Born in l880, Antonio arrived at Ellis Island in 1903 from Muro Lucano, Basilicata Province, in Southern Italy. He travelled to Blue Island, Illinois, to start his life in the new world. He was married to Rosemary Pacella, who remained behind when he came to America. Later she joined him in Blue Island. They eventually raised six children, Louis, Arthur, Antoinette, Maurice, Armand, and Henry (a seventh child, Filomena, having died in 1923 in infancy). Antonio was a shoemaker and a skilled musician. When not working at his business he played the clarinet in a number of travelling bands. He returned to Italy in l909, and subsequently fought in World War I in the Italian army, serving as a medic. After returning to America after the war, he saw his five sons and daughter Antoinette grow to maturity. The boys all fought in the armed services for America during World War II, several being decorated. Antonio became an American citizen, but he died in l941 before Pearl Harbor, and did not live to see his sons return safely from the war. All his life he worked very hard. It was related that he withstood extortion attempts from the Black Hand. His life was one replete with honesty, frugality and dignity. He withstood the tribulations of the Great Depression and economic hardships, but never wavered in his honesty and generosity and compassion for others. His story is the subject of a book, An Ellis Island Story, the Cinabros, a Recollection, published in 2005 by Vantage Press, New York.
Born in l880, Antonio arrived at Ellis Island in 1903 from Muro Lucano, Basilicata Province, in Southern Italy. He travelled to Blue Island, Illinois, to start his life in the new world. He was married to Rosemary Pacella, who remained behind when he came to America. Later she joined him in Blue Island. They eventually raised six children, Louis, Arthur, Antoinette, Maurice, Armand, and Henry (a seventh child, Filomena, having died in 1923 in infancy). Antonio was a shoemaker and a skilled musician. When not working at his business he played the clarinet in a number of travelling bands. He returned to Italy in l909, and subsequently fought in World War I in the Italian army, serving as a medic. After returning to America after the war, he saw his five sons and daughter Antoinette grow to maturity. The boys all fought in the armed services for America during World War II, several being decorated. Antonio became an American citizen, but he died in l941 before Pearl Harbor, and did not live to see his sons return safely from the war. All his life he worked very hard. It was related that he withstood extortion attempts from the Black Hand. His life was one replete with honesty, frugality and dignity. He withstood the tribulations of the Great Depression and economic hardships, but never wavered in his honesty and generosity and compassion for others. His story is the subject of a book, An Ellis Island Story, the Cinabros, a Recollection, published in 2005 by Vantage Press, New York.
