Brick Wall: Unable to find mother of Herman David (Orlando Davini)

Question

I believe I found the correct father of Herman David, Luigi Davini.  His mother is very hard to find/ is impossible to find for me.  Any help is amazing!

Answer 1

Ciao Zachary,

I think this is Luigi's birth record on FS:

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9W7-M6WT?i=1161&wc=MCR8-7M9%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349809001&cc=2043811

Luigi Davini born in Balbano, Lucca, on 2 Sep 1886 to:

- Alessio (30), farm laborer in Balbano, son of the Francesco and Assunta Tofori;

and

- Maria, homemaker, daughter of Bernardo Vannucci and Maria Angela Martinelli.

The birth was reported to the Civil Records Office in Lucca by Pietro (36), Maria's brother who works as a stoker for the Railways.

On the left it is annotated that on 27 October 1888 Luigi married Maria Olimpia D'Arrigo in Lucca.

Hope this answers your question :)

Sonia

Comments

This is amazing news!!!  Thank you so much for helping me through this journey.  I do have a couple questions if you don't mind.

Is it safe to assume these birth certificates are the same people I am related to?  I noticed Maria Olimpia D'arrigo signatures her name as "Olimpia D'arrigo"  Why is that?  How did you find out the job occupations of my family members?

Again, thank you so much. This truly means so much to me!

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Zacchary,

Sources from Familysearch and Antenati are just as good as any other. When you're dealing with Italian genealogy, there are only two places you can go for information. Antenati and FS. That's about it.

When we've found a source for you, be assured that we have found the right one for your ancestor. While it's true mistakes can happen, they are rare. We have experts here who are willing to help.

Many Italians use their middle name as their first name. It just depends. The occupations are also often listed on the documents themselves. If you need help translating, we will be happy to assist you.

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I see!  If you don't mind, I did some research and found an entire database of my family!  Would you be able to check to see if these are accurate?  

https://www.genealogiadavini.it/genealogia/usa%20altri.html

Also, would you be able to help me translate some of the documents!

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Ciao!

Glad to be of help.

This record is the only one of Luigi Davini born in Balbano in 1886.  There is a Giov. Luigi Angelo Davini born in the same year to a store owner in Lucca proper.

A lot of baby girls born in the 1800's had two names, Maria followed by another name. Maria Olimpia, Maria Rosa, Maria Assunta, etc. I think it is safe to say that your ancestor went by Olimpia to avoid confusion among all these Marias!

The job occupations are listed on the record.

Chris Ferraiolo is spot on about the resources for finding your ancestors.

Good luck with your research.

Sonia Benassini

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I am looking at your database, Zacchary and while it is clear you put a lot of work into it, I'm afraid you'll need a bit more meat so to speak. Site links are good and all. However, you'll need the actual documentation provided at a site like Familysearch or at Antenati. Here's a link to Antenati: https://antenati.cultura.gov.it/?lang=en

Once there, you can find the records for Lucca here: https://antenati.cultura.gov.it/search-registry/?lang=en&localita=%22Lucca%22

From there you can check birth records from 1807 to 1865. The town is well documented. I suggest cross referencing your work on that site with Antenati/FS.

We have a sourcing app which can assist you with creating citations: https://apps.wikitree.com/apps/clarke11007/antenati.php

We would be happy to help translate some documents. Are there some that you need translating?

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Thank you!  I did not make the database, I just recently found it!  I found birth, marriage, and death certificates, what else should I find?

I’ve noticed a lot of the material found for Herman David on Family Search is incorrect.  For example, it says Herman David’s father is Orlando Davini, this is incorrect I believe.

That’s great to hear that the town is well documented!  I heard stories where many towns do not digitize there certificates, I’m glad my ancestors town does!

Yes!  Can you please translate Luigi Davini’s birth certificate for me?  That would be a huge help for me!

Also, do you know where I can find Herman David (Orlando Davini) naturalization papers/ name change papers?  His brother Giuseppe Davini has naturalization records available; however, it is extremely difficult for me to find his own.

Thank you so much for all you have done!

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I'm honestly not sure I can trust that database. I know you didn't make it. But, you can't always trust sites like that on the internet without ironclad proof.

Since you have his birth, you can try looking for the parents as they are listed in the birth and marriage documents.

As for a translation, Sonia already translated it word for word. She is accurate in her translation.  If you give me Herman David's specifics, I can look it up and see if I can find what you're looking for.

Most towns do in fact digitize their records. It just takes time to get them all online. Some records can only be accessed at a library or a family center. It depends on the town.

As for the Naturalization paper, You may have to check the city where he lived or do a search online.

