Statewide County TN Archives Obituaries.....Gotto, Antonio March 12, 1912
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Mike Simmons tnwolf1762@gmail.com May 27, 2012, 11:42 pm

The Nashville Banner, March 13, 1912
Antonio Gotto, The Immigrant

One hundred years ago my great-great grandfather Antonio Gotto passed away, at 
age 103. Aside from a few family bible records and general documents and 
records easly available, his obituary provides virtually all of the knowledge 
that my family has retained about our fascinating ancestor and his apparently 
colorful life and experiences. Ny great-grandmother and Alice Gotto, Gresham 
and family lived with to give him care in his last time according to the will 
Antonio left. (Due to his extreme old age, his death was a matter of 
significant local interest, and his obituary, given below, appeared on the 
front page of the evening paper.)

The Nashville Banner, Wednesday Evening, March 13, 1912

Antonio Gotto, a stone mason by trade, and probably the oldest citizen of 
Davidson County, died at 9:45 o’clock this morning near Una [then a suburb of 
Nashville, today a community east of Murfreesboro Road, just south of 
Nashville Int’l Airport].

Mr. Gotto was a man of wide information and experience and he stood high among 
those who knew him, having the respect of all. He came to the United States 
from his native town, Genoa, Italy, while a young man, and entered upon his 
trade in this country. He was one of the skilled workmen employed on the 
present State Capitol, and he also worked on all the culverts and other 
similar work on the Nashville, Chattanooga and St. Louis Railway. He continued 
active work until about ten years ago, when he was forced to retire because of 
his advanced age and the ailments resulting therefrom.

Mr. Gotto had traveled not alone in this country but in Central America as 
well. While in the latter country in 1860 he witnessed the execution of 
William Walker by the Honduran Government.

January 8, 1912, Mr. Gotto was 103 years of age. His wife preceded him to the 
grave four or five years ago. Several children were born to Mr. and Mrs. 
Gotto, the sons being Willard, George, Ed, Nathan, and Joe and the daughters, 
Alice Mrs. Eugene Gresham, Mary, Mrs. George Fox, Maggie and Mrs. Arthur 
Ridley.

Mr. Gotto was a citizen of Davidson Country for more than half a century, 
living at the home place near Una for fifty years. As an evidence of his 
activity even during his latter years, it is of interest to note the fact that 
Mr. Gotto, at the age of 94 walked from his home to Nashville and on to Belle 
Meade, and then back home. [That distance would be well over 30 miles, 
altogether.]

Mr. Gotto’s last illness lasted about two or three weeks, during which time 
those who watched at his bedside feared he would never survive his final 
illness. The death of this well-known citizen this morning showed that their 
fears were well founded.

Note*

Mr. Abe Goolsby,
Has published the following,
In addition to a couple of photographic portraits of Antonio, my mother has a 
large (about 18" x 12") photograph of the old “Gotto home place” which was 
apparently taken sometime around the turn of the 20th century. The house was 
demolished in 1999, but I got permission to retrieve a few relics, including a 
couple of the smaller logs from the cabin portion, and two of the unique 
stained-glass window frames that can be seen here. I turned one into a mirror 
for my grandmother, and the other hangs in the front foyer of my home.

Mike Simmons
Great-great-Grandson Of Antonio and Mary Jane Montgomery, Gotto

File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/tn/statewide/obits/g/gotto234nob.txt

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