Ricigliano Genealogy Donations Accepted At Casa Italia

Posted on June 7, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

I have been involved with research with several clients for two years now on the residents of Ricigliano, Italy and those who immigrated to Chicago.  If you would like to donate copies of photographs, documents, recipes, stories, and other materials to the Ricigliano Collection at Casa Italia in Stone Park, IL, please visit the Casa Italia blog to download a donation form and learn more on how to do this. We appreciate any materials you have to donate to the collection.

© 2013, Jennifer Holik – Generations

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Saving Italy Program

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

Last night I attended a program at the Pritzker Military Library. The program was called “Saving Italy” based on the title of Robert Edsel’s newest book, about the U.S. Army Monuments Men and Women who served during World War II to preserve, repair, locate and retrieve stolen works of art by the Nazis. Edsel spoke for over an hour about his book, what happened in Italy during World War II, his foundation and the honoring of these important men and women.

Edsel founded the Monuments Men Foundation several years ago to help honor those men and women who served and gave their lives to protect cultural heritage all over Europe and North Africa. Another mission of the foundation is to help locate items taken from Europe during the war to help facilitate the return to their rightful owners. He said thousands of works of art, musical scores, church bells, and other items are still missing.  Even today the foundation is helping to locate and return items.

The presentation was very interesting and I cannot wait to read his new book which I bought last night.

The evening was not over when Edsel’s presentation was finished. A World War II veteran and his family were in attendance. This veteran had served in Italy, around Naples specifically at one point in the war. His unit came across over a hundred crates of books taken from the University of Naples. As was common in war, soldiers of all countries, picked up items and took them home. This soldier took home several old books. Last night these were handed over to the custody of Robert Edsel and his Monuments Men Foundation after having confirmation that these books did indeed belong to the University of Naples. The foundation has researchers in the U.S. and Europe who work together to confirm that pieces located or turned into the foundation are authentic and figure out where they belong.It was very exciting to see these old books dating back to the 1300s sitting on a table at the Pritzker. The genealogist and historian in me wished I could have looked through them. I love old books and documents.

Il Console Generale Adriano Monti was in attendance and gave as brief speech after the daughter of the veteran gave a short speech about these items.

If you are in the Chicago area and have an interest in military history, check out the Pritzker Library’s programs and collection. If you are a member, they do participate in inter-library loan all over the country. Their staff is exceptional in both helpfulness and knowledge. It has become one of my favorite places to go in the city. It also doesn’t hurt it sits at the corner of Monroe and Michigan Avenue overlooking the Art Institute and Millennium Park and all the beautiful flowers, trees, and water that is visible from that vantage point.

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The Ricigliano, Italy Project Update

Posted on April 18, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

I have had so many comments posted, especially in the last week, about the Ricigliano Italians that some decisions have been made. As you may know if you have followed the blog for a while, I started a Genealogy Department at Casa Italia, the Italian Cultural Center in Stone Park, IL, in January. Since that time I have been busy with our volunteers organizing the library and AV materials. That has been completed. The next step is organizing the flat files which contains such amazing things. I plan to have this project complete by the end of summer if not sooner.

In September I will launch a monthly genealogy group and two writer’s groups. You can read a little about the writer’s groups on the Casa Italia blog.

And finally, the newest project is a Ricigliano Collection. I am putting together a guide of what I would like to include in this new collection. I know I will be looking for donations of the following items. We are collecting copies of items unless you wish to officially turn over originals to Casa Italia.

  • Photographs
  • Vital Records
  • Naturalization Papers
  • Military Records
  • Family Histories
  • Any other documents you have
  • Oral Histories – I will be conducting oral history interviews at Casa Italia starting this summer and fall.

The goal right now is to begin collecting materials in May and by this time next year put together a reception or exhibit on the Rigis and our new collection.

Would you like to donate? You can contact me by email.

What Rigi names have I been working on through my client work? There are many but the main surnames are Altier(i) (Galtier), Bagnuolo, Caponigri, D’Ambrosio, DeLeonardis, Iacullo (Yacullo), Indelli, Malpede, Meccia, Pacelli, Palumbo, Parrilli, Pascente, Pintozzi, Rocco, Sabia, Salvatore, Saracco, Serritella, Stolfa, Tortoriello/Turtoriello/Turturiello, Vernieri.

Please note – as a volunteer at Casa Italia, if you need help getting started in tracing your roots, you can schedule a time to come in and get some free assistance from myself or one of the volunteers. Should you need more in-depth research conducted, I am available for hire for that. Several Rigis have worked with me over the last two years on their histories and we have amassed a great deal of information.

© 2013 Generations, Woodridge, IL

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Wisdom Wednesday – Help Casa Italia Index Italian Records

Posted on March 6, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

italian-ancestors-sponsorOriginally posted on the Casa Italia blog 22 February 2013.

