Little Italy (Manchester, England)

The War Years 1939 - 1945

The Second World War came at a time when the people of "Little Italy" had built a respected community for themselves. The announcement of Mussolini’s decision to side with Hitler’s Germany in 1939 had a devastating effect. By order of parliament all aliens were to be interned, although there were few active fascists. The majority had lived in this country peacefully for many years, and had even fought side by side with British soldiers in the First World War. Some had married English women and even taken British citizenship.

Italy declared war on Ethiopia in 1935, the start of sanctions and estrangement from the allies

Daily Sketch, Tuesday June 11th 1940. Note the heading, 'London Italians Round-Up'

This anti-Italian feeling led to a night of nationwide riots against the Italian communities. The Italians were now seen as a national security threat, and Winston Churchill instructed “collar the lot!”. Italian men between the ages of 17 and 60 were arrested after his speech.

They were transported to camps across the country. A nearby camp was Worth Mill in Bury. There was no sanitation, the roof was leaking, and no proper sleeping arrangements; according to the Red Cross it was unfit for human habitation. These internees were civillians, not military prisoners.

These men should never have been interned when they had sons and family in the British army. How could one be a good soldier knowing that your father was interned, your mother had no income to support her and there were children at home. Neither the Italian or British governments gave them anything; their businesses were closed due to internment and rationing. Families relied on their sons in the army to send some of the wages they received for fighting, but that was a pittance. The night of interment was one that many wish to forget; fathers were taken away while their wives and children looked on in tears, wondering if they would ever see their loved ones alive again.

The Very Reverend Monsignor Rossi who was interned at the Worth Mill camp: "The Italians showed amazing resourcefulness in adversity: they cleaned, they cooked, they prayed, they kept themselves occupied in many different ways and they never lost their national identity. Their allegiance was to Italy, not Fascism". Some Italians, men, women and children, were placed on the records of the British security service 'MI5' as fifth columnists due to their affiliations to political organisations and parties, even children belonging to the Balilla movement. The names of these families are still held on record today.

However there was a greater tragedy to come. On the 2nd of July 1940 the SS Arandora Star, originally a passenger liner, was sunk off the west coast of Ireland taking Italian and German internees to Canada. 470 Italians and 143 Germans and crewmembers lost their lives. The survivors were re-interned. Many of Manchester’s Italians perished on that very sad day. They were: Fr Gaetano Fracassi, Humberto Alberti, Cesare Camozzi, Eduardo Ceresa, Domenico Di Cocco, Clementino Fiorini, Onorio Forte, Carlo Frizzi, Ernani Landucci, Giovanni Longinotti, Domenico Mancini, Carlo Marre, Michelangelo Melaragni, Antonio Mittero, and Giuseppe Monti. May they all rest in peace. Monsignor Rossi had the task of sorting out the papers and personal belongings of these deceased men who only shortly before had been living alongside him. He remembered how he never forgot a comment by one of the officers at the Worth Mill internment camp: "We can afford to lose another ship".

During the war "Little Italy" was under curfew and the people had to report their every move to the police. There was a total ban on community activities; even ice cream was banned due to a shortage of raw materials. A visit to the cinema was a welcome diversion.

Nearly all the children of St Michael’s parish were evacuated to Lytham St Anne’s. Most of their teachers accompanied them and their schooling continued. Those left behind had the German air raids to contend with. When bad news came the people of this tight knit community pulled together irrespectful of nationality.

Cerificates such as this were awarded to Italians abroad who contributed gold to the Italian war effort 1935

As the war wore on the Americans began arriving in Manchester. They drifted across to "Little Italy" and were welcomed into the homes of the many Italian families for a good home made plate of pasta! The American Italians thought that "Little Italy" was like those back home; it was, but without the restaurants, coffee shops and Italian clubs.

It’s sad to think that there was never an apology to those families that lost loved ones on the SS Arandora Star, and had sons serving in the British armed forces, or even those that were interned. They never received an apology or compensation for the turmoil caused to their families and businesses after the war. Even the Americans apologized to their immigrant communities for the hardships encountered through the war years. Just an apology would go along way to making us feel more British and at home! Our fathers experienced racism long before it was considered wrong to condemn anyone for their colour, nationality, sexuality or religious beliefs. I hope as a third generation Anglo - Italian that one day I, and our communities, can accept that long overdue apology on behalf of our fore fathers.

In 1945 the Germans surrendered. What a day this was! They danced and sang in the streets day and night to celebrate V.E. day, it was party time! But no one forgot those that had given their lives so freely that we could live in peace.

The Italian community of Great Britain has been an exemplary model of how immigrants should behave, and were never a security threat. They have integrated well under the stressful events of 1939/45. The Italians have been good hard working families respectful of both the country and people of Britain for allowing them to settle and prosper in their country. But Italy will never be far from our thoughts and hearts. It is, and always will be, our patria of origin.

