Italian-American Heritage Resources

With the Bronx’s Little Italy just a little ways away, Pelham has a rich Italian-American history and a vibrant Italian and Italian-American community. Whether you’re exploring your Italian heritage, or just starting to learn the language, planning a trip to Assisi, or just hopping over to Arthur Ave, take some time to read-up on Italian history and culture, and the impact that Italians and Italian-Americans have made. 

National Organizations and Websites

Italian Genealogical Group (IGG)

The IGG is a non-profit dedicated to promoting Italian family history. They provide databases, resources, educational initiatives, and support for people interested in researching their Italian ancestry.

Italian Welfare League

Since 1920, the Italian Welfare League has gone from helping Italian immigrants find work, to helping Italian-American children and families who are ill, or who have suffered emotional trauma.

National Italian-American Foundation (NIAF)

NIAF offers a range of grants and scholarships to support and promote Italian-American youth, hosts educational programs, and holds events for policymakers and professionals about Italy, Italian-American relations, and Italian-American history and culture. 

National Organization of Italian American Women (NOIAW)

NOIAW was founded in 1980, and is a network for supporting the professional and educational aspirations of Italian-American women, and combating negative stereotypes and expectations. 

Order Sons and Daughters of Italy in America (OSDIA)

OSDIA is dedicated to promoting Italian-American culture, traditions, language, the legacy of Italian-American ancestors, and their contributions to the U.S. and the world. 

Local Organizations and Websites

Eastchester Italian American Citizens Club (EIACC)

Founded in 1933, the EIACC distributes scholarships to students, funds Italian language classes for Eastchester senior citizens, and is a co-sponsor of the Eastchester-Tuckahoe Columbus Day Festivities.  

Italian American Club of Mahopac

The Italian American Club of Mahopac was founded in 1928 as a benevolent organization to support Italian-American families suffering with illness or death. Today, the club sponsors the Putnam County Columbus Day Parade and other events, supports Italian language and cultural classes with Mahopac High School, and holds a Wine Making and Tasking Competition, as well as Bocce and Briscola tournaments.

Enrico Fermi Cultural Center

Located at the Belmont Branch of the New York Public Library, in the heart of the Bronx’s Little Italy, the Fermi Cultural Center includes a collection of newspapers, books, videos, and audiobooks in Italian, and a range of special programming, exhibits, and special collections related to Italian and Italian-American culture, language, and history.

Italics, Television for the Italian American Experience

In series from CUNY, each monthly episode explores various aspects of the Italian diaspora, Italian-American history and traditions, contemporary Italian-American life, and takes a projected look at the future of the Italian-American community. 

The Tenement Museum

Learn about the Baldizzi family, who immigrated to the United States and lived at 97 Orchard Street during the Great Depression by taking a look at the historical materials the Tenement Museum provides access to. Or, take the Day in the Life: 1933 Tour in-person!

At the Library

Children

• Eat, Leo! Eat! by Caroline Adderson 
• Forgotten Voyager: the Story of Amerigo Vespucci by Ann Fitzpatrick Alper
• Nonna’s Birthday Surprise by Lidia Bastianich
• I, Galileo by Bonnie Christiensen
• Granny Torrelli Makes Soup by Sharon Creech
• Blockhead: the Life of Fibonacci by Joseph D’Agnese
• Strega Nona: an Old Tale by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona: Her Story by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Harvest by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Gift by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona’s Magic Lessons by Tomie DePaola
• Strega Nona Takes a Vacation by Tomie DePaola
• Big Anthony: His Story by Tomie DePaola
• The Brave Cyclist: the True Story of a Holocaust Hero by Amalia Hoffman
• Kimchi and Calamari by Rose Kent
• First Words Italian by Andy Mansfield
• Becoming Joe DiMaggio by Maria Testa and Scott Hunt

