On this day: June 11th

On this day, June 11, in...

... 1749, Antonina Gaetana Maria Misseri was born in Corleone, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1824, Vito Lorenzo Salvatore Francesco Paolo Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Molo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1834, Nunzia Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1883, Maria Antonina Misseri was born in Montelepre, 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 is 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, is 22 years old, a housewife, resident in Palermo, and the daughter of Giuseppe, now 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 19th

On this day, May 19, in...

... 1717, Giuseppe Rocco Vincenzo Lo Misseri was born Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1879, Francesco Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: May 13th

On this day, May 13 in...

... 1888, Francesco Misseri died in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1912, Pietra Rosalia Misseri died in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: May 5th

On this day, May 5 in...

... 1882, Santa Misseri was born in 1882, Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1956, Enrico Lo Jacono and Rosalia Misseri were married in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1836, Francesca Misseri died in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1903, Francesco Misseri died in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1925, Walter George Willson died in West Ham, London, England.

... 2005, Bernardo Misseri died in Brooklyn, Kings County, New York, United States.

OTD: May 4th

On this day, May 4 in...

... 1903, Francesco Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: April 18th

On this day, April 18 in...

... 1879, Giuseppe Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1904, Salvatore Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Uditore, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: April 15th

On this day, April 15 in...

... 1832, Don Francesco Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1896, Giovanni Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Uditore, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1922, Vincenza Margarita Misseri was born in Saint-Henri, Tunis, Tunisia.

OTD: April 14th

On this day, April 14 in...

... 1876, Rosa Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1893, Francesca Paola Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Uditore, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: April 8th

On this day, April 8 in...

... 1824, Giuseppe Misseri born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1899, Giovanna Misseri born in Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: March 27th

On this day, March 27 in...

... 1644, Gerolama Vincenza Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: March 9th

On this day, March 9, in...

... 1745, Gioachino Maria Bernardo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1821, Giovanni Vincenzo Pietro Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Molo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

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

OTD: March 1st

On this day, March 1, in...

... 1596, Benedetto Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1813, Ignazio Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1927, Giuseppe Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

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.

OTD: January 26th

On this day, January 26, in...

... 1846, Francesco Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

A Truck Driver, the 'Black Hand' and a Murder in Cleveland, Ohio (update) YouTube: Epic Genealogy video

 Here is a small follow-up regarding the article about Francesco Misseri (aka Frank Messeri), A Truck Driver, the 'Black Hand' and a Murder in Cleveland, Ohio. Marc McDonald, from the Epic Genealogy YouTube channel, made a video about the story.

Here is the direct link to the video:

A Truck Driver, the 'Black Hand' and a Murder in Cleveland, Ohio - YouTube Video

OTD: January 11th

On this day, January 11, in...

... 1819, Pietra Rosalia Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1872, Oreste Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: January 10th

On this day, January 10, in...

... 1842, Rosalia Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1875, Francesco Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1910, Elvira Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

OTD: January 1st

Happy New Year!

I am trying something new this year and maybe it will turn out to be a way of connecting with distant cousins. I am going to try to add a new post each day that I will call "On this day..." and it will include people that were born, married or died on that specific date. So, without further ado, here is the first entry.

On this day, January 1, in...

... 1663, Giacomo Lo Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1880, Giuseppa Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Zisa, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1892, Francesco Misseri was born in the Palermo area of Uditore, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1892, Cesare Misseri was born in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

... 1895, Pietro Misseri was born in Palermo, Palermo, Sicily, Italy.

A Truck Driver, the 'Black Hand' and a Murder in Cleveland, Ohio

This is a rather dark story about an immigrant who was trying his best to better himself and his family, but he ended up as a homicide victim killed by the 'Black Hand' in Cleveland, Ohio.

The year, 1920. The place, Cleveland. The person, Francesco Misseri / Messeri (aka Frank Massario or Frank Messario, or even Frank Messaria). (Throughout the rest of this article, Francesco's Americanized name, Frank, will be used, which was the name he went by during his life in Ohio).

Just to give you a little background history, for those that don't know, the ‘Black Hand’ was an Italian criminal group that usually committed extortion crimes, demanding money in exchange for safety from bodily harm or personal property. To make matters worse, the 'Black Hand' usually perpetrated their crimes against other Italians.

