L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 19, 2024 www.italoamericano.org 30 L'Italo-Americano A n 1 9 0 2 , 2 2 - y e a r - o l d P i e t r o N e l l i , l i k e s o m a n y i m m i g r a n t s before him, boarded a ship and left Italy to seek a better future in America. At that age, he could have n e v e r i m a g i n e d w h a t l a y before him. It's possible he s a w h i m s e l f a s a l o v i n g father and husband — which he was. And perhaps even a successful businessman — ditto. But it's unlikely he would have guessed that, one day, he would live on a S e a t t l e s t r e e t n i c k n a m e d Millionaire's Row in a house d e s i g n e d b y f a m e d l o c a l architect Fred Bassetti. Nelli was born in 1880 in the province of Lucca. When h e a r r i v e d i n t h e P a c i f i c Northwest, he worked in the c o a l m i n e s o f B l a c k D i a - mond – often the first job for many newly arrived Ital- ians. In 1905, he returned to L u c c a t o m a r r y T h e r e s a Pennacchi – a marriage that would last nearly 59 years. T h e c o u p l e t r a v e l e d t o g e t h e r t o t h e U n i t e d S t a t e s o n J u l y 1 9 , 1 9 0 5 , which was also their wed- ding day. Their honeymoon? The trip to Seattle. He was naturalized in 1911 and they had two daughters. In 1907, Nelli became a partner in the Metropoli- tan Grocery Co., selling his share 10 years later. He then founded the Italian I m p o r t i n g C o . , w h i c h began primarily as an olive oil importer. In later years, Nelli expanded his product line to include fancy maca- roni, imported cheese, sar- d i n e s a n d m u s h r o o m s , according to a company ad. H e e v e n o f f e r e d h i s c u s - t o m e r s f r e e d e l i v e r y . I n 1939, he became a partner in the Italian Wineries of Washington and retired a decade later. Nelli was grateful for the opportunities his adopted country had given him and he worked hard to better the welfare of other Italians in Seattle. He was treasurer of the Italian Club and the Ital- i a n I n d e p e n d e n t S o c i e t y , and a board member of the Italian Community Hall. He was also determined to keep his Italian heritage alive. In 1909, he participat- ed in Seattle's first Colum- bus Day parade, a festive affair that wound its way through the downtown busi- ness district. Floats carried leaders of the local Italian community who dressed up a s t h e i r f a v o r i t e I t a l i a n hero: inventor Guglielmo M a r c o n i , a s t r o n o m e r Galileo, explorer Amerigo V e s p u c c i . N e l l i p l a y e d Garibaldi, the great Italian general and patriot. He was just as devoted to his adopted country. "Amer- ica is the best country in the world," he told a reporter from The Seattle Times. "It is the land of liberty, free- dom and opportunity. If I could, I'd send all Ameri- cans to the Old Country to l e t t h e m s e e c o n d i t i o n s there. They would return with a better appreciation for what they have here." I n 1 9 4 9 , t h e y e a r h e r e t i r e d , N e l l i h i r e d w e l l - known architect (and fellow I t a l i a n ) F r e d B a s s e t t i t o build a house on Seattle's Capitol Hill on a street nick- named Millionaire's Row. T h i s t h r e e - t o - f o u r b l o c k a r e a , l o c a t e d o n 1 4 t h Avenue East between East Roy Street and Volunteer Park, was filled with digni- fied, elegant houses. Nearly 50 years earlier, at the turn of the 20 th century, the avenue of mansions was an exclusive gated commu- nity built by real estate exec- u t i v e J a m e s M o o r e . T h e homes were palatial — 20- room mansions with multi- p l e f i r e p l a c e s a n d g r a n d staircases, oak ceilings and Italian marble. The street was privately maintained; homeowners p l a n t e d t h e i r o w n t r e e s , s o m e o f w h i c h a r e m o r e than 100 years old today. To p r e v e n t t h e c i t y f r o m installing a streetcar down the middle, Moore installed a median strip. Millionaire's Row soon became a showcase, attract- ing dignitaries and visitors to the city, including Presi- dent Warren G. Harding. M a n y o f S e a t t l e ' s e a r l y t i t a n s o f i n d u s t r y l i v e d there: lumber barons and bankers, shipping tycoons and men who had struck it r i c h i n t h e g o l d m i n e s o f Alaska. Decades later, the neigh- borhood still exuded plenty of charm. Although many opulent mansions remained, newer construction featured a different aesthetic. Nelli hired Fred Bassetti, a mas- ter of modern architecture, t o c r e a t e a m i d - c e n t u r y m o d e r n f r a m e h o u s e f o r h i m a n d h i s f a m i l y . T h e house measured 45 feet by 43 feet, with a garage and b a s e m e n t . T h e c o s t : $18,000. Unlike Nelli, Bassetti was a first-generation American born in Seattle in 1917 to I t a l i a n a n d N o r w e g i a n immigrants. He grew up in Tukwila where his Torino- born father published the Gazzetta Italiana, a popular newspaper for local Italian- Americans. When he was 15, Bassetti was packed off to Torino to live with his grandmother. During his year abroad, he b e c a m e m o r e a c q u a i n t e d with his Italian roots and learned the language. Back i n S e a t t l e , h e w e n t o n t o earn a bachelor's degree in architecture from the Uni- versity of Washington. D u r i n g W o r l d W a r I I , Bassetti served as a drafts- man for the Federal Public Housing Authority and then a p p r e n t i c e d w i t h S e a t t l e architect Paul Thiry, today r e g a r d e d a s t h e f a t h e r o f P a c i f i c N o r t h w e s t m o d - ernism. He attended Har- vard University where he was classmates with I.M. Pei, who later designed the Louvre pyramid in Paris, the N a t i o n a l G a l l e r y o f A r t ' s East Wing in Washington, D . C . , a n d t h e K e n n e d y Library. Bassetti's style of archi- tecture incorporated iconic Northwest elements — cli- mate, light, landscape and indigenous materials, such as wood. He was passionate a b o u t d e s i g n s t h a t w e r e i n v i t i n g a n d b u i l t o n a human scale. Nelli's frame house at 708 14 th Avenue E would certainly qualify. For years after he moved in, Nelli would take daily four-mile walks down 14 th Avenue East and through V o l u n t e e r P a r k – s o m e 1,300 miles a year, by his own reckoning. He loved the feel of the neighborhood, its e l e g a n t h o m e s a n d l e a f y green streets. By the 1960s, however, new zoning laws encouraged construction of more multi-family apart- ments, and the neighbor- hood began to change. T h e r e s a N e l l i p a s s e d away in June 1964. Pietro died March 14, 1978, at the age of 98. An immigrant's journey from coal miner to Millionaire's Row RITA CIPALLA SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY Italian immigrant Pietro Nelli hired architect Fred Bassetti to design his family home on Millionaire's Row near Volunteer Park (Photo: HistoryLink.com). Bottom left, The 22,690-square foot George Parker residence (right), today an historic landmark, is one of the many mansions that made up Millionaire's Row (Photo: MOHAI)

• Cover