Teens

• Flesh and Blood So Cheap: the Triangle Fire and Its Legacy by Albert Marrin

Adults

• The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
• The Hills of Chianti: the Story of a Tuscan Winemaking Family, in Seven Bottles by Piero Antinori
• Dante: Poet of the Secular World by Erich Auerbach
• Pelosi by Molly Ball
• Don’t Tell Mama! The Penguin Book of Italian American Writing by Regina Barreca
• Dante: His Life, His Times, His Works by Thomas Goddard Bergin
• Decameron by Giovanni Boccaccio
• Italian Folktales by Italo Calvino
• Joe DiMaggio: the Hero’s Life by Richard Ben Cramer
• The Angel Esmeralda: Nine Stories by Don DeLillo
• The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco
• Andrea Bocelli: a Celebration by Antonia Felix
• Galileo and the Scientific Revolution by Laura Fermi and Gilberto Bernardini
• The Deadly Sisterhood: a Story of Women, Power, and Intrigue in the Italian Renaissance, 1427-1527 by Leonie Frieda
• Pomodoro! A History of the Tomato in Italy by David Gentilcore
• The Seven or Eight Deaths of Stella Fortuna: a Novel by Juliet Grames
• La Bella Lingua: My Love Affair With Italian, the World’s Most Enchanting Language by Dianne R. Hales
• An Italian Wife by Ann Hood
• Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
• Sinatra: the Chairman by James Kaplan
• Michaelangelo & the Pope’s Ceiling by Ross King
• The Italian Americans: A History by Maria Laurino
• Were You Always Italian? Ancestors and Other Icons of Italian America by Maria Laurino
• How Italian Food Conquered the World by John F. Mariani
• A House in the Mountains: the Women Who Liberated Italy From Fascism by Caroline Moorehead
• An Unlikely Union: the Love-Hate Story of New York’s Irish and Italians by Paul Moses
• The Guarded Gate: Bigotry, Eugenics, and the Law That Kept Two Generations of Jews, Italians, and Other European Immigrants Out of America by Daniel Okrent
• The Italian Renaissance by Karen Osman
• The Lady of Sing Sing: an American Countess, an Italian Immigrant, and Their Epic Battle for Justice in New York’s Guilded Age by Idanna Pucci
• The Godfather by Mario Puzo
• The Sicilian: a Novel by Mario Puzo
• Leonardo da Vinci: Artist, Inventor, and Scientist of the Renaissance by Francesca Romei
• Garibaldi by Denis Mack Smith
• The End by Salvatore Scibona
• Conversations with Scorsese by Martin Scorsese and Richard Schickel
• Eternal by Lisa Scottoline
• Galileo’s Daughter: a Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love by Dava Sobel
• The Medici: Power, Money, and Ambition in the Italian Renaissance by Paul Strathern
• Death in Florence: the Medici, Savonarola, and the Battle for the Soul of a Renaissance City by Paul Strathern
• Beneath a Scarlet Sky: a Novel by Mark T. Sullivan
• Garibaldi, the Man Who Made a Nation by Ronald Syme
• Marco Polo: Dangers and Visions by Marco Tabilio
• Don’t Sing at the Table: Life Lessons from My Grandmothers by Adriana Trigiani
• The Supreme Macaroni Company: a Novel by Adriana Trigiani
• Machiavelli: a Biography by Miles Unger
• Return to Naples: My Italian Bar Mitzvah and Other Discoveries by Robert Zweig

Cookbooks

• Italy From the Source: Authentic Recipes From the People That Know Them Best by Sarah Barrell
• Pasta Verde by Judith Barrett
• Lidia’s Family Table by Lidia Bastianich
• Lidia’s Italy in America by Lidia Bastianich
• Lidia Cooks From the Heart of Italy by Lidia Bastianich
• Molto Batali: Simple Family Meals From My Home to Yours by Mario Batali
• Mario Batali Big American Cookbook: 250 Recipes From Across the USA by Mario Batali
• Giuliano Bugialli’s Foods of Italy by Giuliano Bugialli 
• Urban Italian: Simple Recipes and True Stories From a Life in Food by Andrew Carmellini and Gwen Hyman
• A Thousand Days in Tuscany: a Bittersweet Adventure by Marlena De Blasi
• Giada’s Kitchen: New Italian Favorites by Giada De Laurentiis
• Giada at Home: Family Recipes From Italy and California by Giada De Laurentiis
• Giada’s Family Dinners by Giada De Laurentiis
• Pasta by Julia Della Croce
• Simple Italian Sandwiches: Recipes From America’s Favorite Panini Bar by Jennifer Denton, Jason Denton, and Kathryn Kellinger
• Good & Garlicy, Thick & Hearty, Soul-Satisfying, More-Than-Minestrone Italian Soup Cookbook by Joseph J. Famularo
• The Classic Italian Cook Cook: the Art of Italian Cooking and the Italian Art of Eating by Marcella Hazan
• Venezia: Food & Dreams by Tessa Kiros
• My Italian Kitchen: Favorite Family Recipes by Luca Manfe and Leda Scheintaub
• Eating Rome: Living the Good Life in the Eternal City by Elizabeth Minchilli
• Tasting Rome: Fresh Flavors & Forgotten Recipes From an Ancient City by Katie Parla and Kristina Gill
• Pasta Modern: New & Inspired Recipes From Italy by Francine Segan and Lucy Schaeffer
• Old World Italian: Recipes & Secrets From Our Travels in Italy by Mimi Thorisson

Movies

• A Bronx Tale
• The Best of Lidia
• My Voyage to Italy
• The Organizer/I compagni
• Uberto E

Borrow Online

Overdrive

• My American Dream: A Life of Love, Family, and Food by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich (available as ebook)
• The Volunteer by Salvatore Scibona (available as ebook)

Hoopla

• The Italian/American Experience by Louis J. Gesualdi (available as ebook)
• New York City’s Italian Neighborhoods by Raymond Guarini (available as ebook)
• Maria Montessori: a Biography by Rita Kramer (available as ebook)
• Long Island Italian Americans by Salvatore J. LaGumina (available as ebook)
• Fire at the Triangle Factory by Holly Littlefield (available as ebook)
• Italian Immigrants by Tyler Omoth (available as ebook
• The Italian Americans (available as movie)
• The New Italian American Songbook (available as ebook)

Kanopy

• In My Mother’s House
• Men At Lunch
• Bicycle Thieves
• Martin Eden 
• Umberto D
• Mid-August Lunch
• Explore Kanopy’s Italian Cinema category!