Read an Excerpt
Little Italy
The Way It Was
By Peter Corona Trafford Publishing
Copyright © 2010 Peter Corona
All right reserved. ISBN: 978-1-4269-1957-2
Chapter One
Little Italy: The Way It Was Today when you travel to San Diego's Little Italy, you will find this area and its people different from the time when I was growing up in this neighborhood during the first half of the 20th century. During my early years, the term Little Italy was not used. We used the term, the Italian neighborhood or the Italian Colony. Today one sees a relatively new Little Italy, with almost all of its residents and businesses arriving during the second half of the 20th century. At least 90 percent of these newcomers came to the neighborhood after the year 2000.
The vast majority of the people who once resided in this former predominately Italian neighborhood have passed away, or moved to other areas of the city and county.
Most of the people I knew who resided in the neighborhood are now resting in the local cemeteries. I can tell many stories, serious and humorous, about most of them. At the age of eighty-one, it will not be long before I join them. With the clock running, it is important that I now share with you earlier personal stories of San Diego's Little Italy.
When our earlier Italian immigrants came to the United States and settled in this section of San Diego, many had notattended school or received much formal education and schooling. Some individuals could not read or write in any language. Once they arrived, they did not pursue any schooling. Such a decision would have interfered with their livelihood, especially when their vocations required that they be away from home, working at sea. Their primary responsibilities were to financially support themselves and provide for their families' well being.
Most families residing in the neighborhood during the advent of the 1930s lacked telephones and refrigerators. Iceboxes were seen in most homes. The vast majority of families did not have automobiles. The residents traveled mostly by foot. They used city streetcars and busses when necessary. On occasion they would hop a ride with one of their few Italian neighbors who owned automobiles. Although they traveled far off at sea to work, most of their time while at home on terra firma was spent within the limited boundaries of the Italian neighborhood. In essence, the men's eastern geographic boundary line was First Street, and it extended unlimited miles west in the Pacific Ocean. The majority of women spent most of their time within the landlocked boundary of their neighborhood.
Nation of Immigrants
Today, we continue to be a nation of immigrants. A new set of immigrants is now moving into the neighborhood. Today's immigrant movement is not restricted to people immigrating into the United States from outside the country. The national immigrants today also represent a movement that includes current United States citizens moving from state to state, from county to county, and from different sections of the city to become part of today's San Diego's Little Italy. The early Italian immigrants, who spoke limited English, settled in a neighborhood where English was predominately spoken before their arrival. Today we have new immigrants, who speak English, settling in a neighborhood where Italian was the predominately spoken language.
The early Italian immigrants gathered and stayed close to each other, because it reinforced the security of their family values, vocation, and religion, as well as the retention of their native language. Some spoke only the dialect of their village or town in Italy. Today the evidence of those earlier factors surfaces when we observe those who grew up in Little Italy returning to participate in church functions and religious activities, and when they gather for weddings and funerals. They continue to seek out early lifetime friends at the annual Italian celebration events held in the neighborhood.
Change
Today in Little Italy, one hears a different language than that spoken during my youth. Almost all communication is in English. The merchants are relative newcomers to the neighborhood. They first began arriving after the 1950s. The majority came during the last decade of the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century. They have taken over older buildings, and renovated and remodeled them. The most noticeable changes are the recently constructed high-rise buildings. Construction on these buildings began during the last decade of the 20th century and the first decade of the 21st century. Construction continues at an accelerated rate during the first decade of the 21st century. These buildings were planned primarily for apartment and condominium living and for expanded business ventures on the first floor.
Little Italy today is recognized for having one of the cleanest neighborhoods in the City of San Diego, as well as the development of a different lifestyle. Current community and neighborhood leaders are to be commended for bringing the change in a positive, systematic manner. Throughout our lifetime, we have learned to accept the fact that change is inevitable; change, in almost all facets of life, brings about a different way we view current situations. For example, these new high-rise buildings provide a new view for their present inhabitants. At the same time, these changes have a tendency to obscure much of the earlier remaining residents' view of scenic San Diego Bay, North Island, Point Loma, and the county building, which some of us old-timers continue to call the civic center. These tall structures now block our view of the continuous movement of large and small ships in the harbor, as well as spotting those vessels tied at the docks and piers along the San Diego waterfront. From our front porches and our living rooms we now miss seeing those spectacular sunsets over Point Loma.
