SOUTHERN ITALIAN GENEALOGY PAGE
My maternal grandparents
originated from the
comune di Palo del Colle in the province of Bari, which is located in the region known as
Puglia, in Italy. Their names were Giuseppe Saccente and
Maria Sblendorio.
Giuseppe was born to Giovanni Saccente and Rosa Conte on Feb19,1887 .Grandma Maria was born to Vito Sblendorio and Maria Minerva on Feb.,12 ,1897. Grandpa Giuseppe came to the US in 1908 and married Cecelia
Tullo on the 4th of August 1910.They had one son, Giovanni , born July 8,1911. Cecelia Tullo died shortly thereafter. About
1913 Giuseppe and Maria were married. They went on to have eight children,
Vito (Willy), Gaetano (Tommy), Vincenzo (Jimmy), Domenico, (died at age
two), Rose, Maria (my mother), Dominic, and Joey.
In Italian the word "saccente" means know-it-all, but in the middle
ages, according to John Fucilla in the book "OUR ITALIAN
SURNAMES" ,
the name meant 'wise'. Sblendorio means 'bright and shining'. The name
Conte, is the Italian word for Count, as in an aristocratic title. People
named Conte acquired the surname by working for the Count.
!!NEW!! Research on the new Ellisislandrecords.org reveals that
Giuseppe
made the trip at least 4 times.
ARRIVALS:
Nov 17,1902...Age15...Ship:Calabria...From:Naples
Sept 23,1908...Age20...Ship:Koenig Albert...From:Naples
Dec 19,1913...Age26...Ship:America...From:Naples
Nov19,1914...Age26...Ship:Taormina...From:Naples
In 1908 Giuseppe's destination was listed as 156 E. 2nd St NY, NY, his
brother Vincenzo's house. In 1913 the address had changed to 305 Atlantic
Ave. Brooklyn, NY. In 1914 the address was 662 Fulton St. ,Brooklyn, NY.
I have not been able to find any record of grandma Maria on the Ellis
Island site.
My father's grandparents
came from the comune di
Sassano , in the province of Salerno, which is in the region of Campania.
Records from Ellis Island reveal that they
arrived on the 26th of June 1893.The ship is listed as the Werra out of the port of Genoa.
My grandmother was born in Brooklyn NY, and my grandfather was born in
Sassano.
My grandfather was named Ferdinando Stavola,
born14 Nov.1900,son of Domenico Stavola
and Maria Arnone. My grandmother was named
Mary M. Latella, born 27Feb.1903.Her parents were John
Latella and Rose Trotta.
The first
known mention of the surname Stavola, that I am aware of is from 1592.The
names were Chairenza di Stavola and Stazio de Stavola. There was also a
mayor of Sassano in 1696 named Antonio di Stavola.
Ottavio D'Onza from Sassano informed me that there
are four 4 different Stavola families branches living there. Each family grouping goes by a
nickname.
Her family nickname means
"breakdoor" in Italian. There is also the "Patanieddo"
Stavola family , meaning little potatoes , an allusion to their short stature.
The two remaining Stavola families are called
"Ciriello", and "Cefalo', meanings unknown .
The name "Stavola", in Italian ,may mean something
like sled . Tavola in Italian is the word for table.
On a recent internet search ,I have come across
"stavola" used
in the context of these definitions. A search through online dictionaries turned up nothing
.
however. The search goes
on...
sassano27@netscape.net
Giuseppe and Maria
Saccente
Maria
Minerva mother of
Maria Saccente
SS Konig Albert 1899 North German Lloyd courtesy of the Peabody Museum, Salem
An Ancient Fountain In Sassano
"GENETIC PARK"
GO HERE to read an article on a genetic research project being conducted in
the Cilento area .
PARKINSONS DISEASE
GO HERE for an article on a genetic link found
among the population of a town in the Salerno Region