Giuseppe Stories #8:

Boom, Bust, and Business, 1927 - 1935

               [Giuseppe and Caterina are proud of their first truck.]

            Family name obscured

By 1924, Giuseppe had become both a father and a grandfather of Giuseppes. (Joseph is the English version of his name.) He and Caterina had established a successful grocery. He was becoming a man of some importance among his friends and associates. “‘Gaspari’ the Grocer” was listed in the 1923 Polk Directory. This seems to reflect his place of birth, Gasperina, rather than his first name. His last name was misspelled too. (Oh the joys of using secondary and tertiary sources!)

Italians prospered in the food industry. Italian cookery became an American favorite. Bakeries, restaurants, and groceries flourished. “By 1927, Italians owned 500 grocery stores, 257 restaurants, 240 pastry shops, and numerous other food related businesses that were concentrated in Chicago’s Italian neighborhoods.”* Giuseppe and Caterina wanted more. They had begun a horse drawn cartage enterprise in the late 1910s, but trucks were the future!

He and Caterina, who was their unofficial accountant, decided that now was the time to expand. They purchased their first truck in 1924. The “C” Cartage Company was born! 

He and Caterina would build something permanent. They could diversify. He built his business dreaming that soon he could add “and Sons” to the signage. Brother Saverio (Sam) started a similar trucking company that would last for decades.  Their hopes were high. The Roaring ‘20s brought prosperity and business was good. 

Giuseppe still made his market runs with sons Vito and George to help. A new Wacker Drive was under construction. It was part of the Burnham Plan. Trucks and automobiles were becoming the transportation of choice. The New Water Street Market was relocating to Roosevelt Road between Morgan and Racine.** 

Caterina and the children ran the store. Now that they had the truck, they could expand their product line. Teresa would help when she could, but her family was growing. By 1936, Nick and Teresa had seven children. Vito was encouraged to help elsewhere. Dom, Mary, and Vito were finishing high school and looking forward to graduating. 

gUncles George and Nick were busy in their chosen profession, men’s tailoring. Times were good and people wanted to look prosperous. gUncle Frank used his tailoring skills to follow a different path. He would eventually open a men’s tuxedo rental store. One of the most famous tux rental places in the city during this time was owned by a family friend, Mr. Seno. He was my father Vito’s confirmation godfather. Italian businessmen established strong ties based on family, old country connections, immigration experiences, and marriage. As always, there is strength in numbers.

The topic of crime cannot be avoided when discussing Italians in Chicago–fairly or unfairly. Prior to the1920s the Mafia was not a major factor. Of course there were gangs and crime in both Italian and other communities. Extortion, protection, prostitution, and loan sharking flourished in Jewish, Irish, German, and Polish neighborhoods too. The Chinese controlled their own crime organizations.  

Prohibition became official in January of 1920. Overnight the sale of beer, wine, and other booze became illegal in taverns and clubs. It was perfectly Okay to brew your own, for personal consumption only. My Irish grandparents brewed beer that way. The term “bathtub gin” entered the language. Giuseppe made wine in the basement of the original two flat. It was for personal consumption–all legal. 

Crime became “organized” during Prohibition. Big money was to be made and the gangsters wanted the lion’s share of it. We’ve all seen the movies! There were fortunes to be made with illegal hooch whether brewed in secret or brought in from Canada. Al Capone had come to Chicago in the late 1910s. By 1923 he had moved “The Organization” to Cicero, but crime merely expanded, it did not move away. Gangs–old and new, ethnic and racial–all wanted their piece of the action. 

Giuseppe was doing well. He had a truck and a patrono. Capone makes Giuseppe an offer he DID refuse. I believe that the patrono was present when Giuseppe was approached. Capone noted Giuseppe’s growing truck business and suggested that a smart man could make a lot of money. He could buy lots of trucks if he took a ride to “Detroit” once in a while. Of course, Mr. Capone was suggesting that Guiseppe bootleg whiskey from Canada for “The Organization.” 

[For those who want to read more, the recently published, unauthorized biography of local Chicago mobsters, Bullets for Dead Hoods*** names names, lists addresses and give details of The Chicago Mob, 1933.]