Void in Young Family Structure
Little Italy has changed drastically since the days of my youth. The neighborhood continues to change with the influx of its newer population, which now consists mainly of younger professional people and older retirees. At the same time, we are currently witnessing a void in the young family structure, which played a most important role in the Old Italian neighborhood. One can ask, "Where are the children that once made up a large number of the population in the neighborhood?" The huge number of children under the age of 18 that once inhabited this neighborhood is no longer evident. One can again ask, "Where are all the children who lived in Little Italy?" And "Where are Little Italy's children today?"
When KPBS did a documentary on San Diego's Little Italy in 1997, they could not find any Italian children living in the neighborhood to film for its finale. They went to Washington School and brought in the Mexican-American children who were bused from other areas of San Diego to attend school in today's Little Italy.
Which Culture Was Better?
Today, the inhabitants in Little Italy look different, speak different, and act different than those who lived in the neighborhood during my earlier generation. Thus it is even more important that today's residents receive a first-hand report from one who was born and raised in this neighborhood; one who had the opportunity to participate in a variety of neighborhood activities; one who assimilated the values, mores, folkways, and culture of our immigrant parents, relatives, and friends; and one who made a successful transition from living in San Diego's Little Italy and moved into the mosaic of American life. In so doing, one can view the Old Italian neighborhood in a more objective manner. In many ways, it has been a trade-off as to which culture was better. As one makes a personal assessment, it can be concluded that having lived in two different cultures is similar to reaping the benefits of a good glass of water. Water is a compound consisting of [H.sub.2]O. We would not have water with only the H. And we would not have water with only the 0. So let's drink up as we go back in time and hear about what it was actually like during an earlier era. These tales will be conveyed as though we were living during the time period in which they are being told.
Cherish the Past
As you read this book, it is my desire to have you recall your past and early upbringing; your parents and your family, friends and acquaintances. I hope you develop a more enhanced comprehensive perspective and knowledge of the neighborhood culture in which you were raised. We each come from similar and/or different ethnic backgrounds, nationalities, religions, and politics. Our ancestors came from all points of the compass. They came to the United States for a better life. Some of the immigrants were able to make the transition to the American lifestyle easier and sooner than others.
Eventually, we will embrace our diversity and similarities and make that transition, where we can pull our talents together and call ourselves Americans. We should cherish the past, but not have the past hold us back. We should continue to move forward one step at a time, while acknowledging and remembering that the past set the foundation from which we enter the present and pursue the future. We should continue to develop the skills to seek and ask, as we respond with confidence to the questions "Who am I?" and "What am I doing here?" As we respond to each of those questions, we can expect to look forward to an eventful, prosperous future and life.
Range of Questions
Often, people new to the neighborhood ask me a range of questions about Little Italy's past. Most questions focus on the people, physical structures, and the types of vocations within the neighborhood.
* What types of customs, mores, and values did they bring from Italy?
* How did they raise their children, American or Italian?
* What role did education and religion play in the neighborhood?
* What ethnic groups resided in the neighborhood, and how did they get along with each other?
* How did they assimilate into the American culture?
In essence, they want to know, what was the lifestyle in the neighborhood and how did the people live, interact, and communicate with each other?
I hope the information I present will enrich and expand the knowledge you acquired from family members, friends, and acquaintances. We often received hand-me-down stories that may get lost in the interpretation of those tales and events. At times while talking with someone, we acquired the opportunity to put the puzzle together and expand the knowledge we have already.
I will whet your appetite so you desire to seek additional knowledge from family, relatives, friends, and acquaintances as to what it was like living in San Diego's Little Italy. Sit back and relax as I convey to you what it was like growing up in San Diego's Little Italy. I will take you back to the days of the Depression years during the early 1930s, through the WWII years of the early 1940s, and finally the period of time immediately following WWII, during the late 1940s. It is not my intent to infringe on the days when later arrivers, as the current business people and residents, came aboard after the advent of the second half of the 20th century.
