Photo of a Mexican hacienda, 1900-10. These are likely the children of the hacienda owner. The photo is from the same time my family owned a ranch in Mexico, and is a possible representation of how my great-grandparents and 2nd great-grandparents dressed (in their Sunday best) during that time. Courtesy of DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.1Maria Aurelia Compean.
I have always heard, from my dad, from his uncle (the only living sibling of my paternal grandfather), and from that great-uncle’s wife that our family had to to flee Mexico during the Mexican Revolution. Losing everything.
Jose and Maria, along with their two oldest children (very young at the time), immigrated to the U.S. in 1915.2,3,4,5 Maria’s mother Aurelia followed suit in 1919.6
A Lifestyle Lost
What exactly was the “everything” they lost?
The stories I heard growing up always included references to lost family land…a hacienda, and that the family had been well-to-do back in Mexico.
The 1963 U.S. obituary for my 2nd great-grandmother Maria Aurelia (Compean) Nieto talks about Aurelia coming from a well-to-do family in the state of San Luis Potosí. That same obituary claims Aurelia had 21 children.7 My great-aunt, the wife of the sole living child of Jose and Maria Robledo, was quite close after marriage to my great-grandmother Maria and to my 2nd great-grandmother Aurelia. She says that these women often told her stories about their family life back in Mexico. When my great-aunt asked Aurelia how Aurelia was able to manage 21 children, Aurelia told her the family had servants who assisted with the children. This would indeed indicate that the family was financially well off.
Jose Robledo
My great-aunt has also mentioned that her father-in-law, my great-grandfather Jose Robledo, never quite recovered from his loss in status. It was a blow to him to come from a lifestyle where he had land and status, to a new country where Mexican immigrants had absolutely no socio-economic status, and to have to struggle to find work that would allow him to provide for the family.
Work opportunities for Mexican immigrants in the 1910s were few. Great-grandfather Jose worked as a dock laborer at the Port of Los Angeles (California) and sometimes as a migrant farm laborer.
The family thinks this blow contributed to his early death.
Maria Hermalinda Nieto.
This year, I have learned from others in our extended family network here that Aurelia’s husband, my 2nd great-grandfather Refugio Nieto (1863-1909), committed suicide back in Mexico. I have not found records to verify this claim and these cousins have not provided me with a reason. But I wonder if perhaps the suicide was out of Refugio’s desperation and recognition that the revolutionary changes starting to catch fire in Mexico would soon take away the the family’s land, home, and entire way of life? Did Refugio perhaps have a strong affiliation with the Porfirio Díaz regime–soon to be overthrown? Did he simply suffer from depression? Had he lost his honor?
Refugio supposedly died in 1909. The Mexican Revolution is generally noted as taking place 1910-1920. Talk about pending revolution surely permeated the country in 1909.
RESEARCH TIP: Search Strategy
How will I try to verify if Refugio committed suicide? By conducting a reasonably exhaustive search among the church records, to see if he was buried by the church, and if a parish death record exists. A suicide is not supposed to get buried in consecrated ground, nor would sacramental last rites have been administered or recorded by the priest. The absence of Refugio from those church death and burial records might not mean anything, but that absence could also provide negative evidence. However, I will first try to locate a death record and the specific date date in the civil registrations.
I have no idea what if any bits of truth there are to these stories. Every descendant here of Mexican immigrants from the time of the Revolution wants to believe their family once owned a grand sprawling hacienda. I think it is very likely that my Mexican ancestors did own land there, which may have very well been classified as a hacienda or just a smaller estancia. I doubt I will find that answer out until I visit that area of Mexico next year, where I will hopefully come across old-timers or local historians who may know of the family. I am not well versed enough yet in what type of records might still exist from pre-revolutionary land holdings or might have been created and saved documenting revolutionary land confiscations.
The Hacienda Lifestyle
If my Compean, Nieto, Robledo, and Sanches ancestors had or brought any family photos, paintings, or drawings from Mexico, these either did not survive, or just did not get passed down to my branch of the family lines. So I often seek out imagery that helps me visualize my ancestors’ homes, lifestyles, and travels. Working off the family lore about our ancestors being well-to-do and owning a ranch back in San Luis Potosí, I went looking for photos, videos, and other artwork that depicts life on a hacienda in Mexico from the time of my ancestors.
“Hacienda San Diego, Rio Verde, S.L.P. (San Luis Potosí),” November 1909. Courtesy of DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.8The photo above is a panoramic view of Hacienda San Diego, in another municipality (Rioverde) of San Luis Potosí–the central Mexico state in which my ancestors lived. The photo is dated November 1909. My ancestors were still living in San Luis Potosí at that time, presumably still on their ranch since the Revolution had not yet begun.
Depicted below is a hacienda (Hacienda San Javier) from another central Mexico state (Guanajuato), with the Valencia silver mine in the distance. The photo is dated 1905-09, also from the time when my ancestors still lived in Mexico. Mining was quite prevalent in their home state of San Luis Potosí. I wrote a couple months ago about my great-uncle Juvenal Joseph Nieto (1898-1978)–son of Aurelia Compean and José Nieto, younger brother to Maria Hermalinda Nieto–who left home at a young age to work in the mines of Mexico, eventually making his way up to the copper mines of Butte, Montana by the time he registered for the U.S. World War I draft in 1918.
Courtesy of DeGolyer Library, Southern Methodist University.9Closer to my ancestral home, Hacienda Peotillos remained somewhat intact following the Mexican Revolution–particularly the main house–unlike the many haciendas that were destroyed during the war or the post-war land redistribution. Founded in 1863, the hacienda is situated in the municipality of Villa Hidaldo, state of San Luis Potosí, which is the municipality where my 2nd great-grandparents Refugio Nieto and Aurelia (Compean) Nieto married in 1883.10
This photo of Hacienda Peotillos was taken sometime between 1880 and 1897, the time when my 2nd great-grandparents married, and had their first children.
“Hacienda Peotillos,” dated between 1880 and 1897. Courtesy of the U.S. Library of Congress.11The family who still owns the hacienda does not a have surname that I have found in my family lines, so I have no clue if this family may be related to mine. But the geographic proximity to where my family lived means that this family could have been contemporaries and peers of my ancestors, if my family was indeed a member of the landed class. It is currently open for special events, but when Dad and I visit the area next year, I will try to arrange for a tour.
This video–produced by a website about travel and culture in central Mexico–provides a wonderful look at the the geographic area where my family lived, and what their lifestyle might have been like. It also showcases different types of records pertaining to the hacienda, which may prove helpful in my own research.12
The video below provides another look at Hacienda de Peotillas, from a travel reporter.13
San José Cathedral, Villa Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí, Mexico. If this same building dates back to 1883, it is where my 2nd great-grandparents married.1I like to immerse myself in the history and geography of an area when researching my ancestors. The roll I have been on lately with Mexico church records has allowed me to finally identify specific municipalities (similar to our counties) and localidades (cities, towns, villages) in which my ancestors lived or experienced life events. Videos and photos of those areas are a key part of this research. They provide me with a glimpse–even if just a modern day one–of the surroundings in which my ancestor lived, worked, and traveled, and they are an essential part of scouting out areas for future research trips.
