Italian Genealogy Workshop 

Join genealogist Rich Venezia of Rich Roots Genealogy for a workshop on delving into your family history in Italy and the United States.Benefiting beginner and seasoned genealogists alike, this workshop will feature two lectures:

Italian-Americans: Find Your Roots in the Old Country

Discover the breadth of Italian records, what’s available and where, and tips and tricks for finding elusive ancestors. This lecture covers an overview of finding places of origin, record availability, a timeline of records, civil registration, church records, and military records. Emphasis will be placed on records that can be accessed online right here in the USA. Discover your famiglia and make Nonna proud!

The Aliens Are Coming: USCIS Record Sets

Many of our 20th-century Italian immigrant ancestors had some contact with the Immigration & Naturalization Service (INS), the predecessor to the U.S. Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS) – whether that be when they immigrated, naturalized, or registered as an alien. Wade through the alphabet soup of the five glorious record sets the USCIS holds to find where your immigrant ancestor may be found. This lecture will cover A-Files (Alien Files), AR-2s (Alien Registration Forms), C-Files (Naturalization Certificate Files), Registry Files, and Visa Files.

This instructional workshop will also include helpful guidance on using the History Center’s Italian American Collection to contextualize your local family history here in Western Pennsylvania.