Broken Wall Friday

I broke through a brick wall this week. I broke through the barrier of the 1700's.  I had never taken any of my father's lines back past 1800.  I did that with my most recent find. I found the marriage record of my 3x great grandparents Domenico Antonio Zampella and Maria Grazia Di Costanzo.  I can safely assume that if Domenico Antionio was born in 1801 and Maria Grazia was born in 1810 both their parents would have been born in the 1700s!  This is my paternal grandfather's mother's line that seems to remain in Caserta, Caserta, Italy.  I did a tree to show this line.  I am hoping to find more on this line soon but this is what I have so far.

Sam and Katie Famoso ~ A Perfect Match

KATIE AND SAM (SOSIO) FAMOSO

Hi, I am Sam Famoso.  I have been asked by Ann to write a guest blog on my recollections of my grandparents Katie and Sam Famoso.  I am the son of Frances and John Famoso and the oldest of Katie and Sam’s three grandchildren.  My father John was Katie and Sam’s youngest child.  My grandfather came to this country from Cardito, Italy on the Nord America which departed Palermo, Sicily in 1901.  He came with his mother Anna Pirolli, sister Rose (Columba) and brothers Biagio and Alfonso.  They docked in New York City on October 28, 1901.  His father Giovanni and brother Luigi had previously come to the United States.  They settled on 109^th Street between 1^st and 2^nd Avenue, a section of upper Manhattan known as Harlem.  My grandmother was born in America and was proud of being an American of Italian descent.

At first, my Grandfather was a tailor.  He then became a barber which ultimately allowed him to purchase the barber shop concession in the Harvard Club in Manhattan.  My Grandparents were married on October 16, 1910.  My wife Palma and I chose October 16^th as our wedding day 61 years later.  This made my Grandmother very happy and proud.  My early recollections of Grandpa were our Sunday walks from 109^th to 125^th Street.  By the time we got to 125^th Street, I was too tired (as I was only about 3 years old) to walk back.  Grandpa would always hail a cab but I would only ride in a new cab never an old one.  Thus, started my lifelong fascination with the automobile.  Grandpa would tell my father that at 3 years old I knew every car on the street by name.

When we moved to Astoria in 1948, my Grandfather would pick my sister and me up from school every Friday afternoon.  As soon as we got home, I would have to get a haircut whether I needed one or not.  When I was about 8 years old, I finally pleaded with him to give me one every 2 weeks.  He reluctantly agreed.  After dinner there was always a card game which lasted into early morning.  After the game, my Dad would drive Grandpa home to Harlem as my Grandma was alone.

My Grandma was the best.  She didn't come with Grandpa on Fridays as she really didn't care to go out unless she had to and only with someone else.  I remember my mother telling me about one time after I had come home from the hospital after emergency surgery for a ruptured appendix and colitis.  The doorbell rang and who was at the door but Grandma.  My mother couldn’t believe it and asked who had come with her.  Grandma told her that I was sick and she had come on the subway by herself because she had to see me.  When I was about 12 years old, Grandpa was diagnosed with a form of Leukemia and also suffered some small strokes.  He passed away in March of 1959.

My Grandma had moved to the Bronx to live with her daughter, my aunt Anna Famoso Squitieri.  I have vivid memories of Grandma making her homemade cavatelli and sending my aunt on the subway from the Bronx to Astoria to bring me the most delicious cavatelli ever.   This became a regular thing and boy do I miss them! 

I was lucky to have my Grandma until I was 31.  She was able to see me get married and have our first child Christina (her first great grandchild).  My grandmother was a very special person to me and to all who had the privilege of knowing and loving her.  In February of 1976, Grandma passed away and sadly we also lost my Dad just six weeks later.  I always said that I never really got a chance to mourn her.

Sam and Katie at the Beach

Sam Famoso, Ann and Neal Squitieri and Katie Famoso

Uncle Alphonso Famoso – Fine Family Man

Great Uncle Alphonso Famoso – Fine Family Man

Alphonso was the youngest boy of Giovanni and Anna Famoso. He was born on February 9, 1896 in San Severo (Savario), Bari, Italy.  He was only about 5 when he came to the United States with Anna and his siblings.  I don’t know much about his early life.  I have been told that he didn't have an Italian accent which makes sense because he came to the United States when he was so young. I know he was a handsome young man because I have several photos of him. I imagine he went to school and played with his friends.  He probably got a job when he was young to help support his family. His mother Anna died when he was about 12 years old. There is a story that his father tried to teach him how to play the drums but every time he got something wrong, his dad would hit him in the head. Needless to say, he stopped playing the drums. He was the only boy in the family who didn't play a musical instrument. 