Little Italy (Manchester, England)

The sounds of "Little Italy"

During the summer nights in and around "Little Italy", one could hear accordions, tambourines, and even the occasional mandolin, well into the small hours of the morning. Men and women danced the Tarantella, a dance full of expression, very popular in the southern regions of Italy. The women would stand and chat in their native costumes, or dressed in black, while their children played. One popular song went:

"Where a'ya work-a John,
I poosh I poosh I poosh
Where a'ya poosh-a John,
I poosh I poosh I poosh-a pram"

The Italians brought such character to this grim part of Manchester, their music, food and customs brought so much color to this area.

Not everyone had a gramaphone, or even the old 78 'His Master's Voice' records, but music and opera played a very important part in the lives of the immigrant community of Ancoats, their music transporting them on a nostalgic journey. One would only have to walk down the streets to hear a rendition of 'O Sole Mio' or 'Torna a Surriento' and many more Neapolitan classics. 'O Sole Mio' is a song for those who work by themselves. It tells about the beauty of the day after the storm, how lovely it will be, but particularly the beauty of Naples. 'Torna a Surriento' was written to the post master general to remind him of his visit to Sorrento and grant the town a post office. These are songs that tell of homesickness, and I think all Italians get a little homesick when they hear these 'belle canzoni di Napoli'. Nobody sings of homesickness more than the Italians, except perhaps for the Irish. The character of the Neapolitan people speaks for itself; you can hear the feeling in the Neapolitan dialect, it's enriched in character, full of expressions and hand-gestures.

Hurdy-Gurdy men, barrel organs, and bagpipes

"Little Italy" was well known for its entertainers and especially its street musicians. They played many musical instruments, foremost the barrel organ. The 1881 census of England and Wales shows that nearly a third of the immigrants were musicians. They would walk the streets of Manchester and surrounding districts playing their barrel organs and hurdy gurdies, some with monkeys in red waistcoats and hats, and a few with dancing bears. The Antonelli family manufactured barrel organs and hired them out from their premises on the corner of Blossom Street and Great Ancoats Street, being the 'padrone' to a large group of musicians. Antonio Varetto also manufactured barrel organs in Manchester. Simon Rabino learnt the manufacture of barrel organs from his father and grandfather in Italy. He studied at the Marseilles college of music, and although many of his compositions were highly popular, never published his scores. The Marrocca family, the Mancini family, and the Arcaro family all rented barrel organs out, and made a good living at this. It was even noted that Gavioli, one of the most famous of all the barrel organ manufacturers, was based in Jersey Street, Ancoats in the 19th century. A lesser known instrument was the ' zampogna', similar to the Scottish bagpipes, which was native to emigrants from the Ciocaria (Lazio) region of Italy.

Post war years and modern times

There was a local song sung in the Manchester pubs:

Why do you wanna go to Wembley,
Worra ya wanna go to Wembley for?
Take a walk down Ancoats Lane,
and you're in Italy so grand,
Take a walk up Oldham Road
and you're in Ire-land.
China and Japan
are in Upper Brook Street;
Africa's in Moss Side so they say,
And if you wanna go further still,
Palestine's in Cheetham Hill,
Worra ya wanna go to Wembley for.

After the war, one of the next great Italian tenors, Beniamino Gigli, came to Manchester, and performed at Belle Vue. This is remembered with great enthusiasm by not only the Italians who went in great numbers, but also the wider community. He also performed at Manchester's Roman Catholic church, St. Mary's, 'The Hidden Gem', in city centre Manchester, singing at the Holy Mass.

Then there were the singers of "Little Italy", who sang at many of the Italian dances which were held at Belle Vue, Cheetham Town Hall, Broughton Assembly Halls, New Islington Conservative Club, the UCP on Market Street, and especially in the Kings Arms on Great Ancoats Street. The young second and third generation Italians would dance out on to the streets to the sound of the old Italian anthem, 'Marcia Reale', accompanied by Rudi, Domenic and Ernie playing accordions. The singers were Margharita Rea (nee Schiavo), Mary Kite (nee Ricci) and the great voice of Tony Ricci amongst others. They were the equivalent of Connie Francis and Frank Sinatra.

Today, at Italian functions, the songs of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Connie Francis, Perry Como, Al Martino, Tony Bennet, Lou Monte and Jerry Vale are played with great pride. In any Italian family you will find a budding Dean Martin or Connie Francis. These kids are pushed to the front at any Italian function to do their bit, and when they start to sing, their mammas and pappas, aunts and uncles, cougini and paesani listen attentively, and are transported back to the home country, thinking of times past and their immigrant parents, and the sacrifices they made for a better life for their families. Music is at the heart of all Italain communities around the world.

