  Delmonico's Restaurant in New York City was the first establishment to use the name "restaurant". They were the first restaurant to have printed menus. They were the first restaurant to offer a cookbook. They were the first restaurant to serve women sitting without men at their own table (how shocking!) Delmonico's was also the first dining establishment in America to price individual dishes à la carte, as was the custom in Paris. Before this, American inns served one price and only one dish--no menu. Everyone was charged the same fixed price whether they ate more or less than other patrons. They were also the first to open (for a while) the Delmonico Hotel, without the standard "room and board" pricing, but charged for room and meals separately. They were the first restaurant considered to be "fine dining", attracting celebrities and presidents alike. By 1862, Chef de Cuisine, Charles Ranhofer some of the most famous American dishes such as Eggs Benedict, Baked Alaska, Lobster Newburg and Chicken A la Keene (yes, not "King").Ranhofer published his cookbook, The Epicurean," in 1894.  Giovanni and Pietro Delmonico immigrated from from Ticino, Switzerland, their family roots being in the Trentino region of the Italian Alps. The brothers opened their first restaurant in 1827 in a rented pastry shop at 23 William Street, selling classically prepared pastries, fine coffee, chocolates, bonbons, wines and liquors as well as Havana cigars. In 1831 they were joined by their nephew, Lorenzo Delmonico, who was responsible for the wine list and developing its unique menu. In the coming years, Lorenzo learned every aspect of the restaurant business and was the driving force behind its impeccable standards of both product and service.
The Delmonico Farm and Villa In 1834, the brothers earmarked $16,000 (worth $500,000 today) from their profits to purchase a 220 acre farm in the Williamsburg section of Brooklyn. The brothers built an imposing Italian villa at the farm but primarily used the land to cultivate vegetables unknown to Americans for their restaurant, such as endive, sorrel, eggplant, asparagus, Lupini beans, tomato and artichoke. But of course, Delmonico's has become world-renowned for their aged steaks. Their first three restaurants were all destroyed by fire after which they purchased a triangular lot in Lower Manhattan and opening their landmark restaurant at Williams Street in 1893. Marketing geniuses, they claimed the two Corinthian columns at the portico were "salvaged" from Pompeii (many dispute this claim). 
One early and one later menu from the 19th century  They weren't attempting to serve Italian cuisine by the looks of their original menus, but to offer an upscale "European" menu, which in all parts of Europe during the 17th - 19th centuries were mainly based on Parisian fare. As their popularity with New York's elite grew, the Delmonico family opened other restaurants under the name, operating up to four at a time. In total they had opened 10, illustrating the determination of this family. The popularity of their restaurant (with its high priced menu) drew both local and national politicians, financiers such as Vanderbuilt, luminaries like Mark Twain and Italian inventor Tesla. Domenico's was (and still is) a place to discuss the financing for inventors, presidential campaigns, hob-nob with opera stars and authors... definitely now a place for the hoi polloi or common workers of Manhattan  1884 parody of elites feasting at Delmonico's while the hungry poor beg for a handout
Oscar Tucci bought it in 1926 and turned it into a speakeasy during Prohibition, purchasing the third liquor license in New York after the liquor started flowing again. The Tucci family ran the business as Oscar's Delmonico until the 1980s. Various imitators opened other "Delmonico's" but were unrelated to the original family or its philosophy. Today at the landmark Williams Street restaurant, a large corporation runs a close approximation to the old world dining experience that the Brothers Delmonico first realized. --Jerry Finzi
Delmonico's Italian Steakhouse |
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There is a chain of restaurants called "Delmonico's Italian Steakhouse" in New York State and Florida that has nothing to do with Delmonico's in New York City. In contrast, this corporate creation is a mashup of Beefsteak Charlies and Olive Garden for the middle class of culinary appetites. The food is a bit high priced for its chain restaurant selections and quality, the steaks are garden variety, about the same as Outback or a bit less, and the menu is cluttered with Italian-American dishes with big, sloppy portions.
As for the lack of classy decor, just take a look at the stereotypes of what an Italian-American is supposed to be plastered on their walls... caricatures of past "Italian" pop icons such as Sinatra or Andrew Dice-Clay along with with big-busted babes. There is a plush booth canned the "Sinatra" and an "Italian Wanna-bee" room, with caricatures actors who play Italians, but aren't. The piped in music is Sinatra, Perry Como, Tony Bennett or Dean Martin and other Rat Pack types. If this is your idea of what an Italian restaurant is supposed to be, have at it. They saw you coming anyway.
If you care about the true Italian culinary heritage, stay clear of these joints.
--GVI
As for the lack of classy decor, just take a look at the stereotypes of what an Italian-American is supposed to be plastered on their walls... caricatures of past "Italian" pop icons such as Sinatra or Andrew Dice-Clay along with with big-busted babes. There is a plush booth canned the "Sinatra" and an "Italian Wanna-bee" room, with caricatures actors who play Italians, but aren't. The piped in music is Sinatra, Perry Como, Tony Bennett or Dean Martin and other Rat Pack types. If this is your idea of what an Italian restaurant is supposed to be, have at it. They saw you coming anyway.
If you care about the true Italian culinary heritage, stay clear of these joints.
--GVI
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Bronx's Arthur Avenue: The Biggest Little Italy
The Art, Science and History of Coffee in Italy
Espresso Master, Renato Bialetti Dies at 93
Ospedale Santo Spirito in Rome I’ve researched and written on orphans and adoption customs in Italy before, but in the last few months I’ve come up with another reason to be interested in Italian orphanages… I’ve discovered that my great-great grandfather was an orphan. Apparently, the “First Anselmo” as we are calling him (there were more after him) was offspring of a nobleman from Molfetta and a servant girl. We have the surname of the father but only the first name of the mother. After being educated in the orphanage at Giovinazzo, Puglia he lived with two other families, neither of which had the surname Finzi. So we have a new family mystery to solve… why Finzi? And why Catholic? (Most Finzis in Italy are Jewish).
I suppose that someday I might get my hands on the adoption records from 1836. I’ve read that there can be a lot of information gained due to the narrative style of report written about each foundling during that period. But in the last part of the 19th century, the adoption procedures slimmed down to the barest of information. However, if the foundling was placed in a Ruota del Trovatello (Foundling Wheel), there might never be any information about who the parents of the child were. You see, the Ruota was a type of drum shaped cabinet on a pivot, used in orphanages to receive unwanted babies--anonymously.
I suppose that someday I might get my hands on the adoption records from 1836. I’ve read that there can be a lot of information gained due to the narrative style of report written about each foundling during that period. But in the last part of the 19th century, the adoption procedures slimmed down to the barest of information. However, if the foundling was placed in a Ruota del Trovatello (Foundling Wheel), there might never be any information about who the parents of the child were. You see, the Ruota was a type of drum shaped cabinet on a pivot, used in orphanages to receive unwanted babies--anonymously.
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During those hard times, there were a significant percentage of abandoned babies from both unmarried women and married couples. Poor peasants with several other children could not afford to feed yet another child. They would anonymously abandon the child at the Ruota, typically built into the wall of the local convent or Ospizio (orphanage).
The problem of unwanted newborns has been documented in Italy since Roman times when babies abandoned next to a column in a forum were either taken home by strangers to serve as slaves or left to die. Pope Innocent III was so shocked by the large number of dead babies floating in the Tiber River that he institutionalized the “foundling wheel” in the 12th century as a solution for dealing with the large number of foundlings—infants abandoned by their parents and left to die or be discovered and cared for by others. The size of the Ruota was purposely kept infant-sized to prevent older children from being abandoned. Older children were thought of as workers and laborers, and rather than be abandoned, worked on the farm or became apprentices to a local tradesman.
The problem of unwanted newborns has been documented in Italy since Roman times when babies abandoned next to a column in a forum were either taken home by strangers to serve as slaves or left to die. Pope Innocent III was so shocked by the large number of dead babies floating in the Tiber River that he institutionalized the “foundling wheel” in the 12th century as a solution for dealing with the large number of foundlings—infants abandoned by their parents and left to die or be discovered and cared for by others. The size of the Ruota was purposely kept infant-sized to prevent older children from being abandoned. Older children were thought of as workers and laborers, and rather than be abandoned, worked on the farm or became apprentices to a local tradesman.
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The practice of using foundling wheels to dispose of unwanted children gained in popularity and became a common practice in medieval Europe. By the early part of the 19th century, names were often recorded when people gave up their children to the orphanage or church openly, a practice often done when there might come a time when they wanted the child back—as they became more solvent or when an older child could work on a family farm. But surnames could never be known when they put the child in the Ruote. For this reason, many often pinned a charm or special memento to the child that could be identified if they ever wanted to reverse their decision. The babies were given surnames such as Esposito (exposed), Proietti (thrown away), and Innocenti (innocent). People with such names can usually trace their family tree back to a foundling. It was only after 1926 that an Italian law banned the use of such discriminatory names, when names were given to describe the time of year (Primavera) or the month (Maggio) the child was abandoned.
