In Need Of Help Finding Records of Italian Grandparents

[libera87ag]

Hello to everyone!! I am so pleased to have found such an informative website with so many helpful members.Thanks to this website, I hope that members here can give me some help, so that I can proudly gain Italian citizenship and have a passport in my name.

My parents are very ill and cannot assist me with finding my relatives' birth/marriage certificates to validate my Italian nationality. Most of my relatives that were born in Italy are also deceased.


The Italian Consulate in New York City told me that I would need specific dates and locations to apply for Italian citizenship, so any assistance with the matter would be very appreciated. I would really like to study the Italian language in Italy and maybe find work placement in the country, which is why it is vital that I find records of my native Italian relatives.




Information on my Italian Relatives:


My great grandparents are Ralph and Nancy Battista that are from Naples, Italy and they should have been married before immigrating to the United States perhaps in the 1890's or early 1900's because their children were born in America. Later they must have settled in Brooklyn, NY because my Italian American grandfather Pasquale Battista was born there on 8/24/1911.



Grandparents by the name of Frank and Teresa Griffo that got married in Calabria and immigrated to Ellis Island, they now have settled in New Rochelle, NY.






Thanks in advance!

Amanda

[Biff83]

Welcome, Amanda!

Please check the following 1920 census to see if this is the correct Battista family:
1920 census
Name: Ralpheal Battista
Home in 1920: Manhattan Assembly District 20, New York, New York
Address: 423 121st Street
Age: 33 years
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1887
Birthplace: Italy
Relation to Head of House: Head
Spouse's Name: Nunziata
Household Members: Name Age
Ralpheal (Raffaele) Battista 33, immigration year 1904, naturalized 1919, occupation bartender saloon
Nunziata (Nancy) Battista 25, immigration year 1903, naturalized
Patrick (Pasquale)Battista, son, 8, year of birth about 1912
Francis Battista, son, 6
Camella Battista, daughter, 1

Biff

[pink67]

Hi Amanda,

can you provide us some more deetails as the names of the children? Don't know if this record is correct but I found this:

Surname Crescenza
Given Name Nunziata
Month of Marriage Jun
Day of Marriage 3
Year of Marriage 1909
County Manhattan
Certificate Number 11594
Soundex C625

groom was:

Surname Battista
Given Name Raffaele
Month of Marriage Jun
Day of Marriage 3
Year of Marriage 1909
County Manhattan
Certificate Number 11594
Soundex B323

Do you know you great-grandmother's maiden name?

Laura

[Biff83]

Hi, Laura !

Nice finds on the marriage record for Ralph and Nancy.

Biff

[pink67]

Ciao Biff!!!
your 1920 census was essential for me!

Now, I think this is the WWII Enlistment for Raphael, unfortunately there is no birth place...
Address matches with 1920 census....
At least we know his exact birth date....

U.S. World War II Draft Registration Cards, 1942
about Raphael Battista
Name: Raphael Battista
Birth Date: 18 Jan 1886
RESIDENCE: New York, New York
Birth: Italy
Race: White
Roll: WW2_2283273

[img=http://img177.imageshack.us/img177/7312 ... uo1.th.jpg]

Laura

[libera87ag]

Thanks for the informative responses! Great work Biff and Laura!!


I don't happen to know the maiden name of my great grandmother Nancy Battista and neither does my mother. My grandfather Pasquale Battista had two other brothers that might have went by the names of Vincent and Ralph Jr. My mother is unsure of her uncle's names or their birth dates, but my grandfather Pasquale certainly had some brothers.

As far as my grandfather's birth date my mother said that her Italain American father Pasquale was born in the year of 1911,so I'm not certain if that was a mistake on her part or not.


Please let me know any new findings! Thanks for all the help!

Many thanks,

Amanda

[libera87ag]

My Italian American grandfather's name Pasquale can also be written as Patsy. Pasquale's (Patsy) parents would have been married and certainly dating in Naples, Italy prior to immigrating to New York State and settling in Brooklyn.

Also, Pasquale or Patsy Battista has a social security number which is 056-16-6202. If records of this New York born grandfather can be found than it will be much more simple to locate my great grandparents that were born in Naples, Italy.

Hope that the dates helps track the correct family members that originated from Italy! Grazie!

Amanda

[pink67]

Ciao Amanda.....

