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Story about the Pesavento family's life in Italy and America

Story about the Pesavento family's life in Italy and America

Posted: 12 Jan 2015 10:23PM GMT
Classification: Query
I am just picking up where I left off a while back ago on family history research and thought I would post this great story a cousin I found on Ancestry shared with me about our family.

(It's a letter written about my great-grandparents, Giovanni Donato Pesavento and his wife Giovanna Paganini, referred to as "grandmother" and "grandfather"):

Our Grandmother and Grandfather Pesavento lived in an all stone house, stone floors, an open hearth, a two story structure with a balcony on the second floor. Grandmother was very proud of their flower garden which was full of carnations.
Your Grandmother lived with her Mother-in-law, who ruled the roost so to speak, which was one of the reasons your grandmother was so eager and willing to make the long trip to America with her family. (Someone added: "The real reason was sons would be forced into army.." I can't make out the next sentence.)
Your grandfather Pesavento was a master stone-cutter and traveled much of Europe for work. He worked a lot in Denmark and Germany. He also helped build the border wall between Austria and Italy.
Your grandparents and all the people of Asiago, the town where your people lived, were descendants of a group from Central Europe called the (Cimbra). They were not South Italians. This Cimbra group were noted for being tall, blue-eyed blonds.
Your great-grandmother was a mid-wife in Asiago, there were no doctors in their town. Her name was "Giovna Paganing" (Someone crossed this out and wrote "Giovanni Paganini" - which is still wrong, as Giovanni is a boys name. I assume they mean Giovanna)
Your grandfather came to America to find work as it was harder and harder to find in Europe.
When they came to America, they lived with another family for a very short time until Grandpa found a job and a house. As he was a master stone-cutter he had no financial problems and always provided his wife and 7 children with the essentials of life, food, shelter, and clothing, but no luxuries as we all have and expect today.
Your grandfather Pesavento was a very proud, neat and clean man (blond, very fair skin, large blue eyes) He would never go out the door unless spotless and groomed.
I recall grandmother Pesavento saying when they tasted ice-cream for the first time, her friends told her to blow on it as it was hot.
They lived on Ball, Mt. Pa. in the warm weather to be near the stone quarry where grandpa worked and when it got too cold to cut stone they moved to Miners Mills to live. In the winter he would open a fruit and Veg. store on Northampton St., W.B. Pa.
Grandmother said, at Christmas they only received a stocking with apples, nuts and one orange, not at all like the American Christmas.
They had no problems adjusting to live in America.
100 years later our family home is still in Asiago with our relatives living in it, their name Valario Bosso.
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