(Read more about orphan names HERE)
Safe Ways to Abandon Babies in Modern Society
In many countries, there are still modern versions of the Ruota… usually a climate controlled drawer in which a baby could be placed. Multilingual posters in modern Rome read—“Don’t abandon your baby! Leave it with us.” The practice of placing unwanted infants in a modern foundling wheel, heated baby hatch, stork cradle, stainless steel baby box, maternity ward, or designated safe haven is a practice that is still used today in many European countries and the United States and the practice is gaining in popularity throughout the world to combat child infanticide.
Some legal problems with modern baby hatches are connected to a child’s right to know their own identity, as guaranteed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Baby hatches also deprive the father of his right to find out what has happened to his child, though DNA testing of foundlings would seem to offer a partial solution. I suppose as strange as the Ruota sounds, it has saved the lived of countless children in Italy and around the world…
As for me, I now know we come from a lineage of Finzi’s that come to a sudden, mysterious beginning in 1836. Since my great-great grandfather seems to have been placed into the orphanage with some paperwork filled out, perhaps someday I’ll be able to continue to trace our family tree further and further back in time.
--Jerry Finzi
(Read more about orphan names HERE)
Safe Ways to Abandon Babies in Modern Society
In many countries, there are still modern versions of the Ruota… usually a climate controlled drawer in which a baby could be placed. Multilingual posters in modern Rome read—“Don’t abandon your baby! Leave it with us.” The practice of placing unwanted infants in a modern foundling wheel, heated baby hatch, stork cradle, stainless steel baby box, maternity ward, or designated safe haven is a practice that is still used today in many European countries and the United States and the practice is gaining in popularity throughout the world to combat child infanticide.
Some legal problems with modern baby hatches are connected to a child’s right to know their own identity, as guaranteed by the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Baby hatches also deprive the father of his right to find out what has happened to his child, though DNA testing of foundlings would seem to offer a partial solution. I suppose as strange as the Ruota sounds, it has saved the lived of countless children in Italy and around the world…
As for me, I now know we come from a lineage of Finzi’s that come to a sudden, mysterious beginning in 1836. Since my great-great grandfather seems to have been placed into the orphanage with some paperwork filled out, perhaps someday I’ll be able to continue to trace our family tree further and further back in time.
--Jerry Finzi
List of September 11 Victims of Italian Heritage
Never Forget...
--GVI
- Abate, Andrew Anthony - 37 - Melville, NY - Dec WTC
- Abate, Vincent - 40 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Aceto, Richard Anthony - 42 - Wantagh , NY - Dec WTC
- Acquaviva, Paul Andrew - 29 - Glen Rock, NJ - Dec WTC
- Addamo, Christy A. - 28 - New Hyde Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Addo, Sophia Buruwa - 36 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Afflitto, Daniel Thomas - 32 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Agnello, Joseph - 35 - Belle Harbor, NY - Dec E/R
- Alameno, Andrew - 37 - Westfield, NJ - Dec WTC
- Alario, Margaret Ann Jezycki "Peggy" - 41 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Albero, Gary - 39 - Emerson, NJ - Dec WTC
- Allegretto, Edward L. - 51 - Colonia, NJ - Dec WTC
- Amaranto, Angelo - 60 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Amato, James M. - 43 - Ronkonkoma, NY - Dec E/R
- Amatuccio, Joseph - 41 - Ozone Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Amoroso, Christopher C. - 29 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Anchundia, Joseph Peter - 26 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Andreacchio, John - 52 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Angelini Jr., Joseph - 38 - Lindenhurst, NY - Dec E/R
- Angelini Sr., Joseph - 63 - Lindenhurst, NY - Dec E/R
- Angilletta, Laura - 23 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Angrisani, Doreen J. - 44 - Ridgewood, NY - Dec WTC
- Aquilino, Frank Thomas "F.T." - 26 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Arias, Adam P. - 37 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Asaro, Carl Francis - 39 - Middletown, NY - Dec E/R
- Aversano Jr., Frank Louis - 58 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Badagliacca, John James - 35 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Bantis, Kathy - 44 - Chicago, IL - Dec WTC
- Baptiste, Gerard Jean - 35 - Riverdale, NY - Dec E/R
- Barbara, Gerard A. - 53 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Barbaro, Paul V. - 35 - Holmdel, NJ - Dec WTC
- Barbella, James W. - 53 - Oceanside, NY - Dec WTC
- Barbosa, Ivan Kiryllos Fairbanks - 30 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Barbosa, Victor Daniel - 23 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Barbuto, Christine - 32 - Brookline, MA - Am 11
- Basina, Inna - 43 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Battaglia, Paul James - 22 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Bautista, Ivhan Luis Carpio - 24 - Ozone Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Bautista, Marlyn C. - 46 - Iselin, NJ - Dec WTC
- Beatini, Paul F. - 40 - Park Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Bella, Andrea Della - 59 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Bellows, Debbie S. - 30 - East Windsor, NJ - Dec WTC
- Benedetti, Paul Michael - 32 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Benedetto, Denise Lenore - 40 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Berardi, Dominick J. - 25 - Whitestone, NY - Dec WTC
- Boccardi, Michael Andrew - 30 - Bronxville, NY - Dec WTC
- Bocchi, John Paul - 38 - New Vernon, NJ - Dec WTC
- Bocchino, Michael Leopoldo - 45 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec E/R
- Bochino, Susan Mary - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Boffa, Mary Katherine - 45 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Bolourchi, Touran Hamzavi - 69 - Beverly Hills, CA - Un 175
- Bonomo, Frank - 42 - Port Jefferson, NY - Dec E/R
- Bonomo, Yvonne L. - 30 - Jackson Heights, NY - Dec WTC
- Borda Leyva, Juan Jose - 58 - New York, NY - Msg WTC
- Bosco, Richard E. - 34 - Suffern, NY - Dec WTC
- Braca, Alfred J. - 54 - Leonardo, NJ - Dec WTC
- Bravo, Lydia Estelle - 50 - Dunellen, NJ - Dec WTC
- Brito, Victoria Alvarez - 38 - Elmhurst, NY - Dec WTC
- Bucca, Ronald Paul - 47 - Tuckahoe, NY - Dec E/R
- Bulaga Jr., John E. - 35 - Haskell, NJ - Dec WTC
- Buslo, Irina - 32 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Bustillo, Milton - 37 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Caballero, Daniel Martin - 21 - Houston, TX - Dec Ptn
- Cachia, Brian Joseph - 26 - Fresh Meadows, NY - Dec WTC
- Cafiero Jr., Steven - 31 - Whitestone, NY - Dec WTC
- Caggiano, Richard M. - 25 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Caguicla, Cecile M. - 55 - Boonton, NJ - Dec WTC
- Calabro, Salvatore - 38 - Staten Island , NY - Dec E/R
- Calandrillo, Joseph - 49 - Hawley, PA - Dec WTC
- Calcagno, Philip V. - 57 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Calia, Dominick Enrico - 40 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Calvi, Luigi "Gino" - 34 - East Rutherford, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cammarata, Michael F. - 22 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Candela, John A. - 42 - Glen Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cangelosi, Vincent - 30 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Cangialosi, Stephen J. - 40 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cannava, Lisa B. - 30 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Cannizzaro, Brian - 30 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Caporicci, Louis A. - 35 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Cappello, Jonathan Neff - 23 - Garden City, NY - Dec WTC
- Caproni, Richard M. - 34 - Lynbrook, NY - Dec WTC
- Cardona, Jose - 35 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Carlino, Edward - 46 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Carlo, Michael Scott - 34 - Whitestone, NY - Dec E/R
- Carlone, David G. - 46 - Randolph, NJ - Dec WTC
- Carpeneto, Joyce Ann - 40 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Casazza, John F. - 38 - Colts Neck, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cascio, Paul Reegan - 23 - Manhasset, NY - Dec WTC
- Casoria, Thomas Anthony - 29 - Whitestone, NY - Dec E/R
- Castano, Alejandro - 35 - Edgewater, NJ - Dec WTC
- Castillo, Arcelia "Chela" - 49 - Elizabeth, NJ - Dec WTC
- Castrianno, Leonard - 30 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Castro, Jose Ramon - 37 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Catarelli, Richard G. - 47 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Centeno, Ana M. - 38 - Bayonne, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cesta, Joni - 37 - Bellmore, NY - Dec WTC
- Chalasani, Swarna - 33 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Chiarchiaro, Dorothy J. - 61 - Glenwood, NY - Dec WTC
