Archive Response

While we were in Vilnius, we also took the opportunity to check the archive for the documents necessary to exercise the "right of return" and apply for Lithuanian citizenship. We visited both the Central Archive and the Historical Archive and viewed some documents, but ultimately requested for a couple searches to be done on our behalf. Last Friday I received the first response, and I've been trying to decipher it ever since. I finally resorted to some help from Elena. There's some really interesting (and some uncomfortable) information there!! The short of it, though, is that the documents held at the Central Archive aren't quite enough for the application yet: they show that močiute was resident there after 1940, but not that she was a citizen. Hopefully the request we made for her birth certificate will show this.

Response from the Central Archive

The interesting (and somewhat chilling) part of the letter says that močiute's first husband served in the "Vermachte" or Wehrmacht - the Nazi military!! It's not clear if he enlisted voluntarily or was conscripted during the occupation. I really hope that it is the latter. I know that he was a police officer, so hopefully they were simply folded into the ranks when the Germans arrived. The wikipedia entry on the Wehrmact does say that "the 'voluntary' nature of such recruitment was often rather dubious, especially in the later years of the war". Nevertheless, this reflects the rather uncomfortable fact that many Lithuanians welcomed the Nazis as liberators because they had chased out the Soviets.

I don't know if the record stating all this was made by the Germans (keeping track of their troops) or the Russians (compiling a hit list of enemy collaborators), but either way the family was marked. The document this letter is referring to is the reason my grandmother had to leave Lithuania. Otherwise she most certainly would have been deported to Siberia when the Soviets eventually returned.

The next part of the letter says that there are no other documents stating that my grandmother lived at that address (135 Vaidoto gatve, Kaunas), for example when the 1942 census was taken. Which means she must have been married after 1942 and should, thus, appear on the census with her family in Vilkaviškis or in Kaunas (with an aunt, I believe).

The final part of the letter gives the census details for the rest of the Apanavičius family, which affirms that I've got a match. Močiute's best recollection of the Apanavičius family is pretty darn close. It makes me want to contact them. The best I know is that they settled in Ohio (or was it Chicago?) - anyhow, I have it in močiute's old address book.

Apanavičius family as recalled by močiute.

TRANSCRIPTION:

In Vilnius labor exchange archive section about people whose relatives worked for police or vermachte ... during 1941-1944, there is a card for Apanavičienė Marija, born 1921, lived in Kaunas Vaidotas gatve 135. It is said in file that her husband (name not included) is serving vermacht.

Based on: F. R-626, ap. 1, b. 335, 1. 37.

NOTE: There are no more documents confirming that Marija Apanavičienė lived in Kaunas, Vaidotas gatve 135, or that she was Lithuania citizen in archives, [based on the details] you gave.

Documents about census before year 1940 the archives does not have.

According to Lithuania statistics archive, national census of Lithuania general area in 1942 May 27th, in Kaunas city, A. Panemunė land, Vaidotas st. 136, residents Jurgis Apanavičius household was:
- Jurgis Apanavičius, born 1889 in Kaunas, shop owner-assistant, head of family
- Marijona Apanavičienė, wife, born 1907 in Kaunas, Pažaislis, working member of the family
- Vytautas Apanavičius, son, born 1921 in Kaunas, finance manager (working place section says "Battalion")
- Algimantas Apanavičius, son, born 1928 in A. Panemunė
- Elvyra Apanavičiūtė, daughter, born 1932 in A. Panemunė
- Reimundas Apanavičius, son, born1934 in A Panemunė
- Marijonas Apanavičius, relative, born 1924 in Kaunas.
All persons of Lithuanian nationality (F.R-743, ap. 2, b. 2001)