Family Ties to Villa Hidalgo
In my last post, I mentioned that my 2nd great-grandparents Refugio Nieto (1863-1908) and Aurelia Compean (1864-1963) were married on 18 October 1883 in the parish of San José, located in Villa de Yturbide (now Villa Hidalgo), a municipality in the state of San Luis Potosí.2 Until finding that record back in May, I had never heard of an association between my ancestors and Villa Hidalgo.
About Villa Hidalgo
Villa Hidalgo is both a municipality and a town (similar to a county seat) in the Mexican state of San Luis Potosí. It was elevated to the civic administrative designation of municipo in 1854 and named after Don Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla, a Catholic priest and leader in the war for independence (1810-1821) against Spain, who is considered the “padre de patria” (founding father) of Mexico. By the end of that same year, however, the municipality and village were renamed to Villa Iturbide.3 Iturbide was the name of the royal house of Mexico, during the short-lived post-independence first Mexican Empire period from 1822-23.4 In 1928, the local legislature changed the municipo seat name back to Hidalgo.5
Two parishes serve the municipality of Villa Hidalgo–Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe in the nearby town of Peotillos, and San José in the actual municipo seat.6 San José is where my 2nd great-grandparents Reguio Nieto and Aurelia Compean married in 1883. The archdiocese website notes the parish founding as “28/08/06,” but with just an “06” I cannot determine the century. It would have to be 1806 at the latest, due to the marriage year of my 2nd great-grandparents. FamilySearch has parish records dating back to 1850. From what I am able to tell from Google Maps Streetview, photos, and videos, San José cathedral is located right on the town plaza. A festival is held each year on March 19 in honor of San José.
San José Cathedral, Villa Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí, Mexico. If this same building dates back to 1883, this is the view my 2nd great-grandmother saw when she walked down the aisle to marry her husband.7Another part of the exterior facade of San José Cathedral, Villa Hidalgo, San Luis Potosí, Mexico.8
Virtual Tours
These videos show quite a bit of footage of Villa Hidalgo, including the cathedral where my 2nd great-grandparents married in 1883.9,10 The town looks quite poor, but is full of color and historic architecture. I find it a bit humorous that the opening scene of the first video is an exterior shot of a cantina–perhaps Dad and I will enjoy a cold drink there next year.
My 23rd entry in Amy Johnson Crow’s “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” family history blogging challenge for 2015.
The challenge: have one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem — anything that focuses on one ancestor.
Amy’s 2015 version of this challenge focuses on a different theme each week.
The theme for week 23 is– Wedding: June is time for weddings. Write about a June bride in your family or highlight a favorite wedding photo. Maybe there’s a serial marry-er in the family — that could be a fun post!
I am quite behind on this blog challenge, hence the late wedding post.
My 23rd ancestor is my 2nd great-grandfather Refugio Nieto (1863-1909), who was born about 1863 in the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico. I have not yet identified the specific location, but it likely was in the municipality of Armadillo de los Infante.1
Marriage
Refugio married my 2nd great-grandmother Maria Aurelia Compean on 18 October 1883 in the parish of San José, located in Villa de Yturbidge (now Villa Hidalgo), a municipality in the state of San Luis Potosí.2
Aurelia (called “Little Grandma” by our family) immigrated to the U.S. in 1919 joining some of her children and great-grandchildren in Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California.3,4 Refugio died before the family immigrated.5,6 Consequently, my living family members never knew anything about him, including his given name.
The Original Record
Maria Aurelia Compean.
I wrote just a couple months ago about the recent discovery of this marriage record and of my 2nd great-grandfather’s given name of Refugio. Finding Refugio and Aurelia’s marriage record provided the first piece of (long-awaited) primary and direct evidence of their marriage as well as of my 2nd great-grandfather’s name. But I did not spend much time in that post analyzing the actual marriage record.
At that time, I was able to glean some key pieces of information from this Spanish language record (I do not speak Spanish, and my reading ability is very rudimentary). But to properly analyze the record for genealogical evidence, I needed to understand this record better.
That’s where my Spanish-fluent retired Dad comes in; I assigned a translation to him as homework last week. I think Dad enjoyed getting to read in-depth the marriage record for his great-grandparents and helping me piece together their history.
Pre-Marriage Investigations
The record referenced in this blog post is what the Spanish Catholic church refers to as a pre-marriage investigation report (called informaciones matrimoniales in the Mexican church). These investigations were conducted by the parish priest, prior to marrying a couple, to ensure that the couple met the church’s requirements for marriage.
The honor of the Catholic Church as an institution was maintained by being certain that a full investigation was conducted and the parties were free from (that is, they were not in violation of) the impediments imposed by Catholic canon law.7
Informacion Matrimonial
Below is the digitized copy of the marriage investigation record for my 3rd great-grandparents. Note that it spans two pages in the volume, and is rich with genealogical information.
Marriage investigation record for Refugio Nieto and Maria Aurelia Compean. Courtesy of FamilySearch. Click image for a larger view.
The Record Translation
Following is the verbatim translation provided by my father. Since Dad used parenthesis and brackets for his notes, I am enclosing mine {in braces}.8In Dad’s own words, “The translation is a bit rough partially because the document is in old Spanish.” 9
For each part to the record, I have inserted the corresponding section from the digitized record above, to more easily refer to it while reading the translation.
{Introduction by the Priest & Statement by the Groom}
Marriage information {for Refugio Nieto}
Male spouse
In the village of Ytarbido (?) {Yturbide} on 20 September, 1883, before me Father Domingo Torres, Refugio presented himself to reveal his desire to marry with Aurelia Compeon. Declaring his petition, and understanding the importance of the obligation of his desire, understanding well the Christian doctrine and the gravity of his affirmation, I received before God and the cross, by his faith he answered all the questions he was asked, agreeable to the general instructions of the diocese, that he is a resident of the district of Temascal {also Temazcal, a village in the muncipality of Armadillo de los Infante}, unmarried of 21 years of age, of Tedra {possibly Pedro} Nieto and of Fabriana {likely Fabiana} Mesa who are alive, who desires to wed Aurelia Compeon per the requirements of the Roman Apostolic Catholic Church, with his petition he affirms that he has no ties of consequence to another marriage, nor to another woman, nor to the sister of the proposed spouse, nor a vow of chastity, nor any liability of criminal or civil dishonesty. By this proposed marriage contract with respect for the spouse, being of clear conscience free of any burden I declare by the Church to enter marriage of my own free will without urging, force, or compelling, and I believe this to be true of my future spouse. All I have put forth is true and honest.
