Giovanni Polito
21 Nov 1883 Cosenza, Italy - 4 July 1954 Colorado, USA
Giovanni was born in Cosenza, Italy in 1883, to Domenicoantnio Polito and Rachele Demarco.
On 24 Sept 1904, he married Vincenza Macchione in Malito, Cosenza Italy.
On 1 June 1905, a 21 year old Giovanni left his wife in Italy and *departed for Colorado with two of his friends. He never returned to Italy.
On 23 Jan 1908, Vincenza *joined her husband in hopes of starting a new life. Unfortunately, this wasn't the case. More to come....
*Note: Images are linked to Webpages by Stephen P. Morse. The site is free to use, but you must register a username name and password in order to view the actual images.
War Records
In 1918, John registered for the WW1 Draft as many Italian immigrants did..most likely to try and obtain his American citizenship quicker. He never ended up fighting in the War, nor did he ever Naturalize. My guess is because there was an error in his birth act which was later corrected. To view John's WW1 Draft Registration Cards, click here.
Obituary
It was originally thought that Giovanni was born in Rogliano, Cosenza since his brother Carmine was born there, but after obtaining his birth record, we found that John was actually born in Cosenza City and that his father, Domenicoantonio was married more than once.
From the CHRONICLE NEWS-July 6, 1954, here is John's obituary:
Giovanni Polito of Segundo Died Sunday Night
Giovanni Polito past 71 years old, retired coal miner of Segundo and well known in the community, passed away Sunday midnight at the local hospital after an extended illness.
He was born in Rauliano, Italy, January 21, 1883 and had come to Segundo in 1906, working at the coke ovens there until 1925, later until his retirement working in the Valdez coal mine. He was a member of the Valdez local union United Mine Workers.
He is survived by four brothers, Carmen Polito of Sunnyside, Utah, and Pete, Vince and Emilio Polito in Italy. He had been most intimately associated with the families of Mr. and Mrs. Frank Caporale, Mr. and Mrs. Harold Anderson, and the Sebastianelli family.
Funeral arrangements by Mullare Funeral Home.
Burial in the Catholic Cemetery.
Giovanni Polito is buried in the Catholic Cemetery, section 7, row 10, grave 44. He has a small headstone
Vincenza Macchione
1883 Malito, Cosenza, Italy - 1958 Malito, Cosenza, Italy
Vincenza Macchione was born in Malito, Cosenza, Italy and was the daughter of Lorenzo and Rosa Nucci. Read more about the Macchione families of Malito. After joining her husband in Colorado, Vincenza gave birth to Antonio in 1910 and to Erminia in 1912. Shortly after, she became pregnant with her third child, Vincenza took Antonio and Erminia and went back to her family in Malito. She never saw her husband again nor did the children ever see their father again. They did however communicate through letters and thanks to Marie Polito, Carmine's daughter,I was fortunate enough to be given all of Giovanni's personal papers and pictures.
A very special Thank You to Alice Romeo from the Trinidad, Colorado Library who not only helped with records for my family, but also located Giovanni's grave and took the pictures of his headstone for me.