On this day: October 27th

On this day, October 27, in...

... 1701, Vincenzo Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

Biography: Pietro Cesare Stefano Misseri

When Pietro Cesare Stefano Misseri was born on 18 October 1886, in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy, his father, Don Francesco Misseri, was 54 and his mother, Maria Grazia Lombardo, was 40.

 

Between 1900 and 1910, more than two million people immigrated to the United States from Italy. Most of these immigrants came from southern Italy and Sicily, drawn by economic opportunities in American cities and industries. Pietro Cesare Stefano Misseri was one of four direct ancestors to make that voyage across the ocean to look for opportunity in the New York area. He actually made the trip three times from Italy to the United States, which was not uncommon because many immigrants made money in the United States and brought it back with them to their families.

He married Marianna Giulia Doneta de Pinto on 15 May 1911, in Manhattan, New York City, New York, United States. They were the parents of 1 son and 1 daughter. He immigrated to Boston, Massachusetts, United States in 1907 and Ellis Island, New York City, New York, United States in 1909 and 1911 and lived in Yonkers, Westchester, New York, United States in 1930 and Mount Vernon, Westchester, New York, United States in 1940, where he lived out the rest of his years until 1958.

Pietro's given name probably came from his aunt Pietra Rosalia Misseri, who was his godmother, and his grandfather Vincenzo Misseri was his godfather. Pietro's middle name of Cesare was given to him because he had an uncle, Cesare Misseri, who was a priest in Carini, who baptized Pietro as an infant.

The last time he saw his parents and family in Italy was in December 1911. During the December trip, Pietro introduced his wife, Marianna, to his family (they got married seven months earlier), but it is suspected that he probably registered with the Italian government he lived in America and probably already served his military time years earlier. Because in September of 1911 through 1912, the Italians fought in the Italo-Turkish War; it was fought between Italy and the Ottoman Empire resulting in an Italian victory and the annexation of Libya and the Dodecanese Islands. Then a few years later, World War I happened (1914-18) with Italy entering the conflict in 1915 on the side of the Allied Powers, fighting a brutal alpine campaign, known as the Italian Front, primarily against Austria-Hungary. This time, Pietro might have been considered a military deserter since he did not return to Italy to fight as an Italian citizen during World War I. One possibility, if he did go back to Italy later in life, is that he could have been court martialed and potentially killed by a military firing squad for not participating during the Great War. Italians were very strict about their men doing the required military "duties."

Realizing that he could not go back to Carini, in 1925 Pietro made a declaration to the United States government that he wanted to become a United States citizen. Three short years later, on 19 Jul 1928, Pietro took the Oath of Allegiance and received his Certificate of Naturalization (#2870390).

Pietro was the last of seven children, and in a typical southern Italian family, that meant that he had to go out on his own to make something of himself. However, Pietro came from wealth and prestige in Carini. His father, Francesco Misseri, was well-connected in his hometown (Francesco had a brother, Salvatore Misseri, who was the mayor of Carini) and his father probably helped him set up business in the United States. One of Pietro's brothers was a lawyer (Vincenzo Salvatore Giuseppe Misseri), and another (Antonino Rosario Misseri) came to United States early on when Pietro was first in New York City. After helping his brother, Pietro, Antonino Rosario Misseri went back to Carini and eventually stayed in Carini and raised a family.

Pietro was a clothing designer and a manager of a dress shop in New York City. His wife, Marianna de Pinto, was a seamstress, so the two of them had that in common and it is suspected that Marianna's work would end up in the shop. 

Besides working in the garment industry, he was a lover of languages; it is said that he knew English, Spanish and maybe a few others, beside his native tongue of Italian. He loved the Italian language so much that he spent years teaching adults in the evenings in Mount Vernon. When he had any pleasure time for himself, Pietro was found in his room reading books or the daily newspaper.

Pietro and Marianna had two children, a boy, Francis Messeri (named after Pietro's father, Francesco), and a girl, Grace Messeri (named after his mother, Maria Grazia) - sticking with the Italian naming convention but americanizing both names for their children.

Pietro Cesare Stefano Misseri died on 4 November 1958, in Wingdale, Dover, Dutchess, New York, United States, at the age of 72, and was buried in Rockland, New York, United States.

On this day: September 30th

On this day, September 30, in...

... 1882, Antonino Misseri and Francesca Pizzo were married in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1936, Ferdinando Misseri and Marianna Fortorici were married in Brancaccio, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: August 28th

On this day, August 28, in...

... 1873, Salvatore Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1920, Emilio Misseri was born in Tunis, Tunis, Tunisia.

On this day: August 22nd

On this day, August 22, in...

... 1810, Ignazio Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1913, Antonino Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: July 26th

On this day, July 26, in...

... 1757, Rosario Cesare Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1780, Maria Anna Antonina Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1811, Francesco Vito Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1878, Ferdinando Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1888, Antonino Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: July 15th

On this day, July 15, in...

... 1883, Pietra Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1903, Antonino Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Altarello, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1903, Vincenzo Misseri was born in Grombalia, Nabeul, Tunisia.

... 1923, Conception Misseri was born in Saint-Henri, Tunis, Tunisia.

On this day: June 17th

On this day, June 17, in...

... 1784, Antonina Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1812, Rosa Provvidenza Rosalia Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1828, Rosa Misseri was born in Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1852, Antonino Misseri was born in Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1907, Vincenzo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: June 13th

On this day, June 13, in...