[The signatures may be from a church witness and Father Torres]
{Statement by the Bride}
Female spouse
On the same date, Aurelia Compeon appeared to declare her intention to marry Refugio Nieto. Declaring her petition, and understanding the importance of the obligation of her desire, understanding well the Christian doctrine and the gravity of his affirmation, I received this statement as required, by her faith she answered all the questions she was asked, agreeable to the general instructions of the diocese, that she is a resident of the district of Temascal {same village as Refugio}, unmarried of 18 years of age, of Santiago Compeon now deceased and Eutimia Sanches who is alive, who desires to wed Refugio Nieto per the requirements of the Roman Apostolic Catholic Church, with his petition he affirms that he has no ties of consequence to another marriage, nor to another man, nor to the brother of the proposed spouse, nor a vow of chastity, nor any liability of criminal or civil dishonesty. By this proposed marriage contract with respect for the spouse, being of clear conscience free of any burden I declare by the Church to enter marriage of my own free will without urging, force, or compelling, and I believe this to be true of my future spouse. All I have put forth is true and honest.
[The signatures may be from a church witness and Father Torres]
{Statement by the First Witness}
First witness
The petitioner Refugio Nieto in support of his declaration presented his first witness Antonio Flores who understood the importance of his oath, rightfully offered to speak the truth to answer all that was asked, and doing so for this matter, that he is a resident of the district of Temascal, 57 years of age married. He knows the petitioners to free of marriage and knows of no obstacles about what has been asked. All I have put forth is true and honest.
[The signatures may be from a church witness and Father Torres]
{Statement by the Second Witness}
Second witness
The petitioner Refugio Nieto in support of his declaration presented his second witness Vicente Garcia who understood the importance of his oath, rightfully offered to speak the truth to answer all that was asked, and doing so for this matter, that he is a resident of the district of Temascal, 69 years of age married. He knows the petitioners to free of marriage and knows of no obstacles about what has been asked. All I have put forth is true and honest.
[The signatures may be from a church witness and Father Torres]
{Certification by the Priest}
Consent with the required waiting, this petition is made public from September 23 to October 7, 1883.
This marriage was verified October 18, 1883.
Evidence Analysis
What sort of new information items did this record present to me to analyze as evidence?
My rudimentary Spanish reading ability at the time of discovery allowed me to:
Identify their date and place of marriage.
Identify the given name for my Nieto 2nd great-grandfather Refugio.
Identify the names of Refugio Nieto’s parents (my 3rd gg).
Confirm the names of Maria Aurelia Compean’s parents (my other 3rd gg).
What new information did I learn from Dad’s translation?
That 3rd great-grandfather Jose Compean was already dead by this time. This helps me narrow the scope a bit in searching for a church death record for Jose.
Because the parish is located in Villa de Yturbide, I assumed that was also the home town of Refugio when I attempted to read the original document, but Dad’s translation indicates both parties lived in the village of Temascal. Since Temascal lies in the municipality of nearby Armadillo de los Infante and is served by the parish of San Isabél (established 1610), I have a bit of research to do to determine why my 3rd great-grandparents married outside of their home parish.
In re-reading that post, I noticed that I mention Great-Grandfather José’s maternal surname of “Sanchez” being they key identifying factor in busting down this brick wall. A note written on the back of my great-grandmother Maria’s border entry card, which I had ignored for years, mentions her being seen and caught with a José Sanchez.1 I also mentioned having only recently discovered that Sanchez was José’s maternal surname. Until this maternal surname discovery, the name José Sanchez meant nothing to me.
Handwritten note on the back of the border entry card for Maria Nieto. Source: Ancestry.com.
This made me realize that I have not yet written about that maternal surname discovery.
I have blogged quite a bit about my great-grandfather’s line being one of my biggest brick walls.This is because nobody in our family seems to know any significant details about Great-Grandfather José Robledo–including his place of birth or the names of his parents. Even his sole living child doesn’t have this information; Jose died when that child was still very young, and before my dad was even born.
The First U.S. Record Clue
I tried a number of years ago to obtain a copy of Great-Grandfather José’s death certificate from the County of Los Angeles, but this mail-in request only resulted in a notice that they could not find his record. So on a work holiday back in mid-March, I set out in-person to order a long list of birth and death records from the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk Birth, Death, and Marriage Records Section in Norwalk, California. This time they found it! On 1 May 2015, I was thrilled to find in my mailbox an informational copy of the certificate of death for my great-grandfather.
My great-grandfather José “Joe” Robledo” died on 4 July 1937 in his Los Angles home, of something “non tuberculor” pertaining to his left lung (family has told me he had pneumonia).2 The certificate identifies the informant as Raphael Robledo. This would be Joe’s 22 year old son, my great-uncle Refugio Raphael Robledo.
Apparently even his oldest son Refugio–the baby who immigrated with him in 1915–did not know much about his father’s Mexico origins, or whomever took the information from Refugio did not think it necessary to provide much detail. Because Great-Grandfather José’s place of birth is noted as “Unknown” in Mexico.
But…Great-Uncle Refugio did not let me down!
Certificate of Death for José “Joe” Robledo, 1937, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County, California. Click on image for a larger view.
This death certificate is the first piece of evidence I have ever found that identifies the parents of my great-grandfather José Robledo. Great-Uncle Refugio reported his paternal grandparents as Celbario [?] Robledo and Mary Sanches–both also of Unknown, Mexico.
A close-up look at the parents’ names recorded on José Robledo’s 1937 death certificate.
The First Mexico Record Clue
The following week, I hit quite a roll on those non-indexed, non-searchable, browseable-only Mexico Catholic church records on FamilySearch. Slowly, while painstakingly going page-by-page reading a language that is not my own, the genealogy gods smiled down on me, because I found a handful of key records that I had been seeking for years.
Including the 15 July 1908 marriage record for my great-grandparents!
After 15+ years of searching, for the second time in the span of a single week (on 7 May 2015, to be exact), I came across a piece of evidence providing the names of José Robledo’s parents. The church record for his marriage to my great-grandmother Maria Nieto identifies his parents as Silveño Robledo and Jesus Sanches.3
The 1908 Mexico Catholic church marriage record for my great-grandparents José Robledo and Maria Nieto. Santa Isabel parish, Armadillo de los Infante, San Luis Potosí, Mexico. Courtesy of FamilySearch. Click image for a larger view.
There was that unusual given name again for my 2nd great-grandfather. What was noted as Celbario on my great-grandfather’s certificate of death is written on his marriage record as Silveño. Despite this naming conflict, I lean more towards the one noted on his marriage record, since–according to that record–José’s father was present at the ceremony.
