L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 13, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 36 L'Italo-Americano M ore than a c e n t u r y ago, Italian i m m i - grants who had settled in the lush green v a l l e y s o u t s i d e W a l l a Walla in eastern Wash- ington perfected a sweet onion. Once considered just a humble local variety, the Walla Walla onion today is prized for its mild sweet flavor. It commands higher prices in grocery stores and is feature in many high-end restaurant menus. In 2007, Governor Christine Gregoire signed legislation designat- ing the Walla Walla sweet onion as Washington's offi- cial state vegetable. The Italians who settled the land around Walla Walla some 125 years ago came from two distinct regions in I t a l y . O n e g r o u p w a s t h e Milanese who came predom- inantly from Lonate Pozzolo, today a suburb of Milan. The other was Calabrese, men and women who emigrated from towns in the south of Italy. M o s t o f t h e M i l a n e s e immigrants settled in a sec- tion called Blalock, west of Walla Walla and north of College Place. The southern immigrants bought land in an area known as the "South N i n t h , " w h i c h r a n f r o m W a l l a W a l l a s o u t h t o t h e state line. W h e n t h e y a r r i v e d i n A m e r i c a , t h e i m m i g r a n t s who made their way out west w e r e e m p l o y e d a s c h e a p labor by more prosperous farmers. They worked hard and saved every dollar until they could purchase their own piece of land. As small- s c a l e f a r m e r s , t h e y g r e w spinach, onions, beets and carrots, and sold them to their friends and neighbors. M a n y o f t h e s e I t a l i a n i m m i g r a n t s w a n t e d t o f i t into their communities so they anglicized their names. B a r b i e r i b e c a m e B a r b e r ; Borgnino became Borgnine; and Saturno became Breen. Wait…how did that happen? According to a story record- e d i n a 1 9 9 4 i s s u e o f C o l u m b i a M a g a z i n e , Pasquale Saturno, originally from Ischia, near Naples, settled in Walla Walla and sold his vegetables at the local market. Each day, he would announce: "Today, I b r e e n - g a t h e s p i n a c h . onion of Walla Walla actual- l y b e g a n i n C o r s i c a , a French-owned island off the western coast of Italy. There, a F r e n c h s o l d i e r n a m e d Peter Pieri brought sweet o n i o n s e e d s t o t h e W a l l a Walla valley. Several Italians were Pieri's neighbors who w e r e i m p r e s s e d b y t h e "French" onion's hardiness, round shape and paper-thin skin. They worked with Pieri t o h a r v e s t t h e s e e d s a n d propagate the plants. As more Italians arrived a n d s t a r t e d s m a l l f a m i l y f a r m s , t h e y u n i t e d t o g e t fairer prices for their crops. I n 1 9 1 6 , I t a l i a n g r o w e r s e s t a b l i s h e d t h e W a l l a W a l l a G a r d e n e r s Association. The following y e a r , W W G A h a d i t s o w n p a c k i n g h o u s e , a n d l a t e r would add a credit union and a buyers' club. It also operat- e d a r e t a i l g r o c e r y s t o r e . M o r e r e c e n t l y , W W G A e s t a b l i s h e d a n I t a l i a n Heritage Association and Italian Heritage Days. Planting and harvesting r e m a i n e d e s s e n t i a l l y t h e same until the early 1950s. Small farms continued to be f a m i l y a f f a i r s . C h i l d r e n worked side-by-side with t h e i r p a r e n t s , h e l p i n g t o plant, harvest, bag and crate the onions. Italian families shared similar values and traditions and helped each other through difficult times. Tomorrow, I breen-ga the o n i o n s . " E v e n t u a l l y , t h e locals started calling him Breen and the name stuck. Early Walla Walla onions w e r e h a r v e s t e d b y h a n d . That was partially because of their high moisture content - - o v e r 9 0 p e r c e n t . Handpicking would damage less of the crop. The onion's mildness is due to its low sulphur content, about half that of an ordinary onion. L e s s s u l p h u r m e a n s l e s s " b i t e " a n d n o t e a r s . T h e onion was so sweet, growers claimed you could eat it like an apple. Although the onion's ori- gins are linked to the early Italian settlers, the sweet It was not until the early 1960s that the name "Walla Walla sweet onion" was pop- ularized. At that time, the Arbini brothers were asked t o s h i p s a m p l e s o f t h e i r sweet onions to markets on the East Coast. As they pre- p a r e d t h e i r s h i p m e n t , a member of the family came u p w i t h t h e n a m e " W a l l a Walla sweet onion." Today, the Walla Walla o n i o n i s c u l t i v a t e d b y 3 0 g r o w e r s o n a b o u t 1 , 0 0 0 acres surrounding the city. M a n y a r e d e s c e n d a n t s o f those early Italian families – such as the Castoldi family, who work the original farm their grandfather Andrea p u r c h a s e d i n 1 9 2 4 , a n d L o c a t i F a r m s , r u n b y Michael Locati, a fourth-gen- eration Walla Walla sweet onion grower. In 1995, the Walla Walla sweet onion industry teamed with the US government to create Federal Marketing Order No. 956, which desig- nates Walla Walla onions as a unique variety. The order establishes a federally pro- tected growing area, encom- passing the Walla Walla val- l e y o f s o u t h e a s t e r n Washington and northeast- ern Oregon. Sweet onions grown outside this produc- tion area cannot be market- e d a s W a l l a W a l l a s w e e t onions without facing a stiff fine. Now into its 37 th year, the W a l l a W a l l a S w e e t Onion Festival is held each summer. This year's event w i l l b e h e l d J u l y 1 7 - 1 8 , although it might be scaled back because of the pandem- ic. Over the weekend, restau- rants compete to outdo each other in how they feature the signature crop and the smell of onions permeates the air. There are onion-eating con- tests, onion bowling, onion decorating and onion-sack races. I n 2 0 1 4 , W a l l a W a l l a b e c a m e a s i s t e r c i t y t o Cannara, a small town in U m b r i a t h a t , l i k e W a l l a W a l l a , i s f a m o u s f o r i t s o n i o n s . C a n n a r a ' s s w e e t onions include the red, gold and borrettana varieties. The onions thrive in clay-like soil, very rich in water and organic substances. Cannara hosts its own festival (La Festa della Cipolla) each y e a r w h e r e l o c a l s a n d tourists alike celebrate the onion by eating specialty d i s h e s m a d e w i t h t h e beloved vegetable. RITA CIPALLA Walla Walla's Sweet Onion Fstival, a popular family event, includes many activities focused on the region's famous vegetable (Photo courtesy of Walla Walla Sweet Onion Festival) SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY Early Italians nurtured the Walla Walla onions from humble beginnings

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