Preface

This volume holds a very special place among the monographs on ethnic communities of Cleveland in that it is exclusively a product of young Hungarian-Americans born and raised in our community. While these young and bright contributors have established themselves in their respective professional fields, they have not rejected or ignored their own ethnic heritage. To the contrary, they are deeply committed to the preservation of their heritage within the multicultural context of American life.

The initial discussion about the need for a publication on Hungarian-Americans of Cleveland goes back to 1973 when a team of local Hungarian community leaders under the chairmanship of Dr. John Palasics prepared an excellent study on the largest Hungarian neighborhood in the United States: the Buckeye Road community. (Published as part of this series of monographs under the title: Ethnic Communities of Cleveland: a Socio-Economic Study, 1974.) During the early phases of this undertaking, it became quite clear that such a comprehensive study on the Hungarian community of Cleveland could be most effectively prepared by one author.

It was my good fortune to have known for several years Susan M. Papp, a Cleveland State University graduate and an active member of Cleveland ethnic communities, who accepted this difficult task. The complexity of this project was compounded when a year later Susan and her husband, A. Andrew Zubrits, resettled in Toronto, Canada, where she presently works as a copy editor/researcher and is pursuing a Masters degree in History. Ms. Papp recently edited and co-authored a volume on Hungarian immigration and settlement, POLYPHONY: Hungarians in Ontario, vol. 2, no. 2-3 (Multicultural History Society of Ontario, 1980).

It was her dedication and committment to the preservation and documentation of immigrant history in America that made her persevere in this task. Today we are proud of her laborious efforts. We have a desperately needed book on one of the most influential ethnic groups of Cleveland and the United States. To Susan my deepest appreciation and gratitude which extends also to her husband for all the support and assistance in the preparation of the maps used in this volume. My appreciation goes also to Susan’s father, Dr. Gabor Papp, who has always played a major role in the Cleveland Hungarian community and has been an inspiration in Susan’s life.

Similarly, my heartfelt thanks to Mr. Joe Eszterhás for the thoughtful introduction. He too is a native Clevelander, a successful novelist and screenwriter who presently works from Hollywood, California. Eszterhás’ well-known novel F.I.S.T. about the struggle of immigrants in the American labor movement expresses his belief in American ethnicity.

My sincere appreciation also goes to a dear friend Rev. Father Rick Orley, a young Hungarian-American priest for his excellent article on the building of an immigrant church; to Dennis F. Fredricks, attorney-at-law, for the fine analysis of ethnicity and politics in Cleveland; and to Lél F. Somogyi for his article on Hungarian cultural contributions.

Last but not least, I would like to thank Anne McCarthy of Toronto for typing this manuscript and my assistant Grace Sechnick for bringing this work to its successful completion.

Dr. Karl Bonutti

Editor, Monograph Series

Ethnic Heritage Studies

Cleveland State University