On today’s date (August 30th) in family history, the following happened:
In 1811, my 6th great grandfather Giuseppe Marzola died in Farindola at 8 am at age 77. He was born in Farindola and lived at Rione della Croceria and was a contadino. His parents were Domenicantonio Marzola and Anna Maria Colella. He was the widow of Rosina Pompili. Domenico and Rosina are in my tree twice. They are the ancestors of both my paternal grandmother, through their daughter Giovanna Marzola, who was married to the Cancelliere di Farindola, Nicola Carusi, making them the ancestors of Luigia Massei; and, my paternal grandfather, through their son Domenico Marzola who married midwife Maria Donata Di Costanzo from Penne, making them ancestors of Serafina Merlenghi. This is why we research the female lines. The fact they were in my tree twice made my paternal grandparents 5th cousins to each other.
1811 death record
Also on today’s date in Farindola, a pair of several times over great grand aunts Apollonia Cirone and Anna Eleuteria Iannascoli passed away in 1817.
On my maternal side, the following happened:
In 1816, the parents of my immigrant 3rd great grandmother Marie Louise Koppel Eckebrecht, Johann Christoph Koppel and Anna Maria Dorothea Grabe were married in Koerner, Thuringia, Germany. Johann Christoph is noted as owner of the Riethmuhle (mill) on his children’s baptisms in Koerner through at least 1820. Koerner is on the River Unstrut. There is a Riethmuhle in Koerner as of 1900, at the west end of the village on the Heuberg Hill, on Notter Creek. At the time of Marie Louise’s death in the United States, her property included a mill in Germany that may have been this mill.
Marie Louise Koppel
In 1820, a cousin several times removed, Bernardo Criscuolo, was born in Nola, outside Naples. He was a blood relation of Filomena Napolitano.
In 1854, my second great grandmother Katharina Schuttler was born in Chicago to immigrants John Schuttler and Louise Gerbing. She was my first ancestor born on this continent.
Katharina Schuttler is seated in the middle of the 3 women
In 1866, my second great grand aunt Anna Maria Heinzen was born in Brig, Valais, Switzerland to Joseph Anton Heinzen and Italian-Swiss Regina Gentinetta.
In 1896, cousin several times removed, Charles Gerbing, won the German Wheelmen’s Race (Cycling) in Chicago but ended up being disqualified.
Finally, it was reported in two newspapers on today’s date in 1912, that my great grandfather, Carmen Ferraro, used a stage name of Mr. Armanno Vittorio, and told the reporter he was from the Colon Theater in Buenos Aires, when he gave an operatic performance as a dramatic tenor.
Are we related? Do you have an addition or correction? Please email me-cinziarosagenealogy@comcast.net
This blog post is part II of 52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks prompt #23 Namesake.
Massimo. I have many Massimos in my paternal lines. Uncles, grandfathers, cousins, you name it. But in one line there were four versions of Massimo in successive generations in one of my Penne, Pescara branches. My Uriani that lived in Penne seemed to use Massimo more than any others. The Uriani are direct ancestors of my great grandmother Maria Luigia Massei.
The Cathedral of Penne is the Church of San Massimo, named after the town’s patron saint. The present-day structure was built on top of an old crypt. That crypt was built on top of a Vestini temple dedicated to the Roman Goddess of family Vesta, whose festival was celebrated June 7-14 and they were so-named for that fact. The Vestini were the independent war-like inhabitants of the area surrounding the Gran Sasso in Italy before they allied themselves with Rome. San Massimo’s feast day falls in the middle of the week previously dedicated to Vesta – June 10.
The first Massimo of the Uriani line I found was my 5th great grandfather, born in 1783 in Penne. His full name was Massimo Antonio Nicola Uriani. He was the father of Antonia Uriani. Antonia was the wife of Sabatino Cacciatore of the Cacciatore – Desiati line in Penne. MassimoAntonio Nicola Uriani was a contadino and was the husband of Rosalina Maddalena Mincarelli. This Massimo was the great great grandfather of Maria Luigia Massei.
Second, the first Massimo had a daughter named Massimina. She was born in 1825 in Penne.
