Infant given up for adoption in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicilly

[BenedettoWhat]

**Name**: Benedetto Di Giorgio (Aka: Oddo, Degeorge, DiGiorgio, Degeorgio, Proietto)
**Year of Birth** 1837
**Location of Birth** Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicily, Italy

**Backstory**:
The family story is that one of my family members, a Benedetto Di Giorgio^1, was the biological child of somebody with the last name Oddo in about 1837. Benedetto lived in Sciacca, Agrigento, Sicily. Now the story is that Benedetto's birth father was a lawyer (or some sort of legal job) from that general area in Sicily (very likely the Agrigento region, though there's no absolutes on that). His mother was apparently a Contessa. She did something with money. Now I don't know if it was the mother or the father that was an Oddo, but he was apparently conceived out of wedlock and thus they gave him up. I'm not too sure about the details of this, I just know that he was either given anonymously to a convent/church or possibly that a private deal was worked out or something, but those are just guesses. Benedetto was adopted by the Di Giorgio's, and married an Angela/Angelica Ragusa^1 (sometimes in databases as rausa or another variant). It's possible that his mother (either his adoptive mother or his birth mother) was either named Maria or Margaret(Or Margarita or some other variation), as his first two children, which were twin girls were named that (I'm thinking that his mother was Margaret because the wife's mother was Maria, so with twin girls they took both the mothers' names.) Both the girls died within a day of being born though).

From what I've found, I believe that Benedetto was born Benedetto Proietto^2 . I came to this conclusion because I can find no record of a Benedetto DiGiorgio having been born around the time of his birth. However, I did find a Benedetto Proietto, who was either born and christened on March 21, 1837^3 ^4 or born April 10, 1837 and christened April 11, 1837^5 ^6 . It's likely he passed through a foundling wheel, or ruota^7 .

I have recently come to the conclusion, with about 80% certainty, that I have figured out who his adoptive parents were.
Francesco Di Giorgio and Margarita Puleo. They were both in Sciacca at the time, and they lost a child^8 in August 28, 1837. The child would have been 2 years old, and it's possible that the mother was still nursing when the child died.

Somebody on a message board once posted: "Margherta Di Giorgio was his listed as his "nutrice" or wet nurse. I had a genealogist research this in Agrigento and he said it was common for unwed mothers to raise the baby not recorded as the mother in records. I don't know." I have not been able to find these records he's refering to, nor have I been able to get in touch with the person who posted it.

I believe that Margarita adopted the child she had been the wet nurse for. Although I usually require absolute verification from vital records, I think this is likely accurate, and thus added them to the family tree.

As I said, I think Benedetto's birth mother was a Contessa. I don't know if she was nobility or not. It's possible either she was Oddo, or the biological father was Oddo (the lawyer/legal guy)^9 ^10 (I did find two potential people with the name Oddo who were in a legal type profession, and have included them. The first one, Antonino, there's more potential, as he died in 1844, though that doesn't leave much time for the story of Benedetto going to him for help all the time to make sense, as Benedetto was 1837. The second one, Domenico really doesn't make sense, as he died right after Benedetto was born but I wanted to include it anyway for thoroughness).

**Rumors**

Some stories my family members have told about him:

Benedetto used to get in trouble, he would do things others didn't do.
If he had money problems, he would go to the mother, she was supposedly a contessa, and was in charge of something to do with financial matters.
If he had legal problems, he would go to the father, who was supposedly a lawyer
Benedetto was also supposedly a lawyer or a moneylender in Sciacca.
He supposedly had the nickname Sciallo.


**Goals**:
Main Goal: Determine who the biological parents of Benedetto are, so that further research may be done on their ancestry.





Footnotes:
1. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XKS1-F12
2. From what I have found, in Italy, I believe the name Proietto was given to those given up for adoption. The word Proietti is defined on FamilySearch.org as foundling

3. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XVY2-G4H
4. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XKCL-RFH
5. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XVY2-GF7
6. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XKCL-RP8
7. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baby_hatch
8. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRLQ-LBG
9. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XR1Q-3QW
10. https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRLQ-7B3




Bendetto's likely adoptive parents:
Margarita Puleo
Francesco Di Giorgio

Angelica's parents:
Damiano Ragusa
Maria Barbierra


__________
Benedetto Di Giorgio's & Angelica Ragusa's children

(In approximate order)
Margarita (twin) 1861
Maria (twin) 1861
Francesco 1862
Damiano 1865
Vincenzo 1876
Rosa 1880
Leonardo 1881
Antonino 1883
Alida (DOB Unknown)
Angela (DOB Unknown)

They were likely all born in Sciacca, though it's possible some of them were born elsewhere. I believe one of them, Leonardo, was born in Castellammare Del Golfo

Note1: Benedetto often doesn't have his last name listed on things, such as his marriage record^1 .
Note2: Benedetto's story about his parents is sort of similar to Antonino DiGiorgio: (it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonino_Di_Giorgio), one of Mussolini's deputies. I did some searching and as far as I can tell, there's no connection beyond the name.

Note3: I have exhausted the online indexes available from FamilySearch.org, and have ordered microfilms from the year of his birth, as well as the year he was married, though I believe I will be waiting a while for them.


TL;DR If anybody has any information in regards to a lawyer (or legal type), or a young Contessa who would have been in Sciacca or more broadly in Agrigento or Sicily, either of which possibly with the name Oddo, I would really appreciate it. I'm looking to find the biological parents of Benedetto (Oddo) Di Giorgio.

Thanks!

[ery1]

Hi and welcome to this forum !

Benedetto was registered at birth with an invented surname as Proietto and his name was chosen because in the calendar the 21st of March is San Benedetto's day.
It seems there was a brefotrofio in Sciacca situated in Via Salita Loreto, where there was the Monastero di San Loreto too.

I've found that after Unification of Italy (1861) each municipality of Agrigento Province had a brefotrofio managed by the local authority and that each brefotrofio had the « Ruota », so in Sciacca municipality should be records about the brefotrofio, at least since 1861.

If there were such records, also for period before 1861, you should search his personal file where you find info about his adopted family and, if you are very lucky, about his biological mother, I think it's the only way... If you don't find anything it's very difficult to find something or something more.

Also you can search the Oddos in Stati delle Anime or Riveli, a sort of census which took place periodically with all the households; these go up to 1831 (and should be available at the Palermo State Archive).

Here's another discussion:
http://www.tuttogenealogia.it/index.php ... ht=sciacca

Here you can find info about the « Ruota » in Sicily :
http://www.ilportaledelsud.org/ruota.htm
http://www.polizzigenealogy.com/ruota-d ... posti.html

Erica

[ery1]

Here's a Benedetto Proietto's death (one of those you've found):
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRLQ-82H

Here's the marriage of probable adoptive parents:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XK3C-66H

Here's Simone Di Giorgio's death:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRL9-6Z8

Here's Rosa Giambruno's death:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRYY-G5L

Here's Salvatore Puleo's death:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRYB-S19

Here's Giuseppa Sciara's death:
https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:XRYB-R83

Erica

[BenedettoWhat]

Wow, Thanks!

I just received words that the microfilms have shipped, so that information, in combination with the microfilms should be very helpful, I shall keep you informed!

[ery1]

I'm happy! I look forward to hearing from you!

Erica