Newbie looking for Italian GGF's Birthplace

[heidebock]

Erik in the family oral history is there any way to identify the region or better yet the province where Pasquale Bruno originated? Was his accent German or French?..hearsay will do. The surname locator (www.gens.labo.net/en/cognomi puts the bulk of the Bruno surname along the border in Piemontge and Lombardia so I would put my money in that area first.

Alsoput the staue of Saint Anthony upside down until we resolve the problem! =Peter=

Peter, thanks for the link - I'll check it out... Also, I have no idea how to put the statue of Saint Anthony upside down?

[suanj]

Many Brunos in San Jose coming from Narzole town( Cuneo province, Piedmont region, IT)..
suanj

[heidebock]

Many Brunos in San Jose coming from Narzole town( Cuneo province, Piedmont region, IT)..
suanj

suanj,

do you mind me asking how were you able to figure that out? One of the mysteries associated with Pasquale is that he had a brother (noone knows his name) and a sister (Mary) but noone knows anything about them...

thx!
Erik

[PeterTimber]

I narrowed it down to provinces of Milano, Varese, Monza and Brianza and Como (still going by numbers)..are you interested in seeking out any military records in provincial Army records? =Peter=

[heidebock]

I narrowed it down to provinces of Milano, Varese, Monza and Brianza and Como (still going by numbers)..are you interested in seeking out any military records in provincial Army records? =Peter=

Peter, how common was it for men to serve in the military at that time and at what age? If I understand your reasoning, the military records would provide a more centralized way to search? Do they include birthplace, birthdate, etc? And how does one get access to the provincial Army records?

thx!
Erik

[PeterTimber]

There was always a need for soldiers and military service was compulsory when Italy unified in the 1870's.

Go to www.angelfire.com/ok3/pearlsofwisdom/saviello2.html and thenget back to me. =Peter=

[johnnyonthespot]

Son Henry's birth record?

California Birth Index, 1905-1995 about Henry L Bruno
Name: Henry L Bruno
Birth Date: 19 Feb 1909
Gender: Male
Mother's Maiden Name: Fuenze
Birth County: Santa Clara

There is a resonable possibility that Henry's birth certificate (or any of Pasquale's children's) will give a city of birth for Pasquale. You may want to look into that...

[johnnyonthespot]

And Mary's:

California Birth Index, 1905-1995 about Maria L Bruno
Name: Maria L Bruno
Birth Date: 12 Apr 1913
Gender: Female
Mother's Maiden Name: Firence
Birth County: Santa Clara

[johnnyonthespot]

Attilio:

California Birth Index, 1905-1995 about Attilio J Bruno
Name: Attilio J Bruno
Birth Date: 16 Sep 1910
Gender: Male
Mother's Maiden Name: Firenza
Birth County: Santa Clara

[suanj]

Many Brunos in San Jose coming from Narzole town( Cuneo province, Piedmont region, IT)..
suanj

suanj,

do you mind me asking how were you able to figure that out? One of the mysteries associated with Pasquale is that he had a brother (noone knows his name) and a sister (Mary) but noone knows anything about them...

thx!
Erik

In regard of north Italy as birth area, I searched and I found a passport abt Oddino BRUNO resident in San Jose( b. 1889) as a well the arrival( joining at Tommaso BRUNO brother in San Jose), and some WWI draft registration cards abt Brunos in San Jose, only abt north Italy area... and they coming from Narzole..
instead Giovanna Firenze coming from Genova, last residence, but I know not where she was born also in Genova..