Then I found the first Massimo’smarriage documents that showed he had been baptized in San Massimo and his father was Massimo Nicola Uriani, who was my 6th great grandfather and husband of Vittoria Di Norscia. Vittoria’s father was named Giuseppe Lorenzo Massimo Di Norscia. Massimo Nicola Uriani had a daughter named Maria Anna Massimina (sister of the first Massimo). Massimo Nicola Uriani is a special ancestor. He was born in 1734 and died in 1832 in Penne, making him the oldest direct ancestor in my paternal and maternal lines. His birthplace is unknown. According to his death record, he was 98 when he died. I have a cousin in my paternal lines that lived to at least 100 years in Farindola and the town gave him a birthday party to celebrate that occasion and the fact that he was a veteran of the First Italian War for Independence. Right now, it bears mention, that my great aunt, also on my paternal side, is 99 years old and counting.
Last, I found the baptismal record of Massimo Antonio Nicola Uriani’s sister Maria AnnaMassimina, stating that their grandfather, my seventh great grandfather, was named Massimo Oriano (That is how the surname appeared in the church extracts from San Massimo in Penne in the late 1700s.) This Massimo was born around 1700 and his birthplace unknown. His wife was Maria Angela, with an unknown surname. Perhaps the name Massimo means he was actually born in Penne…
What other surname do you see in this baptismal record that is in our tree?
This Uriani/D’Auriano/Oriano surname is rare in Penne. Coincidentally, Massimo Antonio Nicola Uriani’s granddaughter Anna Domenica Cacciatore married my 3rd great grandfather who was named Donato Di Massimo! He was from Farindola.
Farindola – On today’s date in 1853, my third great grandparents Angelo Merlenghi and Maria Carmina Cirone were married in San Nicola di Bari in Farindola, Italy. They were both contadini and were the grandparents of my great grandmother Serafina Merlenghi.
Maria Carmina Cirone was born in 1828 in Farindola to Bernardo Cirone and Maria Crocefissa Marzola. Maria Carmina’s mother and grandmother Maria Donata Di Costanzo were both levatrici = midwives. Bernardo Cirone’s Cirone ancestors were builders.
Angelo Merlenghi was born in 1820 in Farindola to Antonio Nicodemo Merlenghi and the fatherless Anna Paola Lucerini. They were contadini. Angelo Merlenghi’s great grandfather on his mother’s side was Artista Romoaldo Lucerini. I still do not know what kind of artist Romoaldo was!
Maria Carmina Cirone and Angelo Merlenghi had four children:
Giuseppe Merlenghi m. Carmela Dell’Orso (parents of Soldato Domenico Quirico Merlenghi, disperso alla Zagora, Slovenia 12 Agosto 1915)
Francesca Merlenghi
Cesidio Merlenghi m. Maria Michela Cirone (parents of Serafina Merlenghi)
Maria Merlenghi
Maria Carmina Cirone had no more children and died in 1861 at the age of 33.
Angelo Merlenghi remarried in 1865 to Alba Maria Mergiotti. She was the daughter of Donato Mergiotti and Maria Di Gregorio.
Angelo had two children with Alba Maria:
Antonio Merlenghi, died at age 17 in Contrada Macchie
Maria Loreta Merlenghi m. Alessandro Lombardi
Angelo passed away in 1876, at the age of 55 in Contrada Macchie. Below is the 2012 view of Farindola from Macchie.
Women’s History Month: Rispetto per I molti italiano levatrici nella mia genealogia. There are many midwives in the Italian parts of my tree. They were farmers’ wives, tailors’ wives, shepherds’ wives, innkeepers’ mothers, blacksmiths’ daughters, and landowners’ daughters. One was even an unwed mother who was the Ricevitrice di Proietti (receiver at the foundling wheel). She was a landowner’s daughter.
The first one I found was Maria Giuseppa Marcella. She was there when my great grandfather was born. She was named in civil birth records because the fathers weren’t able to report the birth. She would have to go to the municipal hall to do this. I was also lucky to find many baptismal records where a mammana or ostetrice is mentioned.