... 1851, Antonino Vincenzo Francesco Paolo Misseri and Giuseppa Buscami were married in Baida, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: June 8th

On this day, June 8, in...

... 1837, Marianna Misseri was born in Santa Ninfa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1872, Ninfa Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

On this day: June 2nd

On this day, June 2, in...

... 1751, Vito Vincenzo Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

In this month: June

There are people who I've researched over the years, and in the process, I haven't been able to find an exact birth, marriage or death date, for the person. But, I have narrowed it down to a particular month, so I am going to start tracking and adding a new blog entry called "On This Month," which I will post on the first of every month so those individuals won't be lost or forgotten just because they have missing details about their lives. 

In this month, of June in:

... 1728, Francesca Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1779, Antonino Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

What does a comedian, a housewife and an Italian Prison have in common?

The headline of this article sounds like it should be the opening line of a joke, but trust me it is not a joke, but more of a lesson on family history research!

While searching for Italian marriage records in the Palermo area with the surname, "Misseri," I ran across an interesting item that needed a little more attention. At face value, one could skim through the document and pick out the names and the dates to record the marriage information. The item in particular, a Marriage Proclamation, turns out to hold much more information if you take the time to dig deeper into the text. Yes, the handwriting is in Italian cursive, but with all the modern technology, the text can be transcribed and put through a translator. With that process, it is not 100% perfect - probably closer to 90%, but it is a whole lot better than just getting the basic facts from the document.

After taking the time to really look and read (with the help AI) the Marriage Proclamation of Francesco Misseri and Maria Vitellaro, the details bring out the complexity of life that our ancestors lived. The first major fact in the document is that Francesco Misseri was incarcerated in the Judicial Prison of Palermo (Carceri Giudiziarie di Palermo). Wow, that is a big piece of information. The next detail, which I have yet to understand how or why this was accepted or approved, but an official from the prison helped facilitate the Marriage Proclamation on behalf of Francesco Misseri and Maria Vitellaro while he was in jail. Again, wow, that is kind of crazy to think that even happened.

As the details of document unfold a little more, it is learned that the groom, Francesco Misseri was 29 years old and next, it lists his occupation. Here is another detail I didn't see coming, he is a comedian! Yes, I have to say that again, he's a 'funny-man' - yes, a comedian, someone who makes you laugh for a living. It goes on to say that Francesco Misseri's father, Antonino Misseri is in America working as a "trafficante" or better known in English as a dealer / merchant. Next, it lists Francesco's mother as Susanna di Gregorio, a housewife who lives in Palermo. Knowing the names of Francesco's parents is the backbone of genealogy, because I immediately recognize the names and realize that Antonino Misseri is the older brother of my great-grandfather, Pietro Misseri. Amazing to be able to link this cool discovery directly to my immediate family.

Continuing on in the document, I learn that the bride, Maria Vitellaro, was 22 years old, a housewife, resident in Palermo, and the daughter of Giuseppe Vitellaro, living in Palermo, and of the late Giovanna Annunziata, a former housewife, resident in Palermo for life.

As the document wraps up, the prison official states "the groom and bride have asked me to publish the banns for the marriage that the spouses intend to celebrate in this Municipality, with the Roman Catholic rite, and have declared to me that they have had residence in this Municipality for over a year, that they were born in this Municipality, of have no father nor adoptive parents, and that there is no impediment to their marriage due to kinship or any other impediment established by law."

All this was posted on the notice board of the Town Hall (Palermo) on the 26th of February 1933.

So, this is just an example of what you might discover if you take the time to read and examine the documents of the people you are researching. So many details are waiting to be discover that can help paint a picture of the people we add to our family trees.

The original records are housed at the Tribunale di Palermo. If you want to see the digitized copies of the record on FamilySearch, here are the links:

"Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy records," images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9YS-1ZM2?view=explore : May 30, 2026), image 430 of 485; Tribunale di Palermo.

Image Group Number: 101182172

"Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy records," images, FamilySearch (https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3Q9M-C9YS-1ZSY?view=explore : May 30, 2026), image 431 of 485; Tribunale di Palermo.

Image Group Number: 101182172

OTD: May 24th

On this day, May 24, in...

... 1741, Pietra Leonemluca Antonina Misseri was born in Corleone, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1763, Cesare Francesco Paolo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1845, Antonino Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1848, Giovanna Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1913, Graziano Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: April 12th

On this day, April 12 in...

... 1880, Antonino Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1910, Giulia Clorinda Maria Alessandra Misseri was born in Casolla, Caserta, Campania, Italy.

OTD: April 9th

On this day, April 9 in...

... 1590, Caterina Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1592, Angela Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1858, Rosa Misseri was born in Baida, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: April 7th

On this day, April 7 in...

... 1916, Maria Misseri was born in Djebel-Djelloul, Tunis, Tunisia.

OTD: March 29th

On this day, March 29 in...

... 1757, Antonina Crocifissa Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1757, Anna Maria Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1835, Antonino Misseri was born in Montelepre, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: February 24th

On this day, February 24, in...

... 1886, Rosa Misseri was a born in Pioppo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1888, Giuseppe Misseri was a born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1915, Vincenza Marie Misseri was a born in Le Bardo, Tunisia.

... 1915, Vincente Misseri was a born in Tunis, Tunis, Tunisia.

OTD: February 20th

On this day, February 20, in...

... 1838, Carlo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1838, Cesare Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1900, Antonino Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Uditore, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.