Genealogy in Bellosguardo
Tracing your Italian roots back to Bellosguardo (in Salerno province, Campania region) begins with understanding which records exist and where they are preserved. On this page you’ll find a clear guide to the civil, parish and historical sources available for genealogy in Bellosguardo.
Bellosguardo family history at a glance
- Region: Campania
- Province: Salerno
- Record types available: civil and parish records
- Civil registration: began in 1809 (when this area was part of the Kingdom of Naples)
- Parish registers: usually earlier than civil registration (sometimes dating back to the 1600s)
Research experience on families in Bellosguardo
Over the years, ItalianSide has conducted genealogy research on historical families from Bellosguardo, involving many surnames traditionally found in the town, including branches of the following families: Alessio, Apolito, Brancato, Capozzolo, Croce, Longo, Masi, Nicolella, Parente, Peduto, Pepe, Scardino, Torre, Tucci, Valitutti and others.
Many records relating to families and individuals are already stored in our databases and include, in addition to names and dates, further information such as occupations, residential addresses, and key family and social relationships within the Bellosguardo community in past centuries.
Part of the information used by ItalianSide in genealogy research derives from a proprietary archive of on-site research conducted over many years in Bellosguardo and by our experts. This archive includes studies, family trees, and data not available online, such as cross-referenced family relationships, occupational histories, deciphered or translated documents, residential patterns, and visual documentation.
Research activities may include all major sources available at municipal, provincial, and regional level:
• civil records
• parish registers
• notarial archives
• military records
• historical and photographic sources
Direct access to archives and a deep understanding of the local context allow for more complete and accurate results than research conducted remotely or based on partial sources alone. Research may be carried out using all available sources in both public and private archives.
Genealogy in Bellosguardo
If your ancestors came from Bellosguardo, in Salerno province (Campania region), the first step is to identify the local archives where records are kept. Most family history research starts from the civil registry office at the Comune and continues in parish and notary archives.
Where to begin your ancestry journey in Bellosguardo
Vital records for people born, married or deceased in Bellosguardo are usually preserved in:
- Bellosguardo City Hall archives: civil records (births, marriages and deaths) available from 1809 onwards.
- Bellosguardo parish churches: in Campania, parish registers that can trace family lines back to the 1600s, and in rare cases even earlier.
Civil Records (Stato Civile) in Bellosguardo
In towns and villages of Campania and across Salerno province, civil registration offices were established after 1809, following Napoleonic reforms in the former Kingdom of Naples. This means you can often find your ancestors’ civil records in the Town Hall archives of Bellosguardo from that year onwards.
(If your goal is to obtain Italian citizenship and you need official certificates from Bellosguardo, please follow this link.)
If your ancestors lived in Bellosguardo during the past centuries, the City Office of Bellosguardo is usually the first place to start your family research. Our local expert can access these records on your behalf and interpret them correctly.
- Professions: discover what your ancestors did for a living.
- Addresses: find the street or house where the family lived in Bellosguardo.
- Family links: identify parents, witnesses and neighbours that appear in the records.
- Signatures and notes: see how your ancestors signed and read any marginal annotations.
If you prefer to contact the Town Hall by yourself, we suggest reading our genealogy tips for Italy. They include practical advice for research in Campania and specifically in Bellosguardo.
Population trends in Bellosguardo
The chart below shows the demographic trends in Bellosguardo from the Italian Unification (1861). Understanding how many people lived in the town over time is useful when interpreting migration and family movements.
Church Records in Bellosguardo
Church archives in Salerno province often preserve information that predates civil records. Parish registers include baptisms, marriages and burials and sometimes allow you to push your family tree back into the 1700s and 1600s.
In many areas of Campania, parish registers began around the 1500s. These manuscripts are not easy to access from abroad and can be hard to read without specific training.
Our local genealogists, graduated in history and archival studies, can consult the parish archives of Bellosguardo on your behalf and reconstruct your family history through the centuries.
In case you want to visit churches, these are the addresses of parishes active today in Bellosguardo:
S. MICHELE ARCANGELO – P.zza XX Settembre
Notary records and other historical sources
Another important source of information is represented by notary documents, which preserve wills, dowries, property sales and contracts. These records are usually kept in provincial and State Archives and can provide valuable details on the social and economic life of your family.
Planning a visit to Bellosguardo
From our experience, if you plan to visit Bellosguardo we always recommend starting the research months before your arrival. This way you avoid spending your holidays in offices or churches dealing with bureaucracy.
Remember that archives are not open to the general public and officers or priests are not required by law to grant direct access to the records.
With the results collected by our genealogist before your trip, you will have more time to enjoy the town and its surroundings, walking in the footsteps of your ancestors.
Professional help for research in Bellosguardo
If you need professional support from our local genealogist in the Bellosguardo area, write to bellosguardo@italianside.com or fill the form here. Our expert will study your request and reply with a research plan and a quote tailored to your family history.
Messages from other visitors in Bellosguardo
Here below you can read messages from other visitors in the Bellosguardo forum. If you simply want to discuss genealogy in Bellosguardo with other people, feel free to leave a message.
I have a dilemna. My grandmother was born in 1889. I found a marriage for her parents in 1905 (civil registry). Handwritten on the bottom of this marriage document was written that there were three children born prior to this marriage, my grandmother was one of them as you can see by the date I gave for her birth. Also on this document my grandmother’s last name was that of her mother. The second born had a surname given to him and the last born had the surname of the groom. However from what Italian I could translate it appears that the groom admitted he was the father of the three. I think.