My great grandfather’s father was sick, so his sister, Maria Giuseppa went to town hall. She delivered several of Filippo‘s children and the children of many others in Case Bruciate.
A levatrice not only assisted in birthings but provided medical help to women for all female ailments. She also provided different kinds of help when there was unwanted pregnancies, as it was her responsibility to leave the baby at the foundling wheel. If the baby’s health was in danger at birth, she would perform a baptism. She also was known to assist women in their desire to maintain their youth, etc.
When I found one of these levatrice in Pescara, I could usually trace who in their close relationships was also a levatrice. In Caserta and Napoli, I have not been able to do that yet. I am positive I will find more in Campania and Abruzzo.
A couple years ago I was informed by a cousin that my great grandmother was likely familiar with midwifery because she was familiar with traditional folk remedies.
In honor of Women’s History Month this week, the following are the italiano levatrici nella mia genealogia:
Farindola:
Serafina Merlenghi, my great grandmother
Maria Giuseppa Marcella and
her mother Maria Carolina Colangeli (direct ancestress) and
her mother Maria Carmina Crocetta (direct ancestress) and
her mother-in-law Maria Carmina Marcucci Collalto (direct ancestress)
On this day in 1896, at 4:30 in the morning, Great Grandmother Serafina Merlenghi was born in Macchie, Farindola…
Today, is the birthdate of the sweet lady that is the reason I put red pepper in my red sauce. I present to you the birth record of great grandmother Serafina Merlenghi from the Archivio di Stato di Pescara:
#78 Nati, 1896; Merlenghi Serafina (Click to make larger)
Translating –
Number 78 Merlenghi Serafina:
The year 1896, first day of June at the hour 8, 40th minute, in the municipal house.
In front of me, Clemente de Berardinis, Secretary Delegate of the Mayor here since July 17, Civil State Official of the Commune of Farindola, is appearing Cesidio Merlenghi, of 40 years, farmer, living in Farindola, that admits to me that on the 4th hour, in the 30th minute, of the first day of the current month, in house address Macchie number (blank), to Maria Michela Cirone, his wife, with whom he is residing.
A baby of the feminine sex was born that he presents to me and who has been named Serafina.
To the above in this document were present the witnesses Quirico Cirone, of 46 years, farmer, and Cesidio Cirone, of 50 years, contadino, both residents of this commune.
The act that I have written has been read to the present attendees because they are illiterate. Signed –
Merlenghi Cesidio
De Berardinis
Great great grandfather Cesidio Merlenghi was literate and signed his own name.
Quirico Cirone was also a witness of the birth of great grandfather Cesidio. Even though his last name is Cirone, he is not an uncle or cousin to Granmom.
Serafina Merlenghi’s Family and Genealogy
Granmom married Cesidio after his return from WWI. Obviously they had four children. Two daughters stayed in Farindola and raised families. One is still alive. Two sons were soldiers. The oldest son was lost in WWII in Russia. The youngest was in the United States Army. After Grandpop passed, she went home to Italy, collected social security, and passed away there.
Granmom had at least four siblings. The online birth records stop before I can check to see how many were born after her. Her oldest brother Antonio Merlenghi (1887-1918) was a Corporal in the Italian Army in WWI. Some details of the battle, where he fought and lost his life, and war medal have been related HERE-CLICK ME-. He married in 1910 to an Antonia Lombardi. Shortly before World War I, a man with his name came to the United States from Farindola. He was not allowed to stay and was deported. I cannot find another Antonio Merlenghi born in Farindola about the same time as Granmom’s brother. I wonder if they are the same man.
Her next oldest brother Vincenzo (1890-1968) married Maria Pompili. They had a daughter in Farindola before they came to Pennsylvania and had four more children. They sometimes went by the surname Morengo in the United States but, I assure you that according to their headstones, Vincenzo and at least one of his sons were still Merlenghi. (Placing the “o” at the end of their name may not have been an accident, as I found later.) Her next oldest brother was Paolo Merlenghi, born in 1893. The last sibling I can find is her younger sister Giovina born in 1899.
