The Sopranos inspired me to once again wonder

[Thirtieschild]

how to trace the ancestry of my ex son-in-law. His grandfather immigrated in 1909, was a member of the Mafia in Chicago, at some point fled (whether from the mob or the Feds I don't know), landed in a village in upstate NY, changed his surname (to one that's primarily Norwegian), apparently took his money with him because he was affluent but didn't work. We have no idea what the original name was, granddaughters very much want to know what their name should be. S-I-L's father, now 85, knows the name but refuses to tell, says he doesn't know his mother's name, insists that he's Belgian.

I know there were four children, a daughter and three sons born in 1916, 1918 and 1921 in Illinois. I've combed 1920 and 1930 census records - all names, all states - for a family with children with the same given names, roughly same ages - one of the sons has an unusual given name which has made the search manageable. Absolutely nothing. I'm now searching WWI draft records for a man named Lawrence or Lorenzo, will then compare any who seem likely to census records. I'm at a loss for what else to do - can't order birth certificates since I don't know the surname. I wish there was an archive of former members of the Chicago mob but seriously doubt it.

Any suggestions?

[Cybergata]

1. I'm sorry I can't help you.

But I wanted to say hello to a fellow New Mexican. You do have an interesting situation. Do you have any contacts with your ex son-in-laws family that you could talk to?

P.S. I don't watch Sopranos, but all my friends on line who do are wondering what was the name Tony called the ginger cat at the end of the last episode!

[CBHagman]

2. That's a tricky one.

I want to keep this bumped in order for someone more experienced to weigh in.

Obviously you have a huge brick wall with the relative who won't spill the beans. I can only guess at the motivations for that.

The only thoughts I have is that you pursue the usual brick wall techniques -- i.e., look to all records on the immediate family, possibly neighbors and associates (the regular ones, not just the mob!), and keep posting on message boards. It sounds as though you have been as thorough as possible with the Census.

Hang in there and check back!:hi:

On edit: It amuses me endlessly to see The Sopranos as a source of genealogical inspiration. I actually went to see Martin Scorsese's The Gangs of New York because my Irish ancestors had landed at the New York docks during the time depicted in the film -- not that any of them were in gangs, as far as I know.

[iverglas]

3. one tiny remote possibility

It won't likely help you, but it might help somebody who can't find a
WWI draft-age male relation in the US someday.

There were quite a lot of citizens and residents of the US who came
to Canada to join up early in WWI. (I assume the US was late getting
into that one as well as II.)

Canadian WWI enrolment forms are searchable and viewable on line.
The Books of Remembrance, where the names of Canadian war dead
since WWI are recorded, are also searchable.

Here's the direct link to the search page:

http://www.collectionscanada.ca/archivianet/cef/001042-100.01-e.html

If you don't find who you're looking for but want to see how it works,
search for some common name so you'll get a list of results, and then
you can click on an image to see the form (back and front) and the info
it contains -- usually date and place of birth, name and address of next
of kin, occupation, plus other bits and bobs. The database is only
searchable by first/last names (plus regimental number, should one have it).

Or aha, here's an easier way:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=190&topic_id=19846

I copied the enrolment form of one of Canada's last surviving WWI veterans
in that thread. (He had lied about his age to get in, and died recently.)

... So heck, I'll just copy it here. ;)

In doing research in that database, I've really been surprised to see how
many men born in the US or resident in the US enrolled in Canada, so maybe
it will be a useful resource for someone here.

ps -- you can search by given name only, and there are a slew of Lorenzos. ;)