A closer look at the 1908 church marriage record for José Robledo and Maria Nieto, identifying the names of José’s parents. Courtesy of FamilySearch.
Once again, Great-Grandfather José’s mother is noted as a Sanches. That part is consistent across all three records. Although here her given name is noted as Jesus, not Mary, as reported on the death certificate. While Jesus is generally thought of as a male name, I find quite a few women in my Mexican family history with the name Jesus. It is usually a Maria Jesus, applying the traditional Mexican naming convention of a given name (Jesus) preceded by a saint or biblical name (usually Maria for females). Although in this case, Maria and Jesus are both biblical names ;-). I discussed this convention in a post I wrote back in April, about my 4th great-grandfather José Victoriano Compeán.
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Two new records, in the span of one week, identifying my 2nd great-grandmother’s paternal surname as Sanches, turned on that lightbulb in my head last week when re-reading the note on the back of my great-grandmother Maria Hermalinda Nieto’s border entry card, which referenced a José Sanches.4 I had found José Robledo’s border record at long last!
Birth Date Discrepency
Aside from disagreement over the names of his parents, these two new documents bring forth a discrepancy over great-grandfather José Robledo’s date of birth. Many of the U.S. records I have for José indicate an 1875 year or birth. However his death certificate clearly states 1878 as his year of birth.5 And his 1908 marriage record, which identifies him as 30 years old, also supports an 1878 birth year.6 Yet, oddly, that border entry record from 1915 also indicates an age of 30 years for Jose, which would have him born about 1885.7
So I certainly have some work to do here.
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Next Steps
While these two significant finds (three really, including the border record confirmation) put me 99% closer to verifying the names of my great-grandfather José Robledo’s parents, I still have more work to do for that task. The key missing document is a baptism record and/or a civil birth registration for José Robledo. Either of these documents should allow me to verify:
The correct/full name of José’s mother. Is it Maria Jesus Sanches? Just Maria Sanches? Or just Jesus Sanches?
The correct name of José’s father. Is it Celbario Robledo? Or Silveño Robledo?
The correct date of birth for Jose.
In the last couple of days, I looked through every single page of those non-indexed, non-searchable, browseable-only Catholic church baptism records for 1878 and 1879 in the parish where José and my great-grandmother married, and found nothing at all referencing a male child with parents’ names similar to Silveño or Celbario Robledo and a Jesus or Mary/Maria Sanches. So I need to check the records for neighboring parishes and/or for additional years. Once I exhaust that effort, I will look into civil registrations for birth.
20 This photo is undated, but looks like it could have been the bridge that stood between 1905 and 1932. [International Foot Bridge, Laredo, Texas], Postcard, n.d.; digital images, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth13260/ : accessed June 20, 2012), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Laredo Public Library, Laredo, Texas.I just blogged about finding the rest of the border crossing records for my paternal grandfather’s immediate family, who immigrated to the U.S. on 27 October 1915 via the Laredo footbridge in Laredo, Webb County, Texas. This discovery busted down a 15+ year brick wall, and came about by taking another closer look at a (previously dismissed) notation on the back of the border crossing record for my great grandmother Maria Hermalinda Nieto (1887-1973).1
That breakthrough has prompted me to try to uncover another immigration mystery that has plagued me for a good decade…with whom did my 2nd great grandmother, Maria Aurealia Compean (1864-1963)–Maria Hermalinda’s mother–cross when she entered this country from that same Laredo, Texas footbridge?
About Maria Aurelia Compean
My 2nd great grandmother Maria Aurelia Compean Sanches–using the traditional Mexican dual surname convention–was born on 01 January 1864 in a municipality of the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico.2 She went by the name Aurelia, but our extended family refers to her as “Little Grandma.”
Aurelia married my 2nd great grandfather Refugio Nieto (1863-1909)on 18 October 1883 in Villa de Yturbide (now Villa de Hidalgo), another municipality in San Luis Potosí, Mexico.3 Family says that her husband Refugio died in 1909. Little Grandma’s obituary claims she gave birth to 21 children, but I have only been able to account for 5 of them thus far.4
Aurelia, along with at least several of her grown children and their families, immigrated to the United States, fleeing the Mexican Revolution after losing their land.5 Aurelia lived at different times with several of these children in Los Angeles County, California, spending her latter years with daughter Maria Hermalinda–my great-grandmother–as well as my father, who was raised by his grandmother Maria Hermalinda.
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Immigrating to the U.S.
The 1920 U.S. census indicates that Aurelia immigrated in 1919.6 This same census notes that her daughter Maria Hermalinda, along with Maria Hermalinda’s husband and two oldest children, immigrated in 1916 (it was actually 1915).7 This census, which enumerates what I think is a large extended family group together, shows different years for the other members of Aurelia’s family–she is the only person noted as immigrating in 1919.89101112
Robledo, Nieto, Sanches, Perez Households. 1920 US Census, Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California. Courtesy of Ancestry.com. Click to view larger image.
Taking a look again at Aurelia’s 1963 obituary, it too notes that she came to the U.S. in 1919. But other than indicating, “She and many of the family fled Mexico during the Revolution of 1919, and Mrs. Nieto [her husband’s surname] came to Long Beach.” the obit does not indicate specifics about the family members with whom she immigrated.13
Obituary clipped by my great aunt out of the Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California Independent. From page. 16 February 1963.
At 55 years of age when she crossed over that border, there is just no way that my dad’s family would have allowed non-English-speaking Little Grandma to immigrate all by herself, and then make the trek to California alone. But with whom did Little Grandma immigrate?
I would think that she entered and traveled with one of the family members with whom she first lived in the U.S.–that big extended family group on the 1920 census. It makes sense that a person or persons with whom she would live here would escort her the entire way, from her central Mexico home village to the Laredo border entry, then across Texas, New Mexico, Arizona, and finally California to her new home in Long Beach.
Yet no one on that 1920 census group shares her 1919 immigration year.
Immigration year…
The 1920 U.S. census asks in what year a person immigrated to the U.S.14 Not in what year a person last entered the U.S. A person could officially immigrate (with the intention to stay), yet continue traveling between the two countries. So it is very likely that someone from that big 1920 census extended family group did escort Little Grandma in 1919; the census simply notes their official immigration date, not dates of any additional border crossings since that official immigration date.