Alphonso and his niece Anna Famoso
circa 1912

Uncle Al ~ Coney Island photo

Alphonso was drafted into the army in April of 1918 which was right near the end of WWI.  He became a Corporal but his son says his nickname was "Sarge" and he was the head of the cooks in his division.  His military record says he was in the 152nd and 153rd Brigades.  He was never sent overseas.  I have to wonder if that may have been because his brother was killed in France.  Alphonso obtained his U.S. citizenship in July of 1918 while serving in the army.  At the time he was inducted into the army he was a Machinist for a company called Bangider or Baugider in Manhattan, NY.  I haven’t found any record of that company yet.

Alphonso married Antonetta (Nettie) Monaco around November of 1928. I am not sure when Antonetta was born. I have found birth records for several girls with that name. She may have been born on February 25, 1905.  The date on their marriage record is November 26, 1928 but that was probably not the actual date of their wedding.  At the time of their marriage, Alphonso was around 29 years old and Antonetta was around 23 years old according to the marriage record.  The two witnesses to their marriage were Santino Cali and Anna Famosa.  Santino Cali was a good friend of the groom (related by marriage) and Anna Famoso was Aunt Katie’s daughter.  Their wedding photos are gorgeous.  Antonetta was an only child and her parents evidently went all out for the wedding!  Her parents were Giuseppe Monaco and Carmela Morella.  I have heard that her father was a junk man or ash collector.  I don’t know how or where they met but probably through family or friends.  They both grew up in the same neighborhood in Harlem.  After they married, they moved to the Bronx to raise their family.

Guiseppe Monaco, Antonetta, Alphonso and Carmela Monaco

Alphonso and Nettie had four children, two boys named John and Joseph and two girls named Anna and Emily.  They appear to be the perfect American family of that time.  Alphonso came home every night for dinner.  He made a good living as a butcher after he left the army.  Nettie was a stay-at-home mother who made her kids lunch and walked them to school.  If it started to rain during the day, she would bring her kids their raincoats.  All of the kids were adorable.  We have many family photos to prove that.  It seems like they lived a happy family life.  The kids all grew up and got married.  Each one of Alphonso and Nettie’s kids had children of their own.  Uncle Al and Aunt Nettie have a great legacy with grandchildren and great grandchildren and they would be very proud. 

Joseph, Anna, Emily, John Famoso
Cousin Christina Famoso

My father says his Uncle Al was always nice – no one he knew ever disliked his uncle Alphonso.  Because he was a butcher, he would give meat to my father’s family for the holidays so they could have a good meal.

Nettie used to work at the post office during the Christmas holiday rush.  Uncle Al would drop her off there at work each day.  She probably did this because she enjoyed it.

Alphonso was a very good dancer.  I have been told about his dancing ability from several of his family members. My father also tells me that he liked to entertain and that he was very funny.  Even though Uncle Al was outgoing, he was a little bit on the quiet side.

One of the things my dad remembers most about his Uncle Al, is that he used to put salt or sand on the linoleum floors, take off his shoes and in only his socks he would “pretend” skate all over the house with his hands behind his back.  My dad says it looked like he was really skating. 

I have also been told that Uncle Al loved to play pinochle with his brothers. According to Emily and Joseph, every week the family would go to their Uncle Louie’s house (my grandfather) so the brothers could play pinochle.  The wives must have cooked and talked while the kids played games together. 

Another story that I heard from Joseph, is that Uncle Al (being a butcher) took a goat to his brother Louie’s house.  They killed it in the basement, he butchered it and they ate it for lunch.  I know that sounds really strange to us now but back in the day, it probably wasn't that unusual.

Uncle Al collected WWI military memorabilia.  According to my father, Uncle Al had a good collection of guns and other military items. I wonder if he had his brother Brasso’s dog tags.

Alphonso’s granddaughter Annette told me that he was a nice, kind man.  He used to babysit for her and her sister when they were young.  He smoked Italian black cigars (called Guinea Stinkers).  He made Annette and her sister go to the store to buy them for him when he ran out. He lived with Annette’s family for a while. He was very handy and also helped fix things around her house. He liked to go fishing.

