Meet the Russos

I think I should start off with by giving you a general overview of what I'm working with.

I'm interested in every aspect of my family history - both my mother's side and my father's, which are extremely different in nature.  My father's family is from the South, with the majority of the information regarding them originating in South Carolina.  My mom's family has lived in New York for about three generations - three of her four grandparents came to the US from Italy, and the fourth was born in Brooklyn to Italian immigrant parents.



The surname of my mother's paternal line is Russo.  Here is what I know (or think I know) so far:

1) Salvatore Russo was born to Benedetto Russo and a woman, we think her name was Ninfa Laura or Laura Ninfa - something like that - on 18 Feb 1904 in Giosa Marea, Provincia di Messina, Sicily.

2) He came to the United States as a young child or a teen, with no financial help from his father.

3) At some point, he met a woman, Antonina Campisi, most likely when they lived in the same tenement.  They were married in 1925.

4) They had two children in Brooklyn, NY.

5) Salvatore's life was cut short when he died in 1931, from illness.

So, those are the facts.  But what do I really know about Salvatore?

I imagine that he was something like my grandfather, innovative and determined.  Had he not fallen ill, he would have lived a happy, active life, dedicated to his family.  He had to have been exceptionally brave, to travel here to the US on his own at a young age.  I wonder about his motivation - what brought him here?  Was he looking to fulfill his own "American dream"?

More to come regarding the Russos!