Mihaij M. HEGEDUS

10 JAN 1910 - 1 DEC 1994

• BIRTH: 10 JAN 1910, Yugoslavia
• DEATH: 1 DEC 1994, South Bend, St Joseph, IN

• MARRIAGE: 17 OCT 1964, St Joseph County, IN

• MARRIAGE: 30 MAY 1933, St Joseph County, IN

1.  William Michael HEGEDUS

INDEX

[N24539] Mihaij M. Hegedus

Birth 10 Jan 1910
Hungary

Death 1 Dec 1994 (aged 84)
South Bend, St. Joseph County, IN

Burial
Saint Joseph Cemetery
South Bend, St. Joseph County, IN
Memorial ID 61038396

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Mihaij or Michael Martin Hegedus was the son of Stephen Hegedus (Hungarian for fiddler or violin) and Rosa Joo (Hungarian for good). Rosa was later Rose Joo Hegedus-Gostola-Swarzan. Mihaij is the equivalent of Michael and means "who is like God." He was born in the town of Chyra (?), Hungary; his siblings were Katharine, George and Mary. The children attended Serbian and Croatian schools, and lived and worked on an uncle's farm. About 1914, Rosa became a widow and could no longer provide for her children. For a time, she placed sons George (5 years old) and Mihaij (6 years old) in an orphanage. Eventually, Mother Rosa (30 years old), sister "Katie" (11 years old), brother George (7 years old), sister Mary (2 years old), and Mihaij (9 years old) emigrated through Termovicica, Croatia, Yugoslavia by way of Trieste, Italy to the United States of America. They waited in northeastern Italy for over a week; during that time the children ate ice cream for the first time. Once they departed, they traveled on the troop ship or Army transport "USS President Grant." Family lore claims the delay boarding the ship in Trieste allowed for fumigation, painting, and cleaning after the ship was used to take American troops back to the United States after World War I. Aboard the vessel, there were sheepskin coats, which were infested with lice; therefore, Mihaij (and most likely his mother and siblings) had lice upon arrival at Ellis Island, New York. After 37 days, they entered the United States on November 14, 1920. Government officials recorded their country of origin as Yugoslavia. That same year, they settled in South Bend, Indiana. On January 10, 1933, Michael Martin Hegedus married Helen Louise Klein. About five years later, Michael was issued a Certificate of Citizenship through the Department of Labor for the United States of America, in the State of Indiana by the circuit court of St. Joseph County. He was 27 years old, of fair complexion, with grey eyes and light brown hair. He weighed 138 pounds and stood 5 feet 7 inches tall. Michael and Helen had four children: William, Juliann, Marcia, and Rosemary. Helen died October 30, 1962. On October 17, 1964 Michael married Dorothy V. Lesinski, who died August 11, 1991. Michael Martin Hegedus retired in 1971 from Bendix Aviation Corporation. He was a foreman and union steward, and played on the Core Room softball team. He enjoyed fishing, hunting, and breeding beagles.