The "Tiff" and Carbone's Resturant

In "The Patch" section of Fitchburg in the 1940's there was a social club, the Pietraperzia Club (P.P. Club) for Italians that originated from the town Pietraperzia in Sicily.  The club funded such annual events as The Feast of the Madonna della Cava and other Feast Days.  To provide revenue to the club other than the annual dues the club sold pizza on weekends.  The way this was done in the early days was by members wives volunteering to cook each month.  Each month a different wife hosted the pizza kitchen which led to "The Tiff".

Anna (Imprescia) Carbone was an excellent cook and when it was her month to run the kitchen it was a sell out.  As time went on, it became evident that Anna's month was the most popular and other wives became jealous.  This boiled over when one of the wives confronted Anna and claimed she was telling people NOT to order pizza on nights when she was not working.  Anna was offended at the premise it was not her excellent pizza - but she was sabotaging others by turning people away.  The insult was too much and made Anna realize if they love my pizza when I volunteer at the P.P. Club - why won't they love it at my own restaurant?  

The idea for Carbone's Restaurant was born.

Carbone's 1950-1968

Located directly across the street from Whalom Amusement Park

So Anna was now determined to open her own restaurant.  Her husband Louie Carbone already ran a small grocery store on Second and Middle Street on the ground floor of the multi family home where they lived in with their two daughters Linda and Marie.  

Anna Imprescia and her younger brother Sam Imprescia
inside Carbone's Market on 2nd and Middle St.

So she convinced Louie they should open their own place and found an amazing location in Lunenburg directly across the street from Whalom Park and purchased it on February 9, 1950.  

Grand Opening Announcement
Fitchburg Sentinel March 31, 1950

The efforts and preparations all come to fruition on April 1st, 1950 when Carbone's Pizza first opened its doors.  Anna was 39 years old and Louie was 51 yeas old at the time.

Opening Day April 1950

The restaurant was a family event in the picture above from the left is Filippo and Filippa Imprescia (Anna's parents), Angela Russo (Anna's sister Palma's sister-in-law), daughter of Lewis Esposito (the man who sold them the restaurant), Mary Dantini (Anna's cousin),Anna Carbone, Louie Carbone, Connie (DiNatale) Imprescia (Anna's sister-in-law), Connie (Imprescia) Picolomini and Palma (Imprescia) Russo (both Anna's sisters).

Grandma Imprescia (Filippa) making the pizza

Dominic Imprescia enjoying meal a with family & Friends

The restaurant was a success from the start and became Anna and Louie's life for the next 18 years. The Sicilian style "square" pizza was a favorite - but the menu was much more than pizza - several home cooked food are listed in this menu - but I am not sure if this was from the 1950's or 1960's.

Click here for full Carbone's Spaghetti House Menu.  A few notable highlights:

• a strict 30 cent minimum per person
• Seafood plate with Scallops/Clams only $1.25, but the 1/2 chicken is $1.75
• Sandwich called "Steamroller"?
• Large tray pizza - 18 slices $3.50.  That would be a party pizza size today.
• Near Beer served.  Louie did not want to have beer/wine served to avoid problems

Some oddities I found:

Poster on wall near jukebox (1950)
"If your wife is a Bum Cook. Keep her for a pet and EAT HERE"

"Knives, Forks, Spoons, Ash Trays, Salt and Pepper Shakers are not medicine
Please Don't Take After Meal!"

Help wanted ad from 1966
"Middle-aged or older women preferred"

By the late 1960's, Louie's health was starting to fail and on November 13, 1968 the restaurant was sold.  But for anyone of a certain age that lived in the area during those years will fondly remember the best pizza and food "Made the way you like it".  Who would have know a tiff (as my grandmother called it) would lead to a way of life for the Carbone's and a restaurant legacy.

My last visit on October 31, 1968
(I was almost 3 years old)

When did the Imprescia's (and other family members) Immigrate?