When Capone extended this invitation, Giuseppe was frightened. He conferred with the man who takes care of such problems, his patrono.  He had to get his response just right or Caterina would become a widow.  When meeting with Capone he spoke with great humility and respect. The essence of his reply was this:  I respectfully thank you for offering me this opportunity. I am a family man, with many young children. I cannot risk their futures by accepting your very kind offer. Please forgive a father, a husband. Thank you for your generous offer, but I have family who rely on me and I would have to decline your offer. Capone understood. There were many others who would welcome such work. (This is a true story, often repeated by Giuseppe’s children.)

During the 1920s the terms Mafia and the Black Hand came into common usage. Technically, Mafia refers to organized crime in Sicily. The Black Hand refers to an organized Italian group who extort money for protection. In most people’s minds the two have merged into the same thing, but they were not necessarily so. In reaction to The Black Hand, Italian businessmen created The White Hand, an organization to fight crime and keep Italian communities safe. 

There was also an organization of Italian lawyers formed in 1921, known as the Justinian Society of Advocates (later, The Justinian Society of Lawyers). These were lawyers of Italian descent, who were bound by professional and ethnic ties. They were all members of the bar. Some had served their country in World War I, many were immigrants, most the children of immigrants. All achieved the American Dream, believing  that in the USA a person’s individual qualities determined their worth, not one’s religion, race, or ethnicity.” They were Italian American lawyers of high repute, not “godfather consigliere".****

Still the association of Italian Americans with the Mafia was pervasive. And, to be honest, it was not without some truth. The public–and law enforcement–persisted in their distrust of Italians throughout the 1930s. Vito would often walk miles to play his violin in duets, quartets, and a few amateur orchestral groups. He looked “Italian” and wore a fedora. Often, the police would stop him and demand that he open his violin case. It was not uncommon for gangsters to carry machine guns in violin cases. Prejudice against Italians was very common during this era.

The last of Sam and Giuseppe’s children were born by the mid- 1920s. The older ones were finishing high school. Because Dom was permanently handicapped, Giuseppe wanted him to go to college. He was sent to the University of Illinois in Urbana. Sam’s Maria would become a trailblazer, the first woman in the “C” family to have a college education. Vito wanted to have a university education when his time came. He must have driven Dom crazy asking questions about everything about the Illini. 

Dom was not the most dedicated of students. He sent frequent letters to Vito, asking for money. He was having a great time. I don’t believe that he graduated. Vito was not destined for a college degree either. He finished high school just before the stock market crash plunging the country into The Great Depression. His choice of major was not “marketable.” He wanted to study violin in De Paul’s music program.  He studied there for a semester but the University’s bill collector paid Giuseppe a visit. No one had paid the tuition. Giuseppe managed to scrape together what was owed. The Depression was gaining a foothold in the neighborhood and business was declining. He asked his son if he wanted to continue, but Vito was ashamed. He declined and looked for work outside the family. 

Despite the Depression, Giuseppe found work at Grand Rapids for Dom who would work for that company his entire life.  Mary and Vito found whatever jobs could be had. Things were getting tough, but the visit of General Italo Balbo in the summer of 1933 raised the spirits and pride of Chicago’s Italian immigrant population. The famous Italian aviator led his squadron into the skies of Chicago, thrilling spectators when his seaplane landed in Lake Michigan. Parade routes were thronged with proud Italians. For months afterward people would yell and wave whenever aircraft flew over the city, calling out the name of their hero. The fact that he was a Mussolini Fascist was politely overlooked.

         

Giuseppe had great hopes that Chicago’s Fair would bring in business for the Cartage Company. They did manage to get a few jobs.  Vito told of driving with his father to deliver a cast iron stove to the 1934 World’s Fair grounds. Vito was driving the truck and his father was giving him trouble, yelling and “backseat driving.”  The truck approached the delivery area which was near the banks of the Chicago River. Vito, known to have a temper equal to his father’s, was angry too. He put the truck in reverse and slammed on the accelerator, stopping right on the edge of the river bank.  Giuseppe got out of the truck, his face revealing his shock. Vito had stopped less than a half inch from the edge. Giuseppe stopped yelling. He spoke softly, trying to calm his son. He kept repeating “Take it easy. Take it easy.” Vito said that he had never seen his dad so scared.