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I see, I’ll do some more research and get back to you.  Where can I find Sonia’s translated document?

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It's the first post in this thread.

"Luigi Davini born in Balbano, Lucca, on 2 Sep 1866 to:

- Alessio Davini (30), farm laborer in Balbano, son of the Francesco and Assunta Tofori;

and

- Maria, homemaker, daughter of Bernardo Vannucci and Maria Angela Martinelli.

The birth was reported to the Civil Records Office in Lucca by Pietro (36), Maria's brother who works as a stoker for the Railways.

On the left it is annotated that on 27 October 1888 Luigi married Maria Olimpia D'Arrigo in Lucca."

So, his parents are Alessio Davini and Maria Vannucci. You can estrapolate the birth years from the age at the birth.

Alessio: 1866-36=1830

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Ciao!

I came back and did some more digging!

1.) On his United States Military World War 1 Draft Registration Card, he indicated that he is not a U.S. citizen by the time of his Registration Card.  Meaning, he is still an Italian citizen, correct?  Here's a unique question about this.  He and his wife Elsa Clement got married in 1915, when he was 25.  Would this mean his wife (Elsa Clement) would automatically obtain Italian citizenship due to her marriage with an Italian citizen?

2.) When using Atenati, am I only limited to people born in 1807-1865?  Am I able to go beyond that time frame?

3.)  I believe we are all in agreement that Herman David's (Orlando Davini) father and mother is Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo.  Would you be able to help me find the parents of Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo, and if they had any children?

4.) Can you certify that the following document are relative to my family tree (Is it the same person in my family tree, does it make sense to be associated in my family tree?, etc)

5.)  Can you translate the following documents for me:

- Marriage document between Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89W7-DWJG?i=1592&wc=MCR8-4M9%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349825101&cc=2043811

- Birth certificate of Orlando Davini (Herman David)

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9WQ-BDYF?i=1036&wc=MCR8-768%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349817201&cc=2043811

- Birth Certificate of Giuseppe Davini (Son of Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo)

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QSQ-G9W7-98R?i=2980&wc=MCR8-7NL%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349817901&cc=2043811

6.) I believe I have found three supposed sons of Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo.  Their names are Giuseppe Davini (Died young), Valentino Davini (Died young), and Adolfo Davini

- Giuseppe Davini (Died young) Birth Certificate

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-L9WQ-B4CB?i=2625&wc=MCR8-768%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349817201&cc=2043811

- Valentino Davini (Died young) Birth Certificate

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89W7-MZH8?i=1444&wc=MCR8-7NL%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349817901&cc=2043811

- Adolfo Davini Birth Certificate

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-99W7-SSSP?i=2625&wc=MCR8-729%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349818801&cc=2043811

Is there any chance that these certificates just so happen to be signed by a different Luigi Davini and Maria Olimpia D'arrigo (yes, I know that sounds silly haha)?

Thank you so much for everything.  If everything turns out to be true and very accurate, this would be huge news for my family!

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- Continuation from my most recent post

Is it possible to establish communication with any of my living Davini / D'arrigo family members that still live in Italy?

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Hello!  Sorry for the long list of sources and questions.  Are you able to help with my research?  I am so grateful for all you guys have done!

Answer 2

I believe this is Luigi's Marriage record.

https://www.familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89W7-DWJG?i=1592&wc=MCR8-4M9%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349825101&cc=2043811

Looks like Maria Olympia D'Arrigo

"Italia, Lucca, Lucca, Stato Civile (Tribunale), 1866-1929," images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/3:1:3QS7-89W7-DWJG?cc=2043811&wc=MCR8-4M9%3A349802601%2C349802602%2C349825101 : 22 May 2014), Lucca > Lucca > Matrimoni 1884 Indici decennale (matrimoni) 1876-1885 Matrimoni 1885-1893 > image 1593 of 3047; Tribunale di Lucca (Lucca Court, Lucca).

Comments

See the records attached here: https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/G8D2-X33

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Wow!  These were added just yesterday!  That is so cool, thanks!

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I checked the Family Search profile you made.  I noticed Orlando Davini (Herman David) wasn’t on it?  Is there any reason he’s not on there?  Does there still need to be more proof?

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I didn't make the profile. I just added records (and other children). Herman/Orlando exists in FamilySearch but isn't connected yet to Luigi and Olimpia, but that's easily done. I'll do it now.

BTW, if you look at the notes on the attached records for Luigi and Olimpia you will see summary description of each.

If you are going to continue Italian research you should learn to read the records. There are many translation guides and templates available here:

https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Space:Italian_Roots_Resources#Translations