Giuseppe's Family Photo

We will end our overview of the Ambruso ancestors of Philadelphia with this wonderful photo of Giuseppe Ambruso and his family (ca. 1911).  The photo was provided by Rob Bradley, a family genealogist and husband of Vito's granddaughter.  In the back row are the two oldest sons, Michael (b. 1891) and Eugenio (b. 1892).  I'm not sure which one is which.  Across the front, from left to right are: Mary (b. 1895), Assunta (b. 1904), mother Maria, little Vito (b. 1907), father Giuseppe, Frank C. (b.1900), and Adeline (b. 1897).  Certainly a grand family.  These people lived their lives as proud Americans with strong Italian roots and traditions.  Giuseppe and Maria dreamed of a better life in America for their family.  Today, their grand children and great grandchildren are living out their dreams and keeping the traditions alive.  Evviva per le famiglie!

Marriages & Families - Vito Ambruso and Anna Gervasio

Wedding Photo of Vito Ambruso and Anna Gervasio - 1940

Vito Ambruso was the youngest child of Giuseppe Ambruso and Maria DiDio.  He was born in Philadelphia in 1907.  His given name was Vito, not Davito, but most of his friends and relatives called him “David”.  It is said that his teacher in school started calling him David and it stuck.  Like his older siblings, he worked on farms in southern New Jersey when he was young.   By 1930, at 23 years of age, he was working as a barber, a profession he stayed with for the rest of his life.

 

In 1940 Vito married Anna Ida Gervasio.  Anna was born in 1918 in Philadelphia.  Their only child was a girl they named Kathleen.  She was born in May of 1943.  In September of 1943, when Kathleen was 4 months old, Vito joined the Army to fight in World War 2.  He was discharged in 1945.  In 1953, the family moved to Delaware Township, New Jersey, which was later renamed Cherry Hill.  Vito passed away in Maple Shade, NJ in 1989.  Anna passed away in 1996.

Marriages & Families – Frank C. Ambruso and Mary Bombaro

Francesco Ambruso came to the USA in May of 1901 as a baby, in the arms of his mother, Maria Giuseppa.  He was born in Salandra in April 1900, so he was only 11 months old when he came.  Maria took him and his two sisters to Philadelphia.  By 1918 Francesco was going by the name “Frank” and living and working as a farmhand in Moorestown, NJ according to his World War 1 Draft Registration Card.   His older brother Eugenio was working also working as a farmhand in Moorestown at that time, probably at the same farm.   

In 1925, Frank married Mary Bombaro in Philadelphia and set up residence at 917 Daly Street.  Mary was born in Philadelphia in 1907.  According to the 1930 U.S. Census, Frank was working in the wooden cabinet shop of the Victor Talking Machine Co. in Camden, NJ, recently purchased by RCA.  He probably took the ferry across the Delaware from Philly to Camden every day.  Frank and Mary had four children: Rita (b. 1927), Adeline (b. 1929), Maryanne (b. 1932), and Joseph (b. 1932).  Maryanne and Joseph might have been twins.  Does anyone out there know for sure?  If so please send me an e-mail.

Between 1935 and 1940, the family moved to the Chesilhurst, NJ, way out in the newly forming suburbs, about 16 miles southeast of Camden.   Frank must have had a car, since he was still working for RCA in 1940.  Frank and Mary retired to Deerfield Beach, Florida.  Frank died there in 1979.  Mary passed away in 1995.  If anyone would like to share some stories or photos of Frank and Mary and their family, I would be happy to post them.

Did Adelina Really Move Out West and Marry an Indian?

Adeline Kane in the 1940 U.S. Census from Mullan, Idaho

According to her husband’s Petition for Naturalization, Adelina “Lena” Ambruso was born in Salandra on September 12, 1898.  We know she arrived at Ellis Island with her mother Maria Giuseppa, her older sister Maria, and her infant brother Francesco in May of 1901.  They were all going to Adelina’s father in Philadelphia.  In 1915, she married Joseph Bonviglio in Philadelphia.  Joseph was from Garaguso, a town near Salandra.
 
