I came acroiss this message thread when I searched for Grotteria on Google. My grandfather came from Grotteria, arriving in NY in 1907. He then settled in the North End in Boston, MA. I have spent the last 10 years tracing the family in Grotteria and Mammola, visiting the villages in Nov 1999. My surnames are IANNIZZI, ZAVAGLIA, SCALI, FEMIA, AGOSTINO, TASSONE, FERRARO and a few more. I have come across the OPPEDISANO name as marrying into the IANNIZZI clan in Grotteria. aI have used nearly 170 rolls of microfilm to trace my family back to the 1750s in the two towns. My maiden name was actually spelled YANNIZZE in the US (these Yankees never could spell ;~))Thought I'd drop you a line to say hi to a fellow Calabrese! Marcia