Italian Americans in Washington
October is Italian American Heritage Month, and this week HistoryLink looks at some of the cultural contributions Italian Americans have made in Washington. One of the first Italians to visit the Northwest was explorer Alessandro Malaspina, who sailed here under the Spanish Flag in 1791, but the first people of Italian descent who came here to live arrived in the late 1800s. Many of these early immigrants were unskilled laborers who found plenty of work in coal mining or construction,
Farming was also a preferred profession, partially because of the Italian love and respect for food. Many Italian Americans in Seattle owned homes in the Rainer Valley and had small gardens, or raised rabbits and chickens. Others started larger truck farms in the rich farmlands around Puget Sound. By 1941, Italian immigrant Joe Desimone had gone from selling his produce at Pike Place Market to becoming the market's president and majority stockholder. In the 1970s, Seattle's first P-Patch community garden was planted on property owned by the Picardo family. And beginning in the 1980s, Italian immigrants helped define Walla Walla's growing wine industry, and their wine-making skills can be seen throughout the state
Italian Americans who have left their mark in Washington history include pioneer missionary Giuseppe Cataldo; Mother Francesca Cabrini, a Catholic saint; Duwamish Gardens truck farmer Joseph Carrossino; the Gai family of Gai's Northwest Bakeries; the Oberto family of Oberto Snacks; the Borracchini family of Borracchini's Bakery; painter and sculptor Leno Prestini; John Croce, founder of Pacific Food Importers; the accordion-making Petosa family; writer, gardener, and winemaker Angelo Pellegrini; newspaper publisher Virgil Fassio; architect Fred Bassetti; financier and art lover Art Mazzola; Gio Ross, the First Lady of Seattle Opera; and restaurateur Victor Rosellini, as well his cousin, Governor Albert Rosellini.
Filipino Americans in Washington
October is also Filipino American History Month, and we celebrate with a look at some of the men and women who played important roles in shaping their community. Filipinos first arrived in the Northwest in the late 1800s, but following the Spanish American War many more immigrated to the region, especially to Seattle. Some -- like famed poet and writer Carlos Bulosan -- found work in local canneries. Others benefitted from the Pensionado Act, which provided funds for Filipino students to study in America.
When Washington passed the Alien Land Law in 1921, Filipinos initially were denied land ownership, but that ruling later was challenged successfully by Pio de Cano. In 1924 the Asian Exclusion Act severely curtailed immigration of Chinese and Japanese to the United States, but it did not affect Filipinos. Also in 1924, Victorio Velasco began publishing the Seattle area's first Filipino newspaper, The Philippine Seattle Colonist. Mariano Guiang arrived here the same year and later made money during the Depression as a boxer.
In 1977, Martin and Dolores Sibonga began publishing the Filipino Forum. Dolores was the first Filipina lawyer in the United States, and in 1978 she was appointed to the Seattle City Council, where she served for more than 12 years. In 1992, Velma Veloria became the first Filipina elected to a state legislature in the continental United States, and in 1994 President Bill Clinton appointed Bob Santos as the Housing and Urban Development secretary's representative for the Northwest-Alaska area.
Seattle’s Filipino American community was rocked in 1981 by the murder of labor activists Gene Viernes and Silme Domingo, just six days before Rizal Park was dedicated. The park was named for Philippine national hero Jose Rizal and symbolized Seattle’s Filipino American pride. That pride remains strong, as evidenced by the annual Pista sa Nayon celebration, as well as the recent renovation and expansion of the Filipino Community Center.