- Chiofalo Jr., Nicholas P. - 39 - Selden, NY - Dec E/R
- Chirchirillo, Peter A. - 47 - Langhorne, PA - Dec WTC
- Ciafardini, Christopher - 30 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Ciccone, Alex F. - 38 - New Rochelle, NY - Dec WTC
- Cilente, Frances Ann - 26 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Cillo, Elaine - 40 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Cirri, Robert D. - 39 - Nutley, NJ - Dec E/R
- Coladonato III, Anthony Joseph - 47 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Colaio, Mark Joseph - 34 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Colaio, Stephen J. - 32 - Montauk, NY - Dec WTC
- Colasanti, Christopher M. - 33 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Conde, Albert - 62 - Englishtown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Coppo Jr., Joseph J. - 47 - New Canaan, CT - Dec WTC
- Coppola, Gerard J. - 46 - New Providence, NJ - Dec WTC
- Cordice, Robert - 28 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Correa, Ruben D. - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Correa-Gutierrez, Daniel A. - 25 - Fairview, NJ - Dec WTC
- Costa, Dolores Marie - 53 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Costanza, Alexandra Digna - 25 - Woodside, NY - Dec WTC
- Costello, Charles Gregory - 46 - Old Bridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Costello, Michael S. - 27 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Crifasi, Lucia - 51 - Glendale, NY - Dec WTC
- Crisci, John - 48 - Holbrook, NY - Dec E/R
- Cuccinello, Thelma - 71 - Wilmot Flat, NH - Am 11
- Cudina, Richard Joseph - 46 - Glen Gardner, NJ - Dec WTC
- Curatolo, Robert - 31 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Curia, Laurence - 41 - Garden City, NY - Dec WTC
- Curioli, Paul Dario - 53 - Norwalk, CT - Dec WTC
- Da Mota, Manuel J. - 44 - Valley Stream, NY - Dec WTC
- DaCosta, Carlos S. - 41 - Elizabeth, NJ - Dec WTC
- D'Allara, John - 47 - Pearl River , NY - Dec E/R
- D'Amadeo, Vincent - 36 - East Patchouge, NY - Dec WTC
- D'Ambrosi, Jack L. - 45 - Woodcliff Lake, NJ - Dec WTC
- Damiani-Jones, Jeannine Marie - 28 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- D'Antonio, Mary Yolanda - 55 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- D'Atri, Edward Alexander - 38 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- D'Auria, Michael D. - 25 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- de Laura, Cristina - - Unknown - Msg WTC
- de Laura, Oscar - - Unknown - Msg WTC
- De Martini, Francis Albert - 49 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- De Santis, Jemal Legesse - 28 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- DeAngelis Jr., Robert J. - 47 - West Hempstead, NY - Dec WTC
- DeAngelis, Thomas P. - 51 - Westbury, NY - Dec E/R
- DeBarrera, Ana Gloria Pocasangre - 49 - Soyapango, El Salvador - Dec WTC
- DeCola, Paul - 39 - Ridgewood, NY - Dec WTC
- Deconto, Gerald Francis - 44 - Sandwich, MA - Dec Ptn
- DeFazio, Jason Christopher - 29 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- DeFeo, David A. - 37 - Flushing, NY - Dec WTC
- DeLeo, Vito Joseph - 41 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Delie, Danielle - 47 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Della Pietra, Joseph A. - 24 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Delli Gatti, Palmina - 33 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- DeLuca, Joseph - 52 - Ledgewood, NJ - Un 93
- Demas, Anthony - 61 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- DeMeo, Martin N. - 47 - Farmingville, NY - Dec E/R
- DePalma, Jean C. - 42 - Newfoundland, NJ - Dec WTC
- DeRienzo, Michael - 37 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Derubbio, David Paul - 38 - Bensonhurst, NY - Dec E/R
- DeSimone III, Edward - 36 - Atlantic Highlands, NJ - Dec WTC
- DeSimone, Christian D. - 23 - Ringwood, NJ - Dec WTC
- Desperito, Andrew J. - 44 - East Patchogue, NY - Dec E/R
- D'Esposito, Michael Jude - 32 - Morganville, NJ - Dec WTC
- DeVere, Melanie Louise - 30 - Portsmouth, England - Dec WTC
- DeVito, Jerry - 66 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Di Nardo Schorpp, Marisa - 38 - White Plains, NY - Dec WTC
- Diagostino, Michael L. - 41 - Garden City, NY - Dec WTC
- Dichiaro, Patricia F. - 63 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- DiFato, John - 39 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- DiFazio, Vincent Francis - 43 - Hampton, NJ - Dec WTC
- DiFranco, Carl - 27 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- DiFranco, Donald J. - 43 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- DiMartino, Debra Ann - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- DiMeglio, David - 22 - Wakefield, MA - Am 11
- Dimino, Stephen Patrick - 48 - Basking Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Dionisio Jr., Anthony - 38 - Glen Rock, NJ - Dec WTC
- DiPasquale, George - 33 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- DiPilato, Joseph - 57 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- DiStefano, Douglas Frank - 24 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- DiTullio, Donald Americo - 49 - Peabody, MA - Am 11
- Domanico, James Joseph - 56 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Eacobacci, Joseph Anthony - 26 - Flushing, NY - Dec WTC
- Fallone Jr., Anthony J. - 39 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Fanelli, Dolores B. - 38 - Farmingville, NY - Dec WTC
- Farino, Thomas J. - 37 - South Ozone Park, NY - Dec E/R
- Fava, Shannon M. - 30 - Bensonhurst, NY - Dec WTC
- Favuzza, Bernard D. - 52 - Suffern, NY - Dec WTC
- Fazio, Robert - 41 - Freeport, NY - Dec E/R
- Fazio, Ronald Carl - 57 - Closter, NJ - Dec WTC
- Ferraina, Elisa Giselle - 27 - London, England - Dec WTC
- Ferreira, Anne Marie Sallerin - 29 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Ferrugio, David Francis - 46 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Fersini, Louis V. - 38 - Basking Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Ferugio, Michael - 37 - Brooklyn Heights, NY - Dec WTC
- Fiorelli, Stephen J. - 43 - Aberdeen, NJ - Dec WTC
- Fiori, Paul - 31 - Yorktown Heights, NY - Dec WTC
- Fiorito, John - 40 - Stamford, CT - Dec WTC
- Fiumefreddo, Salvatore A. - 45 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Flocco, Matthew Michael - 21 - Newark, DE - Dec Ptn
- Florio, John Joseph - 33 - Oceanside, NY - Dec E/R
- Fontana, David - 37 - New York, NY - Dec E/R
- Foti, Robert Joseph - 42 - Albertson, NY - Dec E/R
- Fumando, Clement - 59 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Furmato, Paul James - 37 - Colts Neck, NJ - Dec WTC
- Gabrielle, Richard S. - 50 - West Haven, CT - Dec WTC
- Galante, Deanna - 32 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Galante, Grace - 29 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Galletti, Lourdes - 33 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Gallo, Cono E. - 30 - Maspeth, NY - Dec WTC
- Gallucci, Vincenzo - 36 - Monroe, NJ - Dec WTC
- Gambale, Giovanna "Genni" - 27 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Gambino Jr., Thomas - 48 - Babylon, NY - Dec E/R
- Gamboa, Giann F. - 26 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Gamboa, Ronald - 33 - Los Angeles, CA - Un 175
- Ganci, Peter - 54 - North Massapequa, NY - Dec E/R
- Garbarini, Charles William - 43 - Pleasantville, NY - Dec E/R
- Garfi, Francesco - 29 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Gargano, Rocco - 28 - Bayside, NY - Dec WTC
- Gazzani, Terence D. - 24 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Genco, Peter Victor - 36 - Rockville Centre, NY - Dec WTC
- Genovese, Steven Gregory - 37 - Basking Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Giaccone, Joseph M. - 43 - Monroe, NJ - Dec WTC
- Giammona, Vincent Francis - 40 - Valley Stream, NY - Dec E/R
- Giordano, Donna Marie - 44 - Parlin, NJ - Dec WTC
- Giordano, Jeffrey John - 46 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Giordano, John J. - 46 - Newburgh, NY - Dec E/R
- Giorgetti, Steven A. - 43 - Manhasset, NY - Dec WTC
- Giovinazzo Jr., Martin - 34 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Giraldo, Jinny Lady - 27 - Unknown - Msg WTC
- Gitto, Salvatore - 44 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Giugliano, Cynthia - 46 - Nesconset, NY - Dec WTC
- Gnazzo, John T. - 32 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Gogliormella, Michael - 43 - New Providence, NJ - Dec WTC
- Granitto, Elvira - 43 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Grazioso, John Michael - 41 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Grazioso, Tim - 42 - Gulf Stream, FL - Dec WTC
- Grillo, Joseph F. - 46 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Guzzardo, Barbara - 49 - Glendale, NY - Dec WTC
- Ianelli Jr., Joseph Anthony - 28 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Ielpi, Jonathan Lee - 29 - Great Neck, NY - Dec E/R
- Infante Jr., Anthony P. - 47 - Mountainside, NJ - Dec E/R
- Inghilterra, Louis Steven - 46 - New Castle, NY - Dec WTC
- Ingrassia, Christopher N. - 28 - Watchung, NJ - Dec WTC
- Innella, Paul William - 33 - East Brunswick, NJ - Dec WTC
- LaBorie, Kathryn L. - 44 - Providence, RI - Un 175
- LaCorte, Andrew - 61 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Lafalce, Joseph A. - 54 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- LaForte, Michael Patrick - 39 - Holmdel, NJ - Dec WTC
