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Guide to the From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 Records, 2000-2001

Repository
Heinz History Center
Title
From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 Records
Creator
Italian American Collection
Collection Number
MSS 344
Extent
0.5 linear feet (2 boxes)
Date
2000-2001
Abstract
From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 Records is comprised of 11 oral histories conducted by Nicholas P. Ciotola as part of his research for From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950, an exhibit sponsored by the Indiana University of Pennsylvania Museum in partnership with the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania. The oral history interviews in this collection document Italian immigration, settlement, community development and assimilation into Indiana County.
Language
The material in this collection is in English.
Author
The guide to this collection was written by Sierra Green.
Sponsor
This collection has been made accessible as part of an NHPRC-funded Basic Processing grant.
Publisher
Heinz History Center
Address
1212 Smallman St.
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15222
library@heinzhistorycenter.org
URL: https://www.heinzhistorycenter.org

History

From April to June 2001, the Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP) exhibitedFrom Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950, an exhibit developed in partnership with the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania. The exhibit, curated by Nick Ciotola (former curator of the Italian American Collection at the Senator John Heinz History Center) and Donna Cashdollar, exposed the narrative of immigration, settlement, community formation, and assimilation of southern Italians in Indiana County.

In particular, Ciotola and Cashdollar featured the Italian immigrant population's contributions to the coal mining industry in Indiana County. This included a glimpse into the padrone system, a process by which Italian labor agents would recruit immigrants to work in industry by arranging for their passage to the United States. In addition to the coal mining industry, the exhibit also highlighted those Italian immigrants in Indiana County that embraced other occupations such as produce wholesalers, bakers, shop owners, barbers, tailors, butchers, and grocers. Also addressed were the mutual aid societies, Roman Catholic parishes, and the familial units that sustained the Italian population of Indiana County.

Throughout the course of exhibit development, Ciotola conducted 11 oral history interviews with Italian immigrants and their descendants in Indiana County. The overall purpose of the oral history interviews in this collection was to document Italian immigration into Indiana County in the words of Italian immigrants and their descendants. As evidenced in the interviews, most southern Italian immigrants came to Indiana County in order to improve their living standards by finding economic opportunities that had eluded them in their homeland. Many of the interviewees found work in the coal mining industry. Consequently, the interviews explore the daily life, mechanics, and hardships of coal miners and their families. Other interviewees talk about their work on the railroads and as the owners of small businesses. Female interviewees discuss many aspects of the roles of women in Italian households. Each interview also includes a detailed discussion of Italian American cultural traditions and religious practices. Italian American community life is also discussed at length, as is the establishment of community institutions like mutual aid societies.

Scope and Content Notes

This collection consists of 11 oral history interviews collected on twelve cassette tapes. All of the tapes have corresponding transcripts. Transcripts are typewritten, but have not been edited. All of the interviews were conducted by Ciotola with first and second generation Italian Americans living in Indiana County.

In general, the first segment of each interview consists of a discussion of life prior to emigration from Italy. This includes the regions where Italians lived, reasons why they left, and their experiences coming to the United States. Interviews then shift towards the discussion of how immigrants adjusted to life in Indiana County. Subjects common in many of the interviews include: coal mining, mining accidents, the Coal and Iron Police, company towns, the railroad industry, family life, leisure practices, Italian foodways, Catholicism, La Mano Nera (Black Hand), and assimilation. Some of the Indiana County localities frequently mentioned in the interviews include the borough of Indiana, Blairsville, Mentcle, Homer City, Sagamore, Beyer, and Heilwood.

Conditions Governing Access

None.

Immediate Source of Acquisition

Internal transfer from Italian American Collection in 2001.

Archives accession # 2001.0156

Preferred Citation

From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 Records, 2000-2001, MSS 344 , Library and Archives Division, Senator John Heinz History Center

Processing Information

Preliminary processing by Sierra Green on 05/07/2013.

Conditions Governing Use

Property rights reside with the Senator John Heinz History Center. Literary rights are retained by the creators of the records and their heirs. For permission to reproduce or publish, please contact the Library and Archives of the Senator John Heinz History Center.

Related Materials

Nicholas P. Ciotola, From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 (Indiana, Pa.: Indiana University of Pennsylvania Museum, 2001). qF160 I8 F76 2001.

Separated Materials

From Italy to Indiana County: The Italian Immigrant Experience in Indiana, Pennsylvania and Environs, 1900-1950 Photographs, c1890-1953, MSP 344, Thomas and Katherine Detre Library and Archives, Senator John Heinz History Center

Subjects

    Corporate Names

    • A. LaMantia and Brothers (Blairsville, Pa.)
    • Indiana University of Pennsylvania Museum (Indiana, Pa.)
    • Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania (Pittsburgh, Pa.)

    Personal Names

    • Babyak, Lena Patti
    • Furgiuele, Richard
    • Gaston, Florie
    • Kenosh, Louise
    • LaMantia, Philip
    • Lorelli, Edmond
    • Maloney, Joseph
    • Marcoline, Paul
    • Pesci, Everett
    • Rezzola, Richard
    • Violi, Mary Petrarca

    Geographic Names

    • Homer City (Pa.)
    • Beyer (Pa.)
    • Blairsville (Pa.)
    • Heilwood (Pa.)
    • Indiana (Pa.)
    • Mentcle (Pa.)
    • Sagamore (Pa.)

    Other Subjects

    • Coal mines and mining--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh
    • Italian American business
    • Italian American families--Anecdotes
    • Italian American women-- Interviews
    • Italian Americans-–Employment – History
    • Italian Americans -- Ethnic identity
    • Italian Americans--Families
    • Italian Americans--Music
    • Italian Americans-- Social life and customs
    • Italian Americans – Employment – History
    • Italian Americans – Families;
    • Padrone system
    • Produce trade--Pennsylvania--Pittsburgh

Container List