Walking in the Footsteps of Italian Ancestors: Return to Potenza

Perhaps you noticed that I was offline for about a month. It was for good reason. I was on vacation! 

Unfortunately, Family Sleuther was on hiatus during this time. 

Although I wasn't blogging family history, I was certainly living it.

In 2015, I traveled for the first time to Potenza, Italy - the ancestral home town of my second great-grandparents Giuseppe and Maria (La Rocca) Ruoti and generations before them. Unfortunately, during that trip, I only had a few quick hours to visit due to tight train schedules. I vowed that I would return and spend the night to get a better sense for the town.

Potenza street scene. Photo by author.

I took a train south from Rome to Salerno, and then a bus through hills that grew to mountains before arriving in Potenza. The old town is perched atop a large hill and is surrounded by beautiful valleys and hills (so reminiscent of Colorado, where the Ruotis settled after they immigrated to the United States).

To help document the visit, I made a short film. Roll the footage!

Where My Ancestors Walked

"We travel, some of us forever, to seek other states, other lives, other souls." - Anaïs Nin

Sometime between 1880 and 1883, a young farmer left his Italian hometown of Potenza. Giuseppe Ruoti joined the thousands of Italians emigrating to the United States. He left behind everything he knew and everyone. He spoke no English and had little money to his name.  

In February 1890, Maria Filomena La Rocca arrived at New York City's Castle Garden. Just shy of her 15th birthday, Maria also left behind her family and Potenza's familiarity. She spoke no English, and could not read or write.

Less than a month later, Maria was in Denver and married to Giuseppe. Over the course of their nearly 30-year marriage, my 2nd great-grandparents had eleven children and built a new life for themselves in America.

Where My Ancestors Walked

After discovering that Maria and Giuseppe were from Potenza, I added it to the itinerary for my already-planned Italian vacation. I had to see their hometown. I wanted to walk in my ancestors' steps.

Potenza is the capital city of the comune (province) of Potenza and the larger Basilicata region in the south of Italy. The town's historic roots are situated on a hilltop that is now surrounded by sprawling growth below. Nestled in the Apennine Mountains, the air is crisp and the horizon peppered with green peaks and hills.

As my train from Naples snaked its way through the Apennines, I was struck by the rugged mountain scenery and lush valleys. Colorado must have reminded Giuseppe and Maria of their homeland. What a comfort it must have been.

As the train pulled into Potenza Centrale station, I was able to see the magnitude of growth. The town was now a full-fledged city with dozens of apartment buildings clustered at the base of the hill. My short visit was focused on the historic core, so I got into a taxi. 

The driver was a woman who was excited to have an American in her car. As she sped up the winding hilltop road, she chatted happily - in Italian. It was clear to me that Potenza was off the tourist beaten path and English was not as prevalent. 

Take Me To Church

The car made sharp turns down narrow alleyways that were built, I imagined, before the invention of the automobile. We stopped outside of a squat stone church. My driver jumped out of the car and opened my door. She eagerly handed me her business card. "Donna Taxi" was her company's name (literally Woman Taxi). 

As she pulled away, I walked up to the church. A light drizzle had started. 

In May 1864, Giuseppe was baptized inside Chiesa di San Michele. The Normanesque building's origins date to the 12th century. It's very likely this building hosted baptisms, marriages, and funerals for generations of my Italian ancestors.

Chiesa di San Michele - Potenza, Italy

Stepping inside, I passed an elderly gentleman pulling on his raincoat. He eyed me and nodded his head. The dark interior of the church was cut by light pouring in through a narrow window above the altar. I sat in a pew and eyed the church.

Walking up to the altar, I placed a coin in the donation box and lit a candle. A statue of Saint Michael the Archangel kept a close eye on me with his sword raised ominously overhead. 

Chiesa di San Michele altar - Potenza, Italy

I found a small baptismal font. Was this font used for Giuseppe's baptism over 150 years ago? Quite possibly. I was struck by the church's simplicity. There were no ornate Baroque garnishes in the church. The stone and lighting made it feel cozy as though I were at home.

Chiesa di San Michele baptismal font

A side aisle had a bulletin board with flyers advertising upcoming church events. I tacked a photo of Giuseppe and Maria to the board. Like a good genealogist, I wrote on the back of the picture, providing their names, that they were born in Potenza, and my name and contact information. I also noted that they lived and died in Denver, which, I later learned, is a Sister City with Potenza. Perhaps I'll hear from a distant cousin. 

Giuseppe and Maria (La Rocca) Ruoti

It's difficult to describe what it's like to walk the streets where your ancestors lived. Perhaps more profound is the awe-inspiring experience of standing inside a sacred place where the most intimate moments of their lives were celebrated. 

Maria left 125 years ago and joined Giuseppe in search of a new state and opportunities. I returned seeking a greater understanding of them and the souls that came before. Back outside the church, the drizzle had stopped and the sun's rays began piercing the clouds. It certainly didn't feel like I was alone on this journey. 

Italian Family History Road Trip Countdown

The clock is counting down. This time next week I'll be in Italy. 

No, I haven't started to pack. I'm too busy with my last-minute Italian genealogy research.

Yes, there will be plenty of time for Mediterranean beaches, Tuscan hill towns, and countless museums to past civilizations. But there will also be a bit of family history.

I cannot wait! Well, I sort of can. You see, I've been fighting a race against the clock to identify key genealogical information that will make the family history portion of the trip more rewarding.

Who's Who?

