My sister and I have both been born and raised in New York. My parents were both born and raised in New York. All four of my grandparents were born and raised in New York City. As far as I am concerned, I am an American and my culture is a conglomeration of what America has become. I am far enough removed from my ancestry and their culture to, at times, feel as if I have ‘no culture’ besides New York’s culture.
Although this could be negative, I think it has undoubtedly made me who I am today. Because I don’t have a long-standing history of family culture and beliefs to uphold, I am able to become whatever I desire. Through my upbringing I have always made an effort to understand the religion and culture of my peers to fill this gap I have in my life. This has made me truly open-minded and accepting of the beautiful differences we all have. With that being said, my search for family history is a bit more difficult.
I have never met my grandparents on my mother’s side of the family, nor have I developed any type of relationship with my mother’s siblings. My mother had a difficult and unhappy childhood and I didn’t even know her parents’ names before doing this project. Additionally, because of my mother’s negative relationship with her family, she doesn’t know an extensive amount of family history. Her parents, named Mary Gard* and Hadley Gilson*, were both born in New York and grew up in Astoria, Queens. They later moved out to Long Island, where my mother and her two siblings were raised. Both of my maternal grandparents stem from a mix of English-Irish Catholics. Both of my grandparents on my mother’s side have passed away and my mom does not know anything about her grandparents. My mother said she has never heard any mention of Ellis Island or a journey to America. My maternal great-grandparents could have been born in America as well. It is probable my mother’s family emigrated from Ireland during the 1840’s potato famine. I am unsure if I will ever come across the answer to this question and, as far as I am concerned, my maternal side of the family is from New York.
I have a close relationship with my grandparents on my father’s side of the family. They are both in their 90’s and were raised in New York City. My grandmother, Cara Macaroli*, whom I call ‘Nana’, was raised in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn and later moved to Queens Village. Queens is where my father was raised with his two siblings. My grandmother’s parents both came from Adriana, Sicily, Italy. This was a fertile town in the valley of a volcano named Mount Edna. My great-great grandfather owned an orange orchard. Both of my grandmother’s parents, named Anna Scillci* and Carmine Macaroli*, passed through Ellis Island separately in about 1914-1917. Carmine* journeyed to the United States, with his father, at the age of 17. Carmine’s* father went back to Sicily after a year in America with him. Anna* had two brothers that came to the United States and made money as barbers to send back to Anna* and her family. Eventually, they had enough money to journey to America with five of their family members. My great-grandmother, Anna*, first settled in what is now Spanish-Harlem and later moved to Queens. My great-grandfather, Carmine*, also moved into Queens after passing through Ellis Island. Although both of my great-grand parents came from the same town in Sicily, they didn’t meet until they were in America and got married. Carmine* obtained citizenship by serving as an American soldier in World War I. He was a stonemason by trade but lost all of his assets in the stock market crash of 1929. Their reasoning for coming to America was simply because of the opportunity and the quality of life they heard about here.
My grandfather, whom I call ‘PopPop,’ was born and raised in Queens with his sister Ferrah*. My great-grandmother, Lina Leciz*, emigrated from Austria as a child at the turn of the century. Lina* was born in 1895. At this time the area Lina* came from was being disputed over and changed territorial name from Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, and Austria. My great-grandfather emigrated from Berlin, Germany at about the same time and married my great-grandmother shortly there after. Once my grandfather was born, my great-grandfather left the family. My grandfather and his sister were raised by a single mother, which was essentially unheard of in the 1920’s. My grandfather served in the military during World War II and his mother passed away while he was serving. My grandfather grew up with very little money and didn’t complete middle school. His sister passed away at the age of 47 and couldn’t be asked in this search for family history. PopPop very honestly stated that he didn’t have interest to talk to his mother about their family because she was only in his life through his teenage years, and what teenager wants to talk to their parents?
Most of my family history has been blurred by circumstance. My Nana is very interested in family history and was very knowledgeable about her family’s cultural, economic, and ancestral background. I am glad I have uncovered the information I have. I am now determined to put together a more thorough record of where my family is from, although I am not sure it is possible. The unclear story of my ancestry comes with being a third-generation American and will only magnify as the years continue. Since my family has been here for more than a hundred years, immigration has never been an issue of concern for any of us. All of my grandparents speak or spoke English as their primary language and most of their original culture was lost over time as well. I am more than content with considering myself and American, but more specifically, a third-generation New Yorker.
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