Italian Genealogy Workshop
Trace your roots at the Italian Genealogy Workshop.
Join acclaimed genealogist Rich Venezia of Rich Roots Genealogy for a comprehensive workshop on exploring your Italian and Italian-American family history.
Benefitting beginner and seasoned genealogists alike, the workshop will feature four lectures from Venezia with expert insights into the most critical records for tracing your Italian ancestry.
Featured lecture topics include:
- Italians in America: Their Records, Their Stories
- Italian Records: How to Find Your Roots in the Old Country
- Italian Records: Beyond Civil Registration
- Italian Dual Citizenship: Document Procurement and Where Things Stand
Up-to-date information on significant changes to the Italian dual citizenship process will also be discussed.
In addition to these featured topics, the workshop will also include lightning talks by individuals representing archival and genealogical resources specific to Italian genealogy in Western Pennsylvania. These talks will be jam-packed with helpful guidance on valuable record sets for tracing your local family history here in Western Pennsylvania. Among the repositories featured are the University of Pittsburgh Archives & Special Collection and the Heinz History Center.
Attendees will have the opportunity to attend a special curator-led tour of artifacts from the Italian American Collection on view within the museum’s fourth floor Special Collections Gallery.
Discover the breadth of Italian records and American immigration files at your disposal and enrich your genealogical research with the Italian American Program and the Detre Library & Archives.
Admission
Admission is $30 for History Center and Italian Sons and Daughters of America (ISDA) members and $40 for non-members.
This is a hybrid program. Attendees can participate either online or in-person at the Heinz History Center.
The program is presented by the History Center’s Italian American Program & the Detre Library & Archives and generously sponsored by the Italian Sons and Daughters of America (ISDA).
Boxed lunches are available for an additional fee of $16. For any dietary restrictions, please contact [email protected].
Captioning will be provided at this hybrid program.
For more information, contact Sierra Green at 412-454-6361 or [email protected].
About the Presenter
Rich Venezia is a New Jersey native who now calls Philadelphia home, with roots in Italy, Ireland, England, Wales, and Prussia. He founded Rich Roots Genealogy in 2013. He was a member of the research team of Genealogy Roadshow (PBS) for two seasons and also consulted on Follow Your Past (Travel Channel). Rich specializes in 20th-century immigrant ancestry. His main areas of focus include Italian, Irish, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey research. He also assists clients with dual citizenship applications for Ireland and Italy. Rich is himself a proud Italian dual citizen.
Venezia holds a B. A. in Theatre from Point Park University. Prior to his work as a genealogist, he acted professionally for five years. He also worked in PR & Marketing at Smock Alley Theatre in Dublin and as a study abroad Program Coordinator for CISabroad in Northampton, Mass.
Rich received his Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University in 2015. He is a recognized leader in his field in the research of immigration and naturalization. He has coordinated week-long courses on these topics for the SLIG, GRIP, and IGHR. He has lectured at national conferences all over the country. He spoke at TEDxPittsburgh in 2017, and appeared regularly on Pittsburgh Today Live. His writings are often featured in Family Tree Magazine.
He has been quoted in CNN, The Washington Post, CBS News, Thrillist, and The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. He coordinated the #RecordsNotRevenue campaign in 2019-2020, and 2023, against the proposed fee hikes for records serviced by the USCIS Genealogy Program. This campaign received international press and garnered him the Shirley M. Barnes Records Access Award. He continues to fight for fairer access to these records.
To learn more about Rich Roots Genealogy, please visit here.