- Lafranco, Alan - 43 - Unknown - Msg WTC
- Lamana, Michael Scott - 31 - Baton Rouge, LA - Dec Ptn
- LaMantia, Steven - 38 - Darien, CT - Dec WTC
- Langone, Peter J. - 41 - Roslyn Heights, NY - Dec E/R
- Langone, Thomas Michael - 39 - Williston Park, NY - Dec E/R
- Lanza, Michele B. - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Lauria, Stephen James - 39 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Lavelle, Denis F. - 42 - Yonkers, NY - Dec WTC
- Laverde, Jeannine M. - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Lepore, Michael - 39 - Bronxville, NY - Dec WTC
- Libretti, Daniel F. - 43 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Licciardi, Ralph M. - 30 - West Hempstead, NY - Dec WTC
- Lillo, Carlos R. - 37 - Babylon, NY - Dec E/R
- Lilore, Craig Damian - 30 - Lyndhurst, NJ - Dec WTC
- Linares, Tomas Gallegos - - Queretaro, Mexico - Msg WTC
- Lipari, Diane Theresa - 42 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Lira, Kenneth P. - 28 - Paterson , NJ - Msg WTC
- Liriano, Francisco Alberto - 33 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Lisi, Lorraine - 44 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Litto, Vincent M. - 52 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Livera, Joseph - 67 - Unknown - Dec WTC
- Lizcano, Harold - 31 - East Elmhurst, NY - Dec WTC
- Lostrangio, Joseph - 48 - Langhorne, PA - Dec WTC
- Lovero, Joseph - 60 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Lucania, Charles Peter - 34 - East Atlantic Beach, NY - Dec WTC
- Lugano, Sean Thomas - 28 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Lugo, Daniel - 45 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Luparello, Anthony - 62 - Corona, NY - Dec WTC
- Luzzicone, Linda - 33 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Maffeo, Jennieann - 40 - Bensonhurst, NY - Dec WTC
- Maffeo, Joseph - 30 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Maggitti, Joseph - 47 - Abington, MD - Dec WTC
- Maio, Joseph - 32 - Roslyn Harbor, NY - Dec WTC
- Maldonado, Debora I. - 47 - South Ozone Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Maldonado-Agosto, Myrna T. - 49 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Mancini, Francisco - 26 - Astoria, NY - Dec WTC
- Mangano, Joseph - 53 - Jackson, NJ - Dec WTC
- Mannetta, Debra M. - 31 - Islip, NY - Dec WTC
- Marchese, Laura A. Giglio - 35 - Oceanside, NY - Dec WTC
- Margiotta, Charles Joseph - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Mariani, Louis Neil - 59 - Derry, NH - Un 175
- Marino, Kenneth Joseph - 40 - Monroe, NY - Dec E/R
- Marino, Lester Vincent - 57 - Massapequa, NY - Dec WTC
- Marino, Vita - 49 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Marlo, Kevin D. - 28 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Marrero, Jose J. - 32 - Old Bridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Martello, James - 41 - Rumson, NJ - Dec WTC
- Marti, Michael A. - 26 - Glendale, NY - Dec WTC
- Martini, Paul Richard - 37 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec E/R
- Mascali, Joseph A. - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Masi, Stephen F. - 55 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Massa, Nicholas "Nick" - 65 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Massari, Patricia Ann - 25 - Glendale, NY - Dec WTC
- Massaroli, Michael - 38 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Mastrandrea, Philip W. - 42 - Chatham, NJ - Dec WTC
- Mastrocinque, Rudolph - 43 - Kings Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Mattricciano, Marcello - 31 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Matuza, Walter - 39 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Mauro, Charles A. - 65 - Eltingville, NY - Dec WTC
- Mauro, Charles J. - 38 - Eltingville, NY - Dec WTC
- Mauro, Dorothy - 55 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Mauro, Nancy T. - 51 - Forest Hills, NY - Dec WTC
- Mazza-Delosh, Kathy Nancy - 46 - Farmingdale, NY - Dec E/R
- Mazzella Jr., Edward - 62 - Monroe, NY - Dec WTC
- Mazzotta, Jennifer - 23 - Maspeth, NY - Dec WTC
- Medaglia, Rocco - 49 - Melville, NY - Dec WTC
- Medina, Abigail - 46 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Medina, Ana Iris - 39 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Mello, Christopher D. - 25 - Boston, MA - Am 11
- Mena, Diarelia Jovannah - 30 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Mentis, Shevonne - 25 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Mercado, Steve - 38 - Bronx, NY - Dec E/R
- Mercurio, Ralph Joseph - 47 - Rockville Centre, NY - Dec WTC
- Merino, George C. - 39 - Bayside, NY - Dec WTC
- Merino, Yamel - 24 - Yonkers, NY - Dec E/R
- Micciulli, William Edward - 30 - Matawan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Milano, Peter Teague - 43 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Minara, Robert - 54 - Carmel, NY - Dec E/R
- Minardi, William G. - 46 - Bedford, NY - Dec WTC
- Minervino, Louis Joseph - 54 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Mingione, Thomas - - West Islip, NY - Msg E/R
- Mirpuri, Rajesh A. - 30 - Engelwood Cliffs, NJ - Dec WTC
- Mistrulli, Joseph - 47 - Wantagh, NY - Dec WTC
- Miuccio, Richard - 55 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Moccia Sr., Frank V. - 57 - Hauppauge, NY - Dec WTC
- Modafferi, Louis Joseph - 45 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Molina, Fernando Jiminez - - Oaxaca, Mexico - Msg WTC
- Molina, Manuel Dejesus - 31 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Molinaro, Carl - 32 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Molisani Jr., Justin J. - 42 - Middletown Township, NJ - Dec WTC
- Montanaro, Kristen - 34 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Montano, Craig D. - 38 - Glen Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Montesi, Michael G. - 39 - Highland Mills, NY - Dec E/R
- Morabito, Laura Lee - 34 - Framingham, MA - Am 11
- Morello, Steven P. - 52 - Bayonne, NJ - Dec WTC
- Morello, Vincent S. - 34 - Middle Village, NY - Dec E/R
- Moreno, Arturo Alva - - Mexico City, Mexico - Msg WTC
- Moreno, Yvette Nicole - 25 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Morrone, Ferdinand V. - 63 - Lakewood, NJ - Dec E/R
- Motroni Sr., Marco - 57 - Fort Lee, NJ - Dec WTC
- Mozzillo, Christopher - 27 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Murillo, Cesar Augusto - 32 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Murolo, Marc A. - 28 - Maywood, NJ - Dec WTC
- Napolitano, John - 33 - Ronkonkoma, NY - Dec E/R
- Nardella, Catherine - 40 - Bloomfield, NJ - Dec WTC
- Nardone, Mario - 32 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Navarro, Karen S. - 30 - Bayside, NY - Dec WTC
- Nazario, Francis - 28 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Nichilo, Jody Tepedino - 39 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Nicosia, Kathleen Ann - 54 - Winthrop, MA - Am 11
- Notaro, Daniela R. - 25 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Oliva, Linda Mary - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Orsini, Ronald - 59 - Hillsdale, NJ - Dec WTC
- Osorio-Oliva, Elsy Carolina - 27 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Palazzo, Jeffrey Matthew - 33 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Palazzo, Thomas Anthony - 44 - Armonk, NY - Dec WTC
- Palazzolo, Richard - 39 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Palombo, Frank A. - 46 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec E/R
- Palumbo, Alan - 42 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Pandolfo, Dominique Lisa - 27 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pansini, Paul J. - 35 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Paolillo, John M. - 51 - Glen Head, NY - Dec E/R
- Papa, Edward Joseph - 47 - Oyster Bay, NY - Dec WTC
- Papasso, Salvatore - 34 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Pappalardo, Marie - 53 - Paramount, CA - Un 175
- Parro, Robert - 35 - Levittown, NY - Dec E/R
- Passananti, Horace Robert - 55 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Passaro, Suzanne H. - 38 - East Brunswick, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pastrana, Victor Antonio Martinez - - Tlachichuca, Puebla, Mexico - Msg WTC
- Patrocino, Manuel - 34 - Unknown - Dec WTC
- Pecorelli, Thomas Nicholas - 31 - Topanga, CA - Am 11
- Pedicini, Thomas E. - 30 - Hicksville, NY - Dec WTC
- Pelino, Todd D. - 34 - Fair Haven, NJ - Dec WTC
- Peluso, Anthony - 46 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Peralta, Carl Allen - 37 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Percoco, Marie Vola - 37 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Perconti, Jon Anthony - 32 - Brick, NJ - Dec WTC
- Perroncino, Joseph John - 33 - Smithtown, NY - Dec WTC
- Perrotta, Edward Joseph - 43 - Mount Sinai, NY - Dec WTC
- Pesce, Danny - 34 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Petrocelli, Mark - 29 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Petti, Philip Scott - 43 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Pezzulo, Dominick A. - 36 - Bronx, NY - Dec E/R
- Pezzuti, Kaleen E. - 28 - Fair Haven, NJ - Dec WTC
