Italy Societies

Genealogical and historical societies and organizations may have information of value to your genealogical research. You can find a few of these societies in Italy and some in the country to which your ancestor immigrated, especially the United States. You may find it helpful to join one of these societies.

Most societies publish helpful periodicals, transcripts, and compiled genealogies, and they may have special indexes, collections, and projects. Some publish inquiries and queries about Italian ancestors or maintain a list of members’ research interests. Some specialize in the immigrants to a specific area.

Societies of Interest
The following societies may be of interest:

Istituto genealogico italiano
Via S. Spirito 27 - 50125 Firenze Italia Telephone: 39055213090 - 055289138 Fax: 39055289643 E-mail: [mailto:infor@genealogie.it infor@genealogie.it] Internet: http://www.genealogia.it/english/

Italian Genealogical Group
7 Grayon Drive Dix Hills, NY 11746 USA Mailing Address: P.O. Box 626 Bethpage, NY 11714-0626 Internet: http://www.italiangen.org(link does not work)

Order Sons of Italy in America (OSIA)
National Office 219 E Street N.E. Washington D.C. 20002 USA Telephone: 202-547-2900 Fax: 202-546-8168 Internet: http://www.osia.org/

Fraternal Societies
Your ancestor may have belonged to an association, lodge, or secret society whose membership was based on common interests, religion, or ethnicity. These societies were involved in political, social, and financial activities, including life and burial insurance.

Several sources, such as local histories, biographies, obituaries, tombstones, family records, and artifacts may give you clues that an ancestor belonged to a fraternal society.

For more information about fraternal societies in North America, see:


 * Schmidt, Alvin J. Fraternal Organizations. Westport, Connecticut, USA: Greenwood Press, 1980. (FHL book US/ CAN 973 C47sa.)

The records of fraternal organizations may exist in a society or business archive. You may be able to obtain some of this genealogical information through correspondence.

Guides to Societies and Associations
Current addresses, functions, and membership requirements of fraternal, ethnic, veteran, hereditary, and other associations are listed in:

Encyclopedia of Associations. 22nd edition, annual. Detroit, Michigan, USA: Gale Research Company, 1988–. (FHC book US/CANADA REF 973 E4gr.) United States associations and international associations are listed in separate volumes.

Additional information on societies and other sources of information about Italy are in:

Wasserman, Paul, and Alice E. Kennington, editors, Ethnic Information Sources of the United States. Second Edition. Detroit, Michigan, USA: Gale Research Company, 1983. (FHL book US/CANADA REF 973 F24w.)