Alfonso Pacitti
updated Dec 2022

Travellers

Over the years, the Pacitti family were intrepid travellers; records show them in France, Belgium, Scotland, England, Sweden and the USA, throughout the nineteenth century. The first records in Abruzzo date from the early eighteenth century. As they emigrated and travelled throughout the globe, their presence has been captured in official records in many countries.

During my research, the earliest ‘official’ records of Pacitti that I have managed to uncover go back nearly 400 years to the second half of the 16th century. Throughout the 1700s and early 1800s, the surname of Pacitti and Pacitto are fairly interchangeable, individuals often being recorded under either name depending on the date of the record.

Italian Records

The earliest Italian records are church records (BMD & census). Pietro Pacitti along with Maria di Cosimo are recorded as the parents of AngelaRosa, born in 1756 at Filignano. Vincenzo Pacitti and Candelora Fratanola (this could be a transcribing error) are recorded as the parents of Teresa, born in 1762, also at Filignano.

The Italian 'state' viz: Kingdom of Two Sicilies started to record official records from around 1810. The current Italian State has started to digitise their official records and they are located at the "Antenati: Gli Archivi per la Ricerca Anagrafica" website here ==> Antenati

The Mormons also microfilmed many records and they are also being digitised. They can be found ether at local Mormon churches or online at Family Search - (both extracts and original images on some occasions). The "Family Search" website can be found here ==> Family Search

Scottish Records

The first recorded presence of any members of the Pacitti family in Scotland is documented in two marriage records of the General Records Office (GRO) Scotland of 1879; one at Glasgow (Arcangelo Pacitti and Nicolina Ferri); the second at Edinburgh (Andrea Pacitti and Annie Heddle). Subsequently the first Pacitti child to be born in Scotland was Celesta, daughter of Andrea and Annie, in 1880 at Edinburgh. Unfortunately, Celesta was only to survive a short time before she died.

The 1881 census has seven entries across four households but by the time of the 1891 census, 27 Pacitti were living in Scotland. In the period 1880-1899 there were 46 recorded births to Pacitti families in Scotland. Unfortunately, as elsewhere at this time, child mortality was high and 13 of them (30 percent) died before they reached the age of 3. The 1901 census noted 60 Pacitti individuals and by 1911, the last currently viewable census, this had grown to nearly 100. The 1921 census is now available - update to be provided shortly. The "Scotlandspeople" website can be found here ==> Scotlandspeople

The 1905 Glasgow telephone directory lists six entries for Pacitti individuals. Given the newness of the technology and the recent immigration, this demonstrates a very rapid establishment of their presence and industry in their new community.

English Records

The earliest English records date back to the early 1870s. The first recorded birth was Tresi (Teresa?) Pacitti at Chesterfield in June 1874, daughter of Michelangelo Pacitti and Rosselea Cacca. The marriage between Giuseppe Pacitti and Serafina Lanzi was recorded at Holborn in 1877. Two more births were recorded at Holborn, London in 1878 and 1880 (Pietro and Maria Loreto). Pietro unfortunately died soon after birth.

The area around Holborn and Clerkenwell became a focal point for Italian families in Victorian London, supported by the Italian church of St Peter’s on Clerkenwell Road. The 1881 English census contained just three entries; the 1891 census had six; in 1901, 28 entries were recorded; and by 1911 the number had grown to 43. The 1921 census is now available - update to be provided shortly.

US Records

The first US Pacitti records are to be found in the 1870 Federal Census from the state of Maryland. The enumeration took place on 5th August 1870 and Timoteo Pacitti (aged 31, name given as Timothy) was recorded as a Catholic clergyman living within St Joseph’s Monastery in Baltimore County. More detail is provided here ===> Timoteo Pacitti.

The early immigrants sailed from Europe to the US. From 1892 to 1924, all immigrants had to pass through Ellis Island and the Port of New York. More than 22 million immigrants, passengers, and crew members immigrated via Ellis Island in that period. Nearly five million of them were of Italian origin of whom approximately two hundred were Pacittis.