Need help with the mystery of my GGF's birth commune

[jacobarber]

I haven't done this research in a while, I'm getting back in, and I have a problem.


On more than 1 record, my GGF (Dominic Barber/Barberi) mentioned "Catona" as his birth place. Other records simply list "Italy". Catona was a commune of Reggio Calabria (RC) and was absorbed by the city of Reggio Calabria sometime in the 1920s.

A few years back, I wrote to Reggio Calabria asking for his birth record and received something troubling. Here is what I knew prior to the birth record, based on info from his MC, naturalization documents, WWI Draft registration card, etc.:

1. He was born on October 28, 1886 in Catona, Italy
2. His mother's name was Maria Romeo
3. His father's name was Nunzio (or Annunziato)
4. He arrived in the US on or about May 18, 1900 on the vessel Washington in New York, having shipped from Messina and having last resided in Catona, Italy.
5. He was married on Jan 7, 1907 to Philomina Louise Condoluci in Albion, NY
6. Some sons and daughters happened, etc.
7. He naturalized in the 20s after my GF was born, so eligibility isn't a problem.
8. Died in 1957 or so (can't remember, this isn't the issue)

Here's the problem:
Reggio Calabria sent me a birth record for Francesco Nunzio Barberi, born in Catona on October 28, 1886 to Nunzio Barberi and Maria Romeo. I do not know who Francesco Nunzio Barberi is. I have no evidence of any brothers to Dominic. Everything else matches perfectly though.

So how do I proceed? I know of a commune in Salerno named Catona, but the fact all his info matches really makes me think that the Catona in Reggio Calabria is the correct one. Should I contact every church in the old Catona commune to see if they have records, or write to Reggio again and see if I get a different answer?

Blegh. Anything helps. Thanks!

[mmogno]

Birth act of Nunzio Barberi, son of Nunzio and Maria Romeo. Catona, October 28, 1886.
http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 9.jpg.html

[mler]

Same town; same parents; same birthdate.

Maybe he simply decided to use another name when he emigrated.

[jacobarber]

Birth act of Nunzio Barberi, son of Nunzio and Maria Romeo. Catona, October 28, 1886.
http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 9.jpg.html

I'm a dummy, because I've had this record for a while and forgot to include it.

This is the record that the folks in Reggio Calabria got the birth extract from. The confusion is around the name difference. How the hell to I come to terms with it? It isn't like a nickname or anything. If this is the same person, how do I go about getting a consulate to recognize that? Telling them "oh hey, he probably just used another name when he came here" isn't likely to pass muster.

[Tessa78]

Totally unrelated to your search, but thought I would pass it along.

Newspaper article about the 5 sons of Mr. and Mrs. Dominick Barber in 1943
"Fighting Barbers of Brockport" - is this the family?

http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/hi ... Page=false

T.

[jacobarber]

Totally unrelated to your search, but thought I would pass it along.

Newspaper article about the 5 sons of Mr. and Mrs. Dominick Barber in 1943
"Fighting Barbers of Brockport" - is this the family?

http://fultonhistory.com/highlighter/hi ... Page=false

T.

Yep, that's my family. Cosme was my grandfather. Great find!

[mler]

Try to find baptism and confirmation records. A middle name may have been included on the baptism records, and he may have begun using that name.

Generally, children chose a confirmation name, which would also be indicated on church records. That may also be where you find "Domenic."

Either can be used to establish the connection.

It was unusual for the son to have the same given name as the father, and his assuming the name "Domenic" may have been an attempt to avoid confusion.

[datxcali]

This is most likely a mistake. The online record lists his name as "Nunzio Barberi". Not sure where the commune is getting "Francesco Nunzio" from.

From what I can tell, this was the couple's first son. Nunzio Sr.'s father was named Domenico. In keeping with Italian naming traditions, this is likely where your GGF got his name from. I suspect that his name was actually Domenico, but there was an error on his birth certificate. I have seen this while researching my own family. There may be a correction at a later time in a later document.

Either way, to remedy this, you will likely need a "one-in-the-same" court order, along with a positivo/negativo statement from Catona.

[jacobarber]

Try to find baptism and confirmation records. A middle name may have been included on the baptism records, and he may have begun using that name.

Generally, children chose a confirmation name, which would also be indicated on church records. That may also be where you find "Domenic."

Either can be used to establish the connection.

It was unusual for the son to have the same given name as the father, and his assuming the name "Domenic" may have been an attempt to avoid confusion.

