|
Una storia di coraggio, passato e presente
My family roots are planted in Italy. I was able to trace those roots to a little (paese) hill town called in the mountainous region of Abruzzo on the Adriatic coast. My grandparents and great grandparents on both sides of my family lived in nearby (frazioni) settlements called Panaccio and Nazario. A frazione can be akin to a small group of farms or homesteads, usually located at permanent springs or wells. My family immigrated to the United States and took up residence in the town of Bloomfield, outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - a "little Italy." There are many similarities between the mass immigration of the early twentieth century and my family’s as to why and how it happened.
My father was the first to come to the United States in June 1969. He was sponsored by his brother Angelo, who had been living in the United States for quite some time. My uncle, in order to sponsor my father, had to show to the Immigration and Naturalization office that my father was going to have work when he arrived here. My father, having worked as a miner, a cook, a farmer, a bricklayer and a soldier, was not afraid of any type of work. So his brother easily found work for him as a construction laborer for an Italian boss. My oldest brother came in 1970. He found work with the same company that my father worked for. My oldest sister did not come since she had work and was engaged to be married. My second oldest sister Maria came with my brother and she found work in a commercial linen laundry. She was only eighteen years old. Once my father, brother and sister were established and saved enough money, they were then able to pay the way for the rest of the family. In January 1971, my mother arrived with nine (bambini) children in tow: Elda, Delia, Flavia, Laura, Silvana, Bruno, Nora and Fiorella. Whereas the main means of transportation in the early twentieth century was by steamship, we traveled by plane. It was typical of my father to come to this country in search of opportunities and a better life for the family as so many other immigrants before him had done. In the early twentieth century, millions of Italian men between the ages of 15 and 35 immigrated to the United States. The men from southern poor Italy, who by many were considered less intelligent, found manual labor in industries such as mining and construction. The men from the more industrialized northern Italy, where education was more accessible, found work as draftsmen and bankers. Ateleta, at its most populous state, had a population of 3400 in 1911, before immigration and World War I. Today it stands around 1200 due to a poor local economy. The majority of the younger people have moved from this predominantly farming community to larger cities in search of better opportunities. The town was even forced to close the kindergarten for there were not enough small children left to attend.
The town of was founded by Frenchman Jacques Murat, brother in law of Napoleon Bonaparte. In 1805, he gathered a few families, which were scattered in the forest and nearby frazioni, and constructed a church. This would be both the center of the town and the surrounding community. The town was officially dedicated on February 14, 1811 with the cardinal’s blessing. The majority of Italians were, and still are, devout followers of the Roman Catholic religion. They celebrate holidays named after saints. The "Festa di San Antonio" was very popular in the town of Ateleta. Everyone celebrated life and all the bounty that came from the earth.
Ateleta saw first hand the impact of World War II, as did my mom and dad and their respective families. In November 1943, the Nazi commander Schulemburg, attacked Ateleta killing 128 people in a week’s time. My mother’s mom and older sister were killed by a mine. My mother and younger sister and brother were forced out into the countryside to fend for themselves. With my mother in charge, she had to find food, clothing
|
