Herodotus

Julie Kraus

AP European History

Herodotus

From what I’ve heard, my great grandfather, Carmelo Carbone was born on February 9, 1889. He was married to my great grandmother, Domineca Bucca. Carmelo and Domineca were supposedly very poor, and did not have much to live off of. Carmelo’s family is not really heard of, but Domineca had seven other siblings, named Carmelo, Filepo, Maria, Salvatore, Bistiano, Antonino, and Giuseppe. Her parents were Giuseppe Bucca and Angelina De Pasquale. Life was harder for them, because they were not as well off as others in their time.

My mother told me that her grandparents both died young, but it is not known how they passed away. They came over from Sicily, Italy in 1916, and lived in Maryland. My mother also says that her father-who is the youngest of three-was sent off to live with relatives, because Carmelo could not afford three children, with Carmelo only making a dollar a day and their mother dead. I heard that my grandfather used to make dandelion wine and stomp grapes to make wine in the cellar when he was younger. That is so fascinating that they made their own wine, instead of just buying it.

While my grandfather was over living with his relatives, he would work in the fields to help out at the house. Because they were not wealthy, they had to make their own wine, and sell it. The grape stomping and making of the dandelion wine was just part of his work. From what I heard, when his father figure would return from work, he would stop at the butcher’s every day, and bring home fresh meat, like beef and steak. My grandfather has always loved steak, and that is most likely where he gets it from.

My mother told me that when my grandfather was younger, he used to sell newspapers on the corner. I also heard he used to shine shoes to help the family make a living. However, he did not live a happy childhood. He had to live with cousins instead of his father and brothers, and he lived with another boy around the same age as he, but they did not get along very well. My grandfather told me that one Christmas, he was given a toy truck by the family, but their son wanted the truck, and so they took it from my grandfather and gave it to the little boy.

There is not much that I know about my great grandmother’s side of the family. However, I hear that some of the Bucca family still resides in New Jersey. I do not know them, or where they live exactly, but I have heard they are on the northern side. They have not visited my closer family members since I have been alive. It is a shame, because I would have liked to learn more about who they are and what stories they have from when they were younger.

There were definitely more stories and information about the Carbone side of the family. They seem to have much more of a history. I personally love hearing the stories about my family, good or bad. They are so interesting, especially when they are about when the family was younger. Their lives really are fascinating, particularly because they are my family, and their history is part of my history.