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poltr1At this point in the family tree search, I am now focusing on my paternal grandfather: Salvatore Poltrone.
According to his gravestone, Salvatore was born in 1897. And from the Ellis Island passenger records, he emigrated from his home town of Augusta, Sicily to the USA in April of 1914. His initial destination: Oakfield, NY (a small town about 30 miles east of Buffalo and a few miles northwest of Batavia). Why Oakfield and not Buffalo? The records from the New York State Census of 1915 provided an answer: his brother Leonardo was already there, rooming with a family named Saracino. (Another name that Dad mentioned.) Their occupations, as listed in the census record, was "gypsum mill hand". And looking at a current aerial view of the town in Google Maps, it looks like there is some sort of factory a block away from where they were living. Perhaps that gypsum mill is still in operation.
The next record I found was Salvatore's draft registration card for World War I. It showed him living at 58 Commercial St. in Buffalo, which was also in the "Little Italy" section of Buffalo that I mentioned in part 2. It listed his birth date (July 4, 1897), his father's name (Giuseppe) and birthplace (Brucoli, Sicily), his work location, and an uncle: Gaetano Limeri, at the same address.
"Limeri" was yet another name Dad had mentioned in his recounting of the family history. But I wasn't sure if this was my grandfather's mother's maiden name, or my grandmother's mother's maiden name. At this point, I took a small side trip to check the Ellis Island passenger records for my great-grandfather, Nicolo Neri. And there, in the manifest, was his record, and his wife's record: Sebastiana Limeri, my great-grandmother. Both emigrated from Brucoli in March of 1905. So now I know how the Limeri name and family fit in the family tree, and one more mystery has been solved. One of the stories my dad told me about his grandmother was that she was stern. If a shirt wasn't properly washed and ironed by her daughters, she'd throw it on the floor, stomp on it, and they'd have to wash the shirt again.
So far, I've not been able to find my grandfather's record in the 1920 US Census records. Since the records are organized by ward and street name, instead of last name, and that I don't know the street name he lived on at the time, I've not yet found him. My sister has a picture of my grandparents with their wedding date -- if I remember correctly, it was in July of 1920. This is the picture that hung next to my father's workshop area in the basement. I've asked my sister to take a digital photo and send me the photo file. And as I'm writing this, I came across a site that has newspaper records from that time period. The Buffalo Courier of July 9, 1920, listed the marriage licenses issued for my grandparents, and also listed their addresses. Salvatore lived at 109 Dante Place; Josephine Neri lived at 111 Dante Place.
I've not yet found my grandfather's record in the 1925 New York State Census records. But a few of the Buffalo City directories from between 1925 and 1930 showed that he and his family moved to 129 Front St., rear apartment. The street -- along with Sixth St., which had the same alignment as Front St. -- was renamed Busti Ave. around 1926 -- the year my father was born. This confirms what my sister listed in a family history project she did in elementary school many years ago. Another search of Google Maps for this address shows that this area -- in fact, the whole block -- is now a vacant lot.
I've also not yet found my grandfather's records in the 1930 US Census records. This would be the last census record he would appear in. In 1932, he was working as a concrete worker on a construction site, stepped on a rusty nail, developed tetanus, and died. My father, who was the only son, had to assume the duties as "man of the house" before his 7th birthday, and support his mother and three sisters.
One of the stories my Dad mentioned that his parents were considering moving to a house on Dupont Ave. in Tonawanda. But with my grandfather's death, that didn't happen. Or if they did move before he died, they probably lost the house. I will have to ask my aunt Angie about this the next time I see her. Later Buffalo city directories (1940 and 1951) showed the family resided on Maryland St. in Buffalo. From there, the history is known: my parents married in September 1951, moved to Kenmore, and moved again in 1963 to the town of Tonawanda, where they lived until they passed away (Dad in 2009, Mom in 2012).
So where do I go from here? 1) Flesh out the missing details in my grandfather's history. 2) Research his brother, Leonardo, and his descendants. 3) Research the rumored existence of a sister who went to Argentina. 4) Research Guiseppe Poltrone -- my great-grandfather.
