Vanchella Vagabonds

These are John's parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. (I wish we had photos for them all!) Because of differences in records availability, research questions, and a myriad of other factors, I've accomplished more in some branches than others. I have more than a lifetime's worth of work, because as we know, the number of ancestors grows exponentially with each generation.  I've shared this graphic before, but it's worth a share again for this project. Can you imagine uncovering 4.096 10th great-grandparents?! I have identified two of John's 10th great-grandparents (who also happen to be his 7th great-grandparents in a different branch). Only 4,094 to go! 😄 So, several months ago, I had the idea to try and balance up the tree a bit by attempting to get every branch to the level of 5th great-grandparent (in other words, 4 generations back from the 8 people in the top row of the cover graphic above). Was I successful? Read on for my discoveries. Giuseppe ...

  John, on the occasion of his baptism, with grandmothers Maria Milano Impellizzeri and Benedetta Adamo Ciacchella Isn't this a beautiful photo? It was one of several of John's christening given to us at our wedding shower by his godparents. These two women, both born in Alcamo, and living just ten minutes apart , never knew each other until their children, Virginia Impellizzeri and Peter Ciacchella, married.  Photos from wedding activities.  As time went on, Maria and Benedetta became friends. But they probably did not know that they were distant cousins! Yes, that's my latest genealogy discovery. Maria Milano and Benedetta Adamo share the same set of 3rd great-grandparents, Damiano Tartamella and Caterina Varvera. This makes them 4th cousins. It's a distant relationship, but interesting nevertheless. Maria Milano descends from Damiano and Caterina via her maternal grandmother. Benedetta Adamo descends from Damiano and Caterina via her paternal grandmother. Since John...

  John's maternal grandmother Maria Milano and her father Antonio Milano We've been in Laredo, Texas, staying with Emily this summer. It's always hot here in the summer, but this year has been beyond belief. It's been over 100 the entire time we've been here (arrived June 13), and most days it hovers in the vicinity of 110. I'm sure you've seen the memes! True! This was my personal favorite - a cake from HEB. But it needs to say 115 to be accurate for Laredo! Needless to say, this has left me with the entire summer primarily indoors. The upside is that it gave me an opportunity to work on a couple of big genealogy project (and to write blogs, LOL). I had 3 ideas about projects to pursue. Since cousin Antonio Milano is always so supportive and enthusiastic about my genealogy pursuits, I decided to work on a project in his line.  Antonio is John's mother Virginia's cousin. Virginia is standing on right, and Antonio is in the front appearing to throw th...