Abruzzese Society Collection, 1903-2012, bulk 1932-1949; 1960-1977; 1980-1998

Summary

Creator:
Abruzzese Society
Abstract:
The Abruzzese Society Collection consists of a variety of materials pertaining to the history and daily proceedings of the Abruzzese Society.
Language:
English

Background

Scope and content:

The Abruzzese Society Collection consists of a variety of materials relating to the history and daily proceedings of the Abruzzese Society, an Italian-American fraternal and mutual benefit society located in Schenectady, NY. The material is not comprehensive, and a little over two-thirds of the collection is composed of financial material that includes banking documents, tax documents, insurance documents, financial reports, records of payment, and so forth. A portion of the Financial material relates to medical payments made by individual society members; as this material constitutes medical information, it is housed with materials in the Restricted series.

The rest of the collection is divided between five subsequent series. The second-largest series, after Financial materials, is Administrative materials, which includes Society forms; the Society constitution and articles, by-laws, etc.; minutes; member lists; notes related to event-planning; official documents like certificates and permits; and material related to the Society’s death fund. A portion of the Administrative forms record the types and duration of various illnesses and injuries incurred by individual Society members, and so are housed in the Restricted series. The third-largest series comprises material related to Communications. These include correspondences (personal, corporate, and banking), transcripts, and promotions (flyers, pamphlets, etc.). This category also includes doctors’ notes, which are housed in the Restricted series. The fourth-largest series relates to Media and is divided between print materials, photographs, and souvenir albums. The smallest non-restricted series is comprised of Miscellaneous materials, such as blank documents and ephemeral items that do not clearly fit into the other five categories. The final series is the Restricted series, which consists of all materials imparting medical information related to individual society members. Though the Restricted series is not the smallest series in this collection, because access to its materials is more limited than access to the other five series, it has been placed last in the organization schema.

Though some of the items in the Abruzzese Society Collection are from the first quarter of the twentieth century, most fall within a period ranging from about the early 1930s to 2012, with an emphasis (in decreasing order of prevalence in the collection) on the periods 1960 – 1977, 1932 – 1949, and 1980 – 1998. Organization

Biographical / historical:

The idea for the formation of the Abruzzese Society had its roots in the social needs of the immigrant and, later, second- and third-generation Italian-Americans who settled in Schenectday, NY. The main driving force was the desire for fellowship with fellow Italians in order to ease the difficulties of adjusting to life in a new environment, a desire that later went hand-in-hand with the practical consideration of providing assistance for families in the community in the event of sickness or death.

The first Italian-American fraternal community founded in Schenectady was the Societa’ Unione Fratellanza, established in 1892. By 1900 it boasted forty members, though these were mainly comprised of those men who were already economically successful, especially those in business, dubbed the “prominenti.” The turn of the century also saw the founding Schenectady’s second Italian-American fraternal society, the Societa’ Giuseppe Garibaldi. Though this organization was a combination of a political (GOP) club and a mutual benefit society, there was much crossover between the more basic Fratellanza and the Garibaldi Society: Stephen Abba, the Fratellanza’a first president (succeeded by Pasquale DeMarco in 1893) went on to become the first president of the Garibaldi Society as well. By this time, the position of president had become one of prestige within the community, as well as a vehicle for exercising political influence, which is perhaps why the Garibaldi Society had three leaders in as many years. However, there would soon be increasing opportunity for members of the Italian-American community to aspire to prominent civic positions.

