Alfredo Montalvo - My Grandfather
Jewish Italian Heritage
Descended from Italy, the Montalvo's, while running to avoid religious persecution because of their Jewish faith, finally landed at Vera Cruz. Family legend states that after our forefathers threw a rod like object to direct their path, they divined that the family should traveled north.
So the Montalvo's, with a treasure in tow, took off in search of mountains wherein they would hide their precious cargo. They ended up settling in Cerralvo Nuevo Leon. See map. There's a small mountain range west of Cerralvo.
Lucy Rivera Bolanci - My Grandmother
Catholic French Heritage
During the great depression, the Rivier clan (earlier generations changed name to Rivera for ease of pronunciation and to distance themselves from anti-French sentiment) was left completely unscathed.
They had great wealth, lots of cattle, prosperous farm land, and much much more. In fact, stories are told of how the family would regularly gather around a large table made of railroad ties where large sacks of money would be tossed out for the family "accountants" to count. As a child, my grandmother would sit at this table and watch the happenings. And later, she participated in the counting.
The family farm house, which I remember visiting as a small child, had awesome French architecture, large barns for the huge farm equipment, and lots of fruit trees scattered everywhere. That house was the last visible remains of the former greatness of the family wealth. Children later divided the land and the wealth.
Links Of Note:
- Crypto-Judaism - See subtitle Nuevo León — 1590s to early 1600s
- Nuevo Leon - Territory in Mexico founded by secret Jews from Spain
- Coat of Arms - Italian heritage
- Montalvo - Wikipedia has an article on us
Comments