Revisiting Her Border Record
Aurelia did indeed immigrate into the U.S. in 1919–on 14 March 1919, to be exact. But there is no notation of her traveling with anyone.15
Little Grandma is recorded as Aurelia Compana on the border entry card; it should be Aurelia Compean. It is interesting to note that she is identified with just her paternal surname of Compean. This is consistent with how her daughter (my great grandmother) was recorded–as Maria Nieto, under her paternal surname.16 Aurelia’s son-in-law (my great grandfather, Maria’s husband), however, was recorded under just his maternal surname as Jose Sanchez, which is what made it so difficult for me to track down my great grandfather’s border record. I spent over a decade looking for his border entry record, complicated by not knowing his mother’s name until this month.17 When asked her name, if Little Grandma had answered according to Mexican tradition, she would have provided the name Aurelia Compean Sanches. Yet border officials did not record her surname as Sanches.5
RESEARCH TIP: Mexican Surnames & Immigration Records
When looking for individuals among these Mexican border crossing records, it is often necessary to search for them under all applicable surnames: just the paternal surname, just the maternal surname, and the traditional dual surname. I even advise that for married or widowed women, you check for them under their husband’s surnames using this same approach. Although women in Mexico do not legally take their husband’s name upon marriage, those who immigrated to the U.S. might be mistakenly recorded under their husband’s name, as per traditional U.S. naming customs. It is not unusual to find one of the surnames (usually the paternal surname, because it comes first in the dual surname order) listed as a middle name.
Also very interesting is that Aurelia’s border card notes N. Laredo [Nuevo Laredo], in the state of Tampe [Tamaulipas], Mexico, as her last residence.19 Not the municipality in the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico, in which she lived her entire life! Had Little Grandma been detained on the Mexican side of the border when trying to immigrate back in 1915, 1916, or 1917 with other family members. Or had she voluntarily moved and stayed there (perhaps with another child?), while her extended family continued on to their new home and country, thinking there was nothing left for her back in San Luis Potosí? Perhaps the revolution quickly escalated in her home area in 1919, forcing Aurelia to flee sooner than the prearranged date on which one of her Long Beach family members was scheduled to go back to San Luis Potsí to escort her the entire way, requiring her to set up temporary residence on the Mexico side of the Laredo border point until that family member could get to her at the border.
Although the back of her border entry card has notations that seem to indicate she naturalized, my family does not think that Little Grandma ever became a U.S. citizen, and I have not yet found naturalization records for her.
Juvenal Nieto, WWI Draft Registration Card, dated 12 September 1918. Ancestry.com. U.S., World War I Draft Registration Cards, 1917-1918 [database on-line]. Provo, UT, USA: Ancestry.com Operations Inc, 2005.Like my great grandmother Maria, Aurelia’s son Juvenal Joseph Nieto (1898-1978) had already immigrated to the U.S. by this time–noted as 1915 on the 1920 U.S. census, although I have not yet found a 1915 border entry card for him.20 Juvenal was working in a copper mine up in Butte, Silver Bow County, Montana when he had to register for the World War I draft on 12 September 1918. On his draft card, Uncle Juvenal indicates that his mother–just six months prior to her entry into the U.S.–was still living in San Luis [Potosí], Mexico.21 So either Aurelia moved to Nuevo Laredo less than six months prior to crossing into the U.S., or she had already moved and her son Juvenal just wasn’t aware of that fact or of her new residence.
California-Bound
As previously mentioned, and noted in the 1920 U.S. census, several of Aurelia’s grown children had already immigrated in 1915, 1916, and 1917 and were living in Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California.
Her border card indicates that Aurelia immigrated with Long Beach, California, specified as her intended destination. Ten months after immigrating via the Laredo border entry point, Aurelia is living with her extended family in Long Beach when enumerated on 10 January 1920.
Same-Date Crossings
Because this technique helped me to finally identify my great-grandfather’s border crossing record, I decided to peruse the names of everyone who is indexed as having crossed at Laredo on the same date as Aurelia Compean. Ancestry’s “Border Crossings: From Mexico to U.S., 1895-1964” index retrieves records for 132 others who crossed on 14 March 1919. I find no one else identified with the surname Compean, with her married name Nieto, or with her maternal surname Sanches. I find one Robledo, an Adolfa, whom I do not recognize, also with a last residence in Nuevo Laredo, but listed as traveling alone.22 I find no one else identified from the state of San Luis Potosí, Mexico.
So I will have to investigate Adolfa Robledo a bit more, and start going through all 131 additional records for clues that might help me identify a possible unknown family member from the same area of Mexico where Aurelia’s family lived.
Although as previously discussed, it may simply be that one of Aurelia’s Long Beach family members traveled back to Mexico to accompany Little Grandma across the border and to California–in which case, a 14 March 1919 border entry record would not have been created for them. However, I might find that 14 March 1919 date noted on the back of an earlier border entry card that would have been created on that family member’s official immigration date. I have found similar such notations on other border entry cards, tracking additional reentry dates.
Family Immigration Timeline
I have started a timeline to help me keep track of the facts pertaining to my family’s immigration while I continue to piece together this part of their history.
27 October 1915: Daughter Maria Hermalinda Nieto, son-in-law Jose Robledo, and their two children Guadalupe and Refugio Robledo immigrate to the U.S. via the Laredo footbridge between Laredo, Texas, and Nuveo Laredo, Mexico.
12 September 1918: Son Juvenal Joseph Nieto is living and working in Butte, Montana, at the time of the WWI draft. He indicates his mother is still living in [the state of] San Luis [Potosi], Mexico at this time.
14 March 1919: Aurelia Compean crosses into the U.S., via the Laredo footbridge.
In addition to reviewing the border records for those other 132 people who crossed the Laredo footbridge the same date as Aurelia, I will have to re-visit that 1920 U.S. census to start tracking and tracing the other extended family members in hopes of finding clues and evidence that help me identify who traveled with Aurelia to her new country and home. I will update this timeline as I uncover more details.
This photo is undated, but looks like it could have been the bridge that stood between 1905 and 1932. [International Foot Bridge, Laredo, Texas], Postcard, n.d.; digital images, (http://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth13260/ : accessed June 20, 2012), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, http://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Laredo Public Library, Laredo, Texas.My 19th entry in Amy Johnson Crow’s “52 Ancestors in 52 Weeks” family history blogging challenge for 2015.
The challenge: have one blog post each week devoted to a specific ancestor. It could be a story, a biography, a photograph, an outline of a research problem — anything that focuses on one ancestor.
Amy’s 2015 version of this challenge focuses on a different theme each week.
The theme for week 19 is – There’s a Way: What ancestor found a way out of a sticky situation? You might also think of this in terms of transportation or migration.
Four generations of Compean women. My great-aunt Lupe Robledo (2nd from the left), flanked by (L-R): her daughter Esther, her mother (my great-grandmother) Maria Nieto, and her grandmother (my 2nd-great grandmother Aurelia Compean.
My 19th ancestor is my great-aunt Guadalupe “Lupe” Maria Robledo (1910-1975 ). According to the dual surname convention used in her country of birth, Mexico, her full name is Guadalupe Maria Robledo Nieto.
