Preserving the past to inspire the future
I’m Patti Salopek Angus. This is where I keep my family’s history: the Croatian immigrants who came to the steel mills of Duquesne, Pennsylvania, the neighborhoods they built, and the generations that scattered from there. You’ll also find my own journeys, recipes, research tips and books for my grandkids.
If you recognize a name, a face or a place, I’d love to hear from you.
Family names on this site
Each name links to the stories, photo captions and reader notes that mention it. Spelling varies from record to record, so Kučinić also finds Kucinic and Kucanich.
Ways you can help
Name a face in an old photo
Many guests in the Duquesne wedding photos from before 1950 are still unnamed. Look for a grandparent or great-aunt.
Share a memory of Duquesne
Below the tracks, Nick Lee Hollow, Green Gables, the Croatian Hall: readers' memories fill in what the records leave out.
Add your family's story
Photos, letters, obituaries or a correction. If it touches these families, I'd love to see it.
Latest stories
Explore the archive
My heritage
Ancestors on my family tree: Ana Puškarić, Tony and Katie Salopek, and the places they came from.
Duquesne Croatians
The first and second generation Croatians of Duquesne, Pennsylvania: businesses below the tracks, the Croatian Hall, softball teams and weddings.
Family history 101
Where to start if you're tracing your own family, and the records that helped me most.
Personal journey
My own story, a year in Alaska, and the Popcorn Party blog.
My books
Family history and picture books, including Tony and Katie.
