Our Italian Heritage
Letters & Notes from Museum Visitors
From: Anthony Abdulla - San Francisco, California - September 16, 2004
"North Tonawanda has many people of Italian heritage. One of the many Italian festivals is the Feast of St. Joseph, celebrated on March 19 of each year. This is a centuries old Roman Catholic tradition dating back to a time of poverty and famine in Sicily. Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed to St. Joseph to help them have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end. In gratitude, people promised to make annual offerings of their most precious possession--food--in St. Joseph's honor. All who lived in the village were invited to the feast, especially the less fortunate and the sick. The feast was introduced to America during the latter part of the 19th century by southern Italian immigrants.
Today, the Feast to honor St. Joseph will include a table filled with elaborate foods of meatless dishes such as stuffed artichokes, pasta, fish, breads, cookies, pastries, and other delicacies. The table will have a statue of St. Joseph, a stalk of lily blossoms, votive candles, a lace tablecloth, and be blessed by a priest.
When you visit a St. Joseph's table, you often receive gifts of blessed fava beans and breads. Fava beans are considered good luck because they were the food that saved the Sicilians from starvation during the famine. It is believed that if the St. Joseph's bread is kept in the home, and a fava bean in the pantry, the family will never starve. Family, friends, and neighbors, especially those who were sick and elderly were invited to the Table that day.
From: Frank Turone - Woodbridge, Ontario - May 27, 2005
"While browsing on the Internet last week, I stumbled onto your website. I am very much impressed with what you have accomplished with the NT History Museum. As a former resident of the city, I feel proud and would like to become a part of your heritage. A brief introduction of my beginnings follows:
The middle child and son of Italian parents, who immigrated to America through Ellis Island in the early 1920's, I was born on Ganson Street in 1925. Mrs. Eugenia Deluca, my great aunt, midwived me into this world in her house, which is located across the street from No. 44, the house we were renting at the time. When I was about four years old, my father bought the house at 50 Ganson Street, where I was raised with my sister Mary and my younger brother Ted until I was inducted into the US Army on June 4, 1943. I participated in WWII in Europe and was honorably discharged in November 1945.
In March 2002, I started writing my autobiography. I would like to contribute two chapters, Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 of that book to the NT History Museum. These chapters cover the war years from June 1943 to November 1945, when I was discharged at Governor's Island in New York City."
"North Tonawanda has many people of Italian heritage. One of the many Italian festivals is the Feast of St. Joseph, celebrated on March 19 of each year. This is a centuries old Roman Catholic tradition dating back to a time of poverty and famine in Sicily. Italians had strong family relationships, so they prayed to St. Joseph to help them have successful crops. Their prayers were answered, and the famine came to an end. In gratitude, people promised to make annual offerings of their most precious possession--food--in St. Joseph's honor. All who lived in the village were invited to the feast, especially the less fortunate and the sick. The feast was introduced to America during the latter part of the 19th century by southern Italian immigrants.
Today, the Feast to honor St. Joseph will include a table filled with elaborate foods of meatless dishes such as stuffed artichokes, pasta, fish, breads, cookies, pastries, and other delicacies. The table will have a statue of St. Joseph, a stalk of lily blossoms, votive candles, a lace tablecloth, and be blessed by a priest.
When you visit a St. Joseph's table, you often receive gifts of blessed fava beans and breads. Fava beans are considered good luck because they were the food that saved the Sicilians from starvation during the famine. It is believed that if the St. Joseph's bread is kept in the home, and a fava bean in the pantry, the family will never starve. Family, friends, and neighbors, especially those who were sick and elderly were invited to the Table that day.
From: Frank Turone - Woodbridge, Ontario - May 27, 2005
"While browsing on the Internet last week, I stumbled onto your website. I am very much impressed with what you have accomplished with the NT History Museum. As a former resident of the city, I feel proud and would like to become a part of your heritage. A brief introduction of my beginnings follows:
The middle child and son of Italian parents, who immigrated to America through Ellis Island in the early 1920's, I was born on Ganson Street in 1925. Mrs. Eugenia Deluca, my great aunt, midwived me into this world in her house, which is located across the street from No. 44, the house we were renting at the time. When I was about four years old, my father bought the house at 50 Ganson Street, where I was raised with my sister Mary and my younger brother Ted until I was inducted into the US Army on June 4, 1943. I participated in WWII in Europe and was honorably discharged in November 1945.
In March 2002, I started writing my autobiography. I would like to contribute two chapters, Chapter 2 and Chapter 3 of that book to the NT History Museum. These chapters cover the war years from June 1943 to November 1945, when I was discharged at Governor's Island in New York City."