Testimonials

February 16th 2026—A Memorable Evening at the Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society Museum

Valentine’s Day 2026 was a truly memorable day at the Cleveland Hungarian Heritage Society Museum. Our guest speaker, Tom Kaschalk, a proud Clevelander whose roots run deep on the city’s Southeast Side, delivered a captivating and richly personal presentation. Tom’s story is closely intertwined with Cleveland’s Hungarian community. Three of his four great-grandparents immigrated from Hungary to the United States in the late nineteenth century, and that heritage added a meaningful Hungarian dimension to his talk. His deep family ties to the Buckeye and Union-Miles neighborhoods enriched his perspective, making the evening especially engaging for our audience.

Drawing from rare historical photographs and detailed maps, Tom illustrated the remarkable density of taverns and bars that once defined the Buckeye area and many neighborhoods of Cleveland. These establishments were more than watering holes — they were vibrant centers of social life, where politicians, musicians, athletes, and even Hollywood stars gathered. Through colorful anecdotes, Tom recounted the mysteries, scandals, and even murders that unfolded within their walls, bringing a fascinating chapter of Cleveland’s history vividly to life.

Having grown up in the Union-Miles neighborhood at East 93rd and Union, and later in Slavic Village, Tom experienced much of this culture firsthand. His stories were riveting.

Following the lecture, guests enjoyed excellent beer from Immigrant Son Brewery and lingered in the museum — networking, reminiscing, and socializing much as Clevelanders did in the taverns of old. Even an hour after the presentation concluded, people remained; they were engaged in lively conversation and fellowship.

It was a joy to witness and experience — an evening that beautifully honored Cleveland’s Hungarian heritage and the enduring spirit of our community.

My autographed copy of Tom Kaschalk’s book:  Cleveland’s Neighborhood Taverns:  A Pub Crawl Through History is a fascinating read that I will cherish as a reminder of this event.  

Hi, Tom – meant to write yesterday to tell you that there was nothing but pure delight and so many positive comments about your presentation yesterday – how much fun it was, how entertaining you were, and that you clearly knew and loved all that you shared – people just loved it!  Andy and I heard it over and over, including from every member of the Museum’s administrators.

The keg of beer was an inspiration by the president, and definitely added to the good humor.

I hope your book sales went well.  And all those who were there that love this history and the stories you told and the neighborhoods, and appreciated your extensive knowledge about Cleveland history now also know about your next book, and some will definitely be following you – as a number of people told us they would.—-Andrea K. February 15 2026

I wanted to take a moment to express my appreciation for the genealogy research you conducted. Your hard work and attention to detail have helped to uncover valuable information about my grandfather’s history. Your contributions are invaluable and have helped to trace my grandfather’s life journey much further than I was able to do on my own. I am truly grateful for all that you have done.

Thank you for your awesome work and for sharing your passion for genealogy with me. You have done a remarkable job and your efforts are greatly appreciated.

With deep gratitude,

Dennis J.

Tom did an amazing job of tracing my family history. His diligence and attention to detail is evident throughout the project.  He gave a Life Story about my relatives with interesting facts I never knew.  Tom provided many pictures, marriage certificates, death certificates, draft registrations, census records, and wills among other documentation.  To say I am more than pleased would be an understatement.  Tom, thank you for your thoroughness in researching our family history and the enjoyment it will give our family for years. I highly recommend his services.

Mark F.

June 2023

As an amateur genealogist, it seems sooner or later we hit that brick wall and need to turn to a professional for help. I went to the internet and searched for a genealogist in Ohio, where my search location actually is. I was looking for someone who could not only look up records, but also be on the ground in Ohio and perform some detective work for me in order fill out my family history. While searching the APG website I found Tom Kaschalk. His profile pulled me in because of his research experience list as well as his non-research specialties list of qualifications. For my research I needed not only a genealogist but a historian. I reached out to Tom, explained where I was researching and what I was looking for and Tom immediately put a plan together for me.

I was looking for family information from around the Trumbull County area of NE Ohio. My family had moved there in the early 1800s and I was hoping to find some mention of them in a county history book or local newspaper of the day. My initial goal was to discover more details about my family in Ohio from this time period. On top of all that was a second research goal revolving around an ancestor from NE Ohio who was initially married in the 1880s but up to this time I was unable to track down a marriage record for him.

After providing what small amounts of information I did have to Tom, I was pleasantly surprised to get a report back from him in a short amount of time. Wow, it was quite the report too. Tom was able to do extensive research on my family from throughout the 1800s. The research information came from records that Tom searched out such as land records, property tax rolls, church history, local history books, census records, newspapers, and vital records. There were many details I learned about my family in the 1800s that I never knew were out there. I thoroughly enjoyed reading the family biographies and also the newspaper snippets of marriage announcements. Most importantly on my research goal list was that missing marriage record from the 1880s. I know any research between 1880 and 1900 is difficult (because records are scarce) but Tom solved the mystery. After finding out my ancestor was a railroad employee, Tom searched records of adjacent states where the railroad was expanding to during this time frame and found the mystery marriage record in the state of Michigan. Success! Tom made some tremendous finds during this time period. I am impressed! 

Tom Kaschalk is a professional. He far exceeded my expectations and I would highly recommend him to anyone needing those historic bits of family information to construct their own family tree.

Jerry A

October 20th 2023

October 2023

My daughter has always expressed interest in our family history, so for Christmas this year I decided to get her a family tree history.  I did some Google research and found a local company called Myclevelandhistory.com.  The owner, Tom Kaschalk, responded very quickly to my initial email and phone call and was very easy to work with.

I can truly say Tom went above and beyond what I expected.  He was able to trace our family’s history (on both sides) to the mid 1700’s, and he would have gone even farther back if I didn’t stop him!  

What impressed me the most was that Tom didn’t just map out a family tree, but he was able to bring back wonderful memories of our family through old newspaper articles, property records, marriage licenses, and old neighborhood photos.  He was able to present our family history as something living and breathing for our children to enjoy.

The quality of his work was outstanding.  Tom was able to provide us a gorgeous canvas and wood framed family tree to give to our children.

I recommend Tom and myclevelandhistory.com very much.

Greg K

February 2024

As amateur genealogists, my sister and I have worked hard over the years to locate more information online for our Nicholas ancestor in Cleveland. We have also requested records from several entities there with limited success. We have never visited Cleveland and have limited knowledge of the resources available. That’s where help from a professional like Tom is invaluable! He knows Cleveland and its resources and is methodical and thorough about researching them and promptly sharing his findings. We would highly recommend enlisting his help with your own brick walls!

Beth S.

February 2024

What wonderful information. I thank you for all the research that you have done so far. I was afraid that we would never find information about a previous birth, but isn’t my father’s birth certificate an interesting mystery. I will look forward to any additional information that you find out.

Thanks again for your work on my mystery. I was amazed by the sources that you were able to identify and check.

Ted F.