Granmom is my other great grandmother from Farindola with interesting individuals in her ancestry similar to those in the ancestry of Luigia Massei. Take a short look at Serafina’s ancestry (which is too huge to fit on one Ancestry screen):
5 generations of her tree. The extant is too large to be pictured here. (Click to make larger)
The Surname Cirone
Oh my gosh! Look at that! Serafina’s father was the son of a Cirone lady and he married a Cirone. They are not related though. Cirone is probably the most common surname in Farindola period. It shows up numerous times in her father’s and mother’s ancestry. In fact, there is a small street in Farindola in the village itself called Vicolo Cirone (Cirone Alley). Mayors, landowners and town officials bore the surname. Tradesmen too. I was elated to see Berardino Cirone, the Mayor, on civil documents. But we are not related to that Cirone.
According to Cognomi Italiani, the name Cirone is derived from the Latin for the Persian Saint Cyrus…. Saint Ciro. Cirone is Abruzzese. Not Cirini, nor Cerone. It is CIRONE. Anyone with a surname not spelled the way it is spelled in Farindola is from another part of Italy and is not related.* Also, according to Cognomix, the largest contingent of Cirone in the Italian phonebook is in Farindola with 23 entries.
Because Cirone appears in numerous places in Serafina’s ancestry, I researched to 3 degrees and some to 4 degrees of consanguinity. None of the Cirones in her tree end up intermarrying kin. Perhaps, further back in records not yet accessible, a relationship could be established. Quite interestingly, she is the only Farindola great grandparent that I have that seems to carry the most Farindolesi blood back to the 1700s and she still does not show intermarrying of bloodlines. However, I cannot say positively that is true, because of two her ancestors, Anna Paola Lucerini and Donata Colangeli make small holes in Serafina’s tree. Until I locate the parents of Donata Colangeli could this absolutely be confirmed. Anna Paola Lucerini’s father will remain a mystery though as you will see.
Coincidentally, I was recently contacted on Ancestry regarding my Cirone people. I helped someone read his ancestor’s Cirone birth record. He then wanted to know if we were related. Back to at least 8 generations in Farindola, I could find no Cirone relation with this individual. We tried to determine if any of the Antonio Cirones in my tree were his ancestor beforehand. None of them were.
To the best of my knowledge, those with the surname Cirone in Serafina’s tree, as far back as I am able to go with the online records, were village dwellers, whereas my Marcella ancestors were cultivators, shepherds, spinners, woolworkers, and midwives in the country outside the village in the frazioni of the commune. The Marcellas married other farmers, shepherds, and wool workers, and it repeated…generation after generation.
Cesidio Merlenghi’s Ancestry (Serafina’s Father)
I am breaking down Serafina’s direct ancestry by father and mother. First, Cesidio Merlenghi’s ancestry went further back than the “lovely” pedigree view on Ancestry.com would allow me to capture here to show you.
Cesidio Merlenghi’s Ancestry; the circled names are mentioned below. (Click to make larger)
The Merlenghis themselves were easy to research and followed the tradition of naming their oldest children after grandparents and went directly back to the early 1700s easily where the oldest Merlenghi ancestor I could find, up to this point, would have been born. The oldest RECORD I could find, up to this point, with Serafina’s surname was dated 1789 in Farindola. It was attached to the marriage documents in an 1821 marriage to the nephew of Serafina’s ancestor Antonio Nicodemo Merlenghi. His nephew was named Erminegildo Frattarola. In that document, which is Erminegildo’s baptismal record from 1789, Antonio Merlenghi’s sister’s name was transcribed down by Archpriest Antonio Salvitti (who is a relation and part of our tree) as Domenica (daughter of Nicodemo) MERLENGO. See for yourself….
Baptismal extract of Erminegildo Frattarola, nephew to Merlenghi; red underline showing Merlengo
BUT! In 1793, our ancestor, Domenica’s brother, Antonio Nicodemo Merlenghi, was baptized as MERLENGHI. The Merlenghi are traced back, for now, to my 6 x great grandfather Nicodemo Merlenghi, likely born in the 1720s or 1730s, as I previously mentioned. I think he was from Farindola because I haven’t found the surname in any neighboring towns. Those with the surname Merlenghi going directly back, for as far back as I can currently trace, were all farmers.
