| |
Houston Italian
history goes back to the 1920s and even further
but, Italian history itself has shaped our world
today. From food to architecture and
Italian culture influences Houston. Even
the new Uptown Park describes their architecture
as being "elegant Italian design."
From religion to sports, Italy has influenced
Houston. Although areas such as
architecture and sports maybe mostly influenced
by Rome, the food culture is quite diverse and a
large difference in food exists between Italian
food and Sicilian dishes.
Italian immigrants
came to the U.S. as early as the 1800's as I
know of my family but, certainly Italians came
to the U.S. beforehand. The first account
of Italian immigrants found through our research
settled in Bryan, Texas. "In Texas,
Italian immigrants developed prosperous farm
communities. Italians came to Bryan,
located about eighty miles from Houston, as
laborers on the Houston and Texas Railroad in
1880. When the road was completed, the
company offered incentives for the immigrants to
work as share croppers in order to eventually
buy farm land in Bryan." (John LaGumina)
All Baseball fans know about Yogi Berra.
The Italian pride of American baseball
eventually became the Houston Astros coach in
1985. The Houston name became imbedded in
Italian culture as with many other cultures.
But a well known use of the name Houston for an
American Italian was the governor of Mississippi
from 1900 to 1904, Andrew Houston Longino.
By the late 1990's, the Italian American
population grew to over 300,000.
Newspapers were published in Dallas and Houston
starting in 1913. Italian immigrants have
been part of the U.S. and Texas heritage and
assisted in building these countries. An
Italian immigrant, Prospero Bernardi earned
respect as he assisted in the Battle of San
Jancinto. "A bust of the Italian
soldier stands in front of the Hall of State,
Fair Park, Dallas , to commemorate his
participation in the battle of San Jacinto."
(Valentine J. Belfiglio) Italian
immigrants were early settlers to the U.S. along
with the English, French and other European
settlers. They helped build this great
nation, great State of Texas and the City of
Houston.
Those who desire
to learn more about Italian culture can attend
the 31st Festa Italiana, the Houston Italian
festival on Oct 16. Starting in 1978 with
only 15 booths, the festival grew so large that
the event was held at the Farm and Ranch club
where a 40,000 square foot pavilion was
provided. More information will be
provided on our Events page as we get closer to
the Fall. You can also visit their website
at
www.houstonitalianfestival.com. The
Federation of Italian-American Organizations of
Greater Houston was formed, which coordinated a
group of 20 Italian clubs in the Houston area.
Proceeds gathered by the organization allowed
them to purchase the historic Milford House in
the Houston's Museum district. More
information can be found at their website,
www.icchouston.com. |
|
