52 Ancestors Week 15: Unexpected

 From Amy Johnson Crow: Week 15:

The theme for Week 15 is “Unexpected.” What have you found that you didn’t expect? Have you ever found something in an unexpected place? Or maybe you were surprised to find out a family story was actually true! 

    I've said it before and I'll say it again. When you're on your genealogical adventure, you need to expect the unexpected. This is especially true if you've taken a DNA test because you're likely going to find long-lost relatives who you've never met before in your life. You may even find out that your great-grandfather isn't the person everyone in your family thought he was. It's sad but true. 

    Then again, sometimes good things can often be unexpected. You might find a relative in Switzerland who confirmed a story you heard multiple times while you were growing up. You might find a cousin in Argentna who messaged you right when the Boston Celtics win the NBA finals! Yes, I know these are oddly specific examples. I've written about many of my unexpected surprises. A lot of them have been good. Some of them have been a little on the weird side. All in all I can't really complain. Whoever said life had to be perfect? With that said let's talk about one my most recent unexpected surprises.

Maria has seen things.....

    My second great-grandmother Maria Giovanna Capobianco isn't really discussed much in the blog. She was born in Frigento in 1856 and according to genealogists who have actually been to Frigento she passed away a century later. She was the wife of Vincenzo Carrabs and mother of ten children including my great-grandfather Giuseppe.

    To make a long story short I have several DNA matches who descended from Vincenzo and Maria. Sufficed it to say her progeny is well documented!

    Her parents' trees are also well documented. With a little help, I fleshed out the trees for Angelo Maria Capobianco and his wives Rosaria di Pomponio and Carmina Martone. I found out that Angelo and Carmina had seven children together after they got married in 1852. For a while that was all I had for the Capobiancos. Everyone was DNA confirmed on WikiTree except for her branch and I was actually getting used to the idea that I wasn't going to be able to DNA confirm Angelo and Carmina.....until fate stepped in.

   A few weeks ago I was checking out my match list on Ancestry and I saw that a woman in Argentina matched my father, his maternal cousins and I. Not only that. There was a Thruline that pointed the match at Angelo and Carmina being our most recent common ancestors! This lady, let's call her Angela, seemed to descend from Angelo and Carmina's son Antonio who was born in 1866 in Frigento.

Antonio and Maria

    Naturally, I already had Antonio in my tree from when I was researching Frigento. He married Maria Saveria Genua in the 1880s and they had eight children together. This wasn't at all unexpected. I knew they had a large family and the odds were pretty good that I'd have a DNA match from that branch of the family. It just depended on who was around and who could test. After researching the Capobiancos, I just put them on the backburner as I assumed Maria's brothers and sisters lived all of their lives in Italy.

    What I didn't know was that Antonio and Maria's son Gennaro moved to Argentina, got married and had a family there! I had my friend Jenn check out Angela's tree on Ancestry and she found something that could definitely be considered unexpected.

    Back in the day, I found that Gennaro married a woman named Vincenza Graziosi in 1924. Gennaro's wife in Angela's tree was not  Vincenza Graziosi. It was a woman named Esther Paulina Yrruti.

 When I saw that name I let out an audible "WHAT?!" What happened to Vincenza?!

    Jenn wasn't sure what to tell me. In fact, I'm pretty sure she was surprised by my reaction. I have chat logs of her telling me to calm down.  I couldn't help it! Gennaro's birth record clearly stated he married Vincenza in 1924. The notes in the margins on Italian birth records are just as ironclad as the actual marriage banns.  Something had to have happened to Vincenza. Something bad. I took a deep breath and set off to do the only thing I could think of. I messaged Angela to see if she knew anything about Gennaro.

Gennaro Capobianco

    I wrote to Angela and after a few days of waiting I got a reply back! She sadly didn't have long to talk. However, she confirmed that Maria and Antonio were brother and sister. This meant that Angela was my third cousin once removed and a third cousin to my father and his cousins.

    Angela was working on her tree and found our connection. Apparently, I was just as big a surprise to her as she was to me because she asked me where I was from and my own family story, 

    I replied right away and told her all about Giuseppe and his siblings and how they all lived in Massachusetts. I told her about a few DNA matches and basically everything I learned about the Capobianco family. I just hope it didn't overwhelm her. She DID ask!  I wasn't sure how to go about asking about Vincenza, though. What can I say? "So...Your tree has someone named Esther as Gennaro's wife. My tree has a lady named Vincenza. What happened?"

I may have an idea what happened. Check it out.

    Gennaro and Vincenza had a happy life together until she fell ill and passed away unexpectedly. It happened a lot in small Italian towns. After losing his wife, Gennaro decided to pack his things and moved to Argentina. There, he married Esther and they lived happily ever after.. That's just my idea. I have no clue if it's true. Wouldn't that be the best explanation for everything? I'll have to wait until I hear back from Angela and she can confirm the story. I think what I have is the best case scenario. The truth remains to be seen and I'll see what Angela has to say in due time.

    That was my most recent unexpected surprise. I found a Capobianco cousin in Argentina! Like I said earlier, I knew Capobianco cousins had to have been out there somewhere. I had no idea that once again I'd find family in Argentina. Your genealogical adventure can take you to every corner of the globe and sometimes you may end up revisiting a few places. It's no secret that Italians migrated to Argentina as well as the United States. What is a mystery is what happened to Gennaro's first wife. Let's hope Angela replies and I can fill everyone here in on the gory details.

    Unexpected things are always going to happen out there. When you do family history, you need to expect the unexpected. Life is very seldom boring. 

See ya next time!