His daughter Emily told me that he helped her husband build a deck on their house when they first got married.  Emily also said that her dad worked really hard all his life and they didn't have much time to take vacations but she does remember one time when the family went up to Boston to visit their Aunt Loretta.  They had a great time.

I found out what a true family man my Great Uncle Alphonso really was when I called Calvary Cemetery in Woodside, Queens and found out that he had purchased and owned all of the family burial plots. It may have affected him when his mother was buried in a pauper’s grave and he couldn't have her moved into her own plot.  I am not sure about that but it seems possible.

Great Aunt Nettie died in 1955.  She was only about 50 years old at the time.  She had breast cancer and at that time it was pretty much considered a death sentence. 

Great Uncle Alphonso died on May 9, 1965.  At the time of his death, he lived in Glen Cove, NY. My mother tells me that she and my dad took me to his wake.  I don’t remember being there because I was so young.

My Great Uncle Alphonso was a great guy.  He took really good care of his family.  He served proudly in the US Army.  I’m sure he had a difficult childhood but he made the best of it and turned out really well.  I am proud to be related to Great Uncle Alphonso.

Alphonso and his brother Sam in the 1950's

Loretta Famoso Galeota Esposito - Lovely Lady

Uncle Alphonso, Aunt Loretta and Loretta's son John.

Loretta Famoso Galeota Esposito

Loretta was born In Atlantic City, New Jersey on February 10, 1903. She was the youngest of Giovanni and Anna’s children. The name on her birth certificate is Leberata Tosca Famoso. That is such a cool name! I like to imagine that Giovanni was playing an instrument or conducting an orchestra that was performing Tosca by Puccini. It was a brand new opera at that time having been performed for the first time on January 14,1900 at the Teatro Costanzi in Rome. He loved that opera so much that he gave his baby daughter the middle name "Tosca." Doesn't that sound good? ~  It is totally made up but it could be true.  It is very interesting that Tosca is set in 1800 Italy around the time that Napoleon invaded Italy and the control of Rome by the Kingdom of Naples was threatened. Tosca is not a sweet, romantic opera. Not even a little bit. Tosca depicts murder, suicide and torture.  I'm not sure that is really an appropriate name, even a middle name for a baby. It could even be that Giovanni was friendly with Giacomo Puccini who was a contemporary and a fellow Italian musician.

As I have already mentioned, Loretta lost her mother when she was only 5 years old.  She grew up without a mother figure. I imagine that she became close to her sisters-in-law and her slightly older sister Rose.  

I found it odd that both Rose and Loretta got their marriage licenses on the same day. That day was July 28, 1921. 

Loretta was married at age of 18 on September 18, 1921 to Charles Michael Galeota listed as a Barber and elsewhere as a Musician. His father was Vito and his mother was Rosa Gallo. They had two children, John and Vito both of whom died in 1999.

Her husband Charles used the stage name Charlie Hamilton when he played a banjo that had lights inside of it that he made swirl around. An interesting concept for the 1920’s and early 1930’s.

Loretta and Charles Galeota were divorced in 1931. Charles married Helen Powlowitz on March 20, 1933. Charles died on September 16, 1936 and he is buried at St. John’s Cemetery in Flushing, Queens.  

Loretta married Salvatore Esposito in Boston, Massachusetts in 1934. Salvatore was a salesman until 1940 then he owned a business called New York Sample Fur Shoppe from 1941 on. He had a son named Jerry from a previous marriage. I have been told that Salvatore had only one arm. Sal died on September 14, 1961. He is buried at Holy Cross Cemetery in Boston.

I have no personal impressions of Loretta because I never met her. It seems to me from what I have heard that she was a kind and honest person. She spoke about her true feelings regarding her brother Luigi at his funeral. Loretta was the person that my grandmother Christina used to go to when she needed someone to get money from her husband. Loretta did not have any kind feelings towards her brother (my grandfather). I can't say that I blame her. Her reputation was very good. Everyone that met her liked her very much. I also found out that she was the last known person to have possession of her brother Brasso's WWI army photo.  

My parents visited Loretta and Sal in Boston in the mid-1950’s. Sal must have had some mafia connections because there was a mafia-type guy in attendance at Loretta’s house during the visit.  The most memorable thing was that the mafia guy gave my brother, who was very young, a $5.00 bill.  That was a lot of money at the time. The story went down in family history.