The Impresica-Costa Family History document attempted to list out the immigration history of the Imprescia's and Costa's from Pietraperzia to Massachusetts.  Using documents available from passenger lists to Boston and New York I wanted to try to put together a timeline for arrivals in USA for our family.  From the "Family History" the timeline looked like this:

Filippo and Filippa (Siciliano) Imprescia left for America a short time after their wedding in Italy in 1908.  Salvatore and Vincenzo (Imprescia) Costa left for America in 1905 with their son Anthony.

What I have found:

1893

Although not an Imprescia, Giuseppe Carbone, age 44, father of Luigi Carbone (future husband of Anna Imprescia) left Lapio Italy on SS Weser which arrived in New York on 15 May 1893.  He was traveling with his brother-in-law Vito Costanza (married to his sister Maria Rosa Carbone).  Their final destination was Massachusetts.  Neither Giuseppe or Vito stayed in the United States and lived the remainder of their lives in Italy.  Giuseppe’s brother Antonio had immigrated as early as 1883 and is one of the earliest Italians to settle in Fitchburg.

1903

The first Imprescia arrival that I could track was Filippo Imprescia in 1903.  I cannot find the passenger list from 1903 with his name on it.  This was from his 2nd arrival in 1908, it lists whether passenger has ever been in United States before, he answered yes in 1903 in Boston.

    

1905

I could not find Salvatore Costa in passenger list but I could find Maria Vincenzo and Antonio (who was under 1 year old at the time) listed on the registry of the SS Romanic that travelled from Naples to Boston in 1905. 

So I assume Salvatore arrived sometime before or was on the passenger list and I could not locate him.  

Dominic Imprescia also travelled alone to the United States in 1905, leaving his wife Anna and daughter Concetta in Italy.  He departed Naples on April 26, 1905 and arrived in Boston May 8th, 1905 on the SS Canopic, it is listed on registry that he was joining his son Fillippo at the address 3 North Sq., Boston. It also noted that his son paid for his passage and he arrived with $2.00 in his pocket.

1906

One year and five months after Dominic Imprescia arrived in the United States, his wife Anna Viola and daughter Concetta boarded the SS Canopic on October 7th, 1906 and arrived in Boston on November 12th.

Anna Viola's passport from her
immigration on 7 October 1905

  

Concetta listed as daughter accompanying Anna on passport 

1907

Maurice Montesion, my wife's grandfather, came to New York from Lacedonia, Avellino when he was 18 aboard the Regina D'Italia.   He was listed as a shoemaker with $12 in his pocket. His final destination was with his uncle Michele Cardellicchio at 201 Water St. Boston.  His uncle had arrived earlier in 1905.

1908

Some time in before 1908, Filippo went back to Italy to get married.  On 23 January 1908 Filippo married Filippa Siciliano in Pietraperzia. Sixteen days after their wedding the couple then departed Italy on 8 February 1908 to New York on the SS Roma and arrived on 24 March 1908.

Filippo "Phillip" passport from 1908

Filippa Siciliano accompanying Filippo in 1908

1912

Salvatore Siciliano (age 53), Filippa (Siciliano) Imprescia's father came to the United States with two of his sons Alisandro (age 19) and Giuseppe (age 16). The trip was paid by Filippo on the SS Canopic and it arrived 12 September 1912  in Boston. Salvatore and Giuseppe did not stay in the United States, but Alisandro did stay and in 1922 married Mary Cali and had six children: Samuel, Pamela, Jane, Leon and Joseph.

1913

Luigi Carbone, future husband of Anna (Imprescia) Carbone, came to the United States when he was 14 years old.  His father Giuseppe had already died in Italy in 1903.  He came with his mother Maria Gaetana Iovine (age 50) and two sisters Giovanna (age 25) and Carmella (age 22).  They were coming to stay with Giuseppe (Joseph) Carbone, Maria Gaetana's older son who immigrated some time around 1908 and lived on 22 Middle St, Fitchburg.

Giovanna married Michael Champa and Carmella married Vito Colello and both lived in Fitchburg.

The immigration from Italy was a family affair, as they earned money working in the United States they would send money back to pay for passage of relatives who would then live with them when they arrived until they could find jobs and get their own apartments and homes.