The Maltesta Family is from Genoa

I was lucky to get two good death certificates yesterday. One, for Dominick Malatesta (Helen Maltesta Raysor's grandfather; your great grandfather), and the other for Walter Joseph Malatesta, who was Helen's great uncle (George's brother).

From these two docs, I was able to get a more accurate description of Dominick's parents (John B and Mary), his wife Ann (Gerrity) and a specific location of his hometown in Italy: Genoa. I've been unable to conduct further research on the Maltesta line without knowing where they were from in Italy, so this may be a big help.

You can click the following to enlarge:

Dominick Malatesta: Fireman

Your great great grandfather, Dominick Malatesta, was a Chicago fireman. I found this article in the Chicago Tribune dated 8 NOV 1872, announcing his transition from a probationary member of the Fire Dept. to a regular member. This occurred a year and a month after the Great Chicago Fire.