The Patron
San Lorenzo Maiorano
San Lorenzo Maiorano is the listed patron, celebrated on 7 February.
— Castellesi
CASTELLESI COMUNE
Foggia,
Puglia
A medieval port whose older church records may still say Siponto.
Manfredonia lies at the foot of the Gargano on the gulf that carries its name, a port town below the mountain of San Michele.
It was founded in 1263 by Manfredi , son of Frederick II, to replace the ancient city of Siponto a few kilometres away — which means the town is younger than the diocese it holds, and older records may name a place that no longer exists.
The Name
Siponto
Manfredonia was founded to replace ancient Siponto, and the archbishopric retained the older name in ecclesiastical usage for centuries. Older church catalogues may therefore use Siponto or Sipontina rather than Manfredonia.
The Landmark
Santa Maria di Siponto
The Basilica di Santa Maria di Siponto stands on the abandoned site of the old city. For family research, it is also a reminder that medieval and ecclesiastical records may be filed under Siponto instead of Manfredonia.
Did you know?
TWO OLD NAMES MATTER HERE
Search Lucera and Siponto
Civil status 1809–1865 for all Foggia-province comuni is at Lucera, under the historic Capitanata structure. Older church records may instead be catalogued under Siponto, the name of the see predating Manfredonia's foundation.
LA PARLATA
How they speak
Italian is standard. Local speech may include Apulian varieties, with Salentino varieties further south.
Manfredonia after Siponto
Siponto was an ancient port — Daunian, then Greek and Roman — and an early Christian bishopric of importance, the see from which the sanctuary of Monte Sant'Angelo on the Gargano was governed. By the thirteenth century the site had become malarial and unstable, damaged by earthquakes and silting.
Manfredi , king of Sicily and son of Frederick II, founded a new city nearby in 1263 and moved the population to it. The Romanesque church of Santa Maria di Siponto still stands on the old site, alone in the fields.
The new city inherited the archbishopric , which is why the see is styled Manfredonia-Vieste-San Giovanni Rotondo today but appears in older records as Siponto or Sipontina .
Manfredonia was sacked by an Ottoman fleet in 1620 , an event that marked the town's memory and its defences — the Swabian-Angevin castle guards the harbour still.
Behind rises the Gargano , with the sanctuary of San Michele Arcangelo at Monte Sant'Angelo — one of the oldest and most important pilgrimage sites in western Europe, on the Lombard and then Crusader routes.
Postcards from Manfredonia
Wear Manfredonia
Carry your heritage with pride. Timeless designs inspired by the heart of Foggia.
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Where this
belongs
belongs
PROVINCIA DI FOGGIA
Discover the beauty, culture and traditions of Foggia and its remarkable comuni.
EXPLORE FOGGIA →REGIONE PUGLIA
From the mountains to the sea, Puglia is a region of history, flavor and soul.
EXPLORE PUGLIA →From the passenger index
At least 400 people who gave Manfredonia as their home are recorded by name among Italian arrivals in the United States — each with the ship they sailed on and the day they landed.
A floor, not a total. The index covers arrivals through 1912, holds nothing between May 1907 and December 1911, and many passengers were written down with no home town at all. Where a name is there, it is there with its record.
Have Orso look for your family →Ready to visit
Below the Gargano
Getting there
The nearest major airport is Foggia Gino Lisa Airport; Bari is a larger gateway.
Manfredonia is a working port with a castle on the harbour and a straightforward grid of streets — the medieval foundation is still legible in the plan.
For a descendant there are two essential trips out. Santa Maria di Siponto , a few kilometres south, is the abandoned site of the city this one replaced. And Monte Sant'Angelo , on the mountain above, holds the cave sanctuary of San Michele — the reason this stretch of coast mattered for a thousand years.
The Gargano beyond is forest, cliffs and small towns, and the Tremiti islands lie offshore. Lucera a little further — and Lucera is where your older records are.
What to see
Il Castello Svevo-Angioino — on the harbour, with the archaeological museum.
Santa Maria di Siponto — the Romanesque church on the abandoned ancient site.
Monte Sant'Angelo — the cave sanctuary of San Michele, above the town.
The Gargano — the forest, the coast and the Tremiti islands.
The salt pans at Margherita di Savoia — the largest in Europe, down the coast.
Your family's parish — and remember the diocese may be catalogued as Siponto.
Family history
Where the records are
Archives and registers
Manfredonia's oldest civil records are at Lucera, not Foggia — and its diocese files under Siponto.
The Lucera section on Antenati
Civil status serie I, 1809–1865, covers the comuni of the whole province, Manfredonia included.
antenati.cultura.gov.itBrowse the Foggia civil registers on Antenati
For the Foggia tribunal district and the provincial death records 1900–1949, which overlap the Lucera series.
antenati.cultura.gov.itRelated places
Keep exploring
The journey does not end at the boundary of one comune. The province, the region and the neighbouring towns often hold the rest of the picture.
Your Roots. Their Story. Your Place.
Manfredonia is more than a place on a map. It is a part of you.
FIND YOUR COMUNE →