But...
DO YOU SEND MONEY? HOW MUCH?
So, truthfully, I have tried to get a straight consistent answer on this question. And there is none. That;s because there is no central place for the Country of Italy. Rather records are in REGIONAL ARCHIVES or DIOCESE. Basically, all the stereotypes you've seen in films that include Italians - police - investigators - and hotel personnel - seem to be, well, based in reality. Italy is not America. It doesn't want to be. That's why you want to live there, at least some of the time or for a while. You want the joy of life, the stores closed just because, the slower pace which just might be what you might consider a less professional take on work - different priorities.
I suggest you write to the archive and send a fresh $20 bill which you will never see again. It is easy for American money to be turned into Italian money in Italy. I can't say if this is a tip, a bribe, or an archival fee. That and a Self Addressed Stamped Envelope. Let's say we want you to get a RESPONSE, which might be - all the documents you asked for - or a request for more money and a strong suggestion on how you send it. I've heard that some records are free.
I don't e-mail. I figure people get more e-mails than they can deal with. I like to stand out with a letter - a stamp - the cash. I hear the fees are reasonable.
A NOTE ON CIVIL RECORDS:
Depending on when and where your qualifying ancestor was born, married, or died, they may be noted on CIVIL RECORDS in addition to or instead of BAPTISMAL/ BIRTH RECORDS. Civil records can certainly work for you and if you can get them, you don't need the Baptismal/Birth records.
For my client that these posts are based on, that is not the case. I used my personal databases extensively to try and pull up anything on this family and it seemed the story which was the basis for beginning research had some gaps or errors. Like you, I try many spelling variations and so on in databases but no - nothing. And at some point you have to realize that you're wasting your time. That the best way is the Old Fashioned way - to write.
But let's just say that YOU DO FIND YOUR ANCESTORS on DATABASES, in CIVIL RECORDS and so on. YOU WILL STILL NEED TO WRITE TO ITALY TO GET THE APOSTILLE COPIES that are needed as official documents in order to process your request for Italian or Dual citizenship.
We sent our first request into a DIOCESE ARCHIVE September 21st...
C 2021 Ancestry Worship Genealogy BlogSpot
Update mid March 2021. We have received no response from the archive in Italy and no call back from the consulate. An article on line in The Daily Mail suggests Italy mat be facing a third wave if Covid-19.
