Names of Grandfather's Family & Friends near Prague

When my Great-Uncle Wenzel Zvolanek boarded the F Missler Bremen for the United States in the Spring of 1914, he listed his residence as Kreizenburg in the district of Chotebor, Crown Land Bohemia. There is also a note about a village called Rankov.

In a letter written to my Grandfather on May 10, 1923 from relatives in New Ransko some names appear. A digital scan and translation will be provided on this site.

The names mentioned in this letter are:
Anton and Frank Briz, their daughters Frances, Toni, Rose.
Ludmila and Mary (last name uncertain) from Ransko.
Aunt Madam Muttl (Muttlova) who died in 1922.
And "Father" who is "already very old" but still weaving.

Another paper mentions Ludmila Briznova.
I have a copy of a letter from Ludmila, so she could be a relative or close friend.

Yet another paper appears to record this address (as best I can read the language)
Od Antonin Briza
Nove Ransko c 66
Cechy Europa.

Here are addresses written in Grandfather's little notebook.
I have no reason yet to believe that they are relatives.
Perhaps he met them on the ship to Ellis Island?

Velecteni Pan
p. Jozep Malit
u.p. Merkea Chotebor
Kraij (or Kray) Castari
Bohimen

Yet another address:
Vaclav Obradovsky,
Krucemburk,
Cechy

Uncovering Names of Grandfather's Relatives in Russia

By studying a couple of official documents on-line and Grandfather's returned letter to Russia, I've decided that there are a few names that I can try to track down. An important name shows up on Ellis Island documents and US Census documents: Jan and Waclav's father's name was recorded a few times as Jan Zvolanek (senior.)

Just the other day, while writing about the Returned Letter, I said that there were no Zvolaneks on the address, other than the name of my Grandpa to whom the letter was being returned. I thought Grandfather's name was written on the front and on the back as the "Returnee."

But now that I realize that my Grandfather and his father were both named Jan. It's entirely possible that Grandfather John addressed the envelope to his father Jan Zvolanek in addition to someone named Kijevshoy (sp?) Huberni. The Elder Jan Zvolanek's name has been hiding in plain sight all along -- underneath the SERVICE SUSPENDED rubber stamp.

According to Reverend Jan Dus' translation of this letter, other people and names appear in my grandfather's letter:
Parents and brothers: the plural seems significant. Grandpa's mother is apparently still alive and he's writing to more than one brother. (By this time, his brother Waclav (Jim) is already living in Nebraska...

Antonie Kopernicka, Antonin (friend or cousin?) and brother Ivanovi Zvolanek.
As I find more names on documents, I will post them for follow-up.

I'm enjoying how handy this blog is for organizing, adding and sharing information!