Then, on the 1930 U.S. Census, she was back living in her parent’s home and listed as “divorced”.  In doing this research I have pouring over many 1930 census records.  I can say with certainty that it is extremely rare to see anyone listed as “divorced”.  Divorce was not very common in 1930, especially in South Philadelphia. 

From that point on, the record of Adelina’s life becomes a little fuzzy.  An Ambruso relative found a funeral prayer card for an Adelina Kane who died on January 16, 1971, at age 71. The funeral home was in Pennsauken, NJ.  However, there is also a family rumor that Adeline was married to an Indian out West.  Recently we found a 1940 U.S. Census record from Mullan, Idaho which lists an Adeline, married to Albert Kane, a lead/zinc miner who was born in Arizona.  It lists her age in 1940 as 40 years old and born in Italy, naturalized and it says that she was living in Philadelphia in 1935.  Could this Adeline be Giuseppe’s daughter? She must be.  All the facts match.

Was Albert Kane a Native American?  Why did Adelina move out West?  How did she wind up in such an out-of-the-way place as Mullan, Idaho?  Where did she meet Albert Kane?  Why did she later come back to the Philadelphia area?  Did Albert Kane also come back to the Philadelphia area?  Why did she get divorced from Joseph Bonviglio in the first place?  These are questions we are still trying to answer.  Sounds like it would make a good novel.  If you could shed any light on the Adelina Mystery, please send me an e-mail. 

Marriages & Families – Antonio Lauria and Mary Ambruso

Maria Giuseppa Ambruso arrived in the USA with her mother and sister and brother in May of 1901.  She was 6 years old at the time.  They all were headed to Maria’s father, Giuseppe, who was just getting settled in Philadelphia.  In 1913, at the age of 18, she married Antonio Lauria.  Antonio was born in 1892 in Cosenza, Italy.  He was a barber.  They had five children: Ralph (b. 1914), Margaret (b. 1916), Marie (b. 1917), Joseph (b. 1922), and Anthony Jr. (b. 1927).

According to the 1920 U.S. Census, they originally lived at 917 Daly Street.  The family later moved to 1438 Porter Street and then moved to Upper Darby, just west of Philadelphia.  Antonio died in April of 1964.  At this point we don’t know much about Maria Ambruso Lauria.  If any relative has any more information, please contact me and I will add it to this posting.

Marriages & Families - Eugene and Carmella Ambruso

Eugenio Ambruso's
World War 1 Draft Registration Card

For a genealogist, World War 1 and 2 Draft Registration Cards provide a wealth of valuable information.  Since the card is a serious, official government document that was filled out by the person himself, the information is usually very accurate.  The photo to the left shows the WW1 card filled out by Eugenio Ambruso the second son of Giuseppe.  First, we notice that, when the card was filled out in 1918, he was still using the name Eugenio instead of Eugene, or "John" as everyone later called him.  He states that he was born on Novber (sp) 25, 1893 in "itley".  It should also be noted that his WW2 Draft Registration Card says he was born on Nov 25, 1892 (different year) in Salandra, Italy, which proved that this is indeed Giuseppe's son Eugenio. 

Eugenio came to the United States with his father Giuseppe and his older brother Michele in October of 1900.  They went to Giuseppe's brother Francesco in Philadelphia.  Eugenio's mother, Maria, came over with the rest of the family in 1901.

The WW1 card also tells us that Eugenio is living at home with his father, mother and brother at 812 South 12th St. in Philadelphia.  However, he is working as a farm hand in Moorestown, NJ.  In 1918, it would have been very difficult to commute from Philadelphia to Moorestown every day.  He may have stayed at the farm during the week and come home on weekends, or it might have only been a seasonal job during the harvest. 