1930 United States Federal Census
about Ralph Baltesta
Name: Ralph Baltesta
Home in 1930: Manhattan, New York, New York
Age: 40
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1890
Birthplace: Italy
Relation to Head of House: Head
Spouse's Name: Nuziata
Race: White
Occupation:

Education:

Military service:

Rent/home value:

Age at first marriage:

Parents' birthplace: View Image
Neighbors: View others on page
Household Members: Name Age
Ralph Baltesta 40
Nuziata Baltesta 40
Patsy Baltesta 19
Frank Baltesta 16
Minnie Baltesta 12
Ralph Baltesta 8
Louis Baltesta 7
Vincent Baltesta 4
Leo Baltesta 3

it's the same family in the 1920 census Biff did post..... first three child were:
Patsy = Patsy
Frances = Frank
Camella/Carmela = Minnie

[img=http://img530.imageshack.us/img530/9927 ... mu5.th.jpg]


Please note that Ralph and Nunziata did emigrate in different years...
Do you think the marriage record in NYC is incorrect?

from: http://www.familysearch.org/eng/Search/ ... search.asp

Patsy BATTISTA
Birth Date: 23 Sep 1911
Death Date: Aug 1992
Social Security Number: 056-16-6202
State or Territory Where Number Was Issued: New York

Death Residence Localities
ZIP Code: 10804
Localities: New Rochelle, Westchester, New York
Wykagyl, Westchester, New York

Laura

[pink67]

From Ralph's Enlistment for the First World War you can know his birth place in Italy... note that birth date matches with the WWII Draft Card:

DOB January 18, 1886
POB Sfalonga Italy (Sfalonga doesn't exist, perhaps the right spelling is Sperlonga - Latina Province - Lazio Region)
Occupation: Saloon Keeper, same address of 1920 census...

World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
about Raffaele Battisto
Name: Raffaele Battisto
City: Manhattan
County: New York
State: New York
Birth Date: 18 Jan 1886
Race: White
Roll: 1786968
DraftBoard: 166

[img=http://img293.imageshack.us/img293/6470 ... ty7.th.jpg]

Laura

[suanj]

U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925
about Raphael Battista
Name: Raphael Battista
Birth Date: 18 Jan 1886
Birth Place: Italy
RESIDENCE: New York City, New York
Passport Issue Date: 8 Jul 1924
Father Name: Patsy Battista
Father's Birth Location: Italy
Father's Residence: Deceased
Passport Includes a Photo: Y
Source: Passport Applications, January 2, 1906 - March 31, 1925 (M1490)



pag 1
http://img329.imageshack.us/img329/2839/raff1oy7.jpg

pag 2
http://img368.imageshack.us/img368/1450/raff2xg6.jpg

back in USA:
New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957
about Raphael Battista
Name: Raphael Battista
Arrival Date: 25 Oct 1925
Estimated Birth Year: abt 1886
Age: 39
Gender: Male
Port of Departure: Naples, Italy
Ship Name: Conte Rosso
Search Ship Database: View the Conte Rosso in the 'Passenger Ships and Images' database
Port of Arrival: New York, New York
Line: 17
Microfilm Serial: T715
Microfilm Roll: T715_3746
Page Number: 128

i believe that the town is correct Sperlonga as Laura suggested, in the past in Caserta province.....
I believe that Raffaele married in USA and that the record of marriage found by Laura could be correct also... he was born in 1886; immigrated in 1904 so he was 18 old.. I guess he no married in Italy......
regards, suanj

[libera87ag]

This is absolutely fabulous!! Thank you to all that contributed!!!! (Biff, Laura, Suanj)

I went to the NYC Clerk's office and found the marriage license of Ralph and Nancy Battista, so of course I made copies of those documents. It was really nice to see documents that my great grandparents read and signed.

Now, I've got to find records of naturalization in the United States to prove the year that Ralph Battista immigrated, which was 1904. I can find my Italian American grandfather's information by locating his death record because he was born and died in NYS. Still, I need to have a birth record for my great grandfather and possibly his wife (Nancy Crescenza from Sarno, Italy) also, as well as a record of naturalization.

What would be a simple method to recover documents of naturalization and the birth records of Ralph Battista from Sperlonga, Italy?


MILLE GRAZIE

Amanda

[langelo]

I have had good luck by putting 2 dollars in cash in envelope with 3 first class stamps and requesting Certificato di Nascita (birth certificate) and send to:

Archivo di Stato
Comune di Sperlonga
Piazza Europa
Latina Province
Italy 04029

Address: Piazza Europa - 04029 Sperlonga - ITALY
Phone Number: (+39) 0771-55781; Fax: (+39) 0771-548224
Mayor: Rocco Scalingi

For naturalization papers: there is a New York City site of the National Archives that you can access via archives.gov. Visiting in person is much faster--should have the naturalizations papers in just an hour or so.

Good Luck

[libera87ag]

Will absolutely follow the advice given!! Thanks langelo!!

I will let you know how everything goes!


Amanda

[anima87ag]

Hello everyone!

I thought I would provide an update to those of you kind enough to help me.

At the moment, I am trying to track down my grandfather's immigration records. Apparently, the records were unfound at the NYC courts. I found that odd being that I am certain my grandfather immigrated at Ellis Island port.

Westchester County is unfortunately charging a great amount to search their database, which I found strange being that the NYC court did a report for free.

If anyone here has the expertise to find these naturalization records or confirm the NY court in which my grandfather naturalized, please do assist.


Best wishes for the new year! Mille grazie!

[maestra36]

Here is a link to the online naturalization index at the Westchester County Archives. Possibly you will find your ancestor in this index and then be able to order the records for a fee.

http://www.westchestergov.com/wcarchives/