Now back to our story. Born on 19 May 1879 (his parents were Cesare Misseri and Domenica di Lisi) in Carini, Italy, Frank immigrated to the United States seeking a different but hopefully a better life for himself, like so many other Italians. The actual year when Frank came to the United States is unknown. (Several family members have searched high and low for the ship manifest document showing when he arrived in the United States.) Frank's wife, Vincenza (known as Jennie or Jeannie in the U.S.) Giovanna Catalano, and their young son, Cesare (known as Jerry in the U.S.), immigrated to Cleveland in February 1915. Jennie was born on 14 Nov 1875 in Montelepre, Palermo, Sicily, Italy & Jerry was born on 18 Jun 1907 in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy. A family photo of Frank and his son, (along with a woman) was taken in Cleveland in late 1915 or 1916 so that confirms the whole family was in Cleveland around that time.

Frank was a truck driver, making deliveries in and around the Cleveland area. A descendent of Frank says he worked delivering products to and from the West Side Market just west of downtown Cleveland. Frank owned his own truck, so he was making his own destiny in the new world he immigrated to just a few years earlier. Assuming Frank knew very little English, he was learning the new language "on the job" and one of the first order of things he needed to learn were the street names and addresses so he could make his deliveries. His cargo were fruits and vegetables, along with meats and cheeses all picked up from the West Side Market from the various vendors.

Frank must have been making a name for himself because he obviously caught the attention of some 'not-so-good' individuals because on his 41st birthday, on 19 May 1920, he was shot when he was passing through the intersection of East 9th Street and Decatur Court S.E. (Webster Avenue S.E. and Decatur Court S.E. were in the area just south of Progressive Field [home of the Cleveland Guardians baseball team], where I-90 was built with entrance and exit ramps to access Ontario and East 9th Streets from I-90).

Sanborn Map of Cleveland, Ohio

At least two men jumped out and fired pistols hitting Frank in shoulder, arm and ankle (a later articles says he was hit in the head too). Frank spent time recovering at Huron Road Hospital from his injuries. This was a pretty serious event and the Cleveland Police Department got involved, but when questioned about the shooting, Frank was very reluctant naming the individuals who shot him. It's not clear whether the two people were actually trying to kill him or if the event was to scare him so that they could extort money (or extra money) from him. Obviously, there was something going on with the men before the shooting and if seems like Frank definitely knew who the individuals who injured him during the assault. Looking back on all the events that unfolded in the months to come, maybe Frank should have named the individuals that first shot and wounded him on his birthday.

May 20, 1920, page 21 - The Cleveland Press at Newspapers.com

The following article is from the Cleveland Hungarian newspaper, America, that re-ran the article that first appeared in The Cleveland Press on May 20, 1920 (see above). Unfortunately, the article in at the very bottom of the left column and continues to the top of the right column. The second article is from a Cleveland Czech newspaper, called SveÌŒt (meaning the "World") from 28 July 1920 after the murder. The Czechs and Hungarians were probably a little concerned for their safety, since they were a minority like the Italians in Cleveland.

May 21, 1920, page 2 - America at Newspapers.com

Jul 28, 1920, page 4 - SveÌŒt = World at Newspapers.com™

After looking at and reading the different newspaper articles surrounding Frank's killing, what struck a chord was the type of 'journalism' that was in place during the 1920s. As it has been more than a hundred years after the news coverage of the murder, historians have labeled the style of newspaper reporting during that time period as "1920's Jazz Journalism." During the 1920s, journalism changed because The Great War had ended and things weren't so sober anymore across the world. The newspapers started to push the limits of their reporting and spiced their stories up by making the news gossipier and more sensational (much like social media of today). Some of the key characteristics of the 1920's Jazz Journalism were sensationalism (murder stories to attract attention, like "BLACK HAND BUSY"), tabloid format (small, easy-to-quickly read sized stories with big photos and huge headlines for newsstand sales), entertainment type of stories (celebrities, sports, and crime replaced more serious news stories) and provocative language (headlines were written to make a quick impact and entice the reader, like the article below "BLACK HAND KILLS MAN IN SECOND TRIAL"). When re-reading the news articles, the stories about Frank's death definitely fit right into journalism of the time period.

About two months after the initial attack on 19 May 1920. Frank appears in the Cleveland newspapers again, but this time, the story turns even darker. The news story reports Frank (they really butchered his last in the newspaper as "Messario," "Massario," or "Messaria" instead of "Messeri") has been murdered by four individuals just outside his home at 1245 Webster Avenue in Cleveland on 26 July 1920 just after 8 o'clock in the evening.

