Misseri's in Carini, Palermo, Sicily, Italy

Since I am currently spending the majority of my research time working with the records from Southern Italy (i.e.: the towns of Carini in Sicily and Modugno / Grumo Appula in Puglia), I thought would share a bit about the Misseri's who live in and around Carini. There are two family groups of Misseri's on the island of Sicily. One group comes from the province of Siracusa on the southeastern part of the island of Sicily, while the other population of Misseri's is in the town of Carini.

The Misseri family line that I focus on is from Carini, a town just outside of Palermo, Sicily. In the 1400's through the mid 1700s, the surname was actually Lo Misseri. Then, little by little, the "Lo" was dropped when recording the births and deaths of individuals. I've seen Lo Misseri used as late as 1774 on a death record for Vincenzo Lo Misseri (about 1770 - 1 Dec 1774).

Other interesting facts about the Misseri's of Carini:

• Sacerdote / Priest Cesare Misseri (15 Dec 1752 - 10 Sep 1828)
• Sacerdote / Priest Lorenzo Salvatore Misseri (12 Oct 1777 - 5 Jan 1834)
• Sacerdote / Priest Cesare Misseri (25 Sep 1821 - 4 Apr 1904)
• Don Salvatore Misseri (17 Oct 1829 - 9 Jan 1903) was the mayor of Carini for 5 years, from 1861-1865. His wife was Dona Anna Lo Geloso (22 Jan 1835 - 21 Jan 1910)
• Don Francesco Misseri (14 Apr 1832 - Abt 1930) was an Avvocato / Lawyer in town for many years. I'm pretty sure he died in 1930 because there is a "Francesco Misseri" that is listed in the 1930 Death Index. But the problem is, there are dozens and dozens of pages that did not get uploaded and are missing on the Antenati website. I have written a letter to Carini asking for a copy of the death record for the Francesco Misseri that died in 1930, but I have never received any information back to confirm my hunch.
• There are plenty of contadinos / farmers and yet, on the other side of the spectrum, there are many Misseris who were landowners.

There is a street in the old part of Carini, that is near the main piazza and church, named "via Antonino Misseri" (see the images at the top of the page). I've seen records that show people living at a particular address on via Misseri as early as 1802. It is hard to believe that the street has been around for more than 200 years. Someday, I hope to be able to figure out which Antonino Misseri the street was named after. If I do, I'll be sure to update this article with the new and additional information.

Little by little, a few various branches splinter off and moved beyond Carini. Obviously, the place with the largest number of Misseri's outside of Carini is the city of Palermo. But I have traced them in Corleone, Montelepre, Monreale, and Villabate - all in Palermo province. And of course, Misseri's have travelled beyond Italy to France, Tunisia, and the United States, just to name a few other places.

I am sure I will find other details about the Misseri's of Carini, and when I do, I'll be sure to add the details here.