Vigorito Genealogy

I began this web site several years ago when I had the urge to learn  more about my family history.  I was able to learn quite a lot and to my great pleasure I was contacted by many people, long lost relatives and friends, as well as relatives that I did not know.  I have not succeeded in linking all of the Vigoritos in a single family tree, but I hope to be successful one day. The work needed to make these connections requires much more time and effort, which I don't have (maybe when I retire). Nevertheless, I decided to leave the web site online because so many people have found the information helpful and interesting. I have added some additional information on, and pictures of, Corleto and Sant' Angelo that I obtained on my recent trip to Italy. From time to time I may add more information. However, I have removed the family tree information upon request to keep the names of  the living private. Some day soon I will try to post the information of deceased ancestors only. If you believe that you may be related to the Vigorito family please send me an email and I will try to respond with whatever information I may have. 

The Vigorito families originate from the Campania Region of southern Italy. My family line is from the town of Corleto Monforte in the Salerno Province of Campania. The neighboring town of Sant' Angelo a Fasanella is my mother's home town. Corleto and Sant' Angelo are located in the Cilento area of the Salerno Province which is designated as a national park- "Parco Nazionale del Cilento e Vallo di Diano". Vigoritos still live in Corleto and at least one historian (Mare, 1995) believes that the Vigorito family settled in this ancient town (founded approximately 400-500 B.C by the Lucani) prior to 1400 AD. However, oral tradition passed down from Vigorito to Vigorito suggests that the Vigoritos came to Corleto from  the nearby town Montano Antilia. Several observations strongly suggest that Vigoritos are of Norman descent.  Southern Italy was controlled by the Normans (Viking descendents from Normandy, France) during the first two centuries of the second millennium. The etymology of the Vigorito surname clearly indicates a Norman origin and, most importantly,  some Vigoritos still have  physical features common among Scandinavian people.  

Most of the Vigoritos living in Italy continue to reside primarily in the Campania region of Southern Italy. People with the Vigorito surname can also be found in North America (USA & Canada) and South America (Uruguay, Venezuela, Brazil and Argentina).  Some Vigoritos live in England, France, Germany, Belgium, and Australia.  Despite this world-wide representation the Vigorito surname is uncommon. The name is conspicuously absent in Fucilla's Our Italian Surnames and the number of Vigoritos listed in the online white pages around the world is less than 1000. In the 1990 USA Census the Vigorito surname was rated 76,536 out of 88,799 most frequent surnames.

Branches

There are at least three branches of Vigoritos in the USA of which I am aware.  The branch with roots from Corleto is my famly.   The most well known member of my family is former Pennsylvania congressman (1965 -1977)  Joseph P. Vigorito (1918 - 2003) who is buried in Arlington National Cemetery.   A second branch  that I found on the internet are descendents of a Sabato Vigorito who emigrated to the United States in the late 1800s. I do not know what Italian town Sabato left behind for the promise of America.  Another American branch of Vigoritos may originate from Avellino. I believe that the most popular member of this branch is the professional football player Tommy Vigorito. Tommy  is on New Jersey's list of the best offensive and defensive players in New Jersey High School History. His collegiate life was at the University of Virginia and as a member of the Miami Dolphins he played in Super Bowl XVII.   

I visited Corleto and Sant' Angelo in July 2005.  For some more information on these towns and to view some pictures you can click here.

Distribution map of Vigoritos in Italy
Distribution map of Vigoritos in the USA  
(Maps from http://www.gens.labo.net/)

Music
Fred Vigorito & the Galvanized Jazz Band - free MP3s	Fausto Ferraiuolo, piano; Aldo Vigorito, contrabbasso; Ivo Parlati, batteria.

A Final Note: This site provides some basic information about Italian history and immigration. The information is based on   the notes that I keep as I read (on my spare time) about Italian-American history.  I am not a historian, so -as always- any information that you glean from this or any other web site should be corroborated with other electronic and printed sources.