Mistilis

[joeymistilis]

I am seeking to put the Mistilis family in order. The other spellings I have seen are Mistillis and possibly Mistelis. My great-grand parents were Salipa K. and Domena Mistilis. My grandfather was Athanasius Salipa "Tom" Mistilis. Tom and his four brothers left Castellorizo in the early 1900s as mere kids. One brother, Jack(?) ended up in France. The other brothers in Australia. Vasilis - Perth, Angelo - Sydney, and Peter?

Tom landed here in Oxford, Mississippi in the late 1920s with a partner, Spiro Vallatas, to open a cafe at the University of Mississippi. Tom operated restaurants in Oxford until he died in 1969. Tom and his wife, Georgia, had four children. Alma Domena Mistilis Reeves, deceased; Stavros Thomas Mistilis, Memphis, Tennessee; Angelo Mistilis (my father), Oxford, Mississippi; and Ben Arthur Mistilis, Oxford, MS.

Mistilises still visit the island and I believe we may have relatives still living on Castellorizo. I have started a Facebook group called "mistilis" and hope that between that and this great site we can find out who and where everyone is!

[Administrator]

Joey,

All the spellings you mention are correct, but I think that a more 'correct' transliteration from the Greek would perhaps be 'Mystillis' or 'Mystilis' given the use in Greek of the 'ypsilon' in the first syllable of the name. Nevertheless, the spelling of Greek names is very fluid thing and there is really no 'correct' version.

There are a few dowry entries for your family. The double wedding of Evangelos (Angelo) and Vasilios on 16 June 1929 (to Evdokia Pandeli Vdelopoulou & Evdokia Paraskeva Triantafylli respectively) is recorded there, as are the earlier marriages of Salipa's sisters Kyranna, Christina & Evangelia (between 1904-1911). The wedding of Salipa's step-daughter Chrysi (also in 1911) is also there.

I am sure others have more to contribute, especially the members of the Mistillis family here in Sydney.

Nicholas

[joeymistilis]

Nicholas,
Thanks. I have contacted a couple of Sydney and a couple of Perth relatives and hope more dialog develops. These dowry entries you mention...are they on line?
Joey

[Administrator]

Joey,

No, they aren't. The originals are kept in Rhodes by the lawyer assigned by the Nomarch of the Dodecanese to hold the registry of title deeds for the island.

As explained in the 'Welcome' thread on the Genelogy Board, we have copies of the 5 surviving volumes here in Sydney, should particular contracts be of interest to direct family members.

Nicholas

[cressie]

Hi Joey

I have quite a bit of info on the Perth Mistilis family on my website. If you visit www.castellorizo.org and apply for a Userid I can give you access to this genealogical data.

Your great grandmother Domena Mistilis died in Sydney NSW in 1957. She was buried on 22 July 1957 at Eastern Suburbs Memorial Park in Botany NSW. She is buried at G14 Gen FM14 Grave 1311. On the death indexes her parents are nominated as Father: Athanasos and Mother: Domena. She was 94 years of age which suggests she was born c 1863. This would have made her a 40+ years of age mother when both Angelo and Vasilis were born. Maybe her aged was overstated or perhaps another reason exists for her being a mature mother.

Angelo (Andy) died in 1985 aged 81 yrs and his wife, Evdokia died in 1987, both in Sydney.

Regards
Allan
Perth WA

[joeymistilis]

You guys are great. Allan, I did join your site a few days ago. I have even been in contact with Dinah Kathleen Mistilis Damian, living now in Charlotte, North Carolina, USA. As for my great-grandmother's age...if she was that old, I hope I have some of those longevitiy genes!

[evdokia]

Joey: Re Mistilis.

I went to school in West Perth - (St Brigids) with a Sylvia Mistillis. Her dad was Vassilis, and I am sure her mum's name was Evdokia, and they lived in Aberdeen St in West Perth - back in the 1950's. Her dad was a friend of my dad's.

Sylvia had 8 or 9 siblings, and I am sure some are still alive, and living in Perth.

Regards to all on the site
Evdokia (Eva) Koutsoukos

[joeymistilis]

Thanks Evdokia. I have found her and her family, Tzortzis, on castellorizo.org. Her brother Arthur came to Mississippi to visit his three cousins, my dad and his two brothers. I have communication with Arthur's son, Michael, and am building the tree slowly but surely. As we say in Mississippi, "Thank y'all"!