[evaD]

Hello everybody

I am looking for any informationhotos,articles,stories,memories...abo ut a French relative of mine - Marie-Elise- who emigrated to NYC with her Italian husband Humbert Rapacci.
They ran a business designing and making ladies leather handbags.
In their later years they settled in Islip 11751 where they both died in 1967.
They had no children but many nephews on the italian side.

Did anyone know them,maybe older people from the Italian community?
What was Aunt mary like,where did they live?Has anyone kept their obituaries?
They would have gone to a roman catholic church,could someone post a photo of the most likely church in Islip?

She was kind to my elderly grandmother during the war and i am her great great niece.

[okaydorothy]

There is a Catholic church called St. Marks which is on Main street ; aka montauk highway in Islip.

That maybe a place to start

d

[hcgCali]

A few things I found on Ancestry.com...

According to his passport issued 11 May 1922, Humbert was born 25 Jun 1885 in Rome, Italy. His father's name was Guiseppe Rapacci and was deceased at the time of the passport issuance.

On Dec 15, 1915 he became a naturalized US citizen. He lived at 341 W. 58 St.NY, NY.

Humbert registered for the WWI draft in 1918. The photocopy is faded but it appears he was at the 58th St address at the time, and had light hair and blue eyes. Next of kin is Romolo Rappaci at 306 W. 54th St, NY.

I didn't find his first arrival in US, but there is a ship manifest for the SS.Leviathan on January 27, 1926 listing Humbert as a naturalized citizen returning from Cherbourg, France. He lived at 306 W. 54th St, NY,NY.

There's another manifest showing Humbert and Marie arriving in NY from Le Havre, France on Oct 11, 1935 aboard the ship President Harding. He was 50 and she was 43. She's listed as a housewife and spoke English and French, and was born in Nanoy or Nancy, France.

The 1930 Census shows Marie listed as his wife. The census also lists a Theo Rosso, age 21 as a boarder. According to the census, Humbert immigrated in 1905 and Marie in 1913. Their occupations are listed as "repairing bags" .

Humbert is listed in the 1920 census living with his brother Romolo Rapacci, age 48, and Alagesa Rapacci, age 48 (brother's wife)

They lived at 204 W. 81st St, NY, NY when Humbert registered for the WWII draft in 1942. He was 5'7" and weighed 141 lbs, with blue eyes and gray hair, and he had a small scar in the center of his forehead. Marie's full name is on the document, hard to read the handwriting... looks something like Marie E. (Bollpflug, Basspflug or Bosspflug) Rapacci . I can't find anything under those names except some Russian immigrants, none of whom were named Marie.

There's a Mary Baspflug, single, age 27, born in France, listed as living in the same apt building as Humbert in the 1920 census, but may be spelled wrong, as I can't find any other documents on Baspflug. That particular photocopy page won't open tonight so I can't get any other details from it. If you know the exact spelling of her maiden name, I can search it.

Unfortunately, there's nothing listed under Obituaries, Family Trees, or Articles and Stories for either of them.

If you have their Islip address, you-we may be able to find neighbors who knew them.