147 Conover Street
Tax Photo Circa 1940
Last update 4/22/2024
This was the home of Giuseppe and Petronilla, and their sons Ciro and Salvatore, from 1900 to 1905. They lived in a small apartment above the store. This was in the Red Hook section of Brooklyn. For a while, Petronilla's daughter Carmela and her husband, Catello LaMura, and their six children lived there with them. There is also some evidence that Elizabeth Lanzaro, widow of Francesco Lanzara, lived there before 1900.
Mysteriously, two Lanzaro infants died there in 1896. They were Catherine Lanzaro, born in October of 1895, and Annie Lanzaro, born August 7, 1896. Annie was born prematurely and lived for only a few hours, dying in the apartment. Nine days later, little Catherine died in the apartment from Cholera Infantum and Asthenia. Their death certificates do not provide the names of their parents except to say they were born in Italy. The babies were born ten months apart, so they could have had the same mother.
This is where Giuseppe died in 1901. When Ciro married Louisa Leier in 1903, she lived there, also. Ciro and Louisa's first two children were born here: Petronella (1903) and Joseph (1905). Petronella survived for only one year and died there on January 28, 1905. Two days later, Louisa gave birth to Joseph. Ciro's brother Salvatore lived there until his marriage to Maria Bellavigna in 1904.
As of April 2024, we have discovered that Frank Grosseto, his wife Josephine and their first child Joseph lived here as well. Plus, Luigi and Clementina Cappiello with their daughters Annie and Mary. After Giuseppe was buried in an unmarked grave at Holy Cross Cemetery, several babies were buried with him, including two of which were Cappiellos.
This photo of the building at 147 Conover Street is from that collection.
Original photo has been enhanced and colorized.
