Why do some Michigan towns have unusual names? How Italian immigrants left their mark
From industrial metro Detroit to Upper Peninsula iron mining communities, Italian immigrants and their Italian American descendants have played a key role in shaping Michigan's history. As of 2000, when the U.S. Census last included the Italian American option, data showed 4.5% of Michigan's population was of Italian ancestry, according to the National Italian American Foundation.
"For more than 350 years, Italian immigrants have played important roles in the opening and development of the land that is now Michigan, from their participation in the French fur trade up to the present day," reads the description of Russell Magnaghi's book "Italians in Michigan."
"Through the tenacity and hard work of the immigrants and their descendants, Italians in Michigan have progressed from unskilled laborers to some of the highest positions in business, politics, culture, and education," the book adds.
In the early 20th century, the Copper Country — in the Keweenaw Peninsula — boasted some of the largest communities of Italian immigrants in the state, the National Park Service says. For many other Italian immigrants, life in the United States began as a "trammer" working in a copper mine. Opportunities for advancement in the mines came with experience and mastery of the English language, the park service noted.
Italians also worked in the iron mines in Ishpeming, Negaunee, Iron Mountain, Ironwood and other places, and then moved on as opportunities arose.
Much like Michigan's French immigrants left their mark with place names, Italians did the same.
Here's what to know.
This small town sits in the heart of Iron County in the western Upper Peninsula, along the Michigan-Wisconsin border. The area saw an influx of Italian immigrants to its thriving iron ore mining industry in the early 20th century, Pure Michigan says. At its peak, there were six mines operating, though they're now closed, the city's website says.
Markers of the city's Italian heritage include Verona Street, Leo Remondini Jr. Memorial Park and the Italian Society Duke of Abruzzi Lodge and bocce courts.
South of Ann Arbor, Milan features a historic downtown with local businesses and hosts several fun-filled annual festivals, according to Pure Michigan and the city's website.
Various accounts trace the city's name back to Italian immigrants seeking to honor their homeland or French settlers who sought to make the area rich in vineyards and wine-making like Milan, Italy, according to Total Local, a publishing, printing and marketing services business in Mason, Michigan.
While Michiganders pronounce the Michigan city's name MY-len, its namesake northern Italian city is known as mi-LAHN.
Nestled near the Michigan-Wisconsin border in the Upper Peninsula, Dickinson County's Loretto is within Waucedah Township. The area was once a mining town and near a railroad stop, Michiganrailroads.com notes.
The community is named after the city of Loreto along the Adriatic coast in central Italy, Genealogytrails.com says.
North of Lansing in Gratiot County, the small community of Pompeii features residential housing, a U.S. Post Office, the Pompeii United Methodist Church, the Pompeii Trading post and a park, surrounded by a rural area.
The town shares a name with Pompeii, Italy, an ancient Roman city south of Naples buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius nearly 2,000 years ago, according to History.com.
To sound like a true Michigander, pronounce it "pomp-ee-eye," not "pomp-ay."