Little Italy (Manchester, England)

Ancoats: The Early Years

The greatest arrival of Italians into Manchester, took place in the years 1865-1900's, when thousands left the rural villages of their native regions of Italy. These farming people, working together in their enclave of "Little Italy", were to become the pioneers of the modern day British ice cream industry, making and selling ice cream, establishing their businesses, importing food from their native regions, and making this area a piece of Italy forever. Ancoats was in the parish of St Michael's, one of the many Roman Catholic churches in the area. This was the industrial part of Manchester, and its mills provided a very different landscape to the hills and mountains to which they were accustomed.

Around the mills were the rows of mill workers' houses, where the Italians made their homes. When the Italians arrived in Manchester, many of the streets and homes of Ancoats were over a century old. However these houses had separate kitchens, living rooms, and bedrooms.

The Italian colony grew, and began to outnumber the English and Irish families in the parish. In the early 19th century the district had been an unhealthy and violent place. A correspondent of the Manchester Chronicle in 1823 complained that it was dangerous to walk along Oldham Road in the evening: 'At the ends of many streets stand groups of Irish ruffians who appear to feel no interest but in ill-treating the peaceable and unoffending inhabitants.'

This was life in Ancoats just before the Italians claimed the area for themselves and it became known as "Little Italy", bringing this area to life with their hospitality.

Little Italy (Manchester, England)

Introduction

In the 19th century there was a massive amount of Italian immigrants, due to the political and economic situation, travelling from every region of Italy, particularly southern Italy, Lazio and Campagna, to the UK. Some settled in the Ancoats area of the city of Manchester, north west England, and for the next hundred years they created what became known as Manchester's "Ancoats Little Italy".

They enhanced the Catholic Whit Walk, they pioneered the British ice cream industry, and survived the turmoil of the second world war.

The many families who brought color and life to this area are a constant source of interest to those interested in genealogy and their family history.

Ancoats Village

View of Flat

View of Living Room

View from Kitchen into Living Room

View of Bedroom

Ancoats Village

Plans

Elevations

View from New Mill

View from New Mill

View from Old Mill

Ancoats Village

Aerial View

This complex of buildings arranged in a quadrangle was originally built between the years 1798 and 1806 in Ancoats, a historic industrial suburb of Manchester. It currently consists of the Old Decker Mill and the New Mill with their associated Engine Houses and the former administration building on Murray Street.

Ancoats Buildings Preservation Trust is the client for the shell-repair and conservation works began on site in September 2004. Our client, the Burrell Company/Inpartnership Ltd, has commissioned us to design proposals for the development of these important buildings.

Our scheme, which was identified as the preferred development scheme (won in competition in September 2004) proposes a mixed use for the site consisting 112 apartments and 1700m2 of office space within the mill buildings and engine houses; a Textile Resource Centre/Fashion Centre of Excellence within the Murray Street building; and a 60-bedroom new-build ‘boutique’ hotel on the currently vacant eastern side of the quad. The proposal will also reinstate the canal basin at the centre of the quad.

The architectural vision for the re-inhabitation of Murray’s Mills is to create an enclosed central space, and to make new architecture which clearly differentiates between the restored historic buildings and new insertions. Externally, the new elements consist of corten-steel staircase/lift towers to the Old Mill and the Old Mill Engine House (echoing the form of the existing staircase); new external staircases to the first floor flats in the New Mill; and a glazed lift to one side of the Old Mill’s existing brick staircase. The rebuilding of the top two storeys of the Murray Street building will clearly present the contemporary exterior of the versatile new internal space of the Fashion Centre of Excellence.

Each mill has been developed with very differing residential strategies, neither utilizing the usual repetitive internal corridor solution with its inevitable single aspect flats. Instead, alternative options were considered to establish through-aspect flats so that the width and structural rhythm of the original warehouse could be appreciated.

New Mill: Taking our inspiration from the famous Unite d’Habitation in Marseilles by Le Corbusier, the top three floors have been provided with a central corridor down the middle (third) floor, the corridor giving access to a variety of flats on all three levels. The corridor itself is accessed using the existing Mill staircase and new liftshaft. This strategy has the advantage of ensuring the maximum number of possible through-aspect flats and therefore allowing a better reading of the original scale and structural rhythm of the building from within.

Old Mill: The strategy has been to externalise the circulation using three cores, one being the existing staircase and the other two being new corten-steel staircases and glazed lift towers. This approach allows us to make the incisions required for apartment access in a forensic manner, i.e. in lieu of new lift and stair cores within the historic structure. The flats have been planned to provide as many as possible through-aspect and, in a number of cases, through-space layouts which would give views of both the courtyard and the canal from the main living spaces.

Planning & Listed Building Consent for the conversion of the two mill buildings and their engine houses was granted in January 2006 and we are now programming the first stages of the conversion work to begin on site late 2007.

Existing Building

Existing Building

Existing Building

Internal View of Existing Building