This post is really about the way my paternal grandfather’s Mexico-born family came to the U.S. Not so much about a particular ancestor. However, since the blog challenge requires we identify a focus ancestor, and since I have already blogged about my both of my great-grandparents for this same challenge, I had to choose a new ancestor or relative. So I have chosen Aunt Lupe, since she is one of the four immediate family members who immigrated to the U.S., and because her border crossing record was one of the two gems I discovered on Monday.
About Aunt Lupe
I have very vague memories of my great-aunt Lupe. She died when I was a very little girl.
Guadalupe Maria Robledo Nieto was the oldest of eight children born to my great-grandparents, Jose Robledo (1875-1937) and Maria Hermalinda Nieto (1887-1973). She is also one of two children born to Jose and Maria in Mexico; my grandfather Benjamin Robledo (1919-1997) was the first child born in the United States.
Lupe was born 30 June 1910 in the state of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. I have not yet found a baptism or civil birth registration record from Mexico, confirming the date and place–but it is very likely she was born in the family’s hometown of Tomascal (Temescal) in the municipality of Armadillo de los Infante, state of San Luis Potosi. From what I can tell, she was not given the traditional Mexican order for given names, which would have been Maria Guadalupe, with the saint/biblical name of Maria preceding her primary name of Guadalupe. But since I have not yet found her baptism or civil registration for birth, I can’t be certain of that.
This is all the biographical info I plan to share about Aunt Lupe at this time, because the real focus of this post is on the next major phase of Lupe’s life that I have identified so far–immigrating to the U.S. with her parents and baby brother.
Immigrating to the U.S.
Dad, his cousins, and I have always heard that his father’s family fled to the U.S. to escape the Mexican Revolution (1910-1920). The family supposedly had land and lost everything during the revolution. They came seeking a new home, a new life, a fresh start. Much of their extended family immigrated here, in phases, with a large group–that included my great-grandparents–then migrating to Long Beach, Los Angeles County, California.
The 1920 U.S. census indicates that the whole immediate family group immigrated in 1916.1 The 1930 U.S. census claims it was 1915.2
For over 15 years, I have tried to find documentation that would identify where and when my grandfather’s immediate family crossed into the U.S. For over 15 years, I have pulled my hair out and banged my head against a wall, each time my attempted search failed.
Two days ago, after 15+ years, the search came to an end.
I found them. All of them. Finally!
Finding Great-Grandmother Maria First
The first documented evidence I came across that indicated the way my grandfather’s family immigrated to the U.S. was the discovery of my great-grandmother Maria “Nana” Nieto’s naturalization records at the National Archives in Laguna Niguel, California, back in 2003-2005 (I didn’t note back then when I found a document). Those documents reference Laredo, Texas, as her point of entry and confirmed entry in October 1915.3 The exact date was noted wrong on those naturalization documents, but I will save that document’s analysis for another post.
A bit of digging around for information about Laredo, Texas, as a point of entry from Mexico during that era indicated that the Laredo footbridge, over the famous Rio Grande, is how immigrants in 1915 would have entered the U.S. via Laredo. I wrote about the bridge’s history in a 2012 blog post about my great-grandmother Maria’s immigration. According to Wikipedia, the foot bridge (now called the Gateways to the Americas International Bridge) was first constructed in the 1880s, was destroyed by a flood in 1905, then repaired, and was rebuilt in 1932, continuing this cycle through present day.4
Once Ancestry had the digitized US-Mexico border records indexed, the information on Nana’s naturalization records allowed me to find her border entry record in 2012.
Nana, or Maria, is identified under her paternal surname of Nieto (what we would think of as a maiden name), not under Robledo (what we think of as a married name). Back in 2012, this had me a bit stumped, as to why my great-grandmother was not recorded as Maria Robledo. I did not then fully understand the dual surname convention used in Mexico, and that Mexican women do not take their husband’s name. Mexican immigrant women generally only become identified by their husband’s name after coming to the U.S., on U.S.-generated records, such as a census, city directory, or death record.
She was admitted via the bridge, on 27 October 1915. The “2” in the date is hard to read on her card, but further evidence confirms the 27th as the date.
The front of the border entry card for Maria Nieto. Source: Ancestry.com.
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Maria’s border entry card indicates that she was married, that she was accompanied by “baby Refugio Robledo,” and she was entering the country for “shopping.”5
Note that Refugio’s border entry card more clearly indicates the date that he and his mother Maria entered the U.S.–October 27th. 6
Nana had two children by this time, including older daughter Guadalupe. So why wasn’t Maria accompanied by Lupe as well? Why not also accompanied by her husband, my great-grandfather Jose? Why was the family split up at the border? Where were Jose and Lupe?
If the family had been split up, for whatever reason, one can reasonably assume why an infant is the child who would be left with the mother. Maria would have been nursing baby Refugio; not exactly something her husband Jose could do.
Border entry card for baby Refugio Robledo. The back of the card (outlined in orange) contains notes about additional dates that Refugio traveled back and forth between the U.S. and Mexico as an adult. Source: Ancestry.com.
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Discovering Great-Grandfather in an Old Clue
Two years after finding the border entry cards for Maria and her baby son Refugio, I still had not been able to find out what happened to older daughter Lupe and husband Jose Robledo.
Until this past Monday.
Thinking that I might focus this blog post topic on Baby Refugio’s way into the U.S., I took another look at the border records for both Refugio and his mother Maria Nieto. Nothing. No Jose Robledo or Guadalupe Robledo with the right birth and family info anywhere. I looked at EVERY person recorded as crossing on that same date. Also for the date before, and the date after. I looked at every Robledo and Nieto who crossed in October 1915. Still nothing.
But…then…there…it…was…staring me right in the face.
The whole time.
I just hadn’t ever registered and thought-out the note before. Perhaps because it never even meant anything to me, until a month ago.
The back of Maria Nieto’s border entry card. Note the reference to Jose Sanchez (outlined in red). I have flipped the same back 180 degrees to show a later 1945 note (in blue) pertaining to her immigration status. Source: Ancestry.com.
The back of Maria’s border entry card has a handwritten note about her being caught with a Jose Sanchez.7
Was in office at same time with Jose Sanchez but denied knowing him — subsequently found with him in the street and returned to Mex to appear for B.__.__. in the morning — suspicion of __.
I had seen that note many many times, and dismissed it every time.
The name Jose Sanchez meant nothing to me. I had no such person in my database. Jose Sanchez must have been a stranger, someone she ran into at the border. But, then, why was she later seen with him again on the streets? Was she so scared after being detained in a strange new country, that she gravitated towards the only other person there she knew–the person she had met in the immigration office?
This time, it clicked.
Sanchez.
My great-grandfather Jose Robledo’s maternal surname is Sanchez. According to Mexican naming conventions (those darn dual-surnames again!), his full name is Jose Robledo Sanchez [a 2nd given name has not been found for him]. Until last month, I did not even know that. Because last month, another 15+ year brick wall was finally busted, when I found Mexico Catholic parish records identifying my great-grandfather’s parents’ names–which no currently living member of our family ever knew. Until my discovery last month.