After Sal died, Loretta worked at Bonwit Tellers as a “stitcher.”  Bonwit Tellers was a fancy department store so she probably did tailoring for off-the-rack clothing. She died on August 15, 1985.  She was living at the Jamaica Towers Nursing Home at the time of her death.  Her death certificate says she died of Terminal Arrhythmia along with Chronic Ischemic and Hypertensive Cardiac Disease which sounds like a heart attack brought on by high blood pressure and hardening of the arteries.

Services for Loretta were held at Marashio Funeral Home.  She was cremated and her remains are at Woodlawn Cemetery. 

I found out more about my great aunt Loretta while researching her for this blog post than I ever knew before.  She seems to have been a lovely lady.  I wish that I had met her.

Wedding Wednesday - Colomba Rosa Famoso and Pasquale Puzzuto

Colomba Rosa Famoso and Pasquale Puzzuto Wedding

My great aunt Rose was born in Sansevero, Italy on April 11, 1898 according to her birth record. She was the daughter of Giovanni Famoso and Anna Pirolli Famoso. Rose wasn't their first born daughter but she was their first daughter to live past childhood. Rose grew up and came across the Atlantic with her mother and brothers on the Citta di Torino in 1901. She was just a little girl when she took the trip to the United States. She even had an Italian accent. She wasn't a United States citizen but she missed by just a few short years. I don't know anything about her years in Italy or even her first few years in the United States. I only know that her mother died when she was about 9 years old. That had to be difficult to deal with. She had a younger sister that must have been dependent on her for some mothering. 

The next event in Rose's life that I have learned about is her marriage to Pasquale Puzzuto. I have her marriage license from New York City that is dated July 28, 1921. It doesn't appear that she rushed into marriage because the record I have from St. Ann's Church is dated January 29, 1922. It says that her maid of honor was her sister-in-law Kate Famoso and the best man was Angelo Ippolito who was perhaps a friend or relative of the groom. According to the marriage license, Pasquale was a chauffeur, he was born in Salerno, Italy and his parents were Antonio Puzzuto and Antonette Cavallo Puzzuto. Pasquale was 30 years old and Rose was 23 years old when they got married.  That can't be right because his WWII registration says his birth date was August 16, 1890 but the marriage records say his birth date was August 16, 1889 neither dates make him 30 years old when he got married. It also looks like Rose was using the birth year of 1899 for some reason on her marriage records. Maybe it looked better to be only 23 rather than 24 years old when a girl got married at that time or maybe she thought that was her correct birth year.  I wonder if this was an arranged marriage or a love match?

Their first child was born on November 19, 1922 and his name was Anthony Puzzuto.  I assume that he was named after his paternal grandfather. Their second child Mary Ann Puzzuto was born on August 31, 1930.  

The rest of the story will be brief.  Pasquale and Rose lived in Manhattan and in the Bronx in New York. He sometimes used the name Patrick.  The 1925 New York Census shows that Rose's brother Alphonso was living with them. I recently found a directory from 1933 showing Rose as being a Shirtmaker living at 417 East 106th Street with Pasquale's family. Pasquale died in 1957. Rose died in April of 1974.  

There may have been some sort of disagreement or personality conflict between the family members which is probably why my side of the family never knew anything about Rose, her husband and her children.  

Columba Rosa Famoso Birth Record

Birth record number 373 - Translation:

Famoso Colomba Rosa

In the year 1898, today 11th of April, at time 12.30 in the afternoon, in the Town Hall

Before me Francesco Trotta, secretary deputy of the mayor with authorization

dated 22nd April 1887, duly approved, Registrar of Sansevero municipality, it appeared in my office Vincenza Melissa age 45 years old, occupation midwife, born in Lucera, domiciled in San Severo,

she declared that at time 7am of the day 9th of this month, in the house located at address

Via Carlo Alberto number-----, from Anna Pirolli, housewife, wife of Giovanni Famoso, occupation

musician, both domiciled in Sansevero, a baby girl was born, she shows her to me, and she gave

her the names of Colomba Rosa. The witnesses of this record are Cosimo Di Pierro, 48 years old, occupation shoemaker, and Giuseppe Palumbo, 58 years old, occupation servant, both resident in this municipality.

The declarant stated that she came to declare the birth of the baby because she was the one who helped the birth, and she declared the baby on behalf of the husband of the Pirolli,

because he is away from town.