Two years later, in 1920, he married Carmella Laina in Philadelphia.  They had two girls: Mary "Mae", born in 1921, and Theresa, born in 1925.  Eugenio applied for U.S. Citizenship in 1923.  By that time the family was living at 2321 Percy Street and he had a job as a punch press operator.   According to his WW2 Draft Registration Form, he was working at that same company, Pillings & Sons Surgical Instruments in 1943, but living at 1229 Wolf Street, where he resided for the rest of his life. 

Eugenio, (or John as he was called for most of his life) became fairly successful, and owned eleven properties in South Philadelphia.  He died in May of 1973.

Marriages & Families - Michael and Mary Ambruso

Michele, the first son of Giuseppe Maria Ambruso, was born in Salandra on 1 Feb 1891.  That was the date and place he gave on his World War 1 Draft Registration form in 1918.  He came to Philadelphia in 1900 with his father and brother when he was 9 years old.  Twelve years later, in 1912, he married Maria Giuseppa Coscarella in Philadelphia.  According to Michael’s Naturalization Petition, she was born on 25 Jan 1895 in Cosenza, Italy. 

Their first child, Joseph (Giuseppe), was born in January of 1914.  He was named after his paternal grandfather.  Their next child, May (Maria Giusefina), was born in March of 1915.  Their third child was a son named Anthony (Antonio Giuseppe), born in May of 1917.  Their last two children were girls, Rita, born in 1919; and Violet born about 1923.  All children were born in Philadelphia. 

 

Over the course of his life, Michael had several occupations and the family lived at several different addresses.  This information is found on a number of different documents over the years.  In 1914, Michael(still calling himself Michele) filled out a Declaration of Intent for citizenship.  He listed his occupation as cabinet maker and his address as 1238 Christian Street.  In 1918, his Petition for Naturalization, listed his occupation as “driver” and his address was 1508 South 12^th Street.  The 1920 U.S. Census, he is a driver for the Steel Works and living at 928 Snyder Ave.  By 1930, he and the family had settled at their final, permanent address of 1725 Tasker Street.  His occupation is listed as grocer. We know he operated a grocery store at that location, but in 1942, he lists his address as 1723-25 Tasker and he is also listed as a bartender.  He probably bought the adjoining storefront and also operated a tavern as well as the grocery store. 
 

Michael did well for himself and also bought a house at the shore in Sea isle City, New Jersey.  That became the gathering place for members of the family.  Michael died in 1957.  His widow, Mary, died in Sea Isle City in 1996.  All five of their children married and had families of their own.  Today, there are many descendants of Michael and Mary living in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Delaware.

Someone yelled "MICHAEL" at an Ambruso gathering and 29 people turned their head.

In the later part of the nineteenth century, four brothers from Salandra, Italy, followed Italian customs for naming their children.  Each named their first son after their own father, Michelarcangelo Ambruso, the boys’ grandfather.  There were four first cousins, all born around the same time, who all came to the United States, and they were all called Michele Ambruso.  (I talk about these Four Michaels in my post of 10 May 2013.)   If you think this would add confusion to any genealogical research, you would be correct. 

In an attempt to simplify things, I gave them my own identifying names.  The oldest was Francesco’s son Michele.  He was born over a decade before the others, so I call him Michael Ambruso (b. 1874).  My own grandfather, Rocco’s son, had a middle name so I simply call him Michael Anthony Ambruso.  He was born in 1889. Michelarcangelo broke the naming convention and named one of his sons “Michele”.  That Michele (b. 1847) then went back to following the convention and named his first son Michele.  That son settled in Hartford, CT.  I call him Michael Ambruso (“Hartford Mike” b. 1890).  The fourth Michael was Giuseppe’s first son.  He settled in Philadelphia.  I call him Michael Ambruso (“Philly Mike” b. 1891). 

As you can see, the custom of naming a first son after his paternal grandfather can be both a blessing and a curse to genealogists.  It helps determine who’s who, but unless you give each grandson some differentiating nickname or ID number, it can get very confusing since they all have the same name, which in this case is Michael.  Of course each of those four Michaels had grandsons, living today, that are also named Michael.  Too many Michaels!

