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Cultural Transformations on the Eurasian Steppe (4800–2200 BCE)
The Eurasian steppe, stretching from the Pontic-Caspian region to Mongolia, underwent profound transformations during the late 5th to early 2nd millennium BCE. This period witnessed the emergence and interaction of diverse societies that developed distinct adaptations to the steppe environment while engaging in complex patterns of exchange, migration, and cultural innovation. These developments coincided with…
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Caira: Finding Family in Italy
One of the goals I had for our recent trip to Italy was to find living family there, a goal which was met with resounding success. We had the true pleasure of spending the better part of a too-short weekend with several of my cousins in Caira. When I began researching the history of my…
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The History of Cassino
Yesterday I finally received a copy of the book “Cassino dalle origini ad oggi” (or “Cassino, from the origins to today”) by Emilio Pistilli. This is the second edition of the book, published in 1994. It runs about 143 pages including the index, and chronicles the history of the town from its Roman origins through…
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The Corbetts in the 1850 and 1860 Census Records
My great-grandmother is Elsie Lucile Corbett, daughter of William Bennett Corbett and Ruby Gertrude Elliot. William Bennett Corbett’s father was Mustoe Hamilton Corbett, son of Rebecca Corbett. I wrote previously about Mustoe and his brothers, William and Charles. Rebecca has been a “brick wall” in my research for some time. The earliest mention I have…
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The Three Brothers: The Corbett Sons in the Civil War
For the past year or so, I’ve been struggling to find more information on my GGGG Grandmother Rebecca Corbett. I keep hitting a dead end around 1850 or so, and have thus far been unable to locate any record of her any earlier than that. I feel pretty comfortable in asserting that she had five…
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The Vizzaccaros of Villa Santa Lucia
When my grandfather (Emilio) and his father (Loreto) emigrated to the United States, both listed Cassino as their hometown in Italy. A few other Vizzaccaro emigrants cited Cassino as their home, but the vast majority cited Villa Santa Lucia (of the seventy or so Vizzaccaro emigrants, 42 hailed from Villa S. Lucia and only nine…