Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Thursday, May 12, 2011
Top 3 Reasons to View the Actual Vital Record
In genealogy, when we order vital records, we often get a typed, certified copy from the city or town we order it from. Although this is a good start and can prove useful, one should always aim to see the original to compare and, if possible, make a copy/take a photograph of.
Why is this?
1. The Back of the Certificate
Just like today, people often wrote notes on the back of a piece of paper. Although you may not find one, imagine if you found a little note that helped you further your search.
In this example, the back of the certificate (the top part on the image) has the phrase “Baptism St James Epis.”. This led to a lot of information from the Episcopal Diocese of Buffalo on my Whitehead family.
2. Missing Information in Fill-In-The-Blank Forms
Not all information on a vital record will not necessarily be told to you on a fill-in-the-blank form used by the town clerk to send you the information. One example of this is a name change. Here is an example of the birth certificate of my great-grandfather, Alfred Casell, that he had and that I was lucky enough to come into possession of.
I could have stopped with this, saying I had proof of when and where he was born and had a full certificate of his twin sister which proved who their parents were. However, I knew I may be able to find more information, so I got his full certificate.
As you can see this is a great find. I learned that in addition to changing his last name, he also changed his given name. I also learned that he changed his name legally, through the court, which gives me another record to search for.
3. Typos
People make mistakes. I have typed information incorrectly into my family tree program and into bibliographies for class papers. In the course of proofreading and checking my information (was grandma really 11 when she gave birth? Especially when she didn't get married for another decade?), this items get found and corrected.
Town and city clerks are busy and, unfortunately, finding vital records for genealogists is not their most important task. As such, they may not have time to check over their typing. One example of this is my great-great grandfather Marco A. Casell's death certificate. The date of death is typed as November 26, 1932, at the age of 69 (born 1968, speaking of typos... 1868) and it has a filed date as November 27, 1937. The filing date being 5 years later would be one clue there was a problem, as is the fact that the age is wrong based on the dates given.
Luckily, the Town of Colden gives both a typed form and a copy of the original record. As we can see he did die in 1937, not 1932. Bonus points to those readers who also realized that this example proved point number 2, as well, in relation to items such as an AKA and a burial date.
As you can see from these examples, it is important to always see an original vital record in order to make sure the information is correct and complete.
Have you had experiences of this in your research? Please comment below.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Amanuensis Monday - Carolina Casillo Will
For my first Amanuensis Monday I have transcribed the will of my great-great grandmother, Carolina (Izzo) Casillo.
Will of Carolina Casillo
Erie County, New York
Will Book 123:559
Written 25 June 1934; proved 26 October 1934
“Last Will and Testament.
I, Carolina Casillo of the City of Buffalo, in the County of Erie and State of New York, being of sound mind and memory, do make, publish and declare this my last Will and Testament, in manner following, that is to say:
First. I direct that all my just debts and funeral expenses be paid.
Second. I give, devise and bequeath to my beloved children Amalia Berni and Alfred M. Casell the sum of One Hundred Dollars each. To my children Angeline Frascelli, Lucy Murphy and Clara Catalano, I give devise and bequeath to each the sum of Fifty Dollars.
Third: I give, devise and bequeath all the remainder of my estate be the same personal or real to my beloved husband Marco A. Casillo.
Lastly, I hereby nominate, constitute and appoint my beloved husband, Marco A. Casillo, without bond, executor of this, my last Will and Testament: hereby revoking all former wills by me made.
In Witness Whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name the 25 day of June in the year One thousand nine hundred and thirty-four
Carolina Casillo
We, whose names are hereto subscribed Do Certify that on the 25 day of June 1934 Carolina Casillo the testatrix, subscribed her name to this instrument in our presence of each of us, and at the same time, in our presence and hearing, declared the same to be her last Will and Testament, and requested us and each of us, to sign our names thereto as witnesses to the execution thereof, which we hereby do in the presence of the testatrix and of each other, on the said date, and write opposite our names out respective places of residence.
Ernest L. Colucci residing at 370 Eagle St. BuffaloN.Y.
Ralph Colucci residing at 370 Eagle St BuffaloN.Y.
(88)
Surrogate’s Court, Erie County, New York.
In the Matter of Proving the Last Will and Testament} Certificate of Probate.
Of}
Carolina Casillo}
Deceased.}”
STATE OF NEW YORK,} ss.
COUNTY OF ERIE,}
I, GEORGE T. VANDERMEULEN, Clerk of the Surrogate’s Court, of said County of Erie, do hereby certify in pursuance of Section 151 of Surrogate’s Court Act, that on the day of the date hereof, the last Will and Testament of the above named deceased, being the annexed written instru-ment, was upon due proof daily admitted to probate by the Surrogate’s Court of the County of Erie and by the Surrogate of said County, as and for the last Will and Testament of said deceased, and as a Will valid to pass Real and Personal Property.
Said last Will and Testament is recorded in the office of said Surrogate, in Liber 123 of Wills, at page 559.
