Italian Roots Discovered!
The brick wall has crumbled down!! For us Carra descendants, we have always known that our great grandparents came from Italy. I’ve spent years pouring over record indexes and records trying to find the exact location, as well as Grandpa Sam’s real name and the reason why Grandma Violetta had the surname of Tiberina and not her alleged father’s surname of Guaruaccia. I’m thrilled to say that I now have ALL these answers and discovered a shocking revelation in the process!
What document finally broke down the brick wall? I got my hands on my uncle Tony’s birth certificate from 1913! On the record, it lists his father’s name as Salvatore (Sam) Carra and under the place of his father’s birth it lists the specific location of “Motta Sant’Anastasia, Italy”.
Armed with this new information, I began searching in the Italian records for birth and marriage records in this specific location and found Salvatore’s birth record along with his marriage record to Violetta in Motta Sant’Anastasia, Catania, Sicily on September 30th, 1897. On the marriage record, it listed Violetta’s birth location of Regalbuto which is a town located in Enna, Sicily. She was 17 when she got married to Salvatore Carra and he was 23.
The following year on October 12, 1898, Violetta gave birth to their firstborn son, Carmelo. He lived only 2 weeks before passing away. She then gave birth to a baby girl named Caterina on May 8th, 1900. She lived only 5 months and passed away on the 7th of October, 1900. Three days later, on October 11th, 1900, Joseph Annabale was born in Catania and Violetta and Salvatore raised him as their own. Records show they had another son named Carmelo on January 25th, 1903. His death date is currently unknown, but he also died in as an infant or child. Then on Christmas day in 1903, she gave birth to son, Natale (Nick) Carra. She was pregnant with Pietro (Peter) when her husband Salvatore immigrated to the USA in 1907. She gave birth to Pietro in Catania on July 10th, 1908.
In 1910, Violetta joined Salvatore in Hibbing, Minnesota leaving behind her three sons with her mother Santa who had been widowed since 1900 when her husband Filippo Guarnaccia died in August of that year.
It has always been odd to me that on all the records, Violetta’s surname was listed as “Tiberina” or some other variation of the name. Then I realized her parents’ names weren’t listed on her birth record index or marriage record. I tracked down her original birth registration in Regalbuto, Enna, Sicily and though it was in Italian, I could tell there was a story there due to it looking different than all the others. I enlisted the assistance of a translator (THANK YOU Catryna Katero!) and got the answers I was looking for! Violetta was a founding! According to the account listed in her birth record (see photos below), she was born on January 28th,1881 in a house on Via Santo Rocco (house # unknown) to “unknown” parents. She was given the name “Violetta Tiberina” by the midwife who attended her birth. After her birth, she was taken by a woman named Carmela Gussio to the Provencial Foundling Hospital in Catania. She was delivered along with a letter, two diapers, a blanket and a sling.
Source: Nati Stato civile italiano > Regalbuto Conservato da: Archivio di Stato di Enna Comune/Località: Regalbuto Segnatura attuale: 3274
Violetta Tiberina’s Birth Record Transcription
–Birth Act Record Number 41—
Date of Registration: January 28, 1881
Time of Registration: 10:30 am
Municipality: Regalbuto
Province: Enna
Region: Sicily
Appearing in the Municipal Town Hall before myself, Dr. Alfonso Campione, Councilor delegated as per act dated November 9th, 1879; duly appointed Civil Status Officer for the Municipality of Regalbuto is the following declarant to present a register his birth.
Declarant: Vita Stancanelli
Declarant Age: 52 years
Declarant Profession: Midwife
Declarant Residence: Regalbuto
____________
Gender: Female
Newborn’s Name: Violetta Tiberina
Date of Birth: January 28, 1881
Time of Birth: 5:00 am
Birthplace: Regalbuto
Birthplace Address: Via Santo Rocco,
No house number provided
____________
Father’s Name: Unknown, not provided
Mother’s Name: Unknown, not provided
____________
The given name, ‘Violetta’, and the surname, ‘Tiberina’, were imposed on the newborn.
Present as witnesses for this declaration and for this Act:
Witness1: Giovanni Cardaci
Witness1 Age: 33 years
Witness1 Profession: Farmer
Witness1 Residence: Regalbuto
—and—
Witness2: Vito Stancanelli
Witness2 Age: 26 years
Witness2 Profession: Farmer
Witness2 Residence: Regalbuto
The aforementioned newborn was received at the Provincial Foundling Hospital in Catania.
Carmela Gussio was responsible for delivering this document for the Director of that establishment. Delivered together with the letter was the newborn and the following items: two diapers, a blanket, and a sling. There were no marks on the newborn’s body.
This Act has been read to all those present and signed by myself. The declarant and two witnesses were unable to sign as they claimed their illiteracy.
–Signature–
Officiant: Dr. Alfonso Campione
Officiant Title: Civil Status Officer Delegate
Since this discovery, I have learned that this was quite common during this time. The two main reasons were illegitimacy and extreme poverty. If a baby was born out of wedlock, it was considered too shameful and the babies were taken to foundling hospitals which had a reputation of being overcrowded with less-than-ideal living conditions. Click here to learn more about Foundlings.
At some point, Violetta was taken in by Santa and Filippo Guaruaccia and raised in Catania. There is no record of formal adoption as they would have been more of foster parents or guardians since she was considered a foundling. Only children with known parents had formal adoptions and even then it was extremely rare for the period.
These new discoveries shed some light on why Violetta may have taken in Joseph. In addition to losing multiple children, she was also likely born illegitimately and taken in by a family that wasn’t her own.
I’ve now been able to trace our Carra line back three more generations in Motta Sant’Anastasia, Catania, Sicily. While I have also traced both Santa and Filippo’s lines, I now know that they are not our blood ancestors.
I’m currently analyzing my father’s Paternal DNA matches to see if I can solve the mystery of Violetta’s true parentage. It may take me a long time to get there but let’s just say that I’m committed to the task!
Italian Roots Discovered! Read More »