Genealogy is like putting together pieces of a puzzle. Each deed, will and birth certificate leads descendants on a new adventure, gathering facts from an unknown past along the way.

Dorothy Maioli Stenzel's puzzle fits neatly into a large white binder.

"I never knew anything about my dad's background," the Bridgeville resident says. "Now that they're all gone, I want to find out not about the people today, but about my grandparents. Family is everything."

Dorothy's search began with two books -- one about passenger arrival records and another regarding Italian genealogical records.

"I started with these books and they kind of told me where to go," she says.

Then, the lifetime historical society member found 1910 census results from Bridgeville, which included her grandparents -- Macedonio and Zelinda -- and their eight children.

The census shows facts, such as names, ages and from where the family came -- Guastalla, Italy -- in the Maioli's case.

Dorothy utilized old newspapers, public documents, area libraries and the help of relatives and friends to piece together her puzzle.

"Every single piece has led me somewhere," she says. "Everyone can do it in my opinion and everyone should do it. It keeps your ancestors alive."

Dorothy's grandparents came to America through Castle Garden in New York.

Although the records were destroyed from the immigrant processing station, Dorothy's only clue was that her grandfather was naturalized in 1885 -- years before Ellis Island opened.

The Maiolis moved to South Fayette, Dorothy says, noting a deed for a house purchase in 1893 made by her grandfather. He then moved to Bridgeville and purchased about 20 properties, she says.

"He was a very wealthy man in those times," she says of her grandfather.

The family lived on Hickman Street, she says, pointing to an old photograph of them on the front porch of their home -- with her father, Raymond, just a baby in his mother's arms. Macedonio was a wholesale liquor dealer in Bridgeville which was very successful, Dorothy says.

When coming to the United States, the Italians, like any immigrant, had a hard time fitting in. Dorothy has a baptismal record written in Italian from a Pittsburgh church. Bridgeville churches didn't want Italians congregating, she says, so most immigrants had to find a church with similar interests.

"I think as an Italian you almost have a rougher time," she says of gathering information.

Going back to Italy is a different story. Dorothy recalls touring different towns and corresponding with an Italian police officer for several years. She found hundreds of Maiolis during her time abroad.

The eight Maioli children were orphaned in the early 1900s when Dorothy's grandparents died about a year apart. With no adult, the children moved into a house on Washington Avenue.

During that time, photographers captured the events of a funeral, including the casket. Dorothy says this was done because the pictures would then be sent back to the person's country, informing relatives of the passing.

Her father was just 3 years old at the time and was passed between his brothers and sisters.

"They all took care of each other," she says. "The family never broke."

Then, the Maioli story took a twist.

Dorothy uncovered her grandparents' wills and other records from the Pittsburgh courthouse.

It turns out that an official of a local trust company attained guardianship of the eight children and stole money from the estate. He'd turn over the properties to each child when they turned 21. Raymond's brother-in-law became his guardian in 1924, Dorothy says, and acquired properties in Snowden and McKees Rocks when he turned 21.

"The banking system took advantage of orphaned children."

In her genealogy binder, Dorothy has phone listings, grave plot plans, court documents and numerous other papers that she or relatives have found. She even has a copy of the Bridgeville charter -- her grandfather's signature appears on it.

"When people find out you're looking, when they find something, they'll call you," she says of the help she gets in her project. "Sometimes just locally, you can find out more than anywhere else."

Dorothy has added her own personal touch amongst the official documents in her binder.

She has written stories and poems based on factual information of what she thinks the journey was like or things that might have happened in the Maioli household.

"I thought that was important to know what they had to go through to get here," she says. "What I'm trying to do is tell a story of people I never knew. You just fit little pieces together and make a story. To give life to information, that's what genealogy is. It's trying to meet somebody you don't know."

There are many things that fall into gray areas for Dorothy's research. The unknown is what she concentrates on, and each piece has given her a clue as to where to look for more information.

"You take it slowly, it's like a puzzle and it starts fitting together. You just don't give up, you keep looking."