Looking for help on Genardo surname

[Juliablueeyes2006]

For what's it's worth, I searched Oliveri birth records from 1893 to 1896. Oliveri is a small sea-side comune next to Patti, and next to Marinello frazione in particular. (A GGGF of mine was born in Oliveri.) There were no babies born there with the surname Gelardi, or anything like it or Genardo, during those 4 years.

I also checked Patti births in 1893. There were 4 Gelardi children - 2 twins Rosaria and Carmela and a couple of Febronia girls. None of the parents had the names Vincenzo, Giacomo, Rosa, Rosaria, Maria, etc. I think the fathers had names such as Nicolo' and Salvatore and the mother of one was also Febronia. One of the Febronia girls was born out of the wedlock and the mother wasn't identified since she didn't show up to report the birth. (The birth index for 1893 is on sheet 1559.) I suppose it might be worth checking 1892 or other years as you might find the birth record of James' brother Joseph (Giuseppe).

I

I've been trying to go through the records that I can understand on familysearch, since I don't speak Italian and really know nothing about how the records work there. All I have on his birthplace is a note found in my late great-aunt's belongings.

"He was from a small farm near the sea, Marinello, west of Palermo and governed by the town of Patti."

I think she had either the direction wrong (because I found Patti EAST of Palermo on a map), or possibly the wrong city. I just feel so lost. He's the only relative I can't find much information on before he moved to the US.

[Juliablueeyes2006]

James is often an Americanization of Vincenzo.

The surname Genardo does not seen to exist in modern Italy though there is currently a single listing in the Italian telephone directory for Gennardo with two n's.

"De Nardo" is a real possibility however unlikely that may seem.

I did some searching on my great-grandmother. She was born in the US, but I wasn't able to find a marriage license for her, which I thought would help with my great-grandfather's name. I decided to just use Google, and got a link from ancestry. I think this is them, but I"m not 100%. I don't have a paid account, so this is all I could get.

Cook County, Illinois Marriage Indexes, 1912-1942

NAME: Josephine Schelfo
SPOUSE: Vincenzo Genardo
MARRIAGE: date


If this is my great-grandparents, then my great-grandfather's name was Vincenzo[. I feel more confident given that his middle name has often been listed as "Vincent" on family photos.



I did do some "creative searching" through ancestry. Because of the 1920 census, I knew that Josephine had to have gotten married after 1920. Because of the birth date of their first child, in 1923, I knew that that they had to have gotten married between 1920 and 1923. I set all of my search terms to "exact" on ancestry, and just changed the year each time. I determined that they got married in 1922. I don't know the month or day, but I'm pretty sure about 1922.

[carubia]

BTW, this is them in the 1940 census. I only saw the 1920 and 1930 census posted already, so I'm adding this.

Name: James Genardo
Age: 46
Estimated birth year: abt 1894
Gender: Male
Race: White
Birthplace: Italy
Marital Status: Married
Relation to Head of House: Head
Home in 1940: Dyer, Lake, Indiana
Map of Home in 1940:
Street: Hort Street
Farm: No
Inferred Residence in 1935: Dyer, Lake, Indiana
Residence in 1935: Same House
Citizenship: Having First Papers
Sheet Number: 2B
Number of Household in Order of Visitation: 36
Occupation: Laborer
House Owned or Rented: Owned
Value of Home or Monthly Rental if Rented: 3500
Attended School or College: No
Highest Grade Completed: None
Hours Worked Week Prior to Census: 40
Class of Worker: Wage or salary worker in private work
Weeks Worked in 1939: 32
Income: 1100
Income Other Sources: No
Neighbors:
Household Members:
Name Age
James Genardo 46
Josephine Genardo 37
James Genardo 16
Rose Genardo 15
Joseph Genardo 13
Mary Genardo 11
Nancy Ann Genardo 4

[carubia]

That marriage record on Ancestry that you found is for a marriage index in Cook County, IL (i.e., Chicago). The date was 29 Nov 1922. Serial number 0965825. You could order the marriage record - it might have the parents.

I've found a record of a Sep 1913 passenger manifest (grouped with border crossings between the US and Canada - it seems there was an entry at Detroit) for a Vincenzo Genuardi, born around 1892 in Mussomeli, going to Chicago to meet his brother Giuseppe. There's naturalization info above his name, too - maybe this can be compared to the index record of his naturalization.

http://interactive.ancestry.com/1075/m1 ... 4_231-0903

[carubia]

Well, here's the birth record of probably that Vincenzo Genuardi who immigrated in 1913. He was born in Mussomeli on 23 Feb 1892, to Sebastiano and Domenica. Not even close.

https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/T ... ,245521501

[carubia]

Someone (Robert Choate) has a tree on Ancestry for him and Josephine Schelfo that has his father as Sebastian and his mother as "Dameanna." Maybe the Vincenzo I found in Mussomeli is your ancestor. Or maybe this person on Ancestry has just combined records for 2 different people.

http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/31266105 ... 2406644303

Except that none of the source records that have been added to Vincenzo's profile indicate his parents. (There's the WWI draft card, SSDI, census records, and naturalization index that we've already found. Also 3 other trees. It's possible that that his parents' info comes from someone who just remembers hearing that from a relative.)

