Italian immigrants from Barcellona - Sicily

[barresima]

Hello everybody!
My name is Mario Barresi.
I am writing from Sicily to ask for help to find relatives of Italian immigrants in New York from Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto (Messina - Sicily).
What interests me most is to find old photos of Barcellona.
The picture I attached is a tablet that was found in the Convent of S. Antonino, which testifies the love of so many benefactors of Barcellona people who had emigrated to Brooklyn, and helped rebuild the church tower in 1929.

This is the inscription:

LA RICOSTRUZIONE DI QUESTO CAMPANILE AUSPICI I RR. P. LEOPOLDO INTELISANO DA MONGIUFFI E P. INNOCENZO TUMMINELLO DA POLLINA A SPESE E DEVOZIONE DEGLI EMIGRATI A BROOKLYN.
________
MAZZEO ANTONINO FU FORTUNATO L. 276
MAZZEO ANTONINO DI FRANCESCO “ 276
PERDICHIZZI FORTUNATO DI FRANCESCO “ 276
PERDICHIZZI ANTONINO FU SALVATORE “ 184
PERDICHIZZI ANTONINO DI FRANCESCO “ 184
RECUPERO LUIGI DI GIUSEPPE “ 184
GENOVESI GAETANO DI ANTONINO “ 184
PULEO ANTONINO FU SALVATORE “ 184
GENOVESI DOMENICO DI ANTONINO “ 184
GIANBO SEBASTIANO DI ANTONINO “ 184
ZANGA FELICE DI ANTONINO “ 184
FOTI GIUSEPPE DI SEFANO “ 184
CALABRÒ SALVATORE DI GAETANO “ 184
TRATTARO CARMELO DI GIUSEPPE “ 184
TROVATO SEBASTIANO FU DOMENICO “ 147
CALABRÒ SALVATORE DI CARMELO “ 129
TROVATO DOMENICO DI DOMENICO “ 92
CALABRÒ SALVATORE DI ANTONINO “ 92
GENOVESI GIUSEPPE DI ANTONINO “ 92
CALABRÒ FRANCESCO DI SALVATORE “ 186
FAZIO DOMENICO DI ANGELO “ 92
VINCENZO LA POLLA “ 92
GENOVESI GIUSEPPE DI SALVATORE “ 92
A.D. 1929"

I really hope you can help me finding old pictures of Barcellona through italian immigrants!
Mario

[carubia]

Hi Mario,

I have an old picture of my GGF's second wife in Barcellona, but it's just her with her family standing in front of her house. My GGF immigrated to Brooklyn (after a brief stay in Manhattan) from Barcellona, and I even see someone on that list with his name, but I'm sure it's not him. His name was very common. He was a marble setter who reportedly sculpted altars for churches in Barcellona.

[barresima]

Hi!
My interest is for pictures where I can see how the town of Barcellona looked in the past. I don't think your picture could help me but I'll like to have a look at it anyway. Can you scan it and email it to me at barresima@tiscali.it?
What's your GGF's name? Do you know the name after "di" o "fu" is the father's name?
If he sculpted altars for churches, I could try to find out what he did and send you a photo of them if you want.

[carubia]

Yes, I know. His name was Antonino Calabro' (that's an accent) and he was born 9 Mar 1881. It's actually the name of one of the fathers on that list. I know he was a marble worker and there were a lot of sculptures around my grandparents' house that he had made. My cousin told me about the church altars - I'd love to see one. That's the town where I'm registered so I'd like to visit such a church when I finally get around to taking a trip there. (Don't bother looking up any civil records for him - I have them already, although the copy of his birth act at the courthouse in Messina has the wrong father's name; it's correct on the birth record that Barcellona has and also on his marriage records.)

I'll have to dig the photograph up and then scan it on Monday.

[barresima]

Thanks a lot.
I'll try to find out your GGF's artworks and send you some pictures as soon as I can!

Someone else can help me find old pictures of Barcellona?

[carubia]

Here's the picture of my GGF's 2nd wife's family in Barcellona. The back of the picture says "Barcellona (Sicilia)" on it, along the bottom of the oval, but it may be hard to make out.

[barresima]

Thank you so much! Even today you can see scenes like this in the countryside, although they are now a rarity.

[barresima]

Yes, I know. His name was Antonino Calabro' (that's an accent) and he was born 9 Mar 1881. It's actually the name of one of the fathers on that list. I know he was a marble worker and there were a lot of sculptures around my grandparents' house that he had made. My cousin told me about the church altars - I'd love to see one. That's the town where I'm registered so I'd like to visit such a church when I finally get around to taking a trip there.

Hi Carubia!
I just read again this old post...
I'm curious to know something about your GGF and his sculptures and altar churches. Do you know exactly in which churches of Barcellona he made altars?

[carubia]

No, I don't know which churches. I heard that from an elderly cousin, but I don't know how he came by that information. My GGF died in 1881 just 2 months shy of his 100th birthday. He moved to America with his wife and children in 1905 and returned briefly to Barcellona to find another wife after my GGM died.

[barresima]

Ok, thanks. I'll ask about him to some priests that I know.