52 Ancestors Week 19: A Question the Records Can't Answer

From Amy Johnson Crow: The theme for Week 19 is “A Question the Records Can’t Answer.” Outside of letters and diaries, most of the records we use in genealogy don’t tell us the “why” and “how” of our ancestors’ lives. We can read the records of what happened, but how did our ancestors feel? What was it like? This week, think about a question that goes beyond the names and dates. What would you ask that ancestor? 

Riddle me this, Batman....

    I think we can all agree that documents can only tell researchers so much about an ancestor. Birth records can only tell you who the parents were and where someone was born. Unless you lucked out and have Italian ancestors like I do and they'll give you the birth records. baptismal records and sometimes even the marriage record depending on the era someone was born. Italian records can sometimes be considered one-stop shopping in many cases. Sometimes grandparents are listed! All that's missing at that point is the father's favorite brand of vino.  Even Italian records don't tell you everything about someone. It sure would be nice if they did. However, you have to make do with what you can find. 

   There are so many questions I would ask various ancestors that records would never be able to answer. If I could, I'd talk to my grandfather Marco about everything he missed since he passed away in 1983. I'd ask my third great-grandfather Jeremiah Felker why his grandfather was listed on his death certificate instead of his father Elias. The list goes on and on. Since I've been trying to break down the Coppola brick walls I think it'd be a good idea to talk to my second great-grandmother Caterina Coppola and ask her a few simple questions.

Marco, Caterina and
Adriana

    While records in San Pietro a Maida would definitely have her vital statistics like her birth, marriage and death records. Those records wouldn't necessarily answer where the Coppolas came from. I know for a fact that no Coppola was born in San Pietro a Maida until 1860 when Caterina's cousin Francesco was born. There are no other Coppolas in San Pietro prior to that date so they all had to have come from somewhere in Italy.

    Records naturally may provide clues as to where the family came from but they wouldn't necessarily tell me why her father Paolo, her uncle Giovanni and her aunt Caterina left that town for San Pietro a Maida.  I'm sure it'd be an interesting story because three siblings just don't breeze into town, marry three locals and have families with them. Life isn't a Hallmark movie!

    I would definitely ask her about that and of course I'd have to have the universal translator on. Never go to another country without it. I would totally have to break the language barrier when talking to a few ancestors of mine. I'm not THAT fluent in Italian, you know!

        I think that would be a good start to my conversation with Caterina. I would totally rip the band-aid off and get to the point. Still, there are some other pointed questions I'd ask her. For example, I'd ask her how it felt to have several members of her family scattered around the globe. She would definitely have a lot to say about that, I'm sure. The family was everywhere and while my great-grandfather would write to his mother from time to time, I'm sure she thought about everyone quite often.

Vincenzo in black and white.

    Just to recap. Caterina's siblings Paolo and Concetta were in Haverhill with their families. Her cousins Giovanni, Marianna and Rosa Maria were there too along with her son Vincenzo and her grandchildren Marco and Nicolina. Her daughter Caterina moved to Buenos Aires with her husband and everyone else was in Italy.

    To say that's a big family is a bit of an understatement. Records can tell me where they lived and when they left. But they can't very well tell me how she and her husband Marco felt about having her family spread out like that. Somehow I don't think that'd be mentioned on their passports. 

    Little things like that can definitely add to a family's story and make them seem more real. Plus, you can bet that they'd have more color to the story than some random fact you find online. As a writer, I always want to try to fill the narrative with interesting bits of information. It's questions like these that add a human element to the family story.

    Finally, I think I would ask her more about Nicola and what he was like.  Nicola was a child of Marco and Caterina's who tragically died trying to save Caterina's boyfriend who was drowning. I'm not sure if it'd be a sore subject. I would have to tread lightly with that question. While San Pietro can certainly tell me when he was born and when he died, I don't think the records could tell me what possessed him to dive into currents like that and face certain death. He was pretty heroic. There's no denying that. There just has to be more to the story than what a cousin told me. Sure my great-aunt was named after him. There just has to be more  to the story like I said.

    Records always tell you one thing but a relative can often tell you more about their story. You'll never hear the context behind someone's trip to America by looking at a ship manifest. Oh, sure you can guess all you want. You could even imagine what the journey must have been like. In the end, hearing a story from someone's own words would mean more than any document you might have in your archive. That's why it's important to talk to the oldest generation you can because they can tell you stories that vital statistics and scans can't!

    I'm lucky that Caterina told me a lot about her grandmother. She's told me a lot about my second great-grandmother and I wonder if she has some of the answers to the questions I've asked. You never know....

See ya next time!