Sanborn Map of Cleveland, Ohio

The four assailants chased Frank from in front of his home through the neighborhood firing 30 shots at him while killing him in front of his wife. Jennie witnessed the last four rounds being fired from one of the men as her husband fell to the ground and died. Neither Frank nor Jennie were armed during the shooting, and it was definitely a planned hit. One can only image how traumatic it must have been for Frank's wife to witness the entire event that unfolded on that summer evening. The Cleveland police immediately suspected the 'Black Hand' was the cause of Frank's death

The following articles are a collection from different newspaper across the region documenting the murder. The articles were researched from the Newspapers.com website.

Jul 27, 1920, page 1 - The Plain Dealer at Newspapers.com™

Jul 27, 1920, page 1 - The Cleveland Press at Newspapers.com™

Jul 27, 1920, page 7 - The Cleveland Press at Newspapers.com™

In the article about his death, Frank mentions that he knew who the assailants were in the first shooting. The following newspaper articles lays out the full story of Frank telling his only child, Jerry, who the men were that shot at him the first time. Frank sounds like he was scared for his life but was extremely smart by having his son write down the names of the 'Black Hand' members. Research has shown Frank could not read or write in English, so, he entrusted his English schooled 13-year-old son to take care of business in case something more sinister happened to him. The slip of paper with the names of assailants stayed safe and were tucked behind the family's crucifix on the wall in the living room. When the Cleveland Police came to investigate the killing, the names were given to the police, and the individuals were questioned about Frank's murder. The police were quoted in one newspaper article that "it was an open and shut case." 

Jul 28, 1920, page 6 - The Winchester Sun at Newspapers.com™

Jul 27, 1920, page 1 - The Piqua Daily Call at Newspapers.com™

Jul 27, 1920, page 2 - The Marion Star at Newspapers.com™

Once again, this story about 'Black Hand' murder in Cleveland gets uglier. The killers were never arrested for Frank Messeri's death, and the case was never solved by the Cleveland Police Department. While researching this story, a public records request was submitted to through the official channel of the City of Cleveland to see what police records and files they had since the case was never solved. After a few weeks of waiting on 29 Oct 2025, the official response from the 'Cleveland Public Records Center' was "The City has reviewed its files and has determined there are no records that are responsive to your request."

Jul 28, 1920, page 1 - The Plain Dealer at Newspapers.com™

The story surrounding Frank's death continued to find space in newspapers around Ohio about after two week or so after the first reports appeared in Cleveland. The articles were much less detailed, but they continued to use the word "vengeance" as part of the story, again, it was part of the 1920's Jazz Journalism to shock the readers!

Aug 05, 1920, page 6 - Tri-State Alliance at Newspapers.com™ 

About a year after the killing of Frank, he was included in an article about the unsolved murders from 1920 and the first half of 1921 in Cleveland. This story re-enforces that the crime was never solved by the Cleveland Police department, which is so surprising given the fact that the police had all four names of the assailants and multiple witnesses, including Frank's wife who saw everything that happened on that fateful night. It's great that this time the newspaper finally got the spelling of his name correct. Frank is mentioned about halfway down in the article.

Mar 04, 1921, page 4 - The Cleveland Press at Newspapers.com

So, the story of Frank Messeri seems to end after the four individuals were released and not charged with his murder, but like so many tragic stories, that 13-year-old son, Jerry, who had to write down the names of his father's killers, went on and had a productive life in the Cleveland area. Jerry had children of his own and those children had more kids. Frank's son, who had to grow up quickly after the death of his father, worked in Cleveland at the 'Cleveland Tank Plant' during World War II. The 'Cleveland Tank Plant' was a massive war production facility making B-29 bomber parts for the Allied Forces and then, after World War II, the factory facility shifted gears and made M41 Walker Bulldog tanks for the Korean War. Jerry mostly liked work on the assembly line, because after the war, he went on and worked at a General Motors factory in Cleveland. According to the 1950 U.S. Census, Jerry was an arc welder. Each set of offspring doing a little better than their parents and each generation living the 'America Dream' that all started with a man born just outside of Palermo, Sicily, in the small town of Carini. Despite Frank Messeri being gunned down outside his home by the ‘Black Hand’ at the age of 41, his hard work paid off for generations to come.

NOTE: Much thanks need to be given to Joanne Messeri, for originally sharing this story with me and being the fact checker / gatekeeper of details regarding this family story. Joanne shared some great insight when reviewing the article. Thank you for everything!