- Piantieri, Eugenia - 55 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Picarro, Ludwig J. - 44 - Basking Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Picerno, Matthew - 44 - Holmdel, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pietronico, Bernard T. - 39 - Matawan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pietrunti, Nicholas P. - 38 - Belford, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pinto, Susan Elizabeth Ancona - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Plumitallo, Joseph - 45 - Manalapan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Pollicino, Steve - 48 - Plainview, NY - Dec WTC
- Pollio, Susan M. - 45 - Long Beach Township, NJ - Dec WTC
- Portillo, Anthony - 48 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Potorti, James Edward - 52 - Plainsboro, NJ - Dec WTC
- Preziose, Gregory M. - 34 - Holmdel, NJ - Dec WTC
- Princiotta, Vincent - 39 - Orangeburg, NY - Dec E/R
- Pugliese, Robert D. - 47 - East Fishkill, NY - Dec WTC
- Puopolo, Sonia Morales - 58 - Dover, MA - Am 11
- Racaniello, Christopher Peter A. - 30 - Little Neck, NY - Dec WTC
- Ragaglia, Leonard - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Raggio, Eugene J. - 55 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Ragonese-Snik, Laura Marie - 41 - Bangor, PA - Dec WTC
- Ragusa, Michael - - Unknown - Msg E/R
- Raimondi, Peter F. - 46 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Rauzi, Gerard - 42 - Flushing, NY - Dec WTC
- Reda, Gregory - 33 - New Hyde Park, NY - Dec WTC
- Reina, Joseph - 32 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Renda, Karen C. - 52 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Reo, John Armand - 28 - Larchmont, NY - Dec WTC
- Rescorla, Richard C. - 62 - Morristown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Resta, John Thomas - 40 - Bayside, NY - Dec WTC
- Resta, Sylvia San Pio - 27 - Bayside, NY - Dec WTC
- Riccardelli, Francis Saverio - 40 - Westwood, NJ - Dec WTC
- Riccio, Rudolph N. - 50 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Riccoboni, AnnMarie Davi - 58 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Rigo, John M. - 48 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Rimmele III, Frederick Charles - 32 - Marblehead, MA - Un 175
- Risco, Theresa "Ginger" - 48 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Riso, Rose Mary - 55 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Rivelli Jr., Joseph - 43 - Manhattan, NY - Dec E/R
- Riverso, Joseph R. - 34 - White Plains, NY - Dec WTC
- Rizza, Paul V. - 34 - Park Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Rizzo, John Frank - 50 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Roberto, Joseph - 37 - Midland Park, NJ - Dec WTC
- Roma, Keith - 27 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Romagnolo, Joseph M. - 37 - Coram, NY - Dec WTC
- Romero Sr., Efrain Franco - 57 - Hazleton, PA - Dec WTC
- Romero, Elvin Santiago - 34 - Matawan, NJ - Dec WTC
- Romito, James A. - 51 - Westwood, NJ - Dec E/R
- Rosario, Aida - 42 - Jersey City, NJ - Dec WTC
- Rosario, Angela - 27 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Rossetti, Daniel - 32 - Bloomfield, NJ - Dec WTC
- Rossomando, Nicholas - 35 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Rubino, Joanne - 45 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Ruggiere, Bart Joseph - 32 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Ruggiero, Susan Ann - 30 - Plainview, NY - Dec WTC
- Sabella, Thomas E. - 44 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Sacerdote, Joseph F. - 48 - Freehold, NJ - Dec WTC
- Salamone, John Patrick - 37 - North Caldwell, NJ - Dec WTC
- Salamone, Marjorie C. - 53 - Springfield, VA - Dec Ptn
- Salcedo, Esmerlin Antonio - 36 - Bronx, NY - Dec WTC
- Salerno, John Salvatore - 31 - Westfield, NJ - Dec WTC
- Salinardi, Richard L. - 32 - Hoboken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Salvaterra, Frank G. - 41 - Manhasset, NY - Dec WTC
- Salvio, Paul - 27 - Midwood, NY - Dec WTC
- Salvo, Samuel R. - 59 - Yonkers, NY - Dec WTC
- Sammartino, John - 37 - Annadale, VA - Am 77
- Santo, Susan G. - 24 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Santora, Christopher - 23 - New York, NY - Dec E/R
- Santore, John - 49 - Staten Island, NY - Dec E/R
- Santoro, Mario L. - 28 - Manhattan, NY - Dec E/R
- Santos, Dominick - 36 - Bronx, NY - Dec E/R
- Santos, Rufino Condrado F. "Roy" - 37 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Saracini, Victor J. - 51 - Lower Makefield Township, PA - Un 175
- Sattaluri, Deepika Kumar - 33 - Edison, NJ - Dec WTC
- Sbarbaro, John - 45 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Scandole, Robert Louis "Rob" - 36 - Pelham Manor, NY - Dec WTC
- Scarpitta, Michelle - 26 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Scauso, Dennis - 46 - Dix Hills, NY - Dec E/R
- Scibetta, Adrianne - 31 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Scorca, Raphael - 61 - Beachwood, NJ - Dec WTC
- Sellitto, Matthew Carmen - 23 - Morristown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Sereno, Arturo Angelo - 29 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Serrano, Frankie - 23 - Elizabeth, NJ - Dec WTC
- Serva, Marion - 47 - Stafford, VA - Dec Ptn
- Sesinova, Alena - 57 - Brooklyn Heights, NY - Dec WTC
- Sessa, Adele - 36 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Sezna Jr., Davis G. "Deeg" - 22 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Siracuse, Peter A. - 29 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Skala, John P. - 31 - Clifton, NJ - Dec E/R
- Smagala Jr., Stanley S. - 36 - Holbrook, NY - Dec E/R
- Sorresse, Michael C. - 34 - Morris Plains, NJ - Dec WTC
- Soto, Fabian - 31 - Harrison, NJ - Dec WTC
- Spagnoletti, Gregory T. - 32 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Spampinato, Donald - 39 - Manhasset, NY - Dec WTC
- Sparacio, Thomas - 35 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Spataro, John Anthony - 32 - Mineola, NY - Dec WTC
- Sperando, Mary Rubina - 39 - Queens, NY - Dec WTC
- Spinelli, Frank J. - 44 - Short Hills, NJ - Dec WTC
- Starita, Anthony M. - 35 - Westfield, NJ - Dec WTC
- Strada, Thomas S. - 41 - Chatham, NJ - Dec WTC
- Suozzo, James Joseph - 47 - Hauppauge, NY - Dec WTC
- Taddei, Norma C. - 64 - Woodside, NY - Dec WTC
- Taddonio, Michael - 39 - Huntington, NY - Dec WTC
- Talignani, John - 74 - New York, NY - Un 93
- Tamuccio, Michael Andrew - 37 - Pelham Manor, NY - Dec WTC
- Taormina, Dennis Gerard - 36 - Montville, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tarantino, Kenneth Joseph - 39 - Bayonne, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tartaro, Ronald - 38 - Bridgewater, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tempesta, Anthony - 38 - Elizabeth, NJ - Dec WTC
- Terrenzi, Brian John - 28 - Hicksville, NY - Dec WTC
- Tieri Jr., Sal Edward - 40 - Shrewsbury, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tieste, William Randolph - 54 - Basking Ridge, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tino, Jennifer Marie - 29 - West Caldwell, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tipaldi, Robert Frank - 25 - Dyker Heights, NY - Dec WTC
- Tirado Jr., Hector Luis - 30 - Bronx, NY - Dec E/R
- Tirado, David Lawrence - 26 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Titolo, Michelle - 34 - Copiague, NY - Dec WTC
- Todisco, Richard J. - 61 - Wyckoff, NJ - Dec WTC
- Traina, Christopher M. - 25 - Brick, NJ - Dec WTC
- Traore, Abdoul Karim - 41 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Trentini, James Anthony - 65 - Everett, MA - Am 11
- Trentini, Mary - 67 - Everett, MA - Am 11
- Trerotola, Lisa L. - 36 - Hazlet, NJ - Dec WTC
- Trerra, Karamo - 40 - Manhattan, NY - Dec WTC
- Trombino, Francis Joseph - 68 - Clifton, NJ - Dec WTC
- Tuzio, Donald Joseph - 51 - Goshen, NY - Dec WTC
- Uliano, Michael A. - 42 - Aberdeen, NJ - Dec WTC
- Vaccacio, John Damien - 30 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Valvo II, Carlton Francis - 38 - New York, NY - Dec WTC
- Varacchi, Frederick T. - 35 - Greenwich, CT - Dec WTC
- Velamuri, Sankara - 63 - Avenel, NJ - Dec WTC
- Ventura, Anthony M. - 41 - Middletown, NJ - Dec WTC
- Vera, David - 41 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Vero, Loretta A. - 51 - Nanuet, NY - Dec WTC
- Vialonga, Christopher - 30 - Demarest, NJ - Dec WTC
- Vianna, Matthew Gilbert - 23 - Manhasset, NY - Dec WTC
- Vicario, Robert A. - 40 - Weehawken, NJ - Dec WTC
- Vigiano II, John T. - 36 - West Islip, NY - Dec E/R
- Vigiano, Joseph Vincent - 34 - Medford, NY - Dec E/R
- Vignola Jr., Frank J. - 44 - Merrick, NY - Dec WTC
- Vilardo, Joseph B. - 44 - Stanhope, NJ - Dec WTC
- Villanueva, Sergio - 33 - Jackson Heights, NY - Msg E/R
- Vincelli, Chantal - 38 - Harlem, NY - Dec WTC
- Virgilio, Francine A. - 48 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Virgilio, Lawrence - 38 - Unknown - Dec E/R
- Visciano, Joseph G. - 22 - Staten Island, NY - Dec WTC
- Vitale, Joshua S. - 28 - Great Neck, NY - Dec WTC
- Zaccoli, Joseph - 39 - Valley Stream, NY - Dec WTC
- Zambrana Jr., Edwin J. - 24 - Brooklyn, NY - Dec WTC
- Zampieri, Robert Alan "Robbie" - 30 - Saddle River, NJ - Dec WTC
- Zangrilli, Mark - 36 - Pompton Plains, NJ - Dec WTC
- Zarba, Christopher Rudoph - 47 - Hopkinton, MA - Am 11
- Zedillo, Aurelio - - Mexico - Msg WTC
- Zinzi, Michael Joseph - 37 - Newfoundland, NJ - Dec WTC
- Zisa, Salvatore J. - 45 - Hawthorne, NJ - Dec WTC
- Zuccala, Joseph J. - 54 - Croton-on-Hudson, NY - Dec WTC
Never Forget...
