State &
National Census Reports are filled with information for genealogists. Both the
population & nonpopulation schedules give us insights into the lives of our
ancestors. What have you found that is Surprising? Reassuring? Bewildering?
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| Thomas Pasquale with this sisters Grace & Carmella |
Pasquale
is the surname of my husband and his father. Somewhere before that the family
was Pascale. Family stories vary as to when and where it was changed. The most popular
story involves the usual Ellis Island change. However, I recently found the
family in the 1940 US Census, New York State, Westchester County, Somers. I
looked for the Pasquale family and found the Pascale family. Interestingly, the 1920 & 1930 Census reports list their name as Pasquale.
Frank
Pascale, my husband’s grandfather, a naturalized citizen from Italy, was a farm
manager. He paid $30 a month for rent and earned an income of $1,200. His wife,
also born in Italy, was Jennie Pascale. Their four children were all born in
New York State. Augustine, 19, was a farm helper. Thomas, 17; Grace, 15; and
Carmella, 7, were all attending school.
With
the exception of Frank, I knew all these people and they were all Pasquales. This is another research project for a rainy day.
I wonder if the varied spelling was due to the enumerator's understanding of what he/she heard and perhaps failure to ask about the spelling assuming they knew how to spell it (or thought they did).
ReplyDeleteWendy, most likely it was a misunderstanding at some point. That change in spelling has effected the names of many people, including me.
ReplyDelete