Cow Hampshire

Photograph of John Harko from the Boston (MA) Herald newspaper of 24 January 1925.

Manchester New Hampshire has long been a city built by immigrants. From the early settlers to the mill workers, most of them arrived to the area only a generation or two from an ancestor from another continent. In the very early 20th century there was an influx of people from eastern and middle European countries. Between 1901 and 1910 it is estimated that Austrians were one of the ten most significant immigrant groups in the United States.

One of these families that arrived during this time, was that of John Harko. His name at immigration was Jan Zacharko, born 1 January 1906 in “Debromil, Austria.” Today this is Dobrómyl, a city in Staryi Sambir Raion, Lviv Oblast, Ukraine, located about 5 kilometers away from Poland’s border. His petition to become a citizen states that he entered the US on the S S Chemitz, North German Lloyd Line ship on 24 August 1907. At that time he used the name Jan Zacharko, and it was stated that his permanent residence was to be Galveston Texas. He had arrived as a baby not quite 2 years old, with his parents, John & Anna (Hnatio) Zacharko [Editor’s note: his marriage record states his parents names were John & Mary (Poltak) Zacharko]. Continue reading →