My grandfather, Sabato Ferrizzi was left at a convent in Salerno or Naples (not sure of this, but somewhere in that region of Campania) 1893, maybe shortly after his birth on 10 July. He was taken in by a family that lived in either Salerno or Naples shortly after.

My questions are:

Did my grandfather retain his family name even after his adoption (Ferrizzi), or was that surname given to him by the adoptive parents?
Is there any way I would ever be able to find a birth certificate? Been trying to 10 years and I have found nothing even similar yet.

I was told that the nuns would have kept a record of his arrival, and he would have been given his rightful birth surname. I am confused on this because the nuns gave his his first name, Sabato, because he was found on a Saturday. I don't even know if his bio parents psychically handed him over, or just left him on the door step.

So, would I have to find the convent or church, hoping that they made up a record for him? Also, hoping the church or convent was not destroyed during either of the World Wars.


At a total loss. Any help would be welcome greatly!!!