--GVI
By Gianni Pezzano
The decision to migrate is never easy but, no matter how hard the decision, at the moment of departure we never understand the true price paid by those who leave a country for a new life. It will then be the cruelty of time that will uncover the true pain caused by long distances and the ones who feel it are not only the migrants, but also the children and descendants.
From telegrams to messages
When I woke up Saturday morning there was a message on my mobile phone that I had feared since the first day in Italy. My uncle Rocco had passed away, the last of my father’s eight brothers and sisters and with him an entire generation of the paternal side of my family ended. It will not be the last such message and they never become because less painful, in fact…
After the first moment of sadness, which has grown since then, I remembered my mother’s scream that evening fifty years ago when the telegram arrived to tell us of the death of Nonno (grandfather). The change of technology has done nothing to reduce the pain.
That was my first true experience of the migrant’s pain. Two years before my maternal grandparents had come to Australia to meet the new in-laws and above all the grandchildren that they knew only from a few brief words in the rare telephone calls and the photos sent during the long exchange of letters between my mother and Nonna (grandmother). Sadly I never met my paternal grandparents. Nonno had died before my parents’ wedding and I was too young to remember when Nonna followed a few years later.
Read the entire article HERE (in both Italian and English)...
The decision to migrate is never easy but, no matter how hard the decision, at the moment of departure we never understand the true price paid by those who leave a country for a new life. It will then be the cruelty of time that will uncover the true pain caused by long distances and the ones who feel it are not only the migrants, but also the children and descendants.
From telegrams to messages
When I woke up Saturday morning there was a message on my mobile phone that I had feared since the first day in Italy. My uncle Rocco had passed away, the last of my father’s eight brothers and sisters and with him an entire generation of the paternal side of my family ended. It will not be the last such message and they never become because less painful, in fact…
After the first moment of sadness, which has grown since then, I remembered my mother’s scream that evening fifty years ago when the telegram arrived to tell us of the death of Nonno (grandfather). The change of technology has done nothing to reduce the pain.
That was my first true experience of the migrant’s pain. Two years before my maternal grandparents had come to Australia to meet the new in-laws and above all the grandchildren that they knew only from a few brief words in the rare telephone calls and the photos sent during the long exchange of letters between my mother and Nonna (grandmother). Sadly I never met my paternal grandparents. Nonno had died before my parents’ wedding and I was too young to remember when Nonna followed a few years later.
Read the entire article HERE (in both Italian and English)...
Italian Immigrants being interned during WWII
The shameful treatment of Italian Immigrants during WWII
show America’s propensity for xenophobic hysteria
Their movements were restricted,
their homes raided;
in some cases, they were interned
show America’s propensity for xenophobic hysteria
Their movements were restricted,
their homes raided;
in some cases, they were interned
The men in suits were at the Maiorana family’s Monterey, California, home again. Mike, the family’s young son, watched as the agents rummaged through their belongings in search of guns, cameras, and shortwave radios. And again, they found nothing. This was during World War II, and the FBI had declared Mike’s mother an “enemy alien.” The sole source of evidence for this allegation was that she was Italian.
Elsewhere in California, an Italian poet’s work was scrutinized for treachery, and a father was hauled off by the FBI, leaving his wife and ten children without a breadwinner for four months. In New York, an Italian opera singer was thrown in prison without charge and just as unceremoniously released. Hundreds of Italian mariners who had been stranded in U.S. waters by the start of the war were loaded into Army trucks and hauled to an internment camp in Missoula, Montana, where some would remain for years.
It was a distinctly American story, revealing the immigration system’s xenophobic through line. Poverty-stricken immigrants who were hated one day were approved of the next, only to be replaced by another allegedly dangerous immigrant group, all under the guise of national security. As beloved as Italian cuisine, sports cars, and fashion are on our shores today, things were different during the first half of the 20th century, especially during WWII....
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE...
Elsewhere in California, an Italian poet’s work was scrutinized for treachery, and a father was hauled off by the FBI, leaving his wife and ten children without a breadwinner for four months. In New York, an Italian opera singer was thrown in prison without charge and just as unceremoniously released. Hundreds of Italian mariners who had been stranded in U.S. waters by the start of the war were loaded into Army trucks and hauled to an internment camp in Missoula, Montana, where some would remain for years.
It was a distinctly American story, revealing the immigration system’s xenophobic through line. Poverty-stricken immigrants who were hated one day were approved of the next, only to be replaced by another allegedly dangerous immigrant group, all under the guise of national security. As beloved as Italian cuisine, sports cars, and fashion are on our shores today, things were different during the first half of the 20th century, especially during WWII....
CLICK HERE TO READ MORE...
Packed like sardines... Coming to America The Many Reasons for Coming to America
Poverty was the main motivation for an Italian leaving his family and home and putting up with the hardships of traveling to America. In 1898, widespread "bread riots" plagued all of Italy, with people protesting the lack of jobs and the sudden increase in the price of wheat and bread. Other motivators were the constant political strife and the dream to return to Italy with enough money to buy land and improve their lives. Fully 80% of Italians were farmers and couldn't afford modern farming equipment to better their lives. Rural Italians lived in harsh conditions, residing in one-room houses with no plumbing or privacy. In addition, many peasants were isolated due to a lack of roads in Italy.
Poverty was the main motivation for an Italian leaving his family and home and putting up with the hardships of traveling to America. In 1898, widespread "bread riots" plagued all of Italy, with people protesting the lack of jobs and the sudden increase in the price of wheat and bread. Other motivators were the constant political strife and the dream to return to Italy with enough money to buy land and improve their lives. Fully 80% of Italians were farmers and couldn't afford modern farming equipment to better their lives. Rural Italians lived in harsh conditions, residing in one-room houses with no plumbing or privacy. In addition, many peasants were isolated due to a lack of roads in Italy.
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It was difficult to feed such a large family in rural Italy Most Italians didn't own land, so they were indebted to landlords, who charged high rents and took a portion of their crops. Higher wages in America--as often falsely advertised by many flyers produced by steamship companies--proved to be an attractive draw. AN Italian contadino who farmed year-round might earn 16-30 cents per day in Italy. A carpenter in Italy would receive 30 cents to $1.40 per day, making a 6-day week’s pay $1.80 to $8.40. In America, a carpenter who worked a 56-hour week would earn $18.
Farmers faced even further reasons to immigrate. Besides falling wheat prices, fruit and wine prices were also falling. The phylloxera virus destroyed nearly every grape vine used to produce wine. America was envisioned as a place of opportunity, with abundant land, high wages, lower taxes--and at the time--no military draft. Yes, one more reason why many Italian men wanted to leave Italy... to escape conscription into the military. But still, many wanted only to go to America, earn money and return to buy their own land.
Political hardship was also a factor in motivating immigration. Beginning in 1860, la Guerra dei Contadini del Sud (the Southern Peasants War) began. This was an uprising to resist the changes that the North was forcing on the Southern provinces with the Unification. Led by mostly brigands (many of who had previously had the support of contadini), this was a type of "social banditism" who were rebelling in order to retain their small sphere of power and wealth in their rural areas. The poor contadini were caught suddenly in the cross fire. Later in the 1870s, the government took measures to repress political views such as anarchy and socialism. Many Italians came to the United States to escape political policies and warring factions.
