Tessa Floreano, Italians in the Pacific Northwest

Join author Tessa Floreano in the Readings Gallery to learn about Italians in the Pacific Northwest and have a chance to win a giveaway of her book and some yummy Italian treats!

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From hardscrabble days as homesteaders and farmers in the 1880s to becoming successful entrepreneurs of the postwar boom generation, Italian immigrants settled and later thrived in Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Italians labored in several industries including railway tie hacking, coal mining, logging, canning salmon, terra-cotta and brick manufacturing, truck farms, and grocery stores. They also contributed to inventions from the collapsible crab pot to the atomic bomb, the vaudeville circuit, the Pellegrini bean, and one-of-a-kind accordions. It is the author's hope that this book highlights the contributions of many Pacific Northwest Italians, known and unknown.

Local author and community historian Tessa Floreano draws primarily on unpublished images, stories, and memorabilia from the Italian American community in three Pacific Northwest states. Tessa is a dual Italian-Canadian married to an American, who is interested in exploring history, and chose this book as a way to honor fellow Italians in her adopted homeland.