After solving the mystery of how my great-grandparents, Giuseppe and Crocifissa, had met and married in Independence, LA, I was energized to learn more. I already had proof of Giuseppe’s arrival in the United States, but I knew nothing of Crocifissa’s arrival.
So much of her life remained a mystery – and I wondered how far back in time could I travel without ever leaving my house?
Picture it: Sicily. 1887. In the small village of Bisacquino (pictured above, courtesy of the Southern Italy Genealogical Center), a son is born to Salvatore and Maria. They name him Giuseppe and this is the start of my great-grandfather’s story, as well as my own, as I research his life and his connection to me.
That connection, by the way, seems to have stretched through time. After we returned from Sicily in April and I started playing with ChatGPT (other than some of the photos in this piece, this post is all me), I asked the program to draw me as a Sicilian peasant.
Nitty Gritty Dirt Man 