Farmers faced even further reasons to immigrate. Besides falling wheat prices, fruit and wine prices were also falling. The phylloxera virus destroyed nearly every grape vine used to produce wine. America was envisioned as a place of opportunity, with abundant land, high wages, lower taxes--and at the time--no military draft. Yes, one more reason why many Italian men wanted to leave Italy... to escape conscription into the military. But still, many wanted only to go to America, earn money and return to buy their own land.
Political hardship was also a factor in motivating immigration. Beginning in 1860, la Guerra dei Contadini del Sud (the Southern Peasants War) began. This was an uprising to resist the changes that the North was forcing on the Southern provinces with the Unification. Led by mostly brigands (many of who had previously had the support of contadini), this was a type of "social banditism" who were rebelling in order to retain their small sphere of power and wealth in their rural areas. The poor contadini were caught suddenly in the cross fire. Later in the 1870s, the government took measures to repress political views such as anarchy and socialism. Many Italians came to the United States to escape political policies and warring factions.
Taking a train to an Italian port city Italian immigrants to the United States from 1890 onward became a part of what is known as “New Immigration,” which is the third and largest wave of immigration from Europe and consisted of Slavs, Jews, and Italians. This “New Immigration” was a major change from the “Old Immigration” which consisted of Germans, Irish, British, and Scandinavians and occurred earlier in the 19th century.
Between 1900 and 1915, 3 million Italians immigrated to America, which was the largest nationality of “new immigrants.” These immigrants, a mix of both artisans and peasants, came from all regions of Italy, but the largest numbers were from the mezzogiorno--Southern Italy. Between 1876 and 1930, out of the 5 million immigrants who came to the United States, fully 80% were from the South, representing such regions as Calabria, Campania, Abruzzi, Molise, Apulia and Sicily. The majority (2/3 of the immigrant population) were farm laborers or laborers, or contadini, as noted on the ship manifests when arriving at Ellis Island. The laborers were mostly agricultural and did not have much experience in industry such as mining and textiles. The laborers who did work in industry had come from textile factories in Piedmont and Tuscany and mines in Umbria and Sicily.
Though the majority of Italian immigrants were laborers, a small population of craftsmen also immigrated to the United States. They comprised less than 20% of all Italian immigrants and enjoyed a higher status than that of the contadini. The majority of craftsmen were from the South and could read and write; they included carpenters, brick layers, masons, tailors, and barbers.
Between 1900 and 1915, 3 million Italians immigrated to America, which was the largest nationality of “new immigrants.” These immigrants, a mix of both artisans and peasants, came from all regions of Italy, but the largest numbers were from the mezzogiorno--Southern Italy. Between 1876 and 1930, out of the 5 million immigrants who came to the United States, fully 80% were from the South, representing such regions as Calabria, Campania, Abruzzi, Molise, Apulia and Sicily. The majority (2/3 of the immigrant population) were farm laborers or laborers, or contadini, as noted on the ship manifests when arriving at Ellis Island. The laborers were mostly agricultural and did not have much experience in industry such as mining and textiles. The laborers who did work in industry had come from textile factories in Piedmont and Tuscany and mines in Umbria and Sicily.
Though the majority of Italian immigrants were laborers, a small population of craftsmen also immigrated to the United States. They comprised less than 20% of all Italian immigrants and enjoyed a higher status than that of the contadini. The majority of craftsmen were from the South and could read and write; they included carpenters, brick layers, masons, tailors, and barbers.
 Both Italian and English advertise this baker's wares |  Market under the Ell in lower Manhattan |
Ellis Island newcomers
The first wave of Italian immigration began in the 1860s after the Unification of Italy. By 1914, the number of Italians immigrating to the United States reached it's peak at over 280,000 making the journey to America. Since there was a larger population and higher skilled laborers (such as miners) in the industrial northern Italian provinces, a higher number emigrated from the North. But even though the South had a sparser population with less labor skills, more per capita came from these southern regions. In fact, by 1915, the number of emigrants from the South nearly matched those coming from the North.
Italian Immigration by region
Due to the large numbers of Italian immigrants, Italians became a vital component of the organized labor supply in America. They comprised a large segment of the following three labor forces: mining, textiles, and clothing manufacturing. In fact, Italians were the largest immigrant population to work in the mines. In 1910, 20,000 Italians were employed in mills in Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
An interesting feature of Italian immigrants to the United States between 1901 and 1920 was the high percentage that returned to Italy after they had earned money in the United States. About 50% of Italians repatriated, which can be interpreted as many having trouble assimilating into the American way of life. Some of this can be blamed on the blatant racist views toward Italians and refusal to hire them for better paying jobs. In the large cities, tenements were essentially slums. If an immigrant couldn't get a decent living wage, they might reconsider trying to raise their family in America. Because Italian immigrants tended to be gregarious--often clustering together in "Little Italys", often they didn't feel there was a need to learn English, another factor in not being able to secure better paying jobs.
Many might have fallen into the trap of getting housing or jobs through a padrone, a boss and middleman between the immigrants and American employers. The padrone was an immigrant from Italy who had been living in America for a while. He at first might seem helpful in providing lodging, functioning as safe "bankers" or money changers (often short changing), and found work for the immigrants (albeit, for a percentage of their earnings). Often, they would get the work that they could do in the apartments they rented to them... making silk flowers, rolling cigars, sewing, etc. After a few years of paying a percentage of their salaries to these padrone, many immigrants got discouraged enough to return to the homeland. At best, these situations became indentured servitude, at worst slavery. Child labor was also a product of these padrone, filling sweat shop factories with children as young as 10 years old.
An interesting feature of Italian immigrants to the United States between 1901 and 1920 was the high percentage that returned to Italy after they had earned money in the United States. About 50% of Italians repatriated, which can be interpreted as many having trouble assimilating into the American way of life. Some of this can be blamed on the blatant racist views toward Italians and refusal to hire them for better paying jobs. In the large cities, tenements were essentially slums. If an immigrant couldn't get a decent living wage, they might reconsider trying to raise their family in America. Because Italian immigrants tended to be gregarious--often clustering together in "Little Italys", often they didn't feel there was a need to learn English, another factor in not being able to secure better paying jobs.
Many might have fallen into the trap of getting housing or jobs through a padrone, a boss and middleman between the immigrants and American employers. The padrone was an immigrant from Italy who had been living in America for a while. He at first might seem helpful in providing lodging, functioning as safe "bankers" or money changers (often short changing), and found work for the immigrants (albeit, for a percentage of their earnings). Often, they would get the work that they could do in the apartments they rented to them... making silk flowers, rolling cigars, sewing, etc. After a few years of paying a percentage of their salaries to these padrone, many immigrants got discouraged enough to return to the homeland. At best, these situations became indentured servitude, at worst slavery. Child labor was also a product of these padrone, filling sweat shop factories with children as young as 10 years old.
Prejudice Rears its Ugly Head
Both immigrant contadini and those with skills faced economic as well as ethnic prejudices upon entering the labor force in America. The poor economy caused hostility toward Italians and many were labeled as strikebreakers and wage cutters from 1870 onward. American workers already feared the new mechanization in factories was the cause of taking away their jobs. Job bosses used Italians to fill their jobs as scabs during labor strikes. Prejudices were especially aimed at (as perceived) darker skinned Southern Italians who became scabs during strikes in construction, railroad, mining, long shoring, and industry. The Italian workers were called derogatory names such as:
Both immigrant contadini and those with skills faced economic as well as ethnic prejudices upon entering the labor force in America. The poor economy caused hostility toward Italians and many were labeled as strikebreakers and wage cutters from 1870 onward. American workers already feared the new mechanization in factories was the cause of taking away their jobs. Job bosses used Italians to fill their jobs as scabs during labor strikes. Prejudices were especially aimed at (as perceived) darker skinned Southern Italians who became scabs during strikes in construction, railroad, mining, long shoring, and industry. The Italian workers were called derogatory names such as:
- Guinea - referencing the dark skinned people imported as slaves from Guinea in Africa. (Southern Italians were often darker skinned/tanned than most "white" Americans.)
- Wop - a bastardazation of "Guappo" a word referring to an unsavory criminal in Naples dialect. The pronunciation softens the "G" and drops the "O", sounding like "wop".
- Dagoe - Originally from Dago, a derogatory term describing anyone of Spanish or Italian birth.
Laying trolly tracks
Italians were the only workers to work along side black people and employers preferred Slovaks and Poles to Italians. At the time, it was said that "railroad superintendents ranked Southern Italians last because of their small stature and lack of strength”. In the mining industry especially there was an ethnic hierarchy: English-speaking workers held the skilled and supervisory positions while the Italians were hired as laborers, loaders, and pick miners.
It was not until the 1920s that Italians became more integrated into the American working class, regardless of whether or not they spoke English. More immigrants started to work at semi-skilled jobs in factories as well as skilled positions but one-third of the population remained unskilled. In trade unions, meetings were held in English and Italians were not elected to official positions.
