Re: Looking for family in Vasto Italy
In Reply to: Looking for family in Vasto Italy posted by Ralph Monteferrante on January 08, 2006 at 03:22:57:
The immigration manifest gives as their destination the father Tommaso in Phila, and they are traveling with their aunt Grazia Tana who leaves as her connection in Italy her father Vincenzo in Vasto. The same person is Raffaele and Anna's grandfather, according to the manifest. Grazia is 26, single, and directed to her sister Liberata. Tomaso Monteferrante is recorded in 1903, 38 years old, a widower and directed to brother in law Barchetti G...
Liberata Tana is recorded as arriving at Ellis Island in sept 1907, she is directed to her brother in law Monteferrante Tommaso, single, 25, and leaves her father Vincenzo in Italy.
In the 1920 census Thomas Monteferrante (spelt Monteferont) born abt 1866 is in Philadelphia with all the family (all info is available at ancestry.com) wife Lucy, children Margaret 23, Michael 21, Annie, Raffaele, Rosina, James, Irene, Florence. Of them the first four were born in Italy, the others in pennsylvania. In the 1930 census Raffaele is married to Theresa and they have children Thomas, Irene and Joseph.
With a further research in Ellis Island records, you will see that Raffaele's older sibling Michele (declared as female - it is possible the aunt had a 5-year-old nephew that she disguised as a girl to be able to keep him with her on the ship?) came in 1904 with aunt Lucia Tana, 27, single, and directed to brotherinlaw Tommaso Monteferrante. This child was 7, and the age corresponds to the 1920 census where "Margaret" is 23 and the surname is given as Piccirilli. In the 1930 census there is an additional piece of information: Thomas married at 30 (his ages is given as 67, birth abt 1863) and lucy, 55, married at 25.
A very general sketch -- but considering some of the sources above may be partly incorrect -- of the family would therefore be: Tommaso Monteferrante, born abt 1865-66, had a first wife who died before 1903, when he emigrated. His children Margaret (but she may be a daughter in law, wife of Michele?) born abt 1896, Michele born abt 1898, Raffaele, abt 1902 and Annie abt 1901 (the 1920 census gives 18 for Annie and 17 for Raffaele, and the 1930 census gives 28 for Raffaele). He was married to a...? Tana, daughter of Vincenzo, the marriage was in 1893-1895. His first wife died, and he remarried in the States her sister Lucia Tana and they had four children born in Pennsylvania. The other children came one with Lucia, and the younger ones stayed with the maternal grandfather Vincenzo, to reach the father in 1916.
Now, as to finding family in Italy, since the Monteferrante and Tana families are quite common in Vasto, it would be advisable to find other brothers of Lucia Tana (children of Vincenzo) studying the years 1870-1890 in the civil records, find the marriage Tomaso Monteferrante - Tana?? daughter of Vincenzo and in this way obtain also the names of the parents of Tomaso. A further research in the records around Tomaso's birth would provide names of his siblings. This is important to connect to any Monteferrante since you do not know who Tomaso left in Italy (brothers and sisters). For more help in researching Italian records, you can contact our genealogy section at italyheritage.com