New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957
about Giovannia Firenze
Name: Giovannia Firenze
Arrival Date: 4 Apr 1898
Birth Year: abt 1874
Age: 24
Gender: Female
Ethnicity/Race­/Nationality: Italian
Port of Departure: Havre
Port of Arrival: New York, New York
Ship Name: La Bretagne

single, joining at brother in San Francisco, maybe Luigi first name;

in effects a Luigi Firenze travelled in 1892, final destination San Francisco:

New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957
about Luigi Firenze
Name: Luigi Firenze
Arrival Date: 6 Jun 1892
Birth Year: abt 1875
Age: 17
Gender: Male
Port of Departure: Havre
Port of Arrival: New York, New York
Ship Name: La Bourgogne



World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918
about Luigi Firenze Name: Luigi Firenze
City: San Francisco
County: San Francisco
State: California
Birth Date: 28 Nov 1873 ( no born in 1875 ..really by arrival)
Race: White
FHL Roll Number: 1544263
DraftBoard: 13



California Death Index, 1940-1997
about Luigi Firenzi Name: Luigi Firenzi
Social Security #: 0
Sex: Male
Birth Date: 30 Nov 1876
Birthplace: Other Country
Death Date: 23 May 1946
Death Place: San Francisco
Mother's Maiden Name: Calegari
Father's Surname: Firenzi

however Narzole town is not far of Genova ( Giovanna birthplace or last residence), and Narzole is just a possible birth place...
regards,
suanj

[heidebock]

There is a resonable possibility that Henry's birth certificate (or any of Pasquale's children's) will give a city of birth for Pasquale. You may want to look into that...

Carmine - thanks! We have Attilio's birth cert and it just says "Italy". I think I will look for (or see if Mother has) Henry's birth cert since he is the oldest.

[johnnyonthespot]

Wow, you guys are amazing - I was unable to pinpoint the actual manifest on ancestory, even after looking through every passenger list for June 6 1887... I was unable to recognize the actual date on that scan.

As you can see below, the Ancestry . com index has Pasquale's first name badly scrambled:

New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957 about Patgusle Bruno
Name: Patgusle Bruno
Arrival Date: 6 Jun 1887
Birth Year: abt 1860
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Ethnicity/Race­/Nationality: Italian
Place of Origin: Italy
Port of Departure: Le Havre, France
Destination: New York
Port of Arrival: New York
Port Arrival State: New York
Port Arrival Country: United States
Ship Name: La Normandie

Link

[jamiecapaldi]

Wow, you guys are amazing - I was unable to pinpoint the actual manifest on ancestory, even after looking through every passenger list for June 6 1887... I was unable to recognize the actual date on that scan.

We don't have any corroborating info about him being a locksmith, so that's somewhat of a surprise. Otherwise, I'm "pretty sure" I have the right Pasquale:
my reasoning is that a Pasquale Bruno was recorded in the 1900 federal census as living in California>Alameda>Oakland City. He put an immigration date of 1887 on the census form. At this point, it's not possible to be 100% sure it's him because he hasn't been married yet & has no children, BUT: 1) it's the only Pasquale Bruno that pops up in the California Bay Area 2) in FUTURE census forms (1910 & 1930), where I can correlate him to his kids, he ends up putting an immigration date of 1885 (so he's started guesstimating at this point, but it's still closest to 1887). 3) most of the other Pasquale Bruno's I saw were immigrating into the US in early 1900's, which would directly conflict with what he was telling census takers, as well conflicting with the 1900 census which "probably" already pinpoints him in Oakland.
I don't believe he practiced a locksmith trade - 1900 census listed him as a day laborer and then in future census' he was listed as a farmer.

Is there a conclusion which can be drawn off of any of this?

Regards!
Erik

Hello Erik,

If you search Castle Garden you will see it matches the exact date you gave.

[johnnyonthespot]

Erik,

Since you appear to have Pasquale's exact date and place of death, I suggest you contact the Santa Clara County Library ( http://www.santaclaracountylib.org/ ) and ask if they can review newspaper archives in search of an obituary.

I did something similar and came away with the obituaries of all four of my grandparents. You never know what they will contain, but birthplace and names of siblings are common.

[heidebock]

Erik,

Since you appear to have Pasquale's exact date and place of death, I suggest you contact the Santa Clara County Library ( http://www.santaclaracountylib.org/ ) and ask if they can review newspaper archives in search of an obituary.

We actually just called them up and submitted the form yesterday looking for Pasquale's Obituary!

We're keeping our fingers crossed