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# 68 • SEPTEMBER 21 , 2015
believe ‘little Italy” to be the most accurate. The area served as home to many
newly arrived ethnic groups of different
cultures and backgrounds, but it was the
Italian community that prevailed.
By 1910 hundreds of Italian Americans
called this 12-block area of San Jose
home. By 1916 the population of San
Jose’s little Italy soured. Residents of the
settlement were proud of their meager
homes and gardens and the area bloomed with pride. There was an abundance of fruit tree, vegetables and flower
gardens surrounding each plot of land.
Trees, laden with prunes, cherries and
apricots bore testimony to the community’s’ flourishing lifestyle. It was no
wonder that the grapes grew so large
and fruit to unusual size and quality,
most of the young immigrants had been
schooled early on in life by their parents and their parents befo ɔ