Ruth l. Wett:I remember when I talked to you last that you were telling about how close the Italian community was, that some of the people didn't even speak English.
Mary Stella Calabrese:Yes, there are still people, the oldest of people that I know that live around, oh, there was a little store, around the K. St. area, and in fact that's where we settled. My father had a house on K. St when he came here, right on 13th, and K. St. In those days it was beautiful. We could walk back and forth on K. St. it was all illuminated and we didn't have to worry about any mugging or anything. We could walk at night, there, in fact we did all our shopping on K. St. I didn't know how to talk, I used to go to Pete Verone's on 13th, right there by where we were living and just talk to him in Italian and a little farther from there was Milone, who later became a policeman in this town... And on 17th there was Natale Reda who bad another grocery store there. He was a very good man and had a big family there that I remember so plainly. He used to come and deliver the groceries and never forgot to bring a bag of candy for the children in those days, most of the people in that little community And well it was impossible because to tell the truth the Italian people were looked up to as, I don't know, ignorant, I don't know foreigner, I don't think we were so dumb but the American people, because we couldn't talk their language they thought we were ignorant. I bet if they went to Italy they couldn't talk Italian either. They would feel just as stupid.
Ruth l. Wett:I know that in that area of town, there were also a lot of the Scandinavians and mostly Scandinavians in that area,. did your community ever have any problems,
Mary Stella Calabrese:Well I never heard really because the Italian people as a rule, are very friendly people. And even if the Scandinavians felt superior or what I don't know. I don't think they had a chance to be antagonistic or unfriendly with the people, they were very friendly. But I know only once that my first husband who had to quit the job that he had for seventeen years, he had to work under Scandinavians who knew more about the carpentry than my husband ever dreamed of. But he was trying his best, and he had to quit. He couldn't work with them. He knew that he wasn't wanted there because he was an Italian and they were Scandinavian people. But outside of that I don't know of any other really antagonism. We got along fine, in fact, I had more Scandinavian friends around here since I've been here. And never had any problems with anyone.
Ruth l. Wett:What kind of work as there available for the Italian community?
Mary Stella Calabrese:For most of them it was ditch digging. They couldn't speak but they could work and they were willing to work. Naturally as they got to know the language a little bit they were able to go here and there and look for a better job. I know my husband was very frail and very delicate. His brother recommended him to some Italian that was in charge of the railroad gangs, and he was working there but he couldn't keep up with them. He was fifteen years old and he used to tell me when he came here that he had been very sick and they expected him to die. He had the small pox and he was so sick, they even ordered a coffin, then he changed for the better and his brother got sick and they used the coffin for him. His brother was l1/ yes old. So when he came here he was very delicate and a person who did more studying than digging in the yard so he couldn't work and he got fired. Went back to Connecticut where he had another brother there and he worked in the Arrow Company, factory where they were making, I think, the name was the Arrow, but I can't remember what they were doing.