It was not until the 1920s that Italians became more integrated into the American working class, regardless of whether or not they spoke English. More immigrants started to work at semi-skilled jobs in factories as well as skilled positions but one-third of the population remained unskilled. In trade unions, meetings were held in English and Italians were not elected to official positions.
| The Rough Life, a Road to a Brighter Future I wanted to end this article by looking back at where "we" Italian-Americans came from... the suffering, the hardships, the prejudice, the poverty. |  |
Dad's name on the Ellis Island wall - Saverio Finzi My Grandfather, Sergio Finzi had made two preliminary Voyages across the Atlantic trying to establish connections and work so he could bring his wife and children over. He was a tailor, a skill he brought with him from Molfetta. They were poor. My father told of not having enough coal or wood to fire up their kitchen stove--the only heat in winter. He said he and his brother walked the railroad tracks to pick up scraps of coal fallen from passing trains. They left school in the fourth grade to help the his familia scrape a living from their new home.
Many Italian immigrants suffered--and endured. We are all proof if this fact. Italian immigrants--as many immigrants from other lands--help build this country. They helped defend it. They assimilated. They became citizens. Paid taxes. Sent their kids to school.
And here we are... over 100 years later and many in our country are still ambivalent or even dead against immigrants. Have we really lost sight of the fact that unless we have 100% Native American blood running through our veins, that we all are descended from immigrants?
Starting in 1888, photographer Jacob Riis, a Danish immigrant, in an attempt to call attention to the suffering of immigrants, photographed the Manhattan tenement slums where Italian (and other) immigrants were living in squalor. He was followed by Lewis Hines, who photographed not only the immigrants and slums but the children who were the most helpless victims of this inflicted poverty.
Enjoy the slide show... and try to remember the hardships our fore-bearers went through to get us where we are today...
--Jerry Finzi
Many Italian immigrants suffered--and endured. We are all proof if this fact. Italian immigrants--as many immigrants from other lands--help build this country. They helped defend it. They assimilated. They became citizens. Paid taxes. Sent their kids to school.
And here we are... over 100 years later and many in our country are still ambivalent or even dead against immigrants. Have we really lost sight of the fact that unless we have 100% Native American blood running through our veins, that we all are descended from immigrants?
Starting in 1888, photographer Jacob Riis, a Danish immigrant, in an attempt to call attention to the suffering of immigrants, photographed the Manhattan tenement slums where Italian (and other) immigrants were living in squalor. He was followed by Lewis Hines, who photographed not only the immigrants and slums but the children who were the most helpless victims of this inflicted poverty.
Enjoy the slide show... and try to remember the hardships our fore-bearers went through to get us where we are today...
--Jerry Finzi
Members of Black Hand (la Mano Nera) arrested at Fairmont, W. VA.-The Mafia, more commonly known as the Black Hand in West Virginia, reared its ugly head in Marion County in 1908. The members of the Black Hand, all natives of Italy, had banded together with Frank Pisconeri as their president. They carried out a campaign of extortion throughout the county with their victims either Italians or Italians by descent.
-(Marion Co Historical Society)
Black Hand (Italian: Mano Nera) was a type of extortion racket. It was a method of extortion, not a criminal organization as such, though gangsters of Camorra and the Mafia practiced it. According to a newspaper report in the New York Tribune of June 1912, the Black Hand "...really exists only as a phrase. As an organization such a thing never existed out of the minds of the police. It is a catch phrase made familiar through the newspapers, and the quick witted criminal of Latin extraction lost no time in using it as a nom de crime, which he wrote at the bottom of his blackmailing letters, sometimes - in fact, generally - adding fanciful decorations of his own, such as daggers dripping blood, revolvers spitting fire and bullets, crudely drawn skulls and crossbones and the inevitable sketch of a human hand."
Origins
The roots of the Black Hand can be traced to the Kingdom of Naples as early as the 1750s. However, the term as normally used in English specifically refers to the organization established by Italian immigrants in the United States during the 1880s who, though fluent in their Southern Italian regional dialects, had no access to Standard Italian or even a grammar school education. A minority of the immigrants formed criminal syndicates, living alongside each other. By 1900, Black Hand operations were firmly established in the Italian-American communities of major cities including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, New Orleans, Scranton, San Francisco, Olean, NY and Detroit. In 1907, a Black Hand headquarters was discovered in Hillsville, Pennsylvania, a village located a few miles west of New Castle, Pennsylvania. The Black Hand in Hillsville established a school designed to train members in the use of the stiletto. Although more successful immigrants were usually targeted, possibly as many as 90% of Italian immigrants and workmen in New York and other communities were threatened with extortion.
Typical Black Hand tactics involved sending a letter to a victim threatening bodily harm, kidnapping, arson, or murder. The letter demanded a specified amount of money to be delivered to a specific place. It was decorated with threatening symbols like a smoking gun, hangman's noose, skull, or knife dripping with blood or piercing a human heart, and was in many instances, signed with a hand, "held up in the universal gesture of warning", imprinted or drawn in thick black ink. According to author/historian Mike Dash, "it was this last feature that inspired a journalist writing for The New York Herald to refer to the communications as "Black Hand" letters—a name that stuck, and indeed, soon became synonymous with crime in Little Italy." The term "Black Hand" (in Italian: Mano Nera, and in Sicilian: Manu Niura) was readily adopted by the American press and generalized to the idea of an organized criminal conspiracy, which came to be known as "The Black Hand Society".
The tenor Enrico Caruso received a Black Hand letter, on which a black hand and dagger were drawn, demanding $2,000. Caruso decided to pay, "and, when this fact became public knowledge, was rewarded for his capitulation with 'a stack of threatening letters a foot high,' including another from the same gang for $15,000." Realizing the extortionists would continue to demand money, he reported the incident to the police who, arranging for Caruso to drop off the money at a prearranged spot, arrested two Italian-American businessmen who retrieved the money.
-(Marion Co Historical Society)
Black Hand (Italian: Mano Nera) was a type of extortion racket. It was a method of extortion, not a criminal organization as such, though gangsters of Camorra and the Mafia practiced it. According to a newspaper report in the New York Tribune of June 1912, the Black Hand "...really exists only as a phrase. As an organization such a thing never existed out of the minds of the police. It is a catch phrase made familiar through the newspapers, and the quick witted criminal of Latin extraction lost no time in using it as a nom de crime, which he wrote at the bottom of his blackmailing letters, sometimes - in fact, generally - adding fanciful decorations of his own, such as daggers dripping blood, revolvers spitting fire and bullets, crudely drawn skulls and crossbones and the inevitable sketch of a human hand."
Origins
The roots of the Black Hand can be traced to the Kingdom of Naples as early as the 1750s. However, the term as normally used in English specifically refers to the organization established by Italian immigrants in the United States during the 1880s who, though fluent in their Southern Italian regional dialects, had no access to Standard Italian or even a grammar school education. A minority of the immigrants formed criminal syndicates, living alongside each other. By 1900, Black Hand operations were firmly established in the Italian-American communities of major cities including New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, New Orleans, Scranton, San Francisco, Olean, NY and Detroit. In 1907, a Black Hand headquarters was discovered in Hillsville, Pennsylvania, a village located a few miles west of New Castle, Pennsylvania. The Black Hand in Hillsville established a school designed to train members in the use of the stiletto. Although more successful immigrants were usually targeted, possibly as many as 90% of Italian immigrants and workmen in New York and other communities were threatened with extortion.
Typical Black Hand tactics involved sending a letter to a victim threatening bodily harm, kidnapping, arson, or murder. The letter demanded a specified amount of money to be delivered to a specific place. It was decorated with threatening symbols like a smoking gun, hangman's noose, skull, or knife dripping with blood or piercing a human heart, and was in many instances, signed with a hand, "held up in the universal gesture of warning", imprinted or drawn in thick black ink. According to author/historian Mike Dash, "it was this last feature that inspired a journalist writing for The New York Herald to refer to the communications as "Black Hand" letters—a name that stuck, and indeed, soon became synonymous with crime in Little Italy." The term "Black Hand" (in Italian: Mano Nera, and in Sicilian: Manu Niura) was readily adopted by the American press and generalized to the idea of an organized criminal conspiracy, which came to be known as "The Black Hand Society".
The tenor Enrico Caruso received a Black Hand letter, on which a black hand and dagger were drawn, demanding $2,000. Caruso decided to pay, "and, when this fact became public knowledge, was rewarded for his capitulation with 'a stack of threatening letters a foot high,' including another from the same gang for $15,000." Realizing the extortionists would continue to demand money, he reported the incident to the police who, arranging for Caruso to drop off the money at a prearranged spot, arrested two Italian-American businessmen who retrieved the money.
At the beginning of 2017, we've started re-construction and re-organization of Grand Voyage Italy's pages. If you don't find what you are looking for on this new History page, use the Search Box to find what you need. Grazie!
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