Domenicucci Families of Abruzzo Region

[Egyptian_Blue]

I've been doing genealogy for a few years now, and I decided it was time to focus on my father's Italian relatives. I know very little about them, and most of the information I do have has been taken from various handwritten documents online and may very well be wrong. Here's what I do know:

My father and his siblings are Domenicuccis, and his father is Joseph Domenicucci (my grandfather). Joseph was born in the United States in Boston in 1929 to Francesca Sinacola and Antonio Domenicucci. Antonio was born in Italy in June 1894 (SSDI claims June 1, his WWII draft card says June 17, and my family says his birthday was June 13). Every source I have (family and documents) say he was born in L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy. He left Italy on December 23, 1913 from Naples and arrived in New York City on January 3, 1914. He died in April 1976 according to the SSDI.

And here I am left with questions. The ship manifest that I got the emigration dates from includes other information: height, destination, reading/writing ability, etc. - and father's name. I sort of guessed Antonio's father's name by looking up Italian names to fill in the blanks (the only letters I am confident about are "G" and "do" at the end) and have been going with Gerardo. In addition, nearly every source (including the ship's manifest) lists "Ortona" as his town of origin. The one contradiction to this is on his draft card which says "Ortona deimassi". This of course, does not exist, but "Ortona dei Marsi" does.

Since I have been unable to find a Domenicucci in either Ortona (both are in L'Aquila), I come here seeking help. I will attach the image of Antonio's father's name if anyone would like to try and read it (or if anyone can tell me what the "001"-looking numbers mean - I've been assuming it means the same as quotation marks indicating "same as above"). I am also looking for advice for clarifying which Ortona they came from (I've been working under the assumption that everyone except the draft worker was too lazy to record the whole town name). In addition, I would be happy to have any advice for researching Italian genealogy for L'Aquila or the Abruzzo region, or in general.

Thank you!

(I apologize for the quality and size of the image!)

[PippoM]

Hi,
Your ancestor's name is definitely Gerardo.

I suppose you found both Ortona's in Abruzzo region:
Ortona, province of Chieti
Via Cavour, 24
66026 Ortona (CH)
Telefono: (+39) 085 90571
Fax: (+39) 085 9066037
protocollo@pec.comuneortona.ch.it

and
Ortona dei Marsi, province of L'Aquila
Piazza Marconi, 3 67050 ORTONA DEI MARSI (AQ)
Tel. 0863-87113 - fax 0863-87134 - e-mail info@comune.ortona.aq.it

If in an original document you found something similar to "Ortona dei Marsi", it is more likely this is the right one.

I'd also say to check if records are available on microfilms at LDS Centers (I can't do that now, as their site is not working properly)

[Egyptian_Blue]

Thank you for reading that name and for looking up that information! Yes, those are the two "Ortonas" that I found.

I found a definite cousin's of Antonio's and also his manifest, which says he is from "Ortona Marsi". Still not quite the right term, but it was, once again, an American source. I'm fairly certain that Ortona dei Marsi is the correct town.

I've had some luck with the LDS Centers...there are plenty of Domenicucci documents listed online, but many of them overlap, or I've seen before, or I'm not sure how I'm related to that person. It will definitely be a resource I'll be coming back to, though.

For researching farther back into Italy - do you think there's any chance I could get more information by emailing the comune? I don't speak or write Italian, so I'd need to work something out there. But I don't see myself able to travel to Italy any time soon.

[Tessa78]

Thank you for reading that name and for looking up that information! Yes, those are the two "Ortonas" that I found.

I found a definite cousin's of Antonio's and also his manifest, which says he is from "Ortona Marsi". Still not quite the right term, but it was, once again, an American source. I'm fairly certain that Ortona dei Marsi is the correct town.

I've had some luck with the LDS Centers...there are plenty of Domenicucci documents listed online, but many of them overlap, or I've seen before, or I'm not sure how I'm related to that person. It will definitely be a resource I'll be coming back to, though.

For researching farther back into Italy - do you think there's any chance I could get more information by emailing the comune? I don't speak or write Italian, so I'd need to work something out there. But I don't see myself able to travel to Italy any time soon.

Usually, we suggest that people write a letter in Italian, and then follow-up with email.

Use this format for the address that Pippo provided...
Ufficio dello Stato Civile
Piazza Marconi, 3
67050 ORTONA DEI MARSI (AQ)
ITALY

Here is help with letters of request in Italian...
http://www.angelfire.com/ok3/pearlsofwi ... talrecords
http://www.angelfire.com/ok3/pearlsofwi ... tter3.html
http://www.circolocalabrese.org/resourc ... civile.asp

T.

[nationscat]

My grandfather was Nunzio Domenicucci. The family lore is that he was from Pescara. He married Diletta Giuiliani, from Castel del Monte. She followed him to America with Luisa and Giovanni, teens at the time. My father, Ralph, was born in Mariana, PA, where my grandfather, Nunzio was an itinerant coal miner. We have their baptimal records that we secured by going to the church in Castel del Monte, where we also met the Mayor.

[jtalieri]

Domenicucci - yes, the family is from Ortona dei Marsi. I have some headstones posted online at findagrave. I documented the 3 cemeteries in the commune.

Birth, death, and marriage records for Ortona dei Marsi from 1809 - 1865 are available online at the Italian Archives site.

j

[picdak]

I would suggest using the website: http://www.antenati.beniculturali.it for researching records in Abruzzo. This website contains records from the Archivio di Stato of L'Aquila.

The records from Abruzzo that have been filmed by the LDS are available at the Family History Library or the local Family History Centers; however, due to contractual agreements, you cannot copy the records. The above-named site is super easy to use and has a built-in magnifier which you use by running your mouse over the document. I have not had one document that was unreadable.

Best of luck.

picdak