Donna J. Di Giacomo, a native of Philadelphia, is a genealogist and local history researcher. A contributor to area newspapers, she worked with local organizations and individuals to compile the information for this book.
Title: Genealogist Recounts Immigrant History
Publisher: The Italian Tribune
Date: 3/3/2011 As part of our tribute to National Women's History
month the Tribune has chosen to acquaint our readers with Donna J.
DiGiacomo, genealogist and history researcher. Donna is a native of
Philadelphia who has contributed many articles to area newspapers
and periodicals. However it is her book which we feature this week
that has earned Donna recognition by the Tribune. Through her
personal experiences and contact with local citizens and
organizations, Donna has put together a concise written and
pictorial history of Italian Philadelphia like none seen to date,
Italians of Philadelphia. Pointing out that only New York City had
more Italian immigrants that Philadelphia, Donna moves on to tell
how Italians had settles in Philadelphia as far back as Colonial
times. Her written documentary details the mass immigration of the
late 1800's and the impact on new arrivals had on the "Cittá dell'
Amore Fraterno, The City of Brotherly Love." Many from the small
towns in the Italian regions of Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria,
Campania, Molise, Puglia, and Sicily faced discrimination, language
barriers, the separation of family by thousands of miles and work
in unfamiliar trades. Despite facing such drastic changes in their
lives, they preserved and forged ahead while establishing some 14
"Little Italys" throughout the city. Each of these communities
boasted it's own neighborhood identity, church, societies and
blending of their old world customs with their new American
lifestyles. It contains photos of people and institutions that have
all but been forgotten, except by those who lived through the era
or heard the stories passed down by parents and grandparents. Not
only do these photos convey the influence Italians had on the
development of the city and how that spirit lives on today, but
they may even bring a tear to the eye of those who lived through
the times or those who wish they might have had the chance to have
done so. For any Italian American with ties to Philadelphia or
anyone interested in Italian American History, this book is a must
read. For more information about the book or how to purchase a copy
go to www.arcadiapublishing.com
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