This is an interesting path to explore. There are a few churches in the Catona vicinity. Is it common to just spam all the churches in the relevant area for records or might there be a Diocese with more centralized records I should write to?

This is most likely a mistake. The online record lists his name as "Nunzio Barberi". Not sure where the commune is getting "Francesco Nunzio" from.

From what I can tell, this was the couple's first son. Nunzio Sr.'s father was named Domenico. In keeping with Italian naming traditions, this is likely where your GGF got his name from. I suspect that his name was actually Domenico, but there was an error on his birth certificate. I have seen this while researching my own family. There may be a correction at a later time in a later document.

Either way, to remedy this, you will likely need a "one-in-the-same" court order, along with a positivo/negativo statement from Catona.

I looked back at the document for the 1000th time and never noticed Domenico as one of the witnesses. Is that who you're referring to as possibly GGGF Nunzio's father (my GGGGF)? If so, great catch.

I also have no idea where they got Francisco from. I've looked through documents in the surrounding years to see if anything else popped up. I wonder if maybe it was from difficulty reading the fancy handwriting of the 1880s.

As for the one-in-the-same, I'll read up on what this requires. I imagine I'd have to go through a whole thing with New York State (where he lived & died), get the court order, then send that off to Reggio and hope that they either confirm or deny the findings? If that sounds wrong, feel free to correct me.

Thanks for all of this folks!

[Tessa78]

This may help to clear up the mystery of who "Francesco Nunzio" is.

Here is the marriage in 1884 of Francesco Nunziato Barberi and Maria Romeo
#19
Dated 17 July 1884
Francesco Nunziato Barberi, 40, laborer born in Catona, residing Catone; son of deceased Domenico, and of deceased Maria Ianni.
Maria Romeo, 34, spinner born in Catona, residing Catona; daughter of deceased Antonino, and of [living] Vittoria Richichi.

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 5.jpg.html

T.

[jacobarber]

This may help to clear up the mystery of who "Francesco Nunzio" is.

Here is the marriage in 1884 of Francesco Nunziato Barberi and Maria Romeo
#19
Dated 17 July 1884
Francesco Nunziato Barberi, 40, laborer born in Catona, residing Catone; son of deceased Domenico, and of deceased Maria Ianni.
Maria Romeo, 34, spinner born in Catona, residing Catona; daughter of deceased Antonino, and of [living] Vittoria Richichi.

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 5.jpg.html

T.

First, I would love to know what your method was to find this. I hadn't done much searching for marriage info for these folks just because they aren't required for citizenship.

Second, this is incredible. The names, commune, and years really seem to match what family history I do have. Thanks so much!

[datxcali]

This may help to clear up the mystery of who "Francesco Nunzio" is.

Here is the marriage in 1884 of Francesco Nunziato Barberi and Maria Romeo
#19
Dated 17 July 1884
Francesco Nunziato Barberi, 40, laborer born in Catona, residing Catone; son of deceased Domenico, and of deceased Maria Ianni.
Maria Romeo, 34, spinner born in Catona, residing Catona; daughter of deceased Antonino, and of [living] Vittoria Richichi.

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 5.jpg.html

T.

First, I would love to know what your method was to find this. I hadn't done much searching for marriage info for these folks just because they aren't required for citizenship.

Second, this is incredible. The names, commune, and years really seem to match what family history I do have. Thanks so much!

There's no real "method" per se. You already found the commune. Now it's just a matter of looking at the indices at the end of each year and then finding your ancestors.

I'm not sure how interested you are in the actual genealogy, but it definitely appears that Domenico had at least one sibling, an older sister, probably more. I've been able to find my GGM's siblings and found their descendants. I'm in the process of contacting them.

[Tessa78]

Older sister Maria Antonia was born in April 1885.
#58
http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... ewsIndex=0

And died 15 days later...
#25

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 5.jpg.html

T.

[datxcali]

Older sister Maria Antonia was born in April 1885.
#58
http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... ewsIndex=0

And died 15 days later...
#25

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 5.jpg.html

T.

Antonia Barberi: Born December, 1889

http://www.antenati.san.beniculturali.i ... 9.jpg.html

Seems like she most likely lived to adulthood. I can't find any other children though.

[jacobarber]

You two are very clearly much more versed in looking for these records than I am, and I'm in your debt for the help. I'll look through some more indices and see if I can find even more info.

Next step for me is to write to some churches around Catona and see if someone can find a baptismal record for Domenico. In that regard, are there any good letter templates? I used one when I wrote to the commune, but will probably need something with different context when spamming churches.