Italian & Lithuanian Maternal & Paternal Grandparents

Liz’s Italian maternal grandmother, Elisabetha (nee Sciamarelli) Albano, lovingly called Nana, left Calbria, Italy in 1902 with one child and her cousin with her children. They survived the agonizing Atlantic crossing, the rigorous examinations on Ellis Island, and rejoined their husbands in Chicago, where they worked for the railroad. Nana had nothing more then what she could fit in a trunk. She was a strong woman who was able to raise her large family of six children by owning and running a neighborhood Italian grocery store.

There is one endearing photograph of Nana standing proudly behind the store’s counter. Her stout rounded shoulders bear the weight of responsibility. Her thick dark hair pulled back in a tight bun made a formidable persona. Yet her starched white apron and her prideful smile welcomed all, even those who had no money. Not one soul ever left the store empty‑handed. All that remains of hers beside the few pictures is a meat grinder and a receipt for candy and a page from the stores’ account book. Unfortunately there is only one photograph of Elisabetha’s husband, Thomas. There is much research waiting to be done and perhaps then, other papers will be found along with family history within.  But what there is of my Italian grandparents, I will treasure forever and display my proud Italian heritage in the Family Museum.

Liz’s paternal & maternal grandparents were from Lithuania. Grandpa Anthony Yuknavich was born in 1888 in Uzubalici, Lithuania (at the time of his birth the area was part of Russia). Anthony had a high school education. His father did not want Anthony to go into the Russian Army so he bought him a ticket to America. Anthony arrived in New York on the ship Pisau from Hamburg Germany in June 1907. He lived in Portage, PA where he met Anna who lived in Wilkes Barre, PA. They married Sept. 17, 1917. Anna (nee Vaicuilionis) Yuknavich was born in 1887 in Vilkoviskis, Lithuania. She had no schooling but was artistically talented. She made carpets on a loom that was in the attic of their home. Anna got her citizenship papers in 1945.

Anthony & Anna, known by friends and family as Tony and Annie, lived in Bakerton, PA for 62 years. Grandpa was a quiet man who could speak several languages and liked to read. He was a dedicated husband and father, a good farmer raising produce and animals. He was also a coal miner and after years of dangerous work and unhealthy conditions, he was a frail man as he aged. Fortunately, he had three strong sons who took over supporting the family. The eldest son was my father, William.

Every summer when Liz was a child, her family  would go Pennsylvania to visit her  father's parents. Their house and farm was situated in a valley in the Allegheny Mountains. She loved the quiet mountains, especially because life in South Chicago was noisy and crowded. After her grandparents passed away and the house was sold, it is unfortunate that there was absolutely nothing of her grandparents handed down. No heirlooms or antiques. Just photographs. But they shall cherish always.  

Though there are no physical heirlooms, there was one thing handed down from Liz’s father’s parents – the desire to save. Be it that what they owned was cherished, and when financial times were hard, many times what was saved was used again and again. Liz’s father taught her to save and it is from that lesson that the Family Museum exists.
 


   

My Dad * His Story - Part I

I also thought it romantic, not in the sense of love, but as in history, that I was a coalminer’s daughter, like Loretta Lynn, until I actually went into the blacken depths of a coalmine. (This part of the story to follow.)

My father, William Edward (Yuknavich) Sommers, was born on October 19, 1916 in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, to Lithuanian Immigrants. His mother Anna, was stoic and artistic. She tended to wife and households duties and made clothes and carpets for the family. His father Anthony was a farmer and coalminer. Dad reluctantly followed his father’s footsteps into those mines and knew from the start that there had to be a better world and more to life than working for the Sterling Coal Company shoveling tons of coal. 

 

Soon after dad bought his first car, a 1936 Chevrolet Master Deluxe 4-door sedan, he wrote, “it had a very good radio and excellent heater.”

In this family photograph, Dad is sitting with his youngest brother, Joseph, on the front bumper of his car. 

Dad left home in September 1937 and drove to Detroit, Michigan where he got a job at the Chevrolet plant.

He was fortunate this time (I will explain that later) in getting the job because his cousin’s husband was a foremen there and got him the job. After a few paychecks, he enrolled in night school classes for tool & die making. (Both careers require talent in artistic, artisanal, creative and math-and-science areas. Job-shop machinists can be any combination of toolmaker and production machinist.)

Once he completed 40 hours of classes, his cousin said to him, “now there are two choices, which of the two are you going to choose from. You either can stay as a coal miner and there isn’t any advancement or continue to go to school and learn a trade.” Dad chose the second one.

In May of 1938 he was laid off from the Chevrolet plant because new car orders were filled up for that year. So not to spend any money to look for a new job, he went back to Pennsylvania and Sterling #6 Coal Company as a coal miner, but only for the summer months. In September that year, he went back to Detroit, however, he could not get his job back because he made a “big mistake” by stating he was from Pennsylvania on his employment application. He was told that “they don’t hire nobody out of state, just the people from the city.”

About a week later, Dad got a job at the Packard Motor Company.

 It was a better job and paid more money. Again, he went back to night school for five more months, the same amount of time that his employment lasted. Once again he was laid off and went back to Pennsylvania and coal mine Sterling #6.

While Dad was back home he signed up for another school, this time a machine shop course for three months. There were two classes: one for learning how to read blueprints, the other to learn how to operate machines, such as lathes, milling, shapers and others. Since he already knew how to read blue prints, he went with learning how to operate machines.

 

He wrote, “All of this effort of my consuming time and money sure paid off after I got out from the Navy.”

Dad sidetracks a bit to tell a story about roller skating and learning how to dance.

Soon after started night school, he met a “very nice guy” named George. They learned together how to run and operate the machines. Dad wrote, “George was a very good roller skater like me and a good Ballroom dancer and I wasn’t.” 

Over the weekends they would go to many skating rinks in the area:  Johnstown,

Indiana, DuBois, Punxsutawney, Edinburg, and Cresson. They used Dad’s car “for it had a very good excellent radio.” Driving home the radio picked up W.G.N. Broadcasting from Chicago, playing well-known big band orchestra music from places like the Trianon, Aragon, and Edgewater Beach ballrooms. He wrote, “We would pull off to the side of the road and just sit there listening to all that good beautiful music until they signed off.” 

 

I can imagine these two guys, sitting in the car, listening to the radio, talking and dreaming about all the things they wanted to do with their lives. 

Later, Dad said to George, “I wish I somehow could learn how to dance, and if I ever did learn and if ever in some distant further I should ever get to Chicago that’s the place I sure will go.” George replied, “I’ve two sisters and I do know one of them will teach you the basic steps like the Fox Trot.”

So after school they would go to George’s home and “sure enough the younger sister put on one of the records and she began to give the basic steps.” Dad wrote, “Wasn’t long after I got to learn.” Later Dad asked her to go on a date to the Sunset Ballroom. She said ok. George, his date & sister and Dad went together and had a very nice time. Dad wrote, “She was a little taller then I and much older but very congenial type of a girl. By the way her first name was Irene.” 

From February 1939 to January 1942, he must have worked in the coal mines until he enlisted in the United Sates Navy.

 

Choose a Career in the U.S. Navy 

 

“The Navy brings a man in contact with men.” 

U.S. Navy Recruiting Sub-Station  Post Office Building, Johnston, Pa.

                                                                             

                              

Next Post:  My Dad * His Story - Part II