Where to Start: birth records from Acireale, Sicily

[Chinzia]

Hi everyone,

I need some help. I'm trying to do a family tree, but since I am living in Australia, And the birth records are all the way in a town in Sicily, called Acireale, I have no means of getting them.

Where do I start? Is there a website I should go? Like a Civil Commune, or a State Archives? Who do I ask via email? how much it will cost? Will they mail me a copy of the records? I feel a little lost when it comes down to this. I tried emailing a couple of parishes, but none have answered me back.

Thanks.

[Squigy]

Hi, Chinzia. Welcome to the forum!!

You can send a letter directly to the comune asking for the records you need. Send your letters to this address:

Ufficio dello Stato Civile
Piazza Duomo (Palazzo di Città)
CAP 95024
Acireale (CT)
Italy

Here is a form letter to use, if you don't speak Italian:

http://www.circolocalabrese.org/resourc ... civile.asp

Most of the time they won't charge foreign residents for records (in fact, I think Italian law requires it), but they may charge postal fees (around 5 euros, I believe), although this is rare. At any rate, never send money unless they ask for it.


You could also order microfilm records from your local Family History Center. Here is a list of film they have available:


http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library ... i+Acireale+++


Find a center near you with this link:

http://www.familysearch.org/eng/library ... et_fhc.asp

Hope this helps. Good luck with your research!!

[adelfio]

Also heres some reading about Italian records and how to read them
click on the prompts
https://wiki.familysearch.org/en/Italy_ ... al_Records
and how to read them
http://familyhistory.byu.edu/Downloads/ ... ion_Guide/

Marty A

[Chinzia]

Great! Would they get annoyed if I were to ask for more than 1 birth certificate in one letter?

Thanks everyone! This is really appreciated!

[Squigy]

Great! Would they get annoyed if I were to ask for more than 1 birth certificate in one letter?

Thanks everyone! This is really appreciated!

It's probably best to only ask for one at a time, especially if you're not exactly sure when they were born. I asked for multiple copies in one letter once, and I never received a reply.