Missing Baby Monday Mystery

I'm sure that my family is not the only one that was unaware of several babies born to our great grandparents but did not survive to adulthood. The way I found out about our missing babies involved quite a bit of a luck.  I had been searching for my great aunt Loretta's birth record. I knew she was born in Atlantic City, New Jersey in 1903 from her death record and several census records. I was fortunate to have the help of a New Jersey research expert. When she found Loretta's birth record, we were surprised by the fact that it said Anna Pirolli had given birth to twelve children! We only knew about 7 kids including our grandfather Luigi. No one had any idea there were more. It makes sense though. In those days, women had lots of babies. Especially if they were Italian. I think most families had lots of kids to help out with the work around the house and to go out and earn money for the family. I know that Giovanni and Anna did not have a farming family so they weren't having lots of babies to help out on a farm. There wasn't any reliable birth control at that time either. The Catholic Church encouraged having large families. Probably the main reason for having so many children was the fact that they knew at least a few of the babies would die in infancy or as toddlers. So, if they wanted to keep their family going, they had to have lots of kids.

After I found out that I had 5 missing babies to locate, I started digging. The first place I looked was in Marcianise. Marcianise is the commune in Caserta, Italy where I found Giovanni and Anna's marriage record.  It is also the place where Anna gave birth to her two oldest children. It seemed like a good idea to check there for missing babies. I was rewarded with a birth record for Elisabetta Famoso who was born on March 10, 1884. I haven't figured out when she died but it was definitely before 1902 when they traveled to the United States. I have been told that she didn't die while living in the commune of Marcianise because if she had, there would be a notation on her birth record. That means she probably died in Frattamaggiore which is the commune where the next oldest child was born. I have written to the commune of Frattamaggiore but haven't heard back from them yet so that question is still open.

The next bit of luck came because I have found the records of the commune Trani, Bari online at the Antenati. The Antenati is a website create by the Italian Government (I think).  It holds a treasure trove of information. I love searching through that site.  I was again rewarded for my efforts with a death certificate for Carmela Famoso. She died on June 23, 1891 in Trani, Bari.  See #400 below.

So, think about this: Anna Pirolli Famoso gave birth to a baby boy named Biagio Nicola Famoso on October 1, 1891 after her three year old daughter had died on June 23, 1891. That is so tragic to me.  I don't know if it was a sudden or unexpected death or if she died after a long illness. The death records I have seen from Italy do not contain a cause of death.

I hope that I will be able to add a few more records to this post at some point in the near future but so far this is all I have on the missing babies.

Obituary Sunday ~ Elizabeth M. Dougherty Famosa

Elizabeth M. Dougherty Famosa was my great uncle Mimi's wife. This is going to be a short post because I know very little about her. I know that she was born on September 12, 1887 in Philadelphia, PA. Her parents were John Dougherty and Mary McGrath. According to a census, her parents were both born in Ireland.

Elizabeth and Mimi got married around 1906 or 1907. I have heard that they met while performing. Mimi was a musician and Elizabeth was a singer. I have to guess that they met in Atlantic City, New Jersey. I have spent a lot of time and more than a few dollars trying to find Elizabeth and Mimi's marriage record. I have searched in Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Camden, NJ, New York City, Delaware, Maryland and the archives of the Philadelphia Archdiocese. I am still at a loss as to where they got married. They could have gotten married somewhere else in Pennsylvania outside the City limits, I just don't know. I haven't found Elizabeth's birth record yet either.  

Elizabeth gave birth to two children, Charles (1908) and Dorothea (1913). Both children had beautiful singing voices or so I am told. It is rather hard to speculate about Elizabeth because both of Elizabeth and Mimi's children are deceased. Elizabeth has no living descendants.. The fact that she did not really allow the Famoso's to visit her makes it even more difficult.  I was recently told that one of my cousins did meet her during a visit in 1957.  He says that both Uncle Mimi and Elizabeth were very cordial to his family.   

Elizabeth was very proud of her Irish heritage and wasn't thrilled to be associated with Italians. She must have really been in love with Mimi since he was definitely an Italian (right off the boat). She did her best to make sure that her husband and children were put in the best possible most "Irish" light. In fact, she made Uncle Mimi use the name Charles or C. Dominic rather than the more Italian form of Domenico. She also had him change his last name to Famosa instead of Famoso. Maybe just to differentiate them from the rest of his family. 

I have never seen a photo of Elizabeth. I am sure that photos did exist and they may still be out there somewhere  Maybe I will see a photo of her some day..  

Photo by Stan Jett