Birth Certificate ... Cosenza, Italy

[johnnyonthespot]

Is it likely that my grandfather, Domenico Musacco (1874-1937), was not born in the province of Bari as I initially was told, and listed as the last place he lived, according to the Ellis manifest? I did a search for musacco on http://www.paginebianche.it and found no hits for the province of Bari. However, there were 12 Musaccos found for the commune of Puglia in the province of Foggia .... http://www.paginebianche.it/execute.cgi ... &om=0&td=4. Puglia is 45 miles from the Bari airport.

Steve, as you can see from this map ( http://www.gens.labo.net/en/cognomi/gen ... me=MUSACCO ), the surname Musacco is quite rare in Italy. Under the circumstances, the fact that there appear to be none in Bari today may not be indicative of the past. Keep in mind also that many Italians (and Europeans and even young Americans) these days choose to forego landline telephone service entirely and use only cellular devices. Considering this fact and the general rarity of the name, it is entirely possible that a few Musacco's do exist in Bari but simply are not listed in the standard telephone directories.

Also, Italy's provincial borders have changed over the decades and new provinces occasionally created. When my paternal grandparents left Roccasecca, for example, it was a part of the province of Casserta. Years later, the province of Frosinone was created and Roccasecca became part of the new province. I haven't researched the Foggia/Puglia/Bari connection, but please do consider the possibility that there is more than meets the eye.

[musaccosteve]

Thank you, Carmine. In my letter of request to Bari, I will note that my grandfather was a captain in the Italian army. This may help with their search. I have noted in the letter that I would very much appreciate a negative response and any sources that may be of help, if he was not born in the Bari commune or province.

Is it likely that my grandfather, Domenico Musacco (1874-1937), was not born in the province of Bari as I initially was told, and listed as the last place he lived, according to the Ellis manifest? I did a search for musacco on http://www.paginebianche.it and found no hits for the province of Bari. However, there were 12 Musaccos found for the commune of Puglia in the province of Foggia .... http://www.paginebianche.it/execute.cgi ... &om=0&td=4. Puglia is 45 miles from the Bari airport.

Steve, as you can see from this map ( http://www.gens.labo.net/en/cognomi/gen ... me=MUSACCO ), the surname Musacco is quite rare in Italy. Under the circumstances, the fact that there appear to be none in Bari today may not be indicative of the past. Keep in mind also that many Italians (and Europeans and even young Americans) these days choose to forego landline telephone service entirely and use only cellular devices. Considering this fact and the general rarity of the name, it is entirely possible that a few Musacco's do exist in Bari but simply are not listed in the standard telephone directories.

Also, Italy's provincial borders have changed over the decades and new provinces occasionally created. When my paternal grandparents left Roccasecca, for example, it was a part of the province of Casserta. Years later, the province of Frosinone was created and Roccasecca became part of the new province. I haven't researched the Foggia/Puglia/Bari connection, but please do consider the possibility that there is more than meets the eye.

[musaccosteve]

Thank you, Carmine.

Carmine: When my daughter applies for citizenship, after I complete my process, can her husband also apply for citizenship at the same time?

The situation for your daughter's husband - for any spouse of an Italian citizen married on or after April 27, 1983 - is substantially more difficult.

1) the spouse (your daughter's husband, in this case) must apply for naturalization as an Italian citizen. This will not impact his other (presumably US) citizenship(s), but it is nor is it absolutely guaranteed that his application will be approved

2) the marriage must have been in place for a minimum of three years if residing outside Italy or two years if in Italy before the application for citizenship by marriage can be submitted

3) a €200 fee must be paid before the application can be submitted

4) police and FBI background checks must be obtained for each area in which the applicant has ever resided; the Italian authorities reserve the right to turn down an applicant if they do not like what they see on these background reports

5) the consulate's role in citizenship by marriage applications is to ensure that all relevant documentation has been submitted and that the applicable fee has been paid. The consulate then forwards the application packet to Rome where the authorities have up to two years to make a final decision. Word on the street is that Rome typically takes most of the statutory two years before making its decision.

See http://www.conslosangeles.esteri.it/Con ... rriage.htm for more info.

[misbris]

Here is a list of all the Musaccos who emigrated via Ellis Island.


http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/EIDB ... ECTION=asc

They are all from the same place CANNETO which as I said before is a frazione in the town of Adelfina in the province of Bari. Birth records are kept at the comune or town level. The most likely place to find birth records is here.

Adelfia City Hall
Address: Corso V. Veneto, 122 - 70010 Adelfia - ITALY
Phone Number: (+39) 080-4598111; Fax: (+39) 080-4597066
Mayor:

Adelfia Localities
Montrone, Canneto

[musaccosteve]

Thank you, so much for your research, Misbris. You saved me a lot of potential grief. I did receive a response back from the Bari commune, and as you noted I have to contact the Adelfina commune to obtain my grandparents' certificates. I was also provided a website for the Adelfinia commune, and I will send an email to find out what their specific requirements are to obtain these documents. Do you know where my grandfather's military records can be obtained? Would that be the Bari Province..... Part of the family narrative was he was a highly decorated captain in the Italian Army. One of my uncles lost all the family important papers, my grandfather's combat metals, and family pictures shortly after his mother died in 1953. His sisters never let him forget it. Their displeasure is probably still echoing throughout the universe. My cousins on my father's side of the family had no useful information to share about my grandparents. Steve

Here is a list of all the Musaccos who emigrated via Ellis Island.


http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/EIDB ... ECTION=asc

They are all from the same place CANNETO which as I said before is a frazione in the town of Adelfina in the province of Bari. Birth records are kept at the comune or town level. The most likely place to find birth records is here.

