrobcy (which means “an order of knights protecting God's grave” which was centered in Miechów, but also had a branch in Nissa (now called Nysa). Currently (i.e. in 1880) there is a parish church that was built at the end of the 18th century on the site of the old church, which was damaged by a fire. In 1845 there were

102 houses and 650 Catholic inhabitants. The parish at Mechnica, belonged to the diocese of Kościęcin (now Gościęcin) and had 1839 souls (in 1869).1

Present day Mechnica using Google Earth

A old picture of a street in Mechnica

1 Source: "Słownik Geograficzny Królestwa Polskiego i Innych Krajów Słowiańskich"("Geographical Dictionary of Polish Kingdom and Other Slavic Countries")

Warszawa 1880, Vol. 6, page 223. Translated by Zenon Znamirowski.

2

The entrance to the Catholic Church in Mechnica

Outside the Philipsek gate in Mechnica Inside at the main entrance at the Philipsek house

The yard at the Philipsek house

3