Oh Familysearch, how I love you. They have been adding images of records online from around the world on an almost-daily basis, and the collection is amazing. There are millions of Italian records alone to research from the comfort of your couch. Records included were originally on microfilm, and they have also added records that were never before available on microfilm. By the way, thank you Familysearch for those records I desperately needed from Mineo and Palagonia. I was so happy to see they existed! And by the way, these records are ALL FREE!One development has arisen, however, regarding the online records. Due to agreements with original record custodians, some images on Familysearch are not available to view from the comfort of your home. You either have to be a member of the LDS Church or you must view the records at your local LDS Family History Center. The Italian records that fall into this category are the ones that have "Stato Civile" in the record title. Luckily, there aren't too many in this category, but it is annoying when you want access, and you have to wait. But it turns out, one can still view the records online rather than have to run over to the Family History Center.
I recently discovered that the images are available for online viewing at the Italian archive site, Antenati, which has a partnership of some kind with Familysearch, and I assume they are the original "Stato Civile" record custodians. Click on "Sfoglia i Registri" and put in the data you want. At the moment, the "Stato Civile" records available are from Cuneo, L'Aquila, Mantova, Messina, and Napoli. Hit "Cerca" after you have entered your specifications. A list of records will appear and click on "Apri" to open the group. You will then be able to open images. You WILL NOT be able to download these, however, but you can search and then go to your Family History Center to download from Familysearch.
For all other Italian records, enjoy the nice online collection on Familysearch from your home, and also download as you wish -- FOR FREE. I keep saying that, but it is so nice considering my other genealogy expenses. Happy hunting.
