Mission: Finding my grandmothers birth-home

[Miralda]

Tere!

I hope you may be able to get me in the right direction here. I´m looking for the address where my grandmother grew up in Viljandi. She emigrated to Sweden in 1944 and now I´m trying to find more information about her life. Also, me and my father are travelling to Viljandi on Thursday, so I would also have the chance to go to archives in place if there are documents there!

So this is what I know about her:

Her name is Leida Miralda Dorbek (later Aidas). She was born in Viljandi in 6 august 1913.
Daughter of Peeter Dorbek (b. 18/3 1872) and Melanie Kärk (b. 6/1 1889).

She studied typing at the gumnasium in Viljandi and graduated in 1930. (I don´t know which gumnasium, are there more than one?)
Then she had an internship as a secretary in the "Drätselkammaren" of Viljandi (swedish word for some administrative chamber) between 1931-1933.

Later she moved to Tallinn and worked as a machine typist at the agricultural bank 1934-1935, at the Estonian parliament in 1936, and at the Uhistegevuskoda in 1942-1944.

I´m also interested in finding out where she lived in Tallinn, but the city archive in Tallinn didn´t have any information on her.

So how can I find out where she grew up in Viljandi? Her parents home? Should I try to find her school and ask if they have any records? I went to the Viljandi Maavalitsus last year but they only had documents on her family members, and no addresses.... Is there some other place I could visit?

[andres73]

You might have some luck if you go through these books (list of residents of Viljandi for 1918) page by page:
http://www.ra.ee/dgs/explorer.php?tid=2 ... f0a6b487b9
(it would probably be a good idea to also look for Peeter and/or Melanie).

There were three Dorbeks (but not Leida Miralda) in the address list of Viljandi for 1936:
http://www.ra.ee/dgs/_purl.php?shc=ERA. ... 1176,217,0 (Their addresses were Vene 4; Väike 10; Lossi 11).

It also seems that although a number of Dorbeks appear in the address lists for Tallinn (1909-1929), Leida Miralda Dorbek (or Leida Miralda Aidas) is not listed there, probably because she moved to Tallinn later.
http://www.ra.ee/aadresslehed/index.php ... Dorbek&q=1

In a brief search, I could not find the birth of Leida Miralda Dorbek in the birth registers of the Lutheran churches of Viljandi or in the personal books of those churches. Was she Orthodox? Or perhaps I should have searched more carefully?

[Miralda]

Tere and thank you for the fast response!

Actually I think the second link you sent is helpful. My grandmothers name was Melanie Dorbek, but she was also called Maali (her parents had converted to greek-orthodox, so she was both Maali and Melanie). And Felix Dorbek is my grandmothers half-brother, so I think those adresses are definately from my family! I don't know who Magda Dorbek is, maybe some cousin?

Strange that only Maali's name is here and not Peeter...

If this book is from 1936 my grandmother would already have moved to Tallinn. But probably I guess her mother would still be living in the same house where she grew up.

(I found Peeter Dorbeks family register here: Saaga EAA.1290.1.561:903)

Thanks for the help!

[Miralda]

I was also trying to find the farm of my great grandfather Jüri Aidas. He is my fathers fathers father... so on the other side.

Their family also come from Viljandi originally, and I found that he was born in Vana-Tänassilma. (His father, Jaan, possibly have some connections to a Raudseppa farm in the area?)

Jüri (or Jürri) was born in 27 mars 1863 (or the 9th of april depending on calendar). I found his birth certificate here: Saaga EAA.1290.1.77:8?1250,1664,1199,338,0

and his family records here: Saaga EAA.1280.1.223:109


But none of them contain any information about an adress to a farm. I would like to find the exact house they lived in so I can go there and see it. Are there some farm-book records I can search in for this information?

[Arvo.Jägel]

Looks like in birth record is written "Arrojago" - this is most likely farm or village name.
You could look at 1858 census data and find this family there, both by family name and "Arrojago" place name.
I can look later today

/edit/
I think this is Jaan Aidas family in Arro Jago farm (by Vana-Tännasilm manor): Saaga EAA.1865.3.291/1:2?384,1304,2246,194,0.
Jaan Aidas is also mentioned here: Saaga EAA.1865.3.291/1:37?412,1620,1070,106,0 (this is column from 1850 census).

On some old map, Arujaagu, at location 58°22′0.18″, 25°46′55.89″.
On newer map this place is located probably here.
Or here

[Miralda]

Ah, I didn´t think that Arrojago could be a farm name, of course, thank you!

Me and my father are back from our trip to Viljandi now, it was great to go there, especially with my father being able to get us around so well with the language

Unfortunately we didn´t have time to go out on the countryside to see the Arrojago farm.. but next time...

We went to see the house on Lossi 11 situated near J. Laidoneri plats, which used to be the market square in the old days. We managed to get some help from the Viljandi museum (which was just across the street!) and they told us the house also used to be the family's grocery store in the 1930´s A story my father had been told but I have never been able to find any records of, so it was good to get that confirmed! It was also marked with a sign that said "arkitektuurmälestis elamu XVIII-XIX S.B.", what does that mean?

Anyway, it was called "Piim Dorbeck" (although my great grandfather was Peeter Dorbek with a k). And it seems they might have rented it from 1925 to at least 1936 (according to the address list of Viljandi from 1936). I don´t know if it helps, but some more information we got from the museum was who owned the house in different years (I think):

1790 Krunt 41 Rahtman Boström
1832 Krunt 9 Ratsherr Boström
1936 Jakob Hoff

Is it possible to find out more about the store now that I know what the business was called? Maybe an inventory so that one could see what kind of goods they sold?