[Juliablueeyes2006]

Someone (Robert Choate) has a tree on Ancestry for him and Josephine Schelfo that has his father as Sebastian and his mother as "Dameanna." Maybe the Vincenzo I found in Mussomeli is your ancestor. Or maybe this person on Ancestry has just combined records for 2 different people.

http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/31266105 ... 2406644303

Except that none of the source records that have been added to Vincenzo's profile indicate his parents. (There's the WWI draft card, SSDI, census records, and naturalization index that we've already found. Also 3 other trees. It's possible that that his parents' info comes from someone who just remembers hearing that from a relative.)

Robert is my uncle, and I'm a contributor to his tree. The thing that doesn't make sense is that Sebastian would have had to fathered James at 11 years old. We're not sure about James' parents, I think what he has there is verbal history.

[carubia]

If the names Sebastian and "Dameanna" are known from verbal history, why would there be a year of birth attached to Sebastian, unless there was an actual family tradition that he was 11 when his son was born, which seems unlikely? There would have to be some other source for his age. Find out what your uncle's source for these names is. If those really were their (anglicized) names, the birth and passenger records that I found for Vincenzo Genuardi look very probable as being for your James Genardo.

However, I don't see an age for Sebastian in your uncle's tree. Where are you getting that bit about him being 11?

[Juliablueeyes2006]

I'm not 100% sure on Sebastian. But, Dameanna is my grandmother's middle name. She says she thinks it came from her grandmother (James' mother). On my uncle's tree, he has one source, the 1930 census, attached to Sebastian's profile. The record he has attached gives Sebastian a birth year of 1883, which would have made him 11 years old when my great-grandfather was born. I feel that this is highly unlikely, and probably the wrong record.


Name: Sebastian Genardo
Event Type: Census
Event Year: 1930
Event Place: Sandusky, Erie, Ohio, United States
Gender: Male
Age: 47
Birth Year (Estimated): 1883
Birthplace: Italy
Immigration Year: 1911

[Juliablueeyes2006]

That marriage record on Ancestry that you found is for a marriage index in Cook County, IL (i.e., Chicago). The date was 29 Nov 1922. Serial number 0965825. You could order the marriage record - it might have the parents.

I've found a record of a Sep 1913 passenger manifest (grouped with border crossings between the US and Canada - it seems there was an entry at Detroit) for a Vincenzo Genuardi, born around 1892 in Mussomeli, going to Chicago to meet his brother Giuseppe. There's naturalization info above his name, too - maybe this can be compared to the index record of his naturalization.

http://interactive.ancestry.com/1075/m1 ... 4_231-0903

I'm unsure about this. Everyone in my family tells me that the boat he was on from Palermo arrived in Louisiana. I did order his naturalization record, so hopefully, I'll get entry information that way.

[carubia]

So it may be that the census record for Sebastian Genardo is for a different person. But that's not what made your uncle think that James Genardo's father was named Sebastian, right?

I note that the Sebastiano Genuardi that was the father of the Vincenzo born in 1892, was 50 years old at the time of the birth.

Do you know anything about how long James and Josephine lived in Chicago?

[adelfio]

I called Cook county clerk they have the marriage record
NAME: Josephine Schelfo
SPOUSE: Vincenzo Genardo
MARRIAGE: date 29 Nov 1922.
Serial number 965825

PG LINK TO COOK COUNTY CLERK
http://www.cookcountyclerk.com/vitalrec ... fault.aspx

Marty

[adelfio]

I possible believe your family is from Mussomeli and their fathers name is Salvatore Genuardi on this manifest for Giuseppe Genuardi line #20 with his wife Maria Mancino leaving his father Salvatore in Mussomeli
PG #1 CLICK TO ENLARGE

NYT715_2166-0722.jpg

PG#2 line #20 meeting his brother law Salvatore Schifano/ Schelfo

NYT715_2166-0723.jpg

Marty

[carubia]

I still think that if Vincenzo really was born in Mussomeli then it is more likely that his father's name was Sebastiano. But let's see what's on the marriage and naturalization records.

[Juliablueeyes2006]

So it may be that the census record for Sebastian Genardo is for a different person. But that's not what made your uncle think that James Genardo's father was named Sebastian, right?

I note that the Sebastiano Genuardi that was the father of the Vincenzo born in 1892, was 50 years old at the time of the birth.

Do you know anything about how long James and Josephine lived in Chicago?

I don't think anyone knows anything about James' father for sure. James and Josephine lived most of their lives in Dyer, Indiana. I'm not sure when they moved, or if they ever actually lived in Chicago. My grandmother and her sisters worked at a hotel restaurant in Chicago when they were in their teens, so I know the family did a lot of work there.