Posted by Marilyn Barbera on 18 AUG 2008 2:14:3
Kevin: 1861. There is a G. Bertucci age 15 yrs on the arrival date in N.O. of Feb 24, 1860. The letter "B" is not very legible, however, I do believe the name is Bertucci. There were 26 boys of draft age, no women. If your read the history of the Unification of Italy, the people were preparing for a war, another attempt to unify Italy, which actually began on the west coast of Sicily. I was told by Peter Bertucci that Ustica contributed may boats of volunteers for this cause. As I noted earlier, parents sent their boys away from Ustica to avoid the forced military draft. This was the case for my g grandmother Maria Conchetta Rando Bertucci. She sent her teenage sons here to avoid the war with her married daughter, Anna Bertucci Ingargiola (Najolia), and planned to follow later. About the names of the passengers on the list, what's unusual, is there are no passengers listed with their first names, only a first initial. As we have heard from old timers by word of mouth, there was a boat or boats of boys and young men where some were disguised as girls. Perhaps this is why this list has no first names. On all other ship lists that I reviewed at the library, both from Palermo and other countries, there was always a first name listed. With regard to the following year, I looked on the list of Elisabetta passengers that arrived in N.O. on March 7, l861. All passengers were also boys and young men, 28 passengers, and only a first initial and last name. A Bertucci is not on this list. I believe the port of New Orleans was closed a few months later to passenger boats because of the Civil War here. I copied many ship lists several years ago over a span of about a decade. The rolls of films to view and photo copy were available at the Jefferson Parish library and also at the main branch of the New Orleans library before Katrina. They may be there now.