Giuseppe and Maria (La Rocca) Ruoti - born in Potenza, Italy

My great-grandmother's parents, Giuseppe and Maria (La Rocca) Ruoti, were both born in the comune of Potenza in southern Italy. 

Could I locate their birth records and identify the church where they were baptized? 

What about their parents? Could I identify the church in which my 3rd great-grandparents were married?

How cool would it be to step foot in the same church where my family history was made?

My challenge: would the documents exist to help me identify these locations? With less than a week before I depart, would I be able to gain access to these materials?

Sleuthing

I turned to FamilySearch.org, my go-to database for Italian records. Happily, they had Civil Registrations online for births, marriages, and deaths covering the years 1866-1910. 

Those records yielded Maria La Rocca's birth record (born in 1875) and death records for both of her parents. Unfortunately, this set of civil registrations didn't mention baptism or funeral locations. There were no clues to which churches hosted these solemn events, and there was no birth record in this database for Giueseppe who was born in 1864.

Another FamilySearch database caught my eye. Potenza Civil Registrations from the State Archives covering the years 1697-1923. Did you say 17th century records? Yes, please!

I clicked on the link and watched as the page loaded my worst nightmare. The clock continued to tick.

My heart sank. I'd come to the end of the research road within the comfort of my home. I would have to venture out (or, I suspect, convert to Mormonism). The hyperlink pointed me to the family history center in Washington, DC: the Daughters of the American Revolution.

I cleared my Saturday schedule to make way for hours of Italian genealogy research (does DAR allow Chianti in the research room, I wondered?). 

When I arrived at their computer labs, I was quickly disappointed to discover that their logins do not satisfy the family history center criteria necessary to gain access to Potenza's records. My heart sank, again. 

Access to the records remained just out of reach. The records were taunting me!

Where There's A Will...

Back at home, as I nursed my disappointment, it occurred to me that perhaps the records were digitized and available to Italians on an Italian website. 

A press release announcing FamilySearch's efforts to digitize millions of Italian records pointed me to the website for Italy's National Archives. I was elated (and relieved). Records could be viewed online for free. Now. At home. Grazie mille!

Back in full research mode, I started trawling through the records - glorious in all of their black and white imagery. Within an hour, I located the birth and baptism record for Giuseppe Ruoti. 

My Italian family history road trip now has a site of interest. Giuseppe was baptized in Potenza's historic chiesa San Michele, which dates back to the 12th century.

Now I'm ready for Italy. The clock can continue its countdown. Ciao!

Probate Shines Light on Family History

Ancestry.com's recent release of millions of U.S. probate records has been a boon for my family history research.

As I prepare for an upcoming trip to Italy, I wondered what the records could tell me about my Italian ancestors who settled in Colorado. I'm eager to learn as much as I can about my 2nd great-grandparents Giuseppe and Maria Rosina (La Rocca) Ruoti.

I plan to spend an afternoon wandering the streets of their hometown of Potenza. Perhaps, if I can learn the locations, I'll even be able to step inside the churches where they were baptized and prayed before sailing for America in the late 19th century.

Trawling through the records, I found the probate file for Joseph Ruota who died in Denver on August 16, 1918.

Joseph's probate record shines a light on his financial status in America, but also illustrates the challenges his widow was left to confront.

What's In A Name?
An initial challenge I frequently run into when researching my Italian ancestors who emigrated to America is pinpointing their names. Due to Anglicization, they can be difficult to identify.

Giuseppe's probate record, for example, highlights his common name discrepancies. Parts of the probate package list his surname as Ruota, but elsewhere it's spelled as Ruote or Route. Route is the iteration that was engraved on his headstone. All are different from the Italian Ruoti with which he was born, but you can certainly see the phonetic resemblance.

Joseph and Rosa Route grave (photo by author)

A Family Copes With Death
Aside from affirming the many spelling iterations of his surname, Joseph's probate record confirms his death date and that he was born in Italy. It also tells me that he was a man of modest means.

At the time of his death, we learn that he had little to no cash. In fact, the records state simply that he had no estate. His net worth was locked up entirely in his home, which was valued at $2,500. Accounting for inflation, that's equivalent to approximately $42,000 in 2015.

His widow, Maria Rosa Filomena (La Rocca) Route or Rosina, petitioned the court to sell the home. She desperately needed the money, so she could have financial means to provide for herself and her remaining dependents. It's heartbreaking to imagine the anguish she may have felt at the loss of her companion while also wondering how she would provide for herself and children.

Illiteracy
With a couple check marks, the 1920 census tells me that Rosina was unable to read or write. Joseph's 1918 probate record demonstrates her illiteracy in a more moving fashion. Newly widowed, Rosina had to make a mark where her signature was required on legal documents. It's one thing to see that in a census, but an entirely different experience to see the reality of it in her own hand.

Maria Rosina (La Rocca) Route makes her mark

In the 1910 census, Joseph was listed as able to read and write. He must have taken the responsibility of signing the family's legal documents. Now, after his death, all of that responsibility was on Rosina's shoulders. Her inability to write was in the public domain. What was that experience like for her?

A Family's Legacy
Census records are fantastic at helping to piece together families. Of course, it can be difficult once children begin moving away or daughters marry and assume new surnames. The probate record made that effort much easier.

In outlining each of his heirs, Joseph's probate record provides their addresses and married names for his daughters. As I continue to search for Ruoti, Ruota, Ruote, or Route cousins, this information provides helpful leads.

Joseph Route's heirs

Joseph's newly digitized probate record has brought his family back to light and, in a sense, to life. It's another example of the value these records hold for family historians, and reinforces the ever-expanding reach of genealogy as more archives open to digitization.