Eugenio and Lucia (Ponzio) Bertello - Torino, Italy

[Gensoup]

Hello.

According to my information Eugene Angelo Bertello was born 11 Jun 1885 in Torino to Eugenio and Lucia Bertello. He may have been baptized in the Church of St. Charles.

According to 1910 US census data, he emigrated to USA in 1907. He became a Catholic priest, and served churches in Bullitt and Nelson Counties in Kentucky.

Fr. Bertello was killed in a train wreck on 20 Dec 1917.

I am compiling information on the victims of this wreck and wish to learn more about Fr. Bertello's ancestry if possible.

Thank you for any help you can offer.

[vj]

Do you have his
1907 manifest
page 2
destination: Chicago
perhaps this church?
Assumption Catholic Church

Name: Eugenio Bertillo
Arrival Date: 27 Jul 1907
Estimated birth year: abt 1885
Age: 22
Gender: Male
Port of Departure: Genoa, Italy
Ethnicity/Race­/Nationality: Italian (North) (Italian)
Ship Name: Cretic
Port of Arrival: New York, New York
Nativity: Italy
Line: 3
Microfilm Serial: T715 Microfilm Roll: T715_952
Birth Location: Italy
Birth Location Other: probably Turin/Torino, Piedmont
Page Number: 12

[misbris]

Your project sounds so interesting. Here is the immigration info for Eugenio.


First Name: Eugenio
Last Name: Bertello
Ethnicity: Italian
Last Place of Residence: Iurin, Italy
Date of Arrival: Jul 27, 1907
Age at Arrival: 22y Gender: M Marital Status: S
Ship of Travel: Cretic
Port of Departure: Port Genoa, Naples
Manifest Line Number: 0003

Here is the link to the record.
pg 1
http://www.ellisisland.org/EIFile/popup ... &line=0003

pg2
http://www.ellisisland.org/EIFile/popup ... &line=0003

Hope it helps.

Mary Jo

[Gensoup]

Thank you both for the immigration information. I should have thought to look at Ellis Island.

Fr. Bertello, although a young priest, was responsble for three congregations. Local newspaper accounts of the accident relate that he was quite popular in the three communities he served.

I wonder if he had siblings. Perhaps someone here can help me learn even more about his family in Torino.

Thanks!

[Biff83]

1910 census for Eugene Bertello, line 21, for reference

Leaches, Bullitt County, Kentucky
Eugene Bertello, age 29, immigration year 1907, occupation, priest, Catholic Church

http://img521.imageshack.us/img521/7849 ... 910hd8.jpg

Biff

[Gensoup]

If interested, you can read a brief description of the train wreck in which Father Bertello was killed at this site:

http://bullittcountyhistory.org/bchisto ... k1917.html

[misbris]

The Family History Center has the records for Torino.

http://www.familysearch.org/

Also have you thought about contacting the Dioceses of Chicago or in Kentucky for information?

[Gensoup]

The Archdiocese of Louisville was able to provide the names of his parents, but little else. Not sure about Chicago.

There is one FHC film, Registri ecclesiastici della Diocesi di Torino (Torino), 1823-1899, that might help me identify siblings. May end up ordering it.

Thanks.

[misbris]

You can try the civil records also. It looks like a lot of Bertellos came from a section of Torino called Castellamonte.

[misbris]

How sad, he was buried on Christmas Eve. I wonder when or if his family in Italy found out.

[Gensoup]

How sad, he was buried on Christmas Eve. I wonder when or if his family in Italy found out.

There is so much sadness in the familes of those killed, so many stories to be told; but I get depressed and have to walk away from it at times.

I also wonder about his parents. When they sent him off to America, they had no idea how brief his time would be.

He broaded the train just minutes before the crash, and was on his way to minister to a very sick parishioner. Here is a quote from The Catholic Record:

"Among the dead was the exemplary and loved Reverend Father Eugene A. Bertillo, pastor of the congregation of the Holy Redeemer, at Chapeze, in Bullitt County, Kentucky and its dependent missions. In connection with his sudden and violent death, consoling - indeed, most consoling - was the announcement that the dear young Priest, met his death, by the Grace of God, bearing on his person the Most Blessed Sacrament to a distant sick parishioner. Death overtook him while on the most sacred priestly duty. He was, as it were, another Christopher. The Blessed Sacrament was found intact on his person, and over his heart, by the Rev. P. M. Mononghan, Chaplain of St. Thomas Orphans Asylum, Louisville."

[misbris]

Reading that gave me chills. I'm sure the Church reached out to his family in Italy to give them solace, but I would love to know for sure. I hope you are able to track down present day relatives, they may know more.

There are many Bertillos in the Torino area. I'm sure there were siblings. It is unusual for there to be small families. Let's hope he had brothers so your search will be a little easier.

[Gensoup]

I started this thread ten years ago, and am returning to it with additional information, and a request. To summarize, Eugenio Angelo Luigi Bertello was born 11 Jun 1885 in Torino to Eugenio and Lucia (Ponzio) Bertello. He entered the priesthood and came to America in 1907 aboard the Cretic and landed in New York. After completing his education in Chicago, he came to Kentucky where he served in rural parts of Bullitt and Nelson Counties. He was killed in a train crash on 20 Dec 1917 along with 48 other passengers.

I have recently learned that he had a sister Anna Eugenia Catterina Bertello, born 12 Jul 1883. However, I know nothing more about her or their parents. It does appear from the database I find the sister in, that there may have only been the two children.

Since ten years have passed since we started this thread, I'm wondering if anyone else might have information related to this family to share?

Thanks,
Charlie