Francesco Pugliese
by Jennifer Rowell

Francesco was born June 16th 1867 in Palmi, Reggio Calabria in southern Italy. Francesco was the first of our family to come to America. He arrived on the S.S. Citta Di Napioli on Dec. 5th 1906. Prior to coming to America, Francesco's early years were set against a backdrop of civil unrest. Poverty, prejudice, disease, and political chaos defined this era in southern Italian history. As Francesco grew, nearly a third of Italy's citizens would immigrate to America.

In coming to America, he left behind his wife, Rosa Tedesco and 2 daughters, Francesca (b.7/4/04) and Vincenza (b.1/29/06). We know little about Francesco's personal life in Italy during these years. According to his sons, Charlie and Tally, Francesco never talked much about his 39 years of life before coming to America. We do know that he met and married Rosa Tedesco around 1900.

After arriving in America, the S.S. Citti de Napioli's manifest states that a cousin, Antonio Giordano, who lived at 1577 Thompson Street in Greenwich Village, NYC sponsored Francesco. Charlie & Tally both agreed that they never met Antonio Giordano and that he might have been a labor broker or padrone. A padrone was an individual who paid for an immigrants' passage and arranged for his employment in America in exchange for a percentage of his earnings.

2 years passed before the next significant event in Francesco's life is documented. On Dec. 28th, 1908, Palmi was hit by a tsunami caused by a large earthquake that killed nearly 8,000 of the 14,000 residents. It took nearly 6 months before Francesco could arrange for passage of his wife and 2 daughters from the devastation of Palmi to America. They arrived in May of 1909.


Francesco and Rosa had a total of eight children. Four of their children would die in infancy. Their eldest daughter Francesca (b.7/4/04-d.5/5/14) would die in childhood of influenza. The Pugliese twins, Carmelea (b.2/18/10-d. Oct. 10,1910)and Maria (b.2/18/10- d. 10/10/1910) died within two months of each other. Francesco and Rosa would suffer the loss of two more infants: Angiolina (b.2/3/15-d.12/15/15); and Antonio (b.6/8/16-d.8/20/16). This left Vincenza who survived the earthquake of 1908, and Charlie and Tally both of whom are destined to make their mark as successful businessmen in Nyack, NY.

No one is quite sure whom Francesco worked for during his early years in America. He may have worked for general contractors in NYC or in Nyack. Eventually he became an employee of J. DuPratt White, Esq. Mr White was a Wall Street attorney who built an estate in Nyack, NY. Francesco became a gardener for Mr White between 1910 and 1920.
Eventually Mr White moved Francesco's work from the Nyack estate to his Rockland Lake farm. Francesco's job was to grow crops that would be donated to Nyack Hospital. The Rockland Lake homestead would be the Pugliese home for another 10 years,until 1930 when Frank retired from Mr White's employ and the farm was torn down to make way for the Rockland State Park.

From the 1930's-1957 Francesco "Frank" Pugliese lived in Nyack with his wife, three children, and ten grandchildren. His son, Conchetto "Charlie" would marry Rose Bocchino and his son Natalino "Tally" would marry Santa "Sally" Zuccala. They Pugliese brothers would start a successful company called Nyack Plumbing and Heating. Francesco's only surviving daughter Vincenza "Jennie" would marry another citizen of Palmi, Reggio Calabria; Bruno Barone.

Francesco "Frank" Pugliese died October 12th 1957 at the age of 90 in Nyack. He is buried at Oak Hill in Nyack, NY.

coming up: Bruno Barone comes to America.