Either Jose intentionally misled border officials by giving them his maternal surname as his only surname, or, as is so often the case with Mexican immigrants, U.S. officials (not understanding the dual-surname convention) recorded the maternal (last) surname as the lone surname.
I had seen and dismissed a 27 October 1915 border entry record for a Jose Sanchez. Stupid mistake. Especially considering the note about a Jose Sanchez on the back of Maria’s record.
BINGO!
That border record for Jose Sanchez matched the birth info for my great-grandfather and noted that he was accompanied by a daughter named Guadalupe! Even better…like Maria’s card, Jose’s border entry card contains an identical handwritten note on the back–indicating that he was detained and caught with a Maria Nieto.8 My Maria Nieto! His Maria Nieto!
At long last…my great-grandparents. Identified together. Detained together. Later caught again together. And hopefully, allowed to cross together.
Border entry card for my great-grandfather Jose Robledo [recorded as Jose Sanchez], traveling with daughter Guadalupe (marked in red). The front of the card indicates that he has been in the U.S. before (marked in blue), so I have some more hunting to do! The back of the card is displayed up top, with the reference to Maria Nieto (outlined in red). Source: Ancestry.com[contentblock id=2]
The record for this Jose Sanchez, my great-grandfather, indicates that he was accompanied by his daughter Guadalupe.
And Guadalupe Makes Four!
This discovery allowed me to quickly find the last border crossing record, for Aunt Lupe.
Guadalupe Sanchez [Robledo] is recorded as 7 years old (we think she was only 5 years old), from the right hometown, accompanied by her father Jose Sanchez.9
All four of my paternal grandfather’s immediate family entered the U.S. on 27 October 1915.
But, why is Aunt Lupe recorded with the name Sanchez? Sanchez is not one of her dual-surnames. Her full Mexican name is Maria Guadalupe Robledo Nieto. It is very likely that because her father Jose was recorded under just his second/maternal surname Sanchez (border officials probably thought Robledo was a middle name), officials simply assumed–like U.S. children–that Mexican children inherit a single surname from their father. Hence, Guadalupe Sanchez was born at the border.
Border entry card for Guadalupe Robledo [recorded as Guadalupe Sanchez], accompanied by her father. Source: Ancestry.com.[contentblock id=49]
Celebrating the 100th Anniversary
While preparing for this blog post theme, and in reviewing these records again over the past couple weeks, I had another significant discovery…if my family immigrated in 1915, then this coming October 27th marks the 100th anniversary of them crossing the border and crossing the Laredo footbridge to their new country.
The 100th anniversary! Coming up this year!
How can one pass up the chance to walk where their ancestors walked, exactly 100 years ago?! To stand where their ancestors stood exactly one century prior, staring across the Rio Grande, taking that walk (and leap) of hope, into a new country?
This gal ain’t passing up that chance!
I’m headed to Laredo, Texas, this fall, to walk across (not drive across) the international bridge into the border town of Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, then back across the Rio Grande again into the United States. The way my great-grandparents and their two oldest children did it. The actual bridge from 1915 no longer stands. It’s a newer bridge. So it won’t be in their exact footsteps, but it’s as close as I can get to retracing their steps. And best of all, I’m taking Dad with me! He was raised by my great-grandmother Maria Neto, his grandmother. She was the only mother he ever really had. I can’t wait to stand on that bridge with him, sharing this emotional experience, as we both reflect upon what all that Laredo bridge symbolizes for our family.
2008 photo of the current bridge. Creative Commons photo from Wikimedia.
Follow-up Questions
Finding these final two border crossing records answered some key questions about the Mexico-born members of my paternal grandfather’s immediate family, but it also raises many more, to which I will most likely never get answers.
Why were my great-grandparents detained in a government office?
Why did they deny knowing each other when questioned in that office?
If they were in the same office, pretending not to know each other, how on earth did they keep little Lupe from crying out and running to her mother, giving the cover story away?
Were they indeed returned to Mexico, for further questioning the next day?
So would that make their official immigration date the day after October 27th…the 28th?
What sort of questioning took place the next day, and are there records?
What prompted officials to release them and allow them to continue on their journey?
My heart breaks for the terror they must have experienced. The fear that must have forced Maria and her husband Jose to deny knowing each other, perhaps thinking it might protect the other person–allowing the other spouse and at least one child safe passage if one set were detained or sent back. The fear that they might be sent back, all journey preparations for naught, returned to a war-torn country. The fear that their family might be separated…across a border, in separate countries.
What admiration I have for these two people, who lost everything, faced this fearful situation, and persevered. Persevered to make a new home for their young family, to grow their family with more children, and to instill such a profound sense of family and love among generations of children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and now 2nd great-grandchildren. Maria and Jose were always poor here, but they left a very rich legacy.
Lessons Learned
Having missed the final two border entry cards multiple times over the past two years has taught me some valuable lessons.
ALWAYS look for records and references to Mexican immigrants under both of their conventional surnames.
ALWAYS look for records and reference to Mexican immigrants’ children under any combination of the parents’ dual surnames (all four surnames).
ALWAYS pay close attention to, and frequently re-visit, notes written on the back of or in the margins of records.
My last two blog posts focused on my 2nd great-grandmother Maria Aurelia Compean (1858-1963), and in particular on the discrepancies over her birth year and age. Aurelia immigrated to the U.S. in 1919, with some of her children, from their home state of San Luis Potosi, Mexico. She spent the last 44 years of her life starting anew in Los Angeles County, California. Aurelia, according to U.S. Census records and family recollections, primarily lived at different times with two of her children — her daughter (my great-grandmother) Maria Hermalinda “Nana” Nieto (1887-1973), and her son (my 2nd great-uncle) Juvenal Joseph Nieto (1898-1978).
Aurelia, affectionately referred to as “Little Grandma” was well known by my paternal grandfather and his siblings, and also by my dad and his own cousins. Because Dad went to live with his grandmother (our “Nana”) when he was five years old, he also lived with and grew very close to his Little Grandma, who resided with her daughter Nana at that time. Dad recently shared with me how traumatic it was for him to lose his great-grandmother in 1963. Although I have only just started to make progress on Aurelia’s history, her name has been well known to me despite never having met her.
The name of Aurelia’s husband, however, has been a big mystery. All we have ever known is that his surname was Nieto, and that he died in Mexico before his family immigrated here.