Adelfia City Hall
Address: Corso V. Veneto, 122 - 70010 Adelfia - ITALY
Phone Number: (+39) 080-4598111; Fax: (+39) 080-4597066
Mayor:

Adelfia Localities
Montrone, Canneto

[musaccosteve]

Although I probably don't need additional information on my grandmother, as I am informed by you all, I did notice it was indicated on the 1920 Census that she and her four oldest children arrived in the U.S. in 1915, which means that that she and the children were away from my grandfather for 9 long years. Sounds pretty brutal. Maybe, this clue will help solve what ship she arrived in and the related manifest.

Here is one of her manifests, but she did not sail on this trip. Name in the town Canneto is Galasso.

http://www.ellisisland.org/EIFile/popup ... &line=0017

p2
http://www.ellisisland.org/EIFile/popup ... &line=0017

[musaccosteve]

Below is a draft letter I have prepared to request my grandparents certificates from the Comune di Adelfia. Please let me know if I need to add or subtract verbiage from letter. Of course, I will ensure it is translated into Italian. I also plan to enclose 20 dollars with three IRCs and a copy of my driver's license. Thank you.

December 29, 2010

Comune di Adelphia
Provincia di Bari


Egregio Direttore or Gentile Direttrice,

Please send me the birth certificates and marriage certificate for my grandparents. I need these documents to apply for Italian citizenship. On separate birth certificates, please provide grandparents’: 1) full name at birth, 2) place and date of birth, and 3) name of the parents, if possible. On the marriage certificate, please provide 1) full names of each grandparent, 2) their birthdates, and 3) date of marriage. Pertinent information on my grandparents is noted below.

Domenico Musacco
Estimated Birth date: 4/8/1874
Believed Birth Place: Frazione of Canneto in the commune of Adelfia in the province of Bari
Believed Military History: Captain in the Italian Army

Teresa Galasso
Estimated Birth Date: 3/15/1878 or 3/1/1878
Believed Birth Place: Frazione of Canneto in the commune of Adelfia in the province of Bari

I have enclosed a self addressed envelope and international coupons so you can mail the requested documents back to me. If you need to email me, my email address is anonymous@yahoo.com

If the requested data for my grandparents’ birth and marriage certificates are not available, I ask you kindly to send me a response by mail and my email address. Moreover, if the documents are not available, please inform me where I might be able to obtain the requested certificates.

Thank you so much for your help,


Stephen Dominic Musacco

[musaccosteve]

I sent off my letter today. I will let everyone know what I find out. Thank you again for all your research efforts and kind words.

[musaccosteve]

Hi Misbris,

I got my grandfather's death certificate yesterday. It indicated, as you concluded, that he was born in Canneto. Since I mailed a request for his birth certificate last week as well as for his marriage license and the birth certificate of my grandmother to the commune of Adelfia, I am hoping within the next couple weeks to have these certificates.

I also got my grandmother's death certificate yesterday too. Interestingly, I got another spelling of her maiden name, Golosso. This is at least the fourth different spelling that I have found in my search. lol

Thank you again for your help.

Steve

Here is a list of all the Musaccos who emigrated via Ellis Island.


http://www.jewishgen.org/databases/EIDB ... ECTION=asc

They are all from the same place CANNETO which as I said before is a frazione in the town of Adelfina in the province of Bari. Birth records are kept at the comune or town level. The most likely place to find birth records is here.

Adelfia City Hall
Address: Corso V. Veneto, 122 - 70010 Adelfia - ITALY
Phone Number: (+39) 080-4598111; Fax: (+39) 080-4597066
Mayor:

Adelfia Localities
Montrone, Canneto

[musaccosteve]

I received copies of my grandfather's and grandmother's birth certificates and marriage license from Adelfia, Italy today. The correct spelling of my grandmother's name, as misbris so expertly noted, was indeed Galasso. Thank you all so much for all your help!!!!!!

[misbris]

So glad it worked out, and they were pretty fast too.

[johnnyonthespot]

Great news, Steve!

[musaccosteve]

Thank you, Carmine and msbris.

[musaccosteve]

Hi Carmine and Misbris,

I went to the NARA office in Riverside, CA today and they fulfilled my request for naturalization search for my grandfather. As suspected, there was no record. While there I also requested a certified copy of the 1930 Census for my grandfather and uncertified copy of my grandmother's petition for naturalization.

In the petition for naturalization it showed when and what ship she immigrated to the United States, which was on March 10, 1915, on the S.S. Canopic, in Boston, MA. I noticed that her maiden name was recorded as Galassa on her petition instead of Galasso. No wonder we could not find a manifest for her in the last several weeks!

Interestingly, I also noticed, when she signed her married name Musacco on the petition for naturalization, the last letter "o" looks like it is written as an "a." I suspect she did the same thing when she provided her written name to ship authorities as Galassa instead of Galasso. What puzzles me though is why she would provide her maiden name to ship authorities and why her children (and grandfather's children) would be designated with this maiden name. One mystery solved and another one appears.

Thank you,

Steve

[misbris]

Women in Italy keep their maiden names, so she would have travelled as Galasso. Most times the children are listed by their father's surname, but sometimes they are listed under their mother's name.