According to his gravestone, Salvatore was born in 1897. And from the Ellis Island passenger records, he emigrated from his home town of Augusta, Sicily to the USA in April of 1914. His initial destination: Oakfield, NY (a small town about 30 miles east of Buffalo and a few miles northwest of Batavia). Why Oakfield and not Buffalo? The records from the New York State Census of 1915 provided an answer: his brother Leonardo was already there, rooming with a family named Saracino. (Another name that Dad mentioned.) Their occupations, as listed in the census record, was "gypsum mill hand". And looking at a current aerial view of the town in Google Maps, it looks like there is some sort of factory a block away from where they were living. Perhaps that gypsum mill is still in operation.
The next record I found was Salvatore's draft registration card for World War I. It showed him living at 58 Commercial St. in Buffalo, which was also in the "Little Italy" section of Buffalo that I mentioned in part 2. It listed his birth date (July 4, 1897), his father's name (Giuseppe) and birthplace (Brucoli, Sicily), his work location, and an uncle: Gaetano Limeri, at the same address.
"Limeri" was yet another name Dad had mentioned in his recounting of the family history. But I wasn't sure if this was my grandfather's mother's maiden name, or my grandmother's mother's maiden name. At this point, I took a small side trip to check the Ellis Island passenger records for my great-grandfather, Nicolo Neri. And there, in the manifest, was his record, and his wife's record: Sebastiana Limeri, my great-grandmother. Both emigrated from Brucoli in March of 1905. So now I know how the Limeri name and family fit in the family tree, and one more mystery has been solved. One of the stories my dad told me about his grandmother was that she was stern. If a shirt wasn't properly washed and ironed by her daughters, she'd throw it on the floor, stomp on it, and they'd have to wash the shirt again.
So far, I've not been able to find my grandfather's record in the 1920 US Census records. Since the records are organized by ward and street name, instead of last name, and that I don't know the street name he lived on at the time, I've not yet found him. My sister has a picture of my grandparents with their wedding date -- if I remember correctly, it was in July of 1920. This is the picture that hung next to my father's workshop area in the basement. I've asked my sister to take a digital photo and send me the photo file. And as I'm writing this, I came across a site that has newspaper records from that time period. The Buffalo Courier of July 9, 1920, listed the marriage licenses issued for my grandparents, and also listed their addresses. Salvatore lived at 109 Dante Place; Josephine Neri lived at 111 Dante Place.
I've not yet found my grandfather's record in the 1925 New York State Census records. But a few of the Buffalo City directories from between 1925 and 1930 showed that he and his family moved to 129 Front St., rear apartment. The street -- along with Sixth St., which had the same alignment as Front St. -- was renamed Busti Ave. around 1926 -- the year my father was born. This confirms what my sister listed in a family history project she did in elementary school many years ago. Another search of Google Maps for this address shows that this area -- in fact, the whole block -- is now a vacant lot.
I've also not yet found my grandfather's records in the 1930 US Census records. This would be the last census record he would appear in. In 1932, he was working as a concrete worker on a construction site, stepped on a rusty nail, developed tetanus, and died. My father, who was the only son, had to assume the duties as "man of the house" before his 7th birthday, and support his mother and three sisters.
One of the stories my Dad mentioned that his parents were considering moving to a house on Dupont Ave. in Tonawanda. But with my grandfather's death, that didn't happen. Or if they did move before he died, they probably lost the house. I will have to ask my aunt Angie about this the next time I see her. Later Buffalo city directories (1940 and 1951) showed the family resided on Maryland St. in Buffalo. From there, the history is known: my parents married in September 1951, moved to Kenmore, and moved again in 1963 to the town of Tonawanda, where they lived until they passed away (Dad in 2009, Mom in 2012).
So where do I go from here? 1) Flesh out the missing details in my grandfather's history. 2) Research his brother, Leonardo, and his descendants. 3) Research the rumored existence of a sister who went to Argentina. 4) Research Guiseppe Poltrone -- my great-grandfather.