What I want to ask is if this couple may have been married by the church first prior to this marriage in 1905 and that marriage was not registered with the town. They were from Bellosquardo Italy and my grandmother from what I could translate from all the written stuff was born in Aquara Italy.
Please respone by email Thank you
In regards to Joan above (who happens to be myself)
I had a thought and wrote to St. Michale’s church in Bellosguardo My grandmother’s surname was not the surname of her mother it was a made up name given by the farmer’s wife who found her on her doorstep in a basket with some clothing in Aquara Italy. I have her birth and Baptismal information from that town.. I am not sure how much longer after her birth in Aquaro she was taken back to Bellosguardo. I thought St. Michele’s could help me find out that answer. Her parents didn’t recognize her as their own until their marriage in 1905 . My grandmother was born dec. 1889. Would St. Michele’s have records of a Confirmation so that I can get an idea of how old my grandmother was being raised in her parents hometown.
My great, great grandfather was Michele Pepe. He married Madelina Scarpa in 1866. My great grandmother, Emmanuele Antoninia Pepe was born in 1869. My great, great grandparents and great grandparents immigrated to New York in 1893. My great grandmother Emmanuele Antoninia Pepe married Joseph Cornetta in Italy — her dates are 1869-1917 — I’m hoping to get their birth/marriage certificates and find out more about my great, great grandparents. I have a cousin — (3rd or 4th Cousin —
Robert Ruocco — His grandmother was Arsenia Armedia Anne Pepe (Giovanni Ruocco)
Would like to find it I have any cousins in Bellosguardo?
My grandparents and father are from Bellosguardo. I understand the Capozzoli family was such of nine brothers and one sister. My grandfather was Raphael married to Maria Nicoella.
Other babes if family members there are Pepe, Papa and Budetta
All comments welcome
Hello Joe,
My grandparents were also from Bellosguardo. My grandfather was Rocco Pepe, born on March 26, 1892. He was one of 6 children. I believe his father’s name was Sylvestre Pepe. He married my grandmother, Ersilia Capozzoli, born on January 1 1896.I believe her parents were named Clemente and Conchetta Capozzoli. They emmigrated to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania somewhere around 1918.
Hi Peggy, I am just seeing your post from January. My great grandparents were Clemente and Concetta Capozzoli from Bellosguardo. My grandfather was Ersilia’s brother Pasquale. Is your mother Edith? I have a great deal of information about the family several generation back from Clemente. Please get in touch with me.
My grandfather’s name was Raffaele Antonio Tucci and he was born in Bellosguardo on 17 Jan 1887. His father’s name was Carmine Tucci and his mother’s name was Antonia Pepe. I would like to know if I have any family in Bellosguardo and also how I can get a copy of my grandfather’s birth certificate so I may apply for Italian citizenship.
Hi Desina: What a beautiful and unique name you have. You would have loved your grandfather. Cumpare Mariano is what I called him because he and Comare Ivy were godparents to my brother Tony. Let me start at the beginning. Your Grandfather Mariano was born in Bellosguardo Italy in 1890 and emigrated to Canada in 1912. He lived for awhile in Montreal with my uncle Cassio Pepe. Uncle Cassey moved to the USA, Bridgeville Penna while Cumpare moved to Toronto. He fathered Josephine, Frank, Mary, Joe, Dolores, and Theresa
If you are Theresa’s daughter, I met you years ago shortly after Theresa moved back to Toronto from New York. He was a great and good man and so was Comare Ivy.
Would love to hear from you.
I don’t know year of birth, but my grandfather was born in Bellosguardo before the turn of the 20th century. His name was Mariano Brunetti. I think three brothers came over to the US and Canada. Mariano ended up in Canada.
He is actually buried in Bellosguardo because he died while visiting (late ’50s, early ’60s). In Canada he married my grandmother, Ivy Togne.
As late as the mid-60s one of his sisters was still alive, and came overseas to visit.
I would love more information. When he died, an article was published about him and the work he did helping bring other people over (I think. It was in Italian, and I’ve only heard about it thirdhand, as it has since been lost).
My dream has long been to visit Bellosguardo, see the grave of the grandfather I never got to meet but know I would have loved.
my grandfathers name was Francesco Pepe. I know his brother died in ww1 and his name was Luigi. Francesco and Emilia Pepe ( nee Torre) had 4 children, 1 boy ( luigi) and 3 girls. I was named after Luigi ( my Mom was the youngest of the three girls).
My grandmother’s mother’s maiden name was Capo (Mariantionetta). Her parents were Michele Capo and Luigia Croce. Mariantionetta had a brother born July 1 1871 in Bellosguardo. I know that Mariantionetta was born prior to that because my grandmother Angelina was born Dec. 25th 1889. I think it was in 1867.
I would like to know if Mariantionetta had other sibblings because of the difference in birth years between her and her brother Ralph.
Joan says:
February 15, 2016 at 2:48 pm
My grandmother’s mother’s maiden name was Capo (Mariantionetta). Her parents were Michele Capo and Luigia Croce. Mariantionetta had a brother born July 1 1871 in Bellosguardo. I know that Mariantionetta was born prior to that because my grandmother Angelina was born Dec. 25th 1889. I think it was in 1867.
I would like to know if Mariantionetta had other sibblings because of the difference in birth years between her and her brother Ralph.
my grandfather was born in bellosguardo, salerno Italy. his name was carlo pepe. he was born December 17th, 1893. I would like to know his parents names and his siblings.