For many of us, Tracing our family roots here in America is a fascinating task until we hit that brick wall when we find the date that our ancestors arrived here and the ship that brought them here. Now how do we take that back one step further and continue our research in Italy. Should we make the trip there ourselves and continue our work? Sometimes this is impossible due to time and money restrictions in our personal life or maybe the task seems insurmountable due to our inability to speak and read the language. This is the point at which I was stuck with my mother's maternal side. I wrote to relatives still living in Blufi, a small town near Palermo and had gathered quite a bit of information from the cousins there. Like the rest of us, this was not enough and I wanted more. I then remembered that I had seen a listing on line of another person that was in the same shoes as I was and he stated that he had hired a professional researcher that specializes in Sicilian records. The gentleman's name was Emilio Terrazzino. He went on to list the researcher's web site. Once at his web site I found that he not only offered the searching of records in Sicily but also had an escort business in which he would travel to the town you were interested in with you when you make your long awaited journey. He can assist you with your travel arrangements and also act as an interpreter. I wasn't ready to make that trip just yet (maybe someday soon) but I sure could use his help in finding my ancestors.
On July 17, 1999 I emailed Emilio with the facts that I knew of and the specific details of
what I was looking for which involved two towns, Petralia Soprana and Blufi both in Sicily.
I told Emilio that my great grandmother,Santa Vizzini, was born in either Soprana or Blufi in
1846 and a few other details. I explained to him what information I was looking for and
asked for an estimate for the research. On July 18, 1999 I received an email from Emilio
stating that he usually charges $170 to search each town's records but because these two
towns were so close, the cost would be $200. This sounded almost too inexpensive to me
add to that the fact that I am of a skeptical nature, I was glad that I left out the fact that I
knew the names of my great grandmother's parents. Emilio stated that he would start the
process once I notified him that the check was mailed, which I did the very next day.
On July 23 Emilio notified me that he had received my check and asked for an approximate date
of birth for my great grandfather, Sebastiano Farinella. He also stated he would be starting
my research in the upcoming week. I was sure that I had kissed my money goodbye and
would probably never hear from him again.
On July 30th I received an email from Emilio. It almost knocked me off of my computer chair. Emilio stated that Blufi did not have the records that I was looking for because it did not become a city until 1927. He then went to Petralia Soprana where the staff at the town hall gave him full access to all the records but because it would be a burden on their time they could not write certificates for him. He did manage to get a certificate for the birth of my great-great grandmother Santa Vizzini. He stated to me that her parents were Leonardo Vizzini and Giuseppa Lio (the fact that I had known but didn't tell him) and he had the information about her two sisters and brother. He also told me the dates of births of Santa Vizzini's three daughters (one of which was my grandmother's, that I knew already).
My grandmother's paternal side was the Farinella's. I knew nothing about this branch of the family. Apparently my great grandfather was not a very nice man and my great grandmother divorced him when she got to New York with her three daughters eight years after he did. They did stay together here long enough to have a son. My grandmother would never speak of her father and hated him quite a bit. Emilio found Sebastiano Farinella's date of birth for me along with an older sibling also named Sebastiano and the parents of Sebastiano and his grandparents dating back to 1788. He is also sending me the documents he collected along with pictures of the town and Photostats of the telephone book directories listing my family surnames.
All in all, Emilio appeared to me to be a very trustworthy person who finds his work very rewarding and is happy to help others in their quest while making a living doing what he enjoys. Emilio also stated to me that he is currently working on a project with other business partners to form a network of researchers that can cover all regions of Italy. I can't wait for this to happen as I have other town records that I want searched. I give Emilio Terrazzino my full endorsement.
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