EXTRA VIRGIN OLIVE OIL
The Beginning
When we think of our roots, we think of our family that immigrated to the United States and the family that was left behind in Sicily. Although our family lineage goes back for centuries in Sicily, we tend to only recollect and talk about those last six generations of family members that we still remember. That all started in 1868 when Ignazio Bianco marries Anna Maria Castiglione in Calatafimi and has three daughters between 1870 and 1881.
In the late nineteenth century after the unification of Italy, the Sicilian economy proved unable to compete with the north. This led to further economic downturn and further hardship for the family. Family folklore remembers the three sisters with their husbands and now young children struggling due to the lack of basic education, limiting their opportunities and income. The family heard of new opportunities and the potential for a better life in America. At that time a huge wave of immigration to the United States was taking place from Italy. So, starting in 1904 the three sisters, husbands and children started to immigrate to the United States. Between 1904 and 1906 the family immigrated to the United States through Ellis Island, with numerous trips back and forth until final in 1906 the mother of the three sisters Anna Maria Castiglione Bianco and her granddaughter were the last to travel.
The Middle (USA)
Settling in Brooklyn, New York, Rosa Bianco with husband Giovanni Bruno, Antonina Bianco with husband Gaspare Bica and Diega Bianco with husband Francesco Sgaraglino started their new lives attempting to acclimate to their new home.
Living in Brooklyn in 1906 was extremely difficult and even more challenging for immigrants that didn’t read or speak English. As the family folklore goes, the family struggled in Brooklyn for a number of years taking any work that they could find including shoveling snow off the streets in the winter for the City. During this time Antonina Bianco Bica was in communication with a childhood friend from a neighboring village in Sicily named Santa Ninfa. Angela Catalano Cosentino had immigrated to the United States with her husband Giuseppe Cosentino in 19XX and were living in Ravenna, Ohio. Angela and Giuseppe found a strong Italian community in Ravenna along with work on the B&O railroad for Giuseppe. Angela encouraged the three sisters to bring their families to Ravenna because of the Italian community and the availability of work for the men. In 1913 the families picked up and moved to Ravenna, Ohio. For over a century the families and their descendants have remained in Ravenna and continue to remain close.
Current
In 2017 a small group of the American family traveled to Calatafimi Segesta, Sicily to reunite with the extended family and develop a deep understanding of the history, culture and traditions of Sicily. One of the most significant treasures that we discovered on our visit was the exceptional food and olive oil produced by the family. The extended family in Calatafimi Segesta has worked the land and the olive groves for generations. To this day the descendants of the Bianco family continue to produce some of the finest olive oil in Sicily. Once back in the US, the family started to import small quantities of olive oil for personal family use.