            

There was no steady work. Vito found temporary jobs: dogsbody for a violin maker, clerk at an architectural firm, and unpaid usher at Orchestra Hall. The usher job enabled him to attend concerts free. In 1934 he met Serge Rachmaninoff who autographed a program for him. Vito persisted with his music, finding other out of work musicians with whom he would play. It didn’t pay though. He asked the architects if theirs was a good profession. The Depression had dug deep into society, the architects advised him to find some other work–they were starving! 

He hadn’t the skill for violin making but could earn a little from the architects by drawing basic blueprints under supervision. Things were bad all over. Most Italians were blue collar workers, but now there were few companies hiring.  “On the Near West Side, for instance, 44 percent of the population was on relief in 1934…Occasionally, (the Italian News) reported the suicide of a destitute and disheartened Italian.”*****

Italian immigrants were accustomed to hardship, but they appreciated good times too, however simple. They would gather around the radio in the evenings to hear broadcasts of pop musicians and comedians.  When they could scrape together enough money, the young people skipped off to the Aragon Ballroom or to one of the many movie theaters.  They’d jump on a streetcar and have a good time listening to popular music, dancing and having fun. For a few hours, the Great Depression was forgotten. One of the music idols of the 1920s and early 30s was Rudy Vallee. Step back in time to see why. https://www.youtube.com/live/Kq2UeBZWymM 

The Great Bands and Dance Marathons were all the rage. Chicago hosted musicians like Duke Ellington and Chicagoan Benny Goodwin. 

                       

Hits like Goodman’s Moonglow, Artie Shaw’s It Had to Be You, and Ellington’s Rockin’ In Rhythm were favorites of the era. Ironically, the family’s best dancer, Joe Benedict, was too young to join them!

Depression or no, the family was together. The second generation were becoming more and more American. The first generation immigrant, if they learned English at all, spoke Broken English, or what they called “stort,” crooked in English. Their children were learning English in school and Italian-American slang on the streets. There is a wonderful website called, “American Italian”****** at https://americanitalian.net It is chock-full of words I heard–and used–growing up. (Full disclosure: Some on the list might get your ears boxed.) Pronunciation is included on the site. Some of my favorites include:

aduzipach/aduzipazz which means “You’re crazy!”

bacouz/baccous or “back house”, i.e. the outhouse

bisgott, for “cookie” (Caterina made a marvelous fennel bisgott.)

faccia di cane meaning” face of a dog,” actually boy is she ugly!

Faccia dos means stubborn as a mule

mannaggia! Caterina’s oft heard favorite curse word  (NOT to be confused

                        with the equally oft heard mangia, which means “eat.”)   

statagitt! for “be quiet, or shut-up!” capish? “Do you understand?”

cafone or “jerk”, “fool”         salud’/salut’ “Good health”

aiscrema for ice cream chistu for “this”

mascine for “machine” menzamenz “half and half”

prominenti for “influential or important people”

The family also had a few of their own words, like marshamalones (marshmallows) and arthur-i-tis (arthritis).

Next (just before Christmas): A Holiday Special. Learn how we celebrated in church, feasted (with some recipes), and Ladies Night Out.

*”Little Italy, Chicago.” Wikipedia: the Free Encyclopedia. (accessed 5/6/24) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Little_Italy_Chicago 

** “Water Street Market,” Chicago Time Machine. PBS, WTTW (accessed 10/22/23) https://interactive.wttw.com/timemachine/water-street-market 

***____________. Bullets for Dead Hoods: An Encyclopedia of Chicago Mobsters, 1933. Chicago:  Soberscove Press, 2020.

****Scariano, Honorable Justice Anthony (Historian). “A brief history of the Justinian Society” (accessed 7/24/23) https://justinians.org/history 

*****Guglielmo, Thomas A. White on Arrival: Italians, Race, Color, and Power in Chicago, 1890-1945. NY: Oxford University Press Inc., 2003. p. 130. 

******There is a book available besides the website. See Longo, Anthony. American Italian Slang: a definitive cultural glossary. (Further information is available on the website).