If it was a snake, it would have bit me

A while back I was visiting the local history museum and the staff asked me to research a piece for them to see if I could figure out what it was. 

It looked like it was probably a piece of farm equipment, but that's all I felt safe in guessing.  It's kind of hard to research "red farm equipment maybe" with any kind of efficiency or potential to hit it right on the mark.  So I let it go until I was recently reminded they were waiting for some magic from me so this item could be appropriately displayed.  This time I noticed it was called "The Clipper" and the manufacturer was also listed so off I went with my research feeling pretty confident.  Upon checking and rechecking the photos I had taken originially, I noticed for the first time that the machine TELLS us that it is a "grain and seed cleaner".

The answer was right there all along and I just hadn't seen it because I was concentrating on the whole piece instead of its parts. 

So goes family history research.  Lots and lots of times the answers are sitting right there waiting for me to find them again.  In my MESSA family folder I recently found a ship manifest from 1920 listing Francesco and Onofrio Messa which I printed out because I thought they were probably your grandfather Jake's brothers.  Notice the record says they are from Castellano which matches what Aunt Josie has told me.

This time I studied the record more carefully and noticed that it lists for "the name and complete address of the nearest relative or friend in country whence alien came" father Luigi Via Felice Cavalletti Castellano.  I believe Luigi to be the name of Jake's father and I believe he lived in Castellano.  This gives me Luigi's address which somehow makes him seem very real, especially when you look it up on Google Earth or a mapping program.  It also helps to verify that these are members of your family.  This piece of information had previously been overlooked but now seals the deal in my belief that these are relatives AND gives me a solid location for the MESSA family in Bari Italy. 

It's right there just waiting to be discovered.  Seems like a pretty good motto to live by.  Or a travel jingle.

A Little Bird Told Me...

These baby birds were nesting in a tree in our yard until recently.  I hope they left because it was time for them to leave--they look fairly big here--and not because my camera stalking chased them away.  I just think this is a very cool shot so I wanted to share it even though I do not have the same nature photo taking skills as Pat or Nick!

Yesterday I was standing on the deck talking to James who was working in the yard, so I was kind of leaning on the railing.  There was a little commotion in my peripheral vision and I turned to look straight into the face of a curious hummingbird!  She was right there so close I could touch her.  She was just suspended in the air looking straight at me as if to say "you got anything for me?".  It lasted longer than I would have expected it to before she took off leaving me feel like I'd had a special connection with nature (yea, me--a special connection with nature!).  Several days later and I still feel like I've been specially visited.

Did anyone besides me notice today is 8-9-10??  I'm glad to see Brad has made his own Shutterfly site--I'm enjoying it--thanks for sharing Brad!  James and I celebrated our 25th wedding anniversary last week by going to a Binghamton Mets game for a beer and a hot dog.  Well, at least there's something to be said for tradition......and James got to throw out the first pitch.  And it did NOT sail over the backstop, despite other reports.  Enjoy what remains of the summer. 

Manzelli Mausoleum

Thanks to Angela's generosity and skeleton key skills, we were able to find and get inside the Manzelli mausoleum recently.  It is, as Marilyn told me, "a very special place" and I'm very glad I was able to be part of the field trip out there for a visit. 

I remember wondering out loud about how the mausoluem came to be built as the patricarchs were barbers, junk dealers and priests.  So I went back and re-read Marilyn's letters and this is what she had to say:  "...when the ill mother came to America Fr. Pasquale took care of her at St. Joseph's Rectory in New Rochelle.  In the meantime the three brothers decided to build a family mauseleum at Calvary Cemetery where the whold family could be buried.  It is a marble chapel with 4 tombs on each side and an altar and stained glass window of St. Joseph.  Underneath the floor there are 4 tombs on each side and then 4 more fit in the middle.  Then there are 18 graves outside in the dirts.  When Marguerite died the mauseleum was finished and she was buried there.  ....When I was in Pietraroia I visited the cemetery where Andrew and his daughter Marguerite are buried.  I picked up some pebbles and brought them to the altar at Calvary."  The three brothers she refers to must be your great grandfather Joseph, his brother the barber Giacomo (who lived with Joseph and his family) and the priest Pasquale.  They certainly built a fine family remembrance. 

Some of us were wondering about some of the names listed there as they were unfamiliar, especially Delorise Manzelli

Of course I could not resist doing a little bit of research into this after I came home.  And it is developing into an intriguing story--maybe.  Delorise might be the daughter of a 4th Manzelli brother Michael (or Michelangelo).  The 1930 census lists a Michael Manzelli family in Queens with mother Amelia and children Marguerite, Deloris and sister in law Adela (Amelia's sister).  Deloris is listed as 21 years old; immigrated in 1913 and working on some sort of shoe machines (presumably in a factory).  If this is the same Delorise, I'm assuming for now that she never married.  Delorise Manzelli has some kind of tie to Sayville!  Her Social Security Death record lists Sayville as the address her last payment went to.  City directories indicate she lived in Long Island City for a time in the 1990s. 

There is also a Delorinda Manzelli arriving Ellis Island with family mother Amelia, sister Marguerite, brother Vittorio, another sister (escapes me right now) heading to 469 Hamilton St--the Manzelli homestead.  However, Delorinda is listed at 12 years old in 1911 so there's a significant age discrepancy if this is the same family. 

