Isidoro Vaccarino

[Kaylie]

I am attaching as atto di nascita del proietto Isidoro Vaccarino who is my great great grandfather (b. 1832 d 30 Dec 2909 in Riposto Sicilia). I attempted to read the document but all I could understand was that he was a proIetto left on the ruota and that he was brought to the commune office by Concetta Grasso. It also states his parents were unknown. I would appreciate if the rest of the document could be translated. Isidoro had a son Pasquale who was my great grandfather. Pasquale was married to Nunzia Lisi. One of their sons was Isidoro (my grandfather). My grandfather and his wife had one child. Pasquale who is my father.
Have not been able to go further into my lineage because my great great grandfather was a proietto and had no parents listed on his birth certificate. I have even been told that perhaps my great great grandfather was the first person in my lineage. His birth certificate would seem to indicate that he was born in Giarre. All my great great grandfather’s descendants were born or came from Riposto. Is there any way I can find out if there were any other Vaccarinos living in Giarre during the 1830’s?

[erudita74]

On my way out and can't help you with the translation but did find his baptism record-

Here's a copy from the Chiesa Madre (Mother Church) S.Isidoro in Giarre, also dated the 10th of Sept 1832; his godmother was Isidora Leonardi-right page bottom record

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903 ... cat=676586

Index link below-unfortunately alphabetized by first name, and not surname but, in looking through the indices, I didn't see anyone else with the Vaccarino surname. More than likely a surname made up by the town official to whom this foundling was presented by the receiver of the abandoned infants at the wheel mechanism

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903 ... cat=676586

You must sign into familysearch.org with a username and password of your choice to view the links

Erudita

[Kaylie]

Based on the information you saw, was my great great grandfather actually a foundling? And as such, would he be the first Vaccarino in my lineage? Having been registered as a foundling, how is it that he had a godmother? Would I be able to gather any further information from his baptismal record? It seems I have hit a brick wall. Sorry for all my questions but having researched my maternal side so much further, I am just so surprised that I could go no further on my paternal side. Thank you.

[erudita74]

I just got home and was going to type you a translation of the birth record. So let's start with that. It is dated on Sept 10, 1832 at 8 P.M. at the town hall in Giarre. Appearing before the mayor there was Concetta Grassi, age 66, who was the receiver of the abandoned children at the wheel. She had with her a report indicating that the young boy, who was probably born this night, was received at the wheel at 6 P.M. He was wrapped in swaddling and without any signs (just to clarify, this means there were either no identifying marks on the boy's body, such as a birthmark or scar, or that nothing was left with the infant (such as a colored ribbon with a medal), which could be later used to help identify the infant, should the natural parents ever return to claim him. It also states that he was administered the sacrament of baptism with the name Isidoro Vaccarino. The official also inserted the document on page 346 in the volume of documents, according to article 62 of the civil code. It also states that the declarant, Concetta Grassi, did not know how to write, thus her signature does not appear on the document. Also we know from this record that she only had a report with her, when she appeared before the town mayor, and did not physically present the newborn to the town official, as was the practice.

So, yes, your ancestor was indeed a foundling. As to the godmother, the sacrament of baptism was administered to all newborns either on the day of birth or shortly thereafter. Sometimes a godmother was the midwife who delivered the baby. The baptism record doesn't indicate who she was. She may have just been a church appointed sponsor and possibly she served as a godmother for other infants at this church. You would have to go through the baptism records to see if she served as a godmother for any other infant during that time period. Or she may have been someone who worked at the foundling institution.

I empathize with you, as I myself, years ago discovered that my paternal grandfather was a foundling. In his case though, his supposed natural parents married 6 weeks after his birth but reclaimed him when was almost 3 years old. At that point, they had to bring witnesses with them to their town notary to confirm their identities, had to state what kind of clothes or blanket, etc, he was wrapped in, when they left him, and the town notary then changed his surname from that which he was assigned when he was presented at the town hall, to the surname of his supposed father. But then I found that each of his parents had also been abandoned as infants, and they too had invented surnames. His mother was abandoned at the wheel, but his father was left behind a town resident's door. So I can't go back in time any further either. Such a disappointment indeed.

Do you know if he married in Giarre or Riposto? If in Riposto, do you have his marriage record?

I didn't see any Vaccarino families in the few indices I looked at in Giarre, which is why I asked you if he married there. How far back in time have you gotten with the ancestry in Riposto, since you say that all of his descendants were born or came from there? Can you clarify this info for me? Thanks.

Erudita

[erudita74]

I see there is a marriage for him on Sept 15, 1851, at age 19, in Riposto to Giuseppa Liotta.

[Kaylie]

Isidoro did in fact marry Giuseppa Leotta(1824-1899) daughter of Rosario and Angela Serafini. He had several children. Pasquale (1854-1901), my great grandfather married Nunzia Lisi (1849-1899) born in Giarre and most probably married in Giarre, daughter of Salvatore and Nicolina Caltabiano. Pasquale had several children. His son Isidoro, my grandfather was born in Riposto 1877 died in the US 1947. He was married to Marianna Monforte, born in 1880 in Riposto and died in the US in 1955. She married Isidoro in January, 1910 in Riposto. Isidoro and Marianna had one male child, Pasquale, my father born in Riposto in 1913, died in the US in 1985. I hope that this information helps. Thank you for translating the birth certificate.

[rlw254]

I remember doing a bit of work on this person a little while ago, maybe it was for you. I think it could be possible to extend the line farther back with DNA testing but you'll have to rely on the luck of others having tested that are closely related.

[erudita74]

Yes, I see that there is a related thread, and that quite a bit of research had been previously done. Anyway, DNA research is out of my realm of expertise, but perhaps Kaylie can have success in pursuing that avenue of research.
Erudita

[Kaylie]

Based on the above information which was very kindly researched by Eurudita, would I be able to find any ancestors of My trisnonno Isidoro married to Giuseppa Leotta? Since he was registered in Giarre as a proietto with unknown parents, I am aware I will never know the names of his natural parents or who raised him. However is it possible to find the names of any children he might have had with Giuseppa Leotta?

[Kaylie]

Is there any possibility I could find out who the parents of my trisnonno Isidoro were or is this a brick wall from which my lineage begins? Also since my trisnonno Isidoro had 6 children (Giovanna, Pasquale (my bisnonno married to Nunzia Lisi), Lucia, Giuseppe (married twice, 1st wifeFrancesca Barbagallo with whom he had two sons and then to Agata LeMura with whom he had a boy and a girl), Rosario and Salvatore married to Sebastiano Leotta.
If I cannot go further than my trisnonno, can I find out who the grandchildren of my trisnonno were? I would appreciate your assistance. grazie mille!