In Testimony Whereof, I have hereunto subscribed my name and affixed the Seal of Office of the Surrogate of said County, this 26 day of Oct. in the year of our Lord one thousand nine hundred thirty-4.
G.T. Vandermeulen
Clerk of the Surrogate’s Court
By John F. Uhler[?]
Assistant Probate Clerk”
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
Tombstone Tuesday: Alfred Marco Casell
Friday, April 30, 2010
Fantastic Find Friday - Marcantonio Casillo Birth Record
Roccaromana, Caserta, Italy, "Anno 1868 Comune di Roccaromana Provincia di Terra di Larone Registro dell e Nascita Ufficio," (Archivio di Stato, Caserta, e nel Tribunale di Santa Maria Capua Vetere, Caserta), 1868 Nascita, Marcantonio Maria Casillo; FHL microfilm 1,801,953, item 2.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Fantastic Find Friday - Casillo Passenger List
"New York Passenger Lists, 1820-1957," online images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 10 Apr 2010), manifest, Elysia, 11 May 1887, M. Casillo, Year: 1887; Arrival: New York, United States; Microfilm serial: M237; Microfilm roll: M237_506; Line: 16; List number: 540.
Friday, April 16, 2010
Fantastic Find Friday - Peter Berni Passport Application
Peter Berni married my great-aunt, Amelia Casillo. I keep in contact with their granddaughter, my second cousin once removed, who has some amazing photographs she has shared with me. While filling in some gaps in census records on Ancestry over the weekend, I came across his passport application from 1924. I have never before found a passport application for a relative and after I saw what was included on the record, I wish some of my ancestors had traveled. I particularly love the photograph, the fact that it lists the town he was from in Italy, which had been previously unknown and the affidavit from my g-g grandfather Marco A. Casillo about Amelia's birth certificate. This is another reason I love cluster genealogy, I would have never found this had I just looked for my direct-line ancestors.
"U.S. Passport Applications, 1795-1925," database and images, Ancestry.com (http://www.ancestry.com : accessed 10 Apr 2010); Pietro Barne [Peter Berni], no. 452037, issued 30 June 1924; citing Passport Applications, January 2, 1906-March 31, 1925; (National Archives Microfilm Publication M1490, 2740 rolls); General Records of the Department of State, Record Group 59; National Archives, Washington, D.C.
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Surname Saturday: Casillo/Casell
According to Gens, Casillo is most common in the Campania region of Italy, which is where my family came from.
Looking at Italy in Full Detail, Casillo is most popular in the Napoli province today, although 17.15 people with the surname still live in Roccaromana, Caserta, Italy, where my ancestors came from.
I currently have 2 microfilms on order for Roccaromana, which should be arriving any day now. I am hopeful these will expand upon this line.
Descendants of Guiseppe Casillo
-------------------------------
1-Guiseppe Casillo d. Bef 1868
+Unknown
|--2-Pietro Casillo b. Abt 1835
+Angela Rosa Palmiero b. Abt 1845
|--3-Marcantonio Maria Casillo (Marco Antonio Casell) b. 11 Jan 1868, Roccaromana, Caserta,
| Campania, Italy, d. 26 Nov 1937, Colden, Erie, New York, USA
+Caroline Izzo b. 3 May 1876, , , , Italy, d. 2 Oct 1934, Buffalo, Erie,
New York, USA
|--4-Amelia Angela Maria Casillo b. 14 Jun 1903, Buffalo, Erie, New York,
| USA
|--4-Alfredo Marco Casillo (Alfred Marco Casell) b. 28 Jun 1906, Buffalo, Erie, New York, USA,
| d. 25 Jan 1981, Buffalo, Erie, New York, USA
|--4-Angela Casillo b. 28 Jun 1906, Buffalo, Erie, New York, USA
|--4-Lucia Marian Casillo b. Dec 1910, Buffalo, Erie, New York, USA, d.
| 1993, , , California, USA
|--4-Clara Casillo b. Abt 1914, Buffalo, Erie, New York, USA
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
(Nearly) Worldess Wednesday - Sulmona, Italy - Casillo

The young woman in my great-great aunt Amelia Casillo Berni. The child is her son Frank. Who are the other two people? We have no idea. I also have not yet researched the area of Sulmona yet. I have ordered the FHC film for my ggg grandparents marriage (hopefully) and it may give Carolina Izzo's hometown, which may help clear up this photo. If anyone knows Italian, can you translate what this card says? The Google translation was jibberish:-(
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Genealogy Happy Dance - Marcantonio Casillo
Wednesday, August 12, 2009
Saturday, August 8, 2009
SNGF - My 16 great-great-grandparents
1) List your 16 great-grandparents in pedigree chart order. List their birth and death years and places.
2) Figure out the dominant ethnicity or nationality of each of them.
3) Calculate your ancestral ethnicity or nationality by adding them up for the 16 - 6.25% for each (obviously, this is approximate).
4) If you don't know all 16 of your great-grandparents, then do it for the last full generation you have.