Name Not Known
Dad doesn’t remember ever hearing a first name for his great-grandfather (Little Grandma’s husband). No one in our branch of the Nieto-Robledo family knew his name. Not even Nana’s lone living child (my great-uncle, and Aurelia’s grandson). In a family history questionnaire that I asked my great-uncle to fill out back in 2003, my great-uncle left the name of his maternal grandfather blank (he only filled in the name of his grandmother, Aurelia). The 1963 obituary for Aurelia fails to include my 2nd great-grandfather’s name — he is simply referred to as “her husband.” How does a spouse’s name get left out of an obituary? Aurelia still had living children at that point, who certainly knew their father’s name. Didn’t they realize what sort of frustration this would plunge future generations of family historians into???
Clipped obituary, from family files. Independent. Long Beach, California, United States Of America.
And for years, I have struck out on locating a Mexico marriage record for Aurelia and her husband, or a baptism record for their children Maria and Juvenal.
Possibly Raphael
Over the last handful of years, I have come across other grandchildren, grandchildren-in-law, and great-grandchildren of Aurelia who have public trees on Ancestry. Those that identified a spouse for Aurelia recored him with the name Raphael — although no source documents are attached on any of the trees as evidence to support that name.
But, Raphael became the working name for my 2d great-grandfather, as I kept searching on Ancestry and FamilySearch for records that might substantiate that fact.
Last month, I finally received a copy of my great-grandmother Nana’s 1973 death certificate from Los Angeles County. Noted on her death certificate is the name of her father (Aurelia’s husband)…Raphael Nieto.
The same name in those Ancestry trees. We were starting to get warmer.
Personal data section of the 1973 Los Angeles County death certificate for my great-grandmother, Maria Hermalinda Nieto (married name Robledo).
The death certificate identifies Nana’s second youngest son, my now-deceased uncle Alfred Robledo, as the informant. So Uncle Alfred was most likely the person who provided the names of his mother’s parents. Nana’s father is listed as Raphael Nieto. But the maiden name of Nana’s mother is incorrect. Nana’s mother (Aurelia) is identified with the maiden name Sanchez. It should be Compean. Sanches is Aurelia’s maternal surname (apellido materno), not her paternal surname (apellido paterno) — or what we call a maiden name. Uncle Alfred was clearly not too sure about his grandparents’ names.
I also ordered a copy of Aurelia’s death certificate from Los Angeles County at the same time, however the county sent me a notice that the were unable to locate a death record for her. I had hoped her death certificate would identify a spouse’s name, a name that was hopefully identified by one of Aurelia’s children, who had to know the name of their father.
Possibly Refugio
In that same batch of Los Angeles County vital record requests, I had asked for the 1978 death certificate of my 2nd great-uncle Juvenal, hoping it would provide some clues about Juvenal and Maria’s parents — particularly their father, my 2nd great-grandfather Nieto.
When I received Juvenal’s death certificate in the mail, I encountered a new name for my 2nd great-grandfather — Refugio. The informant on Juvenal’s death certificate is his wife Mary, who might likely have known my 2nd great-grandfather back in Mexico. Mary also got the surname correct (Compean) for Juvenal’s mother, my 2nd great-grandmother Aurelia.
Personal data section of the 1978 Los Angeles County death certificate for my 2nd great-uncle, Juvenal Nieto.
This is the first time I encountered the name Refugio used in connection with my 2nd great-grandfather. But it wasn’t the first time I had heard that name used in connection with my family. Refugio is the name that Aurelia’s daughter Maria (my great-grandmother Nana) gave to her first-born son. My great-grandparents Maria Hermalinda Nieto and Jose Robledo named their first boy Refugio Raphael Robledo (born 1915 in Mexico). There were both of those names…Refugio…and Raphael. It would seem my Nana named her first son after her father.
Was Refugio Raphael the name of my 2nd great-grandfather? Was Raphael the name he preferred to go by, which might explain why those Ancestry trees and my uncle Alfred identify him as Raphael?
The namesake grandson, my now-deceased great-uncle Refugio Raphael Robledo (the baby born in 1915) also preferred to go by the name Raphael, or his parents just called him Raphael, because much of the documentation I have identifies him as Raphael. Although his sole living sibling, and his nieces and nephews, say that he actually went by the nickname of Ray.
The search to learn my 2nd great-grandfather’s name was definitely getting warmer now.
Refugio Confirmed
And then last week, that search grew hot. Really hot.
As stated in my last blog post about my 2nd great-grandmother Aurelia, on May 6th I finally — after 15+ years — found the marriage record for Aurelia and her husband, in the non-indexed/non-searchable browse-only collection of Mexico Catholic church records on FamilySearch! The marriage records identifies my 2nd great-grandfather as Refugio Nieto.
Maria Aurelia Compean married Refugio Nieto (1863-1909) on 18 October 1883 in the Villa de Yturbide (now Villa de Hidalgo), a municipality in San Luis Potosi, Mexico.
Marriage declaration made by Aurelia Compean to Refugio Nieto. From the full record of marriage. FamilySearch.”México, San Luis Potosí, registros parroquiales, 1586-1970,” images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-20440-23372-37?cc=1860864&wc=MC48-NZS:167672101,167668102,168345101 : accessed 6 May 2015), Villa Hidalgo > San José > Información matrimonial 1880-1886 > image 491 of 755; parroquias Católicas, San Luis Potosi (Catholic Church parishes, San Luis Potosi).
Now that I had my groove down browsing through those non-indexed/non-searchable Mexico records on FamilySearch, I was on a roll. That same afternoon I came across another record I had been hunting for 15+ years — the Mexico Catholic church baptism record for my great-grandmother Maria Hermalinda “Nana” Nieto. Nana’s baptism record identifies her parents as Aurelia Compean and Refugio Nieto.
Baptism record for Maria Hermalinda Nieto, 08 November 1997. “México, San Luis Potosí, registros parroquiales, 1586-1970,” images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/pal:/MM9.3.1/TH-1951-20131-27076-52?cc=1860864&wc=MC4Z-RP8:167672201,167672202,167990403 : accessed 13 May 2015), Armadillo de los Infante > Santa Isabel > Bautismos 1877-1892 > image 629 of 943; parroquias Católicas, San Luis Potosi (Catholic Church parishes, San Luis Potosi). Click to view larger image.
I think I may also have found the baptism record for my 2nd great-grandfather Refugio Nieto, but I will save that discussion for another post.
What About Raphael?
At this point, I have to consider Raphael to be a nickname. The name is used by family members too often for it to be dismissed as simply a mistaken name. And since Refugio’s granddaughter Maria Hermalinda (my Nana) named her first-born son Refugio Raphael, I have to think that the name Raphael is rightly associated with my 2nd great-grandfather.
Visiting with Dad this weekend, he had another suggestion. That Raphael might be my 2nd great-grandfather’s Catholic confirmation name. That theory will have to wait to be explored when I have time to browse through the non-indexed/non-searchable Mexico Catholic church confirmation records.
My 23rd ancestor is my 2nd great-grandfather 