Long story short, it's still a mystery but the Sayville connection intrigues me.  If anyone living close to the Sayville Public Library cares to go and see if there's an obituary for Delorise Manzelli Sept 25 2004 perhaps some of the mystery can be cleared up!

It was a great celebration weekend, wasn't it? Babies and graduations; retirements and new musicians made for a grand gathering. Thanks to Linda and Jean for all the work they did to make the graduation celebration so special for Mallory, Ryan, Drew and Amy. Special thanks to Pat for hosting and endless stream of visitors with constant grace and aplomb (yes, aplomb-- a word that looks as though it might be insulting but is actually a compliment).



The weekend events brought to mind the endless timeline of family interactions around life events, food and fun. Angela was kind enough to loam me an old family movie from a vacation at Hickory Lodge which I've sent off to be transferred to DVD. We think it's from sometime in the 1940s so I'm hoping we can see how your ancestors spent their leisure time together.


In the meantime...see how history repeats itself....

Last week we had news from Peru and this week we are thinking about Scott and Drew in Australia!  Now that's probably NOT something that was an everyday kind of thing for your parents to consider.  

News from Peru!

I have to say I'm really surprised by how much I've gotten out of my participation in Facebook.  I joined primarily to keep in touch with my high school classmates but the family connections have also been enhanced by this level of sharing.  It's an amazing world we live in.

Patty Ruska sent me the following through Facebook today about your cousin Jim's mission work in Peru: 
I don't know if any of our ancestors ever worked in missions, but Uncle Jim is just returning from a mission trip to Peru. I thought this may make for an interesting blog post :) Here's what he had to tell Colleen:

Colleen Ruska July 11 at 1:15pm
Uncle jim sent me this message from Peru....Just wanted to share it with yall. :-)

Found a blindingly slow internet conection here at the "hotel", at this point the cold showers fel good... and we hae real beds and flush toils.. We arrived in Nueovo Papaplaya on Monday afternoon after an 8.5 hour boat ride down river from Yurimaguas ) google that!. Just arrived back to Yuirmaguas this afternoon. What an adventure.... I have lots to to share, the boat ride in was surreal - like a disney or universal studios ride... only it was no amusement park. OK, tell your mother and Aunties I´m at least on my way home we leave at midnight on Sunday... I spend most of Monday traveling expct to be in Bethlehem around 8 pm. I need to go put anti-itch cream all over my body now.... Gnite! still have no cellphone connection so I´ll be off-line till monday... bye

And I agree that it makes a great blog post.   Jim said Google Nueovo Papa Laya so I did.  Here's a link to click for some additional info.  Wow!  See you soon.  I wish I knew how to say that in Peruvian.

Another elusive Coffarelli has been found!  This is truly an example of serendipitous fortune.  As often happens, I was looking for someone else when this newspaper article kind of fell into my lap.

Elizabeth is the third daughter of John and Rose Coffarelli--your grandfather James' sister.  I wasn't certain what happened to her after her brother died in 1934--she was listed as a surviving sister at that time.   I believe she lived at home with her father after her mother Rose died.  Since her older sisters married and moved away, I picture that she acted as the female head of the house.  She held a variety of jobs including "Flower Maker" and factory operator.  

This obituary tells me she never married.  I do not know where "Christine" came from but I have an old note from your house (probably a funeral card) that listed her death date and name as C. Elizabeth.  I don't know if she was visiting her nephew (sister Louise's son) or if she lived there, but you will note she was buried in Catskill Jefferson Heights.  This obituary also tells me that her other sisters Louise, Margaret and Theresa (the nun) survived her along with her brother Joseph.  So I can continue to look for Margaret after 1947.  

Elizabeth died at a fairly young age, as did several of the other Coffarellis (her mother, her brothers James and Phillip; her sister Mary), but now she is found and properly noted in our family tree.  When such a discovery falls into my lap the way this did, I wear my sparkly Genealogy Gem pin so people ask me what the pin means.  Then I can tell the story, because not everyone reads this blog to keep up on such news!!!

We are looking forward to the big weekend!  See you all soon.

Happy 4th of July!

Happy 4th!  I hope you are all enjoying the holiday weekend.  For the first time in several weeks, I feel like I have some actual downtime--the way it is supposed to be in the summer.  James took a trip to Nashville for a few days in preparation for his work as a tour guide for school groups.  Ryan's fallen into a pattern of some farm work in the mornings and Binghamton Mets stadium work in the evenings.  Amy is recovering from getting bonked with a set of elk antlers that fell out of a cupboard at the zoo.  How else would you spend a holiday weekend??

Pardon this country girl but I'm still trying to get the full picture of this Fire Island expedition.  When I was a kid, we just got in the car to go to the beach....who knew there were people in the world who got on a boat to get to the beach?!?!?  It should be a grand celebration of new babies Dylan and Miles; new graduates Amy Ryan and Drew; newly retired Bobbie and James....I've likely left someone or something out and I certainly don't mean to.  It will be great to see the Coffarelli cousins again!  It promises to be an historic family event.
This is what one of the recent reunions looked like:

1994

Be there or be square!!