My family has a history in Brooklyn New York that dates back to the
early 1900's, when my
grandparents
emigrated to this country. This section covers the years starting with
my parents marriage in 1936 and ending in the mid 1960's when our
family no longer lived in Brooklyn. Brief profiles of my parents
John and
Mary
offer a snap shot of their lives during this period.
After their wedding, my parents lived in a three story
house that was located at 1094 Coney Island Avenue. The house was owned
by my grandfather Andrea and was where my father grew up with his three
brothers and two sisters. All of his siblings had moved out of the
house by this time except for Elizabeth who was not married and still
living at home. My grandmother Luisa had passed away 6 months prior to
my parents wedding.
It was common for newlyweds to spend the early years of
their marriage in a parents home but as it turned out, this arrangement
lasted much longer. So it was that my brother Joe and I were born and
grew up in the house on Coney Island Avenue. We lived there with my
grandfather and maiden aunt until we were adults and left to find our
own way in life.
The early years of our lives were joyful because of
the love and care we received from my parents and a vibrant extended
family. By the time my brother and I were born, both of our
grandmothers had passed on but our grandfathers were alive and on the
scene. There were many family gatherings at our house that included my
aunts uncles and cousins. These were happy occasions with plenty of
good Italian food and a lot of good natured attention given to all the
children.
The public school we attended was within walking distance
as was the Catholic church where we went to mass and attended religious
and Sunday School classes. The collection of essays below offer some
perspective on what it was like growing up in Brooklyn during the
1950's and early 1960's and are best read in the order shown.
These were formative years that stand out in my
memory because of the quality of our family life and the opportunities
we were exposed to in the course of our otherwise unremarkable every
day life.
