When Italians found their way to the Pacific Northwest at the beginning of the 20th century, it was often to work in the coal mines, help build the railroads, or take on “pick and shovel” work as part of a construction crew. Some were tenant farmers hoping to save enough to buy their own little piece of paradise.

The great wave of Italian immigration, which began in the 1880s and lasted until 1920, brought more than four million Italians to America. About 75 percent stayed on the east coast, in cities such as New York, Boston or Baltimore. Less than one percent of Italians living in America made it as far west as Washington state by 1910.