Chi Saccio
During the early preparation of this book, I was contemplating using the title, Chi Saccio. Translated into English from the Sicilian, it means What do I know? or I know nothing. This was a common response when someone was asked a question and did not want to get involved or did not want to be quoted. Other Sicilian terms that relayed a similar response include arrassati, "Stay away and keep your distance from any potential conflict. Cammina solo was translated to mean, "Walk alone, and don't let anyone know your business." From the northern Italians, I would hear their expressions, which had similar meanings as the Sicilians. Their terms were Stai indietro, meaning "Stay back, don't expose yourself, don't talk too much, don't brag, and stay out of the limelight." Stai Zitto was a term used by both the northern and southern Italian parents with their children. It is translated to mean, Keep quiet. Silenzio also became a familiar word. Thus, children born and raised in Little Italy, as well as children born and raised in other cultures, were expected to be seen and not heard.
By following these tenets of learning, children born and raised in Little Italy developed their auditory and visual skills faster than their verbal skills. Through their exceptional listening skills they absorbed what was being said and what was going on around them. Some had memories and instant recall that would put an elephant's memory to shame. These youngsters were able to retain what was being said and what was going on around them at an early age. This became more noticeable when neighborhood children began to interact with the youth and adults outside of the neighborhood.
The neighborhood children were communicative when they attended Washington Elementary School, located in the neighborhood. They knew each other, and they knew each other's parents and siblings. They felt secure and comfortable at Washington School. Their foreign-speaking parents felt at ease when they visited the school and spoke with their children's teachers. These parents participated in school-sponsored activities and programs. Some were active participants in the PTA. They helped in fund drives, and served cultural dishes during those school-sponsored activities. They participated in plays and sang in school musicals. The parents volunteered to serve as interpreters for school personnel when they found a need to communicate with Italian immigrant parents who could not speak in English.
Their older children, as my brother Donald, built beds for the preschool children's program at Washington School. The preschool teacher was Mrs. Faust. She, as other Washington School teachers, would come to our home for dinner. During the Depression some Italian families were feeding the teachers. Mrs. Faust was a widow and was raising two sons. It was a sad day when we attended her funeral at Mt. Hope Cemetery.
When the Italian neighborhood children moved to Roosevelt Junior High School, three miles away, it was a cultural shock for some. They became shyer and withdrew, continuing to associate and eat lunch at a designated area solely with their Italian neighborhood friends. Their parents seldom came to Roosevelt Junior High School because of the distance from their home to the school. Most families did not have automobiles, and language was a barrier; most parents could not speak English. Most fathers were working away from home, out at sea, fishing commercially. A very few parents would appear at school, but only should a problem occur. They did not participate in school and PTA functions. They were present for their children's graduation.
I don't recall our parents ever visiting Roosevelt Junior High School. As a matter of fact, when our large number of students in the graduating class could not fit on the auditorium stage, Mr. Brown, our principal, changed the graduation site to the San Diego Zoo, where the Seal Show is held. We were the first class to graduate in the Zoo. The date was June 14, 1944. That was one week after the D-Day Invasion on the shores of Normandy in France, during World War II. As the years progressed, my colleagues and I would laugh when we remarked that we graduated with the seals.
The reader of this book will notice that the same last names and their first names will appear and re-appear as I mention members of different families. This occurs because as immigrants arrived to Little Italy, they were followed by family members, relatives, and paesani from their native community in Italy. It was not uncommon to see grandparents, parents, children, aunts and uncles, and cousins living in the same household or in dwellings nearby. Children were given family names. For Sicilians it was expected to name the oldest son after his father's father. The second son was named after the mother's father. The oldest daughter was named after the father's mother, and the second daughter named after mother's mother. The rest of the children were named after uncles and aunts. This custom made it easy to identify with one's family genealogy.
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Excerpted from Little Italy by Peter Corona Copyright © 2010 by Peter Corona. Excerpted by permission.
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