Brief summary of the book written by:
Donna Lynn Chappelone Salomon and Julie Holland Looney
Giacomo Chiappellone arrived in New York on April 1, 1899. He settled in Colma, California, to work on a vegetable farm owned by a Genoaese friend. After two years of hard work, he was joined there by his fiancée, Aurelia Moscone, who lived with her brother Joseph for a few weeks while waiting to rent a house in San Francisco.
Once reunited, Giacomo and Aurelia married in 1901 and raised three children: Don, Esther, and Angelo.
On April 18, 1906, the city was struck by a devastating earthquake. Aurelia and the children had to live in a tent in the Golden Gate Park for three weeks, while Giacomo, as all the men in the city, had to help with rescue.
Since Angelo was born with a deformed foot, Aurelia decided to consult with several doctors and surgeons who all agreed that amputation was the only way forward.
Despite the grim prognosis, Aurelia never gave up.
When she learned about a surgeon in Genoa who had successfully treated children with similar conditions, she made the bold choice to travel there with the kids. While Giacomo remained in the United States for work, Aurelia and her family lived in Fontanarossa for three years. After four surgeries, Angelo was able to walk with a limp. The family then sailed back home to their house in San Francisco.
Just after coming back, the family moved to North Beach, where they lived for about four years and welcomed two more children: Lea and Jimmy.
Giacomo had always dreamed of owning a ranch. So, he sold everything he had and bought one in Modesto. Along with it, he purchased eleven cows, one bull, and nine horses.
It was here that the family spent some of their happiest years, while bringing into the world two other children: Dolly and Antone.
When the Great Depression struck, Giacomo was forced to rent the ranch and the family lived in Hollister for two years.
After some time, they finally managed to get back to the ranch in Modesto.
Giacomo tried to sell the ranch, but with few buyers available, he decided to trade it for another one in Oakdale. The beginning was very hard; nothing seemed to grow in the area, and the family had to live in a tent for a year while waiting for their new house to be built.
Little Antone (Steve) died in 1918 when he was two years old struck by diphtheria. In 1924, Aurelia passed away due to a massive heart attack she suffered while giving birth and the baby was born dead.
The death of Aurelia was a very hard hit for Giacomo, who had to take care of his seven children all by himself. He married again, but the marriage lasted only six months probably because of the conflicts between his sons and the new mother.
In the end, the family moved to San Francisco, where Giacomo died on July 23, 1961.
Besides the history of the family, the book also includes a chapter dedicated to the famous relatives of the Moscone and Chiappellone’s families.
Willie Mosconi: He was a billiard champion with a global reputation and the son of Aurelia’s brother, Joseph, who was a professional boxer known as Charlie Russel.
Louie and Charlie Mosconi: They were two great dancers. They performed as a couple under the name of Mosconi Brothers and toured with Ziegfeld’s Follies and Fred Astaire. They were the sons of Charlie, who was Aurelia’s brother.
George Richard Moscone: He was the mayor of San Francisco. His grandparents were David Moscone and Celestina Mosconi, Aurelia’s sister.
Frankie Crosetti: He was a great baseball player, known by the nickname “The Raven”. The family connection traces back to Davide Moscone’s mother, Aurelia’s brother-in-law, whose last name was Crosetti.
Dean Martin: The great singer and actor’s original name was Dino Paul Crocetti; his surname Crocetti came from Crosetti.
Amedeo Peter Giannini: He was the founder of Bank of Italy, which later became Bank of America. His connection with the Chiappellone family traces back to Angelo Chiappelloni, who married Lula Giannini, the daughter of his stepmother, Teresa Giannini.
A.P. Giannini was a close friend of both the Chiappellone and Mosconi families.
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