The early twentieth century saw a marked influx of Italians into Schenectady, which both allowed for and necessitated the organization of several different societies. The motley assortment of fraternal organizations was the result of the political and social structure of Italy itself. For centuries, “Italy” had consisted of those kingdoms, duchies and city-states extant in the Italian peninsula and, although the “Kingdom of Italy” was declared in 1861, full geographical and political unification within the borders a recognizable modern-day Italy was not complete until 1870. Even decades afterwards, many people still identified themselves more closely with a specific region than with the nation of Italy. This was the case with the Italian immigrants in Schenectady, who referred to themselves as Calabresi (Calabrians); Siciliani (Sicilians); or Napoletani (Campanians/“Neopolitans”), who accounted for approximately 60% of Schenectady Italians. Consequently, a number of societies were organized on the basis of a particular region (curiously, none recruiting from Campania region, though the Society for the Laboring Men of Alvignano was established for immigrants coming from a Campanian-majority town in a different region of Italy), in contrast to the Fratellanza which was open to all Italians regardless of regional origin. For example, 1902 saw the establishment of the Benevolent Brotherhood of the Sons of Northern Italy (popularly referred to as the “Alta Italia Society”), followed by organizations dedicated to Calabrians and Sicilians in the 1920s, and the Societa Laziale for Roman Italians in 1930. The largest societies, though, were those affiliated with the Sons of Italy, a growing national organization.

Into this mix was added the Abruzzese Society (Societa Abruzzese) in 1912, established for immigrants from the Abruzzi-Molise region in southern Italy. It was also the first Italian regional mutual benefit society to be organized in Schenectady. Within a few years the Society had seventy-two members, and its example was being followed by other regional groups. This example, as was typical of mutual benefit societies, had members pay a small monthly due to be entitled to a certain sum per week for a maximum of twelve weeks for periods of illness or injury, and a larger sum in the event of a death, in which case all society members would be required to attend the funeral services (there was a fine for failing to attend). It is unsurprising that the idea of a benefit society would appeal to Schenectady Italians, since by ca. 1910 Italians were overrepresented in the unskilled labor positions formerly dominated by the Irish, especially at General Electric and American Locomotive. Still, the mortuary fund was little used in the early days of the Abruzzese Society, though it was not altogether unusual for the appropriation of a lesser sum to be approved for the purchase of the wreath and rental of a carriage for the funeral procession of a Society member’s child.

By the late 1930s, admission to the Abruzzese Society had been codified in its constitution as being open only to citizens from the provinces of Abruzzi and Molise, and their children, the admission age being no younger than fourteen and no older than forty-five, with initiation fees increasing along with the age of the prospective member. Admission was also contingent upon good physical health and “spotless reputation,” though exceptions regarding the latter could be made in the case of minor misdemeanors, the decision made by an assembly. Moreover, members would not be entitled to benefits if injury or illness was incurred as the result of participation in a brawl (unless in unambiguous self-defense), venereal disease, or drunkenness. Membership was also divided into three tiers: Active, Deserving, and Honorary. Active members were those who had been in good standing for over one year. Deserving members were those who had not drawn on any sickness benefits for over twenty-five consecutive years, and so were exempt from paying monthly dues (though they were required to make all other payments). Finally, Honorary membership was awarded to those who had attained renown in the arts, sciences, or for services rendered to Italy or America, and was limited neither to Society members nor to persons hailing from the constitution-specified provinces

Though many of Schenectady’s Italian mutual benefit and fraternal societies continued to exist well into the mid-twentieth century, after that point most gradually disappeared. Aside from the national Sons of Italy organization, only the Abruzzese Society remained extant in the city of Schenectady into the twenty-first century. The Society celebrated its Centennial in 2012, but disbanded four years later in early 2016.

Arrangement:

The records have been organized into the following series: Series 1: Financial; 1912 – 2012 Series 2: Administrative; 1903 – 2005 Series 3: Communications; 1916 – 2003 Series 4: Media; 1933 – 1999 Series 5: Miscellaneous; 1929 – 2000 Series 6: Restricted; 1916 – 1977

Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: a Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

Access to the materials in Box 1 – Box 9 in this collection is unrestricted. Access to materials in Box 10 – Box 12 is restricted, as these items contain medical information pertaining to specific members of the Abruzzese Society.

Terms of access:

Access to the materials in Box 1 – Box 9 in this collection is unrestricted. Access to materials in Box 10 – Box 12 is restricted, as these items contain medical information pertaining to specific members of the Abruzzese Society.

Location of this collection:
32 Washington Ave.
Schenectady, NY 12305, United States
Link to repository site
Contact:
518 374 0263