Doesn't Ellis Island give a precise date? Serbian Orthodox books do give exact dates and witnesses. Do you have a place of birth?

Ellis island gives exact dates of the arrival, but you have to have the right person. I thought I found the right person. I understand that birthdates weren't kept track of so it wasn't odd that everything fit except the year of birth. It was off by three years. The birth place for this person was listed as Biskupija, Austria, which now I believe is Croatia and once was part of Yugoslavia correct?

Another person had been helping me research this Vaso Papovic who came over through Ellis Island on the Kaiser Franz Josef I, August 30th, 1913. The port of departure ws Trieste, Italy. She found his World War I draft card and said the birth date was January 4, 1896. The entire birthdate is wrong. I can't imagine that the whole thing would be wrong and it still be the right person. The one I'm looking for was born on August 15th, and we're estimating the year of 1899. We're pretty sure of the year but we're pursuing anything 5 years older or younger. All I know of the birth location at this point is Yugoslavia with the exception of the person listed above. I hope to know more once the film comes in.

Some documents I have copies of, he signed B.V. Papovich. I know that names were commonly misspelled. I was told the B represented Brunovasa. However, in any research I've done so far, no one has found this name anywhere. There are some close matches like Branislav. He went by Vaso which I have learned is short for Vasilije or Vasil. He said in a postcard to my Great Grandmother that he found work on a steamship and planned to work his way back to Europe that day. The card was sent on May 5, 1927 and he was supposed to leave from New York.

You need to keep into account indeed possible errors in the registration process but also the fact that in Serbia and the region the Orthodox religion uses the old calender. This means there is a discrepancy in the dates.

What name is signed on the card? Both the names you mentioned are possible.

If there is a discrepancy in the date, would that possibly include the day and month as well? He definitely wrote August 15th and it does say birthday on it. He has signed everything that I've seen as Vaso Papovich. One item shows simply B.V. Papovich.

I was told that Vasilije or Vasil are the ONLY options for Vaso. Is this true?

Melanie

The discrepancy is possible.

Vaso fits the names so the nickname is possible to fit those names.