Rachele Iadiano 1857 - 1925

According to Dominic “Donny” Santore, grandson of Giambattista and Rachele, his grandparents owned a bakery in Italy. They would send their children, including Dominic’s mother Giuseppina (Josephine), to deliver the fresh baked bread.

According to Jimmy Stassi, the homestead, which was somewhere outside Campobasso has been torn down. Giambattista and Rachele were originally from Ferrazzano, a small picturesque hilltop town (population today, about 3,000) a mile or two south of Campobasso.

At Ellis Island, Rachele’s surname was corrected in heavy print to Iadiano. The records at St Joseph’s R.C. Church in Oswego, NY, which were written in Italian, show that at the marriage of her son Raffaele Palladino, she is listed as Rachele Adiano, but at the marriage of Michele Palladino her name is given as Alliano.

Nothing surpasses seeing an actual historical record made at the time of the event or viewing the data given by the person himself. Seeing many of these same spellings in the original indexes also helps to confirm spellings which can be hard to decipher in the original cursive. Many of us that have researched the family history believe that Rachele's surname was properly spelled Iadiano. To further bolster our reasoning, historical archives have listed other Iadiano people coming from Ferrazzano in official U.S. immigration records as well as official Italian civil records. The most compelling proof however, viewed from the original Ellis Island immigration record for Rachele, shows very clearly and distinctly that the record taker made an initial mistake in the surname spelling and then actually corrected it with heavy lettering which now definitively reveals the proper I-a-d-i-a-n-o spelling. It is believed that the Alliano, Adiano, and other similar misspellings came from English speakers trying to decipher Italian speakers.

Rachele Iadiano stated she was born in Ferrazzano, Italy on her Ellis Island immigration record. Jeanne DeSantis’ husband Tom's grandfather Michaele Palladino/Pauldine always told her that he was from Ferrazzano, and not Campobasso. Michaele's wife Lucia was a Ciarlariello whose father Raffaele was originally from another hilltop town near Campobasso named Fossalto. Rachele Iadiano’s mother, Mariegiuseppa Notartomaso may also have immigrated to America. Italian women often gave their maiden name upon entering the country. On April 3, 1899 a woman with this name passed through Ellis Island going to live with her sons Giuseppe Carmine Iadiano and Luigi Iadiano, both of New York City. Other records reveal that Rachele had two brothers with the identical names.

Constanzo "Thomas" DeSantis 1854 - 1951

While still in Italy he had been writing to a friend in America when he decided to come to America himself to check it out. Following his arrival and obtaining a job he saved up enough money and in time returned to Campobasso to get his wife and two children and then returned to the U. S. He finally settled permanently in Oswego, NY in the early 1890's and worked, like many of his friends, for the railroad. He thought Oswego seemed a lot like Campobasso . . . little did he know then about Oswego's record snowfalls! Later his older brother Domenic DeSantis followed him, as did his good friend Giambattista Palladino, and several of Giambattista’s children.

Constanza's brother, Domenico “Dominick” DeSantis married Lucia “Lucy” Palladino in the mid- 1890's in Italy, one of the older children of Giambattista Palladino and Rachele Iadiano.

Constanza's daughter Guiseppa “Josephine” married Giovanni “John” Palladino, a son of Giambattista and Rachele “Rachel” in 1904 in Oswego.

Constanza's grandson Francis DeSantis married Florine Pauldine who is Giambattista and Rachele's granddaughter. Bear in mind now that her uncle married his aunt!

Jeanne DeSantis once stated “You don't even want me to tell you about all the intermarriages I found in the records back in Italy! With all this going on I begin to worry about my children's health, mental and otherwise.”