A Call for Photos

Great grandfather

Great grandmother

 

Imagine a newspaper or magazine without photos.  It would be pretty dull.  The same is true for this blog.  We need interesting old family photos to tell the history of the family.  I know those photos exist.  They are stored in box on the shelf in your closet, or in the old trunk in your attic, or they are framed on top of the shelf in your living room.  They are precious memories and one-of–a-kind family heirlooms.  But they all can be scanned.  And once they are scanned the digital files can be sent to me for use on this blog.  Then they can be seen by all the family members.

Relatives in my branch of the Ambruso Family have shown great interest in learning about the other branches of the family and seeing pictures of second cousins they never knew they had.  These pictures were meant to be shared.  Together let’s form a history for future generations to enjoy. 

 

Any photos that I have used thus far have been the kind contributions of just a few family members.  We need more, especially from Giuseppe’s family in Philadelphia and Michael’s family in Connecticut.  Please scan your old photos and send the files to me at jmcast@rcn.com.  We all thank you for your contribution of photos.

Giuseppe Maria Ambruso + Maria Giuseppa Di Dio

The third son of Michelarcangelo Ambruso and Maria Giuseppa Iula was born on 8 Dec 1855 in Salandra.  He was named Giuseppe Maria Ambruso.   In 1883 he married Maria Giuseppa DiDio, who was born in Salandra in 1867.  If you look closely at the Salandra Marriage Record shown above (click on it to see it larger), you will notice that he was 27  years old (di anni ventisette), and she was 16 (di anni sedici) when they married.  Sixteen seems young for a woman to marry, but at that time in southern Italy, it was not uncommon for brides get married at that age.

Their first son, Michele Giuseppe, was born in Salandra in February of 1891.  Following naming conventions, he was named after his grandfather.  Their second son, Eugenio was born in November of 1892.  By naming customs, this son should have been named Vito (Davito) after his mother’s father, but for some reason he was not.

They then had two daughters, Maria, born about 1895 and Adelina, born about 1897.  Their third son, Francesco, was born in April of 1900. 

As stated in the previous post, Giuseppe and his two oldest sons came to America in October of 1900, six months after Francesco was born.  His wife, Maria and the rest of the family all came to America in May of 1901.  They all settled in Philadelphia, on South Mildred Street, the street where Giuseppe’s brother, Frank, and nephews Michael and Leonardo, already lived. 

In 1904 they had their first child born in the USA, a daughter they named Assunta.  Then in February of 1907 their fourth son was born.  They named him Vito. 

I cannot find Giuseppe and Maria with their family of eight children anywhere in Philadelphia in the 1910 U.S. Census, even using possible misspellings and alternate spellings of the name “Ambruso”.  A thorough search of each address on South Mildred Street shows that they were definitely not living there, or anywhere in the immediate area, in 1910.

Neither can I find Giuseppe (or Joseph) in the yearly Philadelphia City Directories, or any other Philadelphia data base.  So we don’t have a good idea of where they lived or what Giuseppe did for a living until 1920. In the 1920 U.S. Census we find the family living at 2014 South Tenth Street.  The last name is misspelled as “Ambrusia”.  It lists Joseph’s occupation as “laborer”. 

Also, on the passenger manifest for his nephew, Michele, who came back to the USA in 1923, it says he was going to his uncle Giuseppe at that South 10^th Street Philadelphia address.   Other than that, the only thing we have is the grave stone for Giuseppe and Maria in Holy Cross Cemetery, which says that they both died in 1932. 

That grave stone also has two other interesting facts:  First, their daughter Assunta died before her parents.  She died at the young age of 26.  Next, besides Assunta, Maria and Giuseppe, the grave stone also lists Anthony Lauria Jr. Maria and Giuseppe's daughter Maria married Anthony Lauria.  They had a son named Anthony Jr. who sadly died at the young age of nine.  He was laid to rest with his grandparents.