A couple of weeks ago I posted some news that Casa Italia’s genealogy department was a sponsor of FamilySearch’s Italian Ancestors Indexing project. Casa Italia is now an entity under which you can register to index. I will post training materials next week and will get some indexing training dates set up at Casa Italia for those who need assistance getting started. There will also be indexing parties scheduled where you can bring your laptop to Casa Italia and hang out with other indexers for a few hours, enjoy conversation, refreshments, and index records.

Why are we indexing? To help make millions of Italian civil records searchable to those conducting Italian research. Currently the images are available to browse online but are not searchable. Having spent many hours browsing images locating the indexes for each year in set of birth records and then locating those specific records is time consuming. When the names are indexed, the search is much faster.

Please sign up for the indexers newsletter I created which can be found on the right sidebar of this blog. There is a link underneath the FamilySearch logo. It is through the newsletter I will sent out much information about contests, events, how we are doing, and other resources.

To become an indexer please visit the Italian Ancestors Project website. Click ‘Sign In’ at the top right corner of the page. If you are currently a FamilySearch user just log in. If you are not, you need to create a free account. Please add your phone number to the registration so I can contact you about indexing events.

After logging in click ‘Start Indexing Now’ which is in a red box in the middle of the initial screen you see. Now there are three steps to complete.

  1. Download the indexing software and install it on your computer.
  2. Register as an indexing volunteer.
  3. Download a batch to begin indexing.

There are many tutorials available as you scroll down this initial page. Please take a look at them before you begin indexing. You do not need to know the Italian language to index. The tutorials will help guide you through the process.

Important!! You must sign up under Casa Italia for us to be able to track your indexing progress and the whole of volunteers indexing on Casa Italia’s behalf. To do this,

  1. Open the indexing software and click ‘Tools’ in the menu bar across the the top and select ‘Options.’
  2. The Options box opens and you should select ‘Edit My Preferences’
  3. This takes you to the indexing website where you can select the level of difficulty and the languages you wish to focus on indexing. Edit this as you wish.
  4. Now click on ‘My Info’ in the top right corner of the screen near your name. This brings up your information box.
  5. Click ‘Edit’ and under the ‘Additional Indexing Information’ section there is a dropdown for ‘Local Support Level.’
  6. Click the dropdown and select ‘Group or Society.’
  7. Now click the next dropdown that says ‘Group.’
  8. Select ‘Casa Italia – Italian Cultural Center – IL’
  9. Add your phone number to your registration if you did not already do so.
  10. Click ‘Save.’ You will be taken back to the main ‘My Info’ page.

At this point you are registered under Casa Italia and I will be able to track how we are doing as an institution.

What’s next? You can read through the tutorials on the project page and download a batch into your software and begin indexing. Everything you submit will be arbitrated by someone who knows the Italian language and they will check for possible data entry errors or omissions. When an entire record set has been indexed and arbitrated, it will be available to search through the usual search avenues on FamilySearch. No longer will you have to only browse the record images to locate an ancestor.

Next week I will post more information on indexing including additional resources, tutorials, and more. If you have any questions about getting started or would like to have a one-on-one training session before the main sessions begin, please contact Jennifer Holik via email to arrange a time to stop by Casa Italia on a Monday or Thursday when I’m in the library.

© 2013, Generations, Jennifer Holik

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Tuesday’s Tip – Chicago Area Genealogy Programs

Posted on March 5, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

The Fountaindale Public Library District in Bolingbrook is hosting its annual Genealogy Day Conference Saturday, April 20 from 9:30 am to 4 pm.

This event is free, and registration is open to the public. Please bring a brown-bag lunch or order a lunch from the library cafe using the form on the flyer.

The event will feature three fantastic speakers, Tina Beaird, Steve Szabados, and Craig Pfannkuche, presenting programs on Homesteading Records, Naturalization Records, and Railroad Records. In addition to the speakers, participants will enjoy Door Prizes, Society Booths, Author Book Signings, and refreshments.

Preview the flyer for the event.  This is a great program for librarians, genealogists, and family historians.

For more information, please contact:

Debra Dudek
Fountaindale Public Library District
Adult and Teen Services Department Manager
300 W. Briarcliff Road
Bolingbrook, IL 60440
(p) 630.685.4201
 
© 2013 Generations, Jennifer Holik
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New Lecture Dates Added!

Posted on February 13, 2013 by Jennifer Holik

Have you heard my Finishing the Story lecture? If not, see where I’m presenting this year!

A few new lecture dates have been added to my Events page on my website. Please take a look and join me at one of the area society meetings! Feel free to contact me to speak at your library or society. I’m am booking through early 2014 now.

 

© 2013, Jennifer Holik, Generations

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