Poor Anna Paola Lucerini
Previously mentioned Antonio Merlenghi married Anna Paola Lucerini in 1821. She was illegitimate. Her mother was Maria Domenica Romaolda Lucerini. Her father was never named anywhere on records. He is simply IGNOTA/Unknown. She was baptized by Archpriest Antonio Salvitti at San Nicola di Bari. Her godmother was Lucia, widow of Filippo Frattarola, and the midwife there at her birth was Anna Rosa, widow of Domenico Di Francesco. Her mother passed when she was 16 years old. This is not the end of the line for Anna Paola’s ancestry because her grandparents on her mother’s side are known! This branch of the Lucerini lived inside the village too.
Nicolantonio Cirone
My 6 x great grandfather was a fabricatore (builder) as were his brothers and at least one of his sons was referred to as Mastro (Master) Fabricatore on Farindola civil records. They too lived in the village. Master Builder. Sounds familiar in one of Nicolantonio Cirone’s descendants doesn’t it?
Maria Donata di Costanzo and her parents
Maria Donata di Costanzo bears a special mention for two reasons. 1. She and her parents are the only people I could find in Cesidio Merlenghi’s ancestry that weren’t from Farindola. They were from Penne. Maria Donata was born there; and 2. Maria Donata di Costanzo was a midwife. Not only did she deliver her grandchildren, she appears in many Latin records as the obtestrix (levatrice/ostetrice/midwife) delivering babies in Farindola.
Giuseppe Marzola and His Wife Rosina Pompili
Giuseppe Marzola and Rosina Pompili are the parents of the wife of the Cancelliere of Farindola, Nicola Carusi. Her name is Giovanna Marzola. (Giovanna Marzola and Nicola Carusi are important parts of Luigia Massei’s ancestry.) She would be sister to Domenico Marzola in Cesidio Merlenghi’s tree. Surely these parents and family were well-to-do citizens of Farindola.
Maria Michela Cirone’s Ancestry (Serafina’s Mother)
Maria Michela Cirone’s ancestry also goes back further than the “pedigree view” on Ancestry allows me to capture for you. Everyone in her tree, with the exception of one of Maria Michela’s great great great grandfathers, was born in Farindola.
Maria Michela Cirone’s Ancestry; names circled in orange mentioned below. (Click to make larger)
Felice Cirone
Serafina’s great great great grandfather Felice Cirone was a carpenter.
Donato Fragassi and son Domenico Fragassi
This father and son duo in her ancestry were archery bow makers/arcari. No doubt this would be a specialized profession in a place the size of Farindola.
The Salvittis
The Salvittis are a regular Farindola surname now. But, they originally came from Fara San Martino, Chieti. Serafina’s great great great grandfather Domenico Lorenzo Salvitti was born there in the town famous for its pasta company in the neighboring province of Chieti. He married another Cirone – Cecilia Saveria. Domenico Lorenzo Salvitti’s nephew was mayor of Farindola for a while. His uncle was priest at San Nicola di Bari.
From what I can tell, at this point, the first Salvitti to have been born in Farindola after Domenico Lorenzo brought the surname there was Saverio Salvitti in 1789. He was the oldest son of Domenico Lorenzo and brother to Serafina’s ancestor.
Deomanda Frattarola
Deomanda’s name as written in one record
Deomanda, wife of Donato Fragassi. What a first name she has! Pretty isn’t it? She is mentioned because of her unique first name.
Now who taught my great grandmother to put the red pepper in the red sauce? Maybe Maria Michela Cirone…
*It is a real shame that Ancestry.com encourages customers to copy other trees that are on their site. I sincerely hope that I stop seeing my Cirone ancestry used as a source in trees of people from the farthest reaches of Italy that think my Cirone are possibly their ancestors while their surname isn’t even spelled the same as Cirone! The tree is there to help others.
Gran Sasso D’Italia, overlook near Farindola
Cinziarosa's Descendants (c) 