Official
records of births in New York State were not required until after
1881. Fires, floods and other disasters have also reduced the number
of vital records available for legal as well as genealogical research.
One form of record that may be helpful in the search for information
has been rarely found or used: the Report of Birth required by the
New York State Department of Health for each birth assisted by a
midwife.
Alesandra Matera, a nurse, lived at 259 4th Street in the neighborhood
now known as Little Italy in Troy. Mrs. Matera was a midwife for
several years in her largely Italian-American neighborhood. The
midwife records contain the following information: Name of child,
sex, color, date of birth, place of birth, name of father, residence
and birthplace of father and mother, their ages, occupation, maiden
name of mother, residence of mother if different than the father,
number of previous children of mother, how many living in all and
the date of the report.
The
records through approximately 1916 largely contain infants born
of Italian immigrants. However a number of records after 1916 include
names of Syrian immigrants as well that had settled near the collar
district closer to Hoosick Street. Mrs. Matera also traveled as
far as Cohoes to assist in deliveries. The original records are
in the archives of the Rensselaer County Historical Society, 57
2nd Street, Troy, NY