5) Write your own blog post, or make a comment on Facebook or in this post.
- Joseph Francis Eugene Acquard, Jr.: born 17 Jan 1855 in Cheektowaga, Erie, NY; married 15 Oct 1878 in Bennington Ctr., Wyoming, NY; died 10 Sept 1943 in Bennington Ctr., Wyoming, NY. FRENCH
- Mary Ann Kollin: born 15 Oct 1878 in Bennington Ctr., Wyoming, NY; died 5 Feb 1938 in Bennington Ctr., Wyoming, NY. 1/2 GERMAN and 1/2 BELGIAN
- Franciszek Karpinski: born 16 Sep 1880 in Poland; died 22 May 1943 in Erie or Wyoming, NY. POLISH
- Jozefa Szydlik: born 26 Sep 1886 in Poland; died 4 Apr 1973 in Warsaw, Wyoming, NY. POLISH
- John George Nuwer: born 21 Mar 1869 in Lancaster, Erie, NY; married 19 Apr 1893 in Lancaster, Erie, NY; died 1 Feb 1948 in Alden, Erie, NY. FRENCH
- Anna M. Zaepfel: born 28 Sep 1874 in Elma, Erie, NY; died 7 Aug 1943 in Alden, Erie, NY. 1/2 GERMAN & 1/2 FRENCH
- Edward Roll: born about 1888 in Alden, Erie, NY; married 22 Jun 1910 in Alden, Erie, NY; died 12 May 1941 in Alden, Erie, NY. FRENCH
- Lidwina Agnes Pautler: born 16 Jan 1888 in Alden, Erie, NY; died 11 Oct 1975 in Batavia, Genesee, NY. FRENCH
- Marcantonio Casillo: born 11 Jan 1868 in Italy; married 5 Sept 1901 in Buffalo, Erie, NY; died 26 Nov 1937 in Colden, Erie, NY. ITALIAN
- Carolina Izzo: born 3 May 1876 in Italy; died 2 Oct 1934 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. ITALIAN
- William Fred Eichhorn: born 22 Jun 1874 in Chippewa, Ontario, Canada; married 14 Jun 1899 in Buffalo, Erie, NY; died 9 Mar 1931 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. GERMAN
- Augusta M. Tross: born 6 Sept 1877 in Germany; died 1 Jan 1939 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. GERMAN
- Charles William Whitehead: born 12 Jun 1872 in Burlington, Ontario, Canada; married prior to 1896; died 27 Dec 1927 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. ENGLISH
- Anna May Sanderson: born 17 Jun 1871 in Burlington, Ontario, Canada; died 29 Apr 1928 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. ENGLISH
- Jacob J. Gress: born 26 Jan 1869 in Buffalo, Erie, NY; married prior to 1888; died 11 Aug 1932 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. GERMAN
- Elizabeth Fink: born 6 Jul 1867 in Buffalo, Erie, NY; died 24 Apr 1957 in Buffalo, Erie, NY. GERMAN
Friday, July 31, 2009
They arrived!
- Charles Herman Eichhorn, which has his parents names, Nicholas Eichhorn and Dora Schneider, and shows I had the right family in Canada! Now I have to continue my search there and eventually back to Germany. He was buried at Buffalo Cemetery and hopefully his wife is next to him, as I have no idea when she died.
- Elizabeth Whitehead, my great aunt, who died at 9 days old. The death cause is different than the one listed in the church records; this one makes more sense (cerebral hemorrhage).
- Maria Tross, which has her maiden name as Strassheim (on a marriage record of her child it looked like Crossheim or Crosshein). It also says she was buried in Buffalo Cemetery, so hopefully I can find some info on her husband (Wenzel/Wesley Tross) there and in her obituary.
- Mrs. A. [Barbara] Fleeman. She died in 1870, so there is pretty much no information, other than she was born in France about 1824, but no maiden name. Also no cemetery, but based on her probate file, they might not have been able to afford burying her.
- Adam L. Fleeman. Not my ancestor as hoped, but rather his grandson, who died at 3 months, 24 days. He is buried in Forest Lawn, so I will go visit next time I am in Buffalo.
- William Tross Eichhorn, son of William F. and Augusta (Tross) Eichhorn.
- Clara Evelyn Eichhorn, daughter of the same.
- Adeline Whitehead, daughter of Charles and Anna M. (Sanderson) Whitehead.
- Amelia Angela Maria Casilla [sic] daughter of Marcantonio and Carolina (Izzo) Casillo.
Monday, June 29, 2009
Family History Center
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Family Lines: Maternal Branches
Canadian Ancestors
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Yesterday my two other microfilms arrived at the FHC . I went through the Halstead marriage records, still none for my ancestors, but a fe...
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My take on the fourth in a week-long series of posts at GeneaBloggers entitled Genea-Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money) . How Do ...
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Happy Canada Day! A few of my branches stopped in Canada on their way to Buffalo. Below are the generation that came to Canada through th...