James Smock has always held an interest in his Polish ancestors and heritage. He is a native Houstonian with Polish roots in Bremond, Marlin and New Waverly, Texas.
James is a past president of the Polish Genealogical Society of Texas and was the founding webmaster of the PGST website. He also served as the Surname Index Coordinator from 1994 - 2000.
In addition to serving as the webmaster and editor of this Polish Texan website, he maintains a number of other websites including;
With a lifelong passion for photography, James can often be found with a camera around his neck. In addition to photographing family events and his grandchildren, he is the church photographer for St. Mary Catholic Church in Plantersville and St. Joseph Catholic Church in Stoneham. Many of his photographs can be found on the church website or his photography gallery.
3 videos showing the Polish Day celebration on November 5, 2011 at the Texas Renaissance Festival In Plantersville Texas. These videos were filmed by videographer Slawomir Gogol from Our Lady of Czestochowa parish in Houston, Texas.
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2011 Polish Day at the Texas Renaissance FestivalRead More »
2011 Polish Day at the Texas Renaissance Festival Read More »
It was a bit unusual to see so many vehicles parked on Main Street in downtown Bremond Texas on Saturday evening, November 5, 2011. The crowd had gathered in the Texas Slav & German Warehouse for a premier showing of “The Waltz To Westphalia”, a documentary film produced by Joe Weed. To celebrate the occasion, there was also lots of beer drinking, dining on delicious Polish food and dancing to good Polish music.
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Waltz To Westphalia Premier And Polka BashRead More »
Videos of the music at the Waltz To Westphalia Premier And Polka Bash In Bremond Texas on November 5, 2011.
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Videos of the Waltz To Westphalia Premier And Polka BashRead More »
Videos of the Waltz To Westphalia Premier And Polka Bash Read More »
Chappell Hill Texas derives a lot of history and heritage from its early Polish settlers and since October is Polish American Heritage month in the United States, it was not surprising that the meeting room in the museum was decorated in Polish style for the membership meeting of the Chappell Hill Historical Society on Tuesday, October 25, 2011. There were several display cases containing some of Larry Gurka’s extensive collection of beautiful Polish folk dolls and a lot of framed photos of last years kolędy celebration that was held the day after Christmas.
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Chappell Hill Celebrates Polish Heritage Month With Daniel CendalskiRead More »
Chappell Hill Celebrates Polish Heritage Month With Daniel Cendalski Read More »
Daniel Cendalski at the membership meeting of the Chappell Hill Historical Society on Tuesday, October 25, 2011.
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Video Of Chappell Hill Celebrates Polish Heritage Month With Daniel CendalskiRead More »
Video Of Chappell Hill Celebrates Polish Heritage Month With Daniel Cendalski Read More »
On Sunday, October 23, 2011 St. Mary’s Catholic Church hosted their 21st annual Polish Heritage Festival at the Parish Activity Center on the church grounds in Brenham, Texas. At 11 am, the diners lined up to fill their plates with delicious Polish food which included baked ham, kielbasa, rosół z kury, czarnina, sauerkraut, potatoes and green beans along with delicious desserts and ice tea, soft drinks and cold piwo to drink.
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2011 Polish Heritage Festival At St. Mary In BrenhamRead More »
2011 Polish Heritage Festival At St. Mary In Brenham Read More »
A series of 5 YouTube videos about Polish Wigilia or Christmas Eve customs and cooking in Southeast Poland. The last video is about kolędy on the day after Christmas.
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Wigilia – Christmas Eve Cooking Customs In Southeast PolandRead More »
Wigilia – Christmas Eve Cooking Customs In Southeast Poland Read More »
icon in the photo caption to see an individuals family history in our genealogy database.
B.S. Kotch Saloon 1896 2 seated unknown, ? Strugula behind the bar, center table; V. T. Kotch Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
B.S. Kotch Saloon 1896 2 seated unknown, ? Strugula behind the bar, center table; V. T. Kotch Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
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V. T. Kotch Grocery Store Vick Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
V. T. Kotch Grocery Store Vick Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
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V. T. Kotch Grocery Store Mrs. V. T. Kotch and Victor Kotch Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
V. T. Kotch Grocery Store Mrs. V. T. Kotch and Victor Kotch Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
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Bremond High School Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
Bremond High School Photo courtesy of Al "Winky" Knapik
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V. T. Kotch Saloon Left to right; Frank Strugala Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
V. T. Kotch Saloon Left to right; Frank Strugala Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
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Polish National Alliance Group 128 Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
Polish National Alliance Group 128 Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
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Polish National Alliance Group 128 Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
Polish National Alliance Group 128 Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
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Polish National Alliance Names on back, not sure of order; John Klotz Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
Polish National Alliance Names on back, not sure of order; John Klotz Photo courtesy of Wanda Kotch
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Original Wooden Church In Bremond Photo courtesy of Fr. Celso Yu
Original Wooden Church In Bremond Photo courtesy of Fr. Celso Yu
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25th Anniversary of Holy Name of Jesus Society Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
25th Anniversary of Holy Name of Jesus Society Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
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Fr. Ignatius Szymanski
March 1941 Bremond, Texas Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
Fr. Ignatius Szymanski
March 1941 Bremond, Texas Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
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Henry Syzdek Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
Henry Syzdek Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
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Henry Syzdek Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
Henry Syzdek Photo courtesy of Ron Wendt
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Bremond Meat Market Left to Right; Photo courtesy of Robert Bielamowicz
Bremond Meat Market Left to Right; Photo courtesy of Robert Bielamowicz
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Abraham Cotton Gin George Abraham on the loading dock, others unknown. Photo courtesy of Janel Grych
Abraham Cotton Gin George Abraham on the loading dock, others unknown. Photo courtesy of Janel Grych
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Groholski Grocery Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
Groholski Grocery Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
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Fr Szymanski 25th Anniversary Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
Fr Szymanski 25th Anniversary Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
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Bienski Bar and Barbecue Owner Ed Bienski Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
Bienski Bar and Barbecue Owner Ed Bienski Photo courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
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Slideshow of Bremond Photos Courtesy of Bremond Historical Society
More Polish Texan Photos
Vintage Photos of Bremond Texas Read More »
