Italian-American Genealogy Meeting Notes
Minutes Prepared by: Barbara Morten
26 January 2019
The meeting was held at the
McLean Government Center
1437 Balls Hill Road
McLean, VA 22101
Phone 703-356-0551
Note that the minutes are maintained on the website:
We had a larger than normal turnout which was great and we hope this becomes the normal.
The Chair opened with a greeting and said if they know of any meeting, presentation, documentary, etc. related to Italy, or genealogy, send her a note so that it can be noted on our website, facebook, etc.
The next two meetings will be held at the McLean Government Center. The dates are Saturday, April 13th and Saturday, July 13th. Meetings are held from 10am to 12:30pm.
Next year, the quarterly meetings will be held on the 3rd Saturday of the month.
We then went around the room discussing our current dilemmas, challenges, and accomplishments related to our genealogy.
A member whose ancestors are from Sicily passed around his book which contains not only his family genealogy, but sections on history of the area where his family came from, reasons for migration, and more. He used Microsoft Word for the basic document, with additional software to format the book. He mentioned that the name Sicily was changed over the years.
[Barb Morten found the following:
According to the website, www.britannica.com/place/Sicily,
“At the coming of the Greeks, three peoples occupied Sicily: in the east the Siculi, or Sicels, who gave their name to the island but were reputed to be latecomers from Italy; to the west of the Gelas River, the Sicani; and in the extreme west the Elymians, a people to whom a Trojan origin was assigned, with their chief centres at Segesta and at Eryx (Erice).”]
A member’s ancestors are from Sicily. She talked about the ‘allegati’ records. These are supplemental records, or enclosures. Marriage records usually include a cover page listing the documents included. These include: The Promise to Marry; names and birth records for bride and groom; parent’s names; parent’s death records, if deceased; Marriage date and place; list of witnesses
[Barb Morten, from a search using ‘allegati sicily’, found the following on search.ancestry.com:
“Enclosures (Allegati):
Allegati are enclosures or supplemental records and documents that were needed, in some cases, to compile the actual birth, marriage, or death record. There are many different types of records and documents that could be included as allegati Some examples include notes from hospitals regarding births or deaths, notes from other towns or foreign countries if a birth or death occurred in that place and not the person’s usual place of residence, marriage files, marriage banns, declarations of intention to marry, and birth certificates of the bride and groom.
Information available in the allegati varies greatly according to the types of records and documents included. There may be several pages of records that pertain to an individual or couple. Be sure to view the next few images following the first image on which you locate an individual in order to obtain all possible information from the record.”]
A member’s parents met in the Bronx. He said that in the 1930’s, for tax purposes, photos were taken of every house in the Bronx. These have been digitized and are available on the internet.
[Barb Morten did a search and found the following site:
www1.nyc.gov/site/records/historical-records/photos.page
However, I did not get very far. It indicated that the tax photos were done in the 1940’s, but when I attempted to look at the photos, the system just hung. It looks like you can order photos, but I didn’t try that.]
The member whose parents met in the Bronx also indicated that the NYG&B Society has lectures and conferences. The next New York State Family History Conference will be in September 10-12, 2020 in Albany, NY. He indicated that when he joined the NYG&B society, he received a free book, which he passed around.
Website: www.newyorkfamilyhistory.org
A member whose ancestors are from near Naples said she had her DNA tested. She said the first time it indicated Italian. The second time, it showed more Greek. A discussion followed about DNA testing and how it has gotten more detailed as more people have submitted their DNA. Also, different companies test for and highlight different information. Also, make sure you read the fine print before signing up for testing to make sure you allow, or limit, the use of your DNA information. Some companies allow you to limit who can see your information, how it is used, and who can or cannot contact you. Others have you sign away your rights as to how the information can be used.
A member whose ancestors are from Abruzzo suggests revisiting Family Search, as more is available as time goes on. She recently viewed Funeral Home records.
Funeral home records may also be found at the local library, or the local or state Historical Society. Also, her niece is willing to translate documents. She will post a Facebook link.
A member whose ancestors are from Sicily passed around the book, “Tiger at the Bar” by Chester Harris, the life story of Charles J. Margiotti. He talked briefly about several groups including the Southern Italy DNA and Genealogical public group and the Dual Italian/American Citizenship group. He also mentioned that the NIAF (www.naïf.org), the National Italian American Foundation will be at the Javits Center in NY City this weekend.
A member whose ancestors are from Sicily and Avellino uses Family Search and she suggests that when you find something there, download the information, not just the link, because the link may not remain over time. Also, if you do download something, make sure you reference the source and the link so that you can verify the facts.
A member whose ancestors are from Southern Italy – Puglia said she works at the Family History Center in Great Falls (Family History Center 2034 Great Falls St, Falls Church, Virginia 22043). She also mentioned that every Saturday Beth Caldwell is available for support for genealogical research, and the Family History Center in Kensington has a DNA group.
A member’s ancestors are from Southern Italy, England, Netherlands, Germany (Palatine). She passed around a collection of photos of her Italian grandmother, and various records including passports, Birth, Marriage and Death certificates, Naturalization, Obituaries, and parish registers.
A general discussion among members of Italian Birth records ensued. A relative was supposed to register the birth within one or two days, but because of location, or some other reason, this didn’t always happen. So you must read the birth certificate carefully to distinguish when the birth was recorded and when it actually occurred. The certificate states who appeared, the relationship, and when the birth occurred.
A member found in the Annandale Family History Center records from the early 1800’s for Sicily and Campania. He has amassed over 26 Italian surnames to date.
He talked about trying to get records from a particular church only to find out that the roof fell in and the records are still in there. It was suggested that maybe the records may also be located another location. He mentioned an Italian documentary
A member recently found out his Italian town disappeared. It was merged with another.
He said that DNA testing has gotten better, so keep checking for updated information.
A brief discussion of how GEDMATCH and Genesis Match have merged?
[Barb Morten did a search and found the following site:
gedmatch.com:
“GEDmatch provides DNA and genealogical analysis tools for amateur and professional researchers and genealogists. Most tools are free, but we do provide some premium tools for users who wish to help support us with contributions. You will need to upload DNA and / or genealogical (GEDCOM) data to make use of the tools here. ...”]
A discussion of Facebook included the following suggestions:
Change your password regularly and do not save it in your phone or email info.
Use two factor authorizations, so that it is harder for unauthorized users to get to your info.
A member suggested that if we have Italian Flags, photos, or posters to bring them to our meetings for display and discussion. She also said she enjoyed traveling to Italy again, but found that when she went to the Cemetery that she had previously visited, she found that the grave was no longer there. Come to find out, graves are reused in Italy.
A member said his ancestor was a baker in Italy, but when he came to America, he decided it was too early to get up in the morning to be a baker, so he became a barber!
A member said when cleaning out her mother and grandmother’s homes, she found bags of photos and stacks of funeral cards.
A member whose ancestor are from Poland and Ireland said he joined the NEHGS, New England Historical and Genealogical Society, for information on his Irish ancestors.
A suggestion was made to search for Old Fulton Postcards. When a member entered her family name she ended up with hundreds of articles in various newspapers from central and western New York State containing the name. One was from 1965 when her brother graduated from the Air Force Academy, it even had his photo in the article!
The End of January 2019 Minutes