Contact Jenna Prestininzi: jprestininzi@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan towns with Italian names. How immigrants left their mark
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Franca Colozo: My short message to the readers is to become 'resilient'. A word widely used after the post-pandemic crisis that has led us to inhumanity. In the indifferent gaze of the blind and deaf world, inhumanity is now more evident than ever in what is happening in Gaza. I believe that it is important to raise our voices against social injustice, oppression and imbalance, even if it sometimes seems insignificant globally, which has trapped the world in a vicious cycle of impatience, violence and most powerful message today should be the message of peace and tolerance if we want to teach future generations respect for their fellow human beings, women and the elderly. The word tolerance, along with interreligious harmony, should be the basis of understanding between people, a 'condition' to measure the level of civilization of the human race, which is still trapped in a huge circle of backwardness and ignorance, which nullifies the thousand-year history of ancient civilizations. 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I have not only helped my students draw and paint but also write in foreign languages for international poetry competitions, such as the Laurentian Prize for Italians Abroad or the 'Carducci' Prize and many writing, inspiring students, organizing exhibitions in the most prestigious places in Istanbul, from the Italian Cultural Institute to the IMI. High schools, the most prestigious universities, all this made my heart beat faster, gave a more human dimension to my proud moments, of course, were the birth of my two daughters, despite the usual problems and worries that mothers face. Although there were no particular problems with their birth, except for the eternal doubts about their prenatal and postnatal health. Being a mother always confronts us with existential choices, which are not easy to face.I have always left my daughters with the freedom to choose their own future, both in university and in personal relationships. I have always dedicated myself to their future life choices and have embraced their university studies in England, the United States, their master's degrees in Belgium, their master's degrees in Rome, their jobs abroad and their marriages to foreign men.I have never left my comfort zone, the beautiful Italian provinces.I never thought of my comfort zone, the beautiful Italian countryside, as a safe haven to protect my selfishness and, of course, not to offer them comfort and the possibility of a quiet life close to their parents. I threw the selfishness of motherhood to the wind to see them fulfilled and happy to start their lives.I tried to express my creativity in every possible way, whether forced or voluntary, to break free from the routine of retirement. This included not only artistic expression, poetry, articles, novels, social media commentary, but also research on long-term economics, climate change, sustainability, on these topics and through my participation in many UN Zoom and webinar sessions on world peace, without which nothing would be a result of my appointment as a Peace Ambassador, I have also become an expert on the disputed Kashmir issue between India and Pakistan, a long-standing issue with many UN resolutions since 1947, but which has not led to any resolution for the suffering people of Kashmir. This centuries-old dispute comes from afar and seems to have no solution given the huge presence of the Indian economy in the Islam Sarkar: What inspires you every day?Franca Colozzo: Poetry has always been my mindfulness, the force of regeneration that is often in harmony with the sea, where I love to retreat to the deserted rocks in the summer. There, when inspiration breathes like the wind through my hair, I write poetry and, facing the horizon, I look at the rocks of the sea that form the 'Serrapo Ship' (Gaeta's urban beach, the most famous among expatriates), my favorite destination and a haven for seagulls and cormorants. Poetry and writing, as well as drawing and art in general, have always been my anchor in difficult times in father's constant departures to work on oil tankers in the most remote places on earth led me to travel with my imagination to foreign ports. From the arid expanses of Saudi Arabia to the Persian Gulf, Japan, America, circumnavigating Africa or Suez, etc. These accumulated childhood memories and constant diaspora have become the canvas on which my daughters have also moved over time. The thread and weave of the traditions of my ancestors' experiences, were the common thread of our was the driving force behind writing another (yet unpublished) novel about Italian expatriates living in the United States with my first daughter and the United Arab Emirates (Dubai) with my second daughter. My daily motivation comes from the challenges I face every day, from calling my distant daughters and being active on social media.I try to use them as best I can, being aware of the limitations of social media. I publish poems, articles, quotes and thoughts, often taken from my blog and online magazine, to which I devote a lot of time and passion.I fear the advent of AI, but progress cannot be stopped. It would be wise to manage it with a deep understanding of the processes behind the development of new technologies. At the beginning of my teaching career, I dedicated myself to learning the basics of computer science, which allowed me to teach both students and teachers in middle schools, as well as participating in numerous courses around the province of Latina. I also attended courses at IMI in Istanbul to stay up to date with technological advances. Environmental issues are at the heart of my activities, not only through articles, blogs for the UN DESA and UN SDG goals, participation in Zoom meetings and webinars – on a personal level, I have focused on waste recycling and the care of domestic animals, taking care of a cat colony for over eleven years.( If you have any questions for Dr. Arch Franca Colozzo, you can ask Md. Mafidul Islam Sarkar on WhatsApp +8801735-632338 TIME BUSINESS NEWS
