In the Italian Region Of Calabria, Province of Cosenza and located 11 Km Ne of the city of Cosenza is the comune (town) of Celico. The comune has a population of 3154, and the elevation is 750 meters. That's where my father, Luigi (Louis) Grisolia, was born on March 2nd, 1909. As was the custom, his father, Filippo, announced to a comune official on the following day that he and his wife, Michelina Fiorita, had been blessed with a son, Luigi. The old records indicate that Filippo's father, also Luigi, was residing in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil when Filippo married Michelina. The family story is that, for reasons unknown, he chose to remain there for the rest of his life. Filippo's mother was Rosa Pingitore. Michelina's father was Carmine Fiorita, and her mother was Camela Cairo. In 1912, three year old Luigi and Michelina sailed to the United States to join Filippo who had found work in a coal mine in Frostburg, Maryland. Filippo died in the flu epidemic of 1918, so I never knew him.

Luigi's father was Antonio and his mother was Maria Monaco. This is from the marriage record of Luigi and Rosa Pingitore dated August 28, 1878. Also shown on that document was Rosa's father, Francesco, and her mother, Maria Teresa Grisolia. Note that although Rosa's mother was a Grisolia, Rosa married a Grisolia.

This photograph was taken in Frostburg, Maryland. Michelina, Luigi (Louis) and Filippo Grisolia. Since dad looks eight or nine, the photo must have been taken about 1917/18; and it was shortly afterward that grandpa Filippo died.

Dad died early in the morning of August 20th, 2000. He was ninety one. Along with the majority of his contemporaries, he had that particular trait that made a successful and productive life a reality regardless of having had to endure adversity in his early life.

He was moved to a new, strange country at an early age, leaving all extended family in Celico. He often recalled being slapped on the hand in grade school and admonished, "Speak English". Then he lost his father at the age of nine. He and mom had to endure the effects of the Great Depression just as they were starting their life together. Sometimes dad worked only a couple of days a week in the beginning.

Mom, who passed away in 1987 had a difficult time as well. Her mother died when mom was eight and a half years old. Although she did graduate from the eight grade, she was not able to go to high school because she had to help raise her two younger siblings. She often watched as her friends walked down the street on their way to high school. I'm sure that having lost her own mother at an early age had much to do with her will to be such a great mother herself.

All things considered, there's enough here to have sent a more modern pair to the analyst's couch. That is not the direction mom and pop took. They aimed for and made it to the winner's circle.

 

 

 

In September of 1910, twenty nine year old Antonio Rosanova married eighteen year old Mariannina Ripoli, in Celico. His father was Alfonso, and his mother was Maria Rosa Catalano. Mariannina's parents were, Guiseppi Ripoli and Filotete Maria Filomena Conforti. Antonio and Mariannina moved to the U.S. and lived in Chicago. On November 18, 1911, they had their first child. She was Rose Marie Rosanova, my mother. Since my grandmother Mariannina died of pneumonia on 18 May 1920, I never knew her. It was my privelidge to know great grandmother Rosa Catalano when I was a very young child. She too moved to Chicago. In the early 1940's, she still made her own soap in a big black pot in her back yard. She could do something or other about determining the state of you health by wrapping a fork in a napkin and observing it's position when she unwrapped it. She loved hard lemon candy and slept with what looked, to us kids, like the biggest pistol in the world under her pillow.

Alfonso Rosanova's father was, Antonio, and his mother was Filippina Zagottis. They were married in April 1846. Great grandma, Maria Rosa Catalano's father was, Michele, and her mother was Maria Gaetana Falcone.

 

 

Thanks to my cousin Frank Cairo for the photo of Celico.

 

I never had much luck writing for old records, but through the kindness of James F. Mollo, a subscriber to the Comunes Of Italy mailing list, all that changed. He, by coincidence, was also researching ancestors from Celico. By even bigger coincidence, some of them also had moved to Frostburg, Maryland. Having access to some of the microfilmed records of Celico, Jim has sent me many copies of birth and marriage records. It was fun to present my father, at age ninety, a copy of his birth record from Celico.

Since this has become the "thank you" department I have to add the name of Joan Marie Pingeton who is also researching roots in Celico. Her kindness is truly appreciated. Pingeton started out as Pingitore, a name common to both our family trees. While living in the UK and researching microfilmed records of Celico, Joan has supplied me with additional family records . She has also been able to demonstrate that we are cousins.

Special thanks also to Charlene Iusi. Charlene is another researcher who has spent much time with the microfilmed records of Celico. Her kindness has resulted in several additions to my family tree. Not the least of her discoveries is that we are cousins as well.

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