Debunking a 115-year old family story

A fun footnote to the story of Filomena (Corbo) Frascone

Thank you for reading the four part story “From Italy to America: The Fight for a New Beginning” about my great grandaunt Filomena and her husband Luigi! If you missed any of it, you can start here.

In Part 1 of the story, you may recall that Luigi was propertied to have some good winemaking skills back in Benevento, Italy. This tidbit of information came from a great grandchild of Luigi and Filomena. In fact, as I was researching my great grandaunt and uncle, I spoke with two of their great grandchildren and they both shared (independently) that within the Frascone family lore Luigi was very skilled at winemaking in his hometown.

In fact, they said, he showed so much promise as a world-renowned winemaker that his family wanted to send him to America — specifically to California — to learn from some of the finest winemakers in the world, and eventually start his own winery and label. But a mix-up in translation sent them to St. Paul, Minnesota instead of Sao Paulo, California, where he lived the life of a poor railroad worker!

Imagine the difference between a winter in southern California vs. a winter in Minnesota! As one of their great grandchildren said on one subzero day “Damn my great grandfather for settling in this frozen hell of a state instead of where he was supposed to go!”

This story is fun and funny, but unlikely. Luigi had a brother in St. Paul that he noted he’d be joining on the ship manifest. That said, while in Swede Hollow (an immigrant neighborhood) it is very likely that his winemaking skills were admired and sought by his fellow Beneventonians. The evidence suggests that he was indeed well skilled. Neighbors would come to him for advice on how to make their own wine. As a sort of vintnar, Luigi was well respected among his neighbors and he probably enjoyed a taste of all the wine being made!

Gentille Yarusso, a long-time resident of Swede Hollow, recalls in his memoirs that after the grapes had been placed in a large vat and stamped to a pulp by foot, “Mr. Frascone would take a glass, open the little spigot and let some of the grape juice run into it. “it tastes good,” he would say; “the wine will be good.”

You can read the whole booklet on the internet archive, it’s about 10 pages and a fascinating peek into the past of Swede Hollow.

A short nostalgic memoir of the time when Italians were the primary ethnic group in Swede Hollow. Swede Hollow, Then Up on the Street, a Documentary by Gentille Yarusso. September 1968. Page 7. Published by three local funeral homes.

Debunking the story of how our family should have been in California becoming the descendants of a rich and famous wine maker was a fun little challenge. And, it was even more fun to learn about the nuggets of truth within the family lore!

In my companion podcast — BEHIND THE STORY — I talk about the genealogy research challenges and successes that went into uncovering the story of my great, grandaunt Filomena. You can listen to it here.