On this day

Bruno Rebuli, circa 1922

Today is the 25th of July, 2019.  My grandfather, Bruno Rebuli, arrived in Australia on this day in 1927. 

A section of my grandfather's entry document,

It would be 4 years before he saw his wife and young children again.  I can't even begin to imagine what would have been going through his mind on this day so many years ago.  I would give anything to know what his first impressions were and what his first years here were like.

My grandfather with his youngest child, my uncle Guido, in Adelaide.  Circa 1948

Coming to Australia

My father, Vito (Albino) Rebuli, was 7 years old when he left Italy with his mother, Giovanna, and sister Dorina, aged 8, and brother Elvio, aged 6, on the "Remo" to meet up with his father, Bruno, who was waiting for them on the other side of the world in Adelaide, Australia.  My grandfather, Bruno, had arrived on the 25th of July, 1927, on the ship "Carignano".  The rest of the family arrived on the 1st of December, 1931.  The life ahead of them in their new home was to be far from an easy one with a depression and World War 2 facing them.

My dad (far right, holding the hoop), with his mother, sister Dorina and brother Elvio, in Bigolino, Italy, before they left to reunite with my grandfather in Adelaide, Australia.  Circa 1929

My parents visiting the Monte Grappa War Memorial,
Veneto, Italy, in 1962

My dad returned to Italy for a holiday in 1962 where he met my mother, Antonietta Danieli, and they married in November of that year.  Together, they arrived in Adelaide, Australia, on the 30th of November, 1962 to be greeted by a very hot day.  The intention was that they would return to Italy to live in the not-to-distant future.  They did return in 1968 but only stayed for one year after my dad's strong sense of responsibility to his family in Australia got too much for him.

Where in the world

Both of my parents were born in the Veneto Region - famous for it's capital of Venice - Italy.  The area they are from is the province of Treviso.  My dad was born in the town of Bigolino in 1924 and my mother was born in Caerano di San Marco in 1934.

 

Caerano di San Marco with Monte Grappa in the background

The Piave.  This photo was taken by my father when he was there in 1962

Bigolino is next to Valdobbiadene, close to the Piave River.  It is approximately 73Km north-west of of Venice.  Caerano di San Marco is a larger town, approximately 65Km north-west of Venice, and located just next to the much bigger town of Montebelluna.

The Piave River crosses the Veneto, originating in the Eastern Alps and flowing into the Adriatic Sea at the port of Cortellazzo between Eraclea and Jesolo, just north-east of Venice.  During the First World War, the Piave became an important strategic line with the river becoming the line of defense against the Austro-Hungarian and German troops.

 

World War 1 and Fascism

I often wish that I had asked my dad more questions about when he was younger and about his father - my nonno, Bruno Rebuli.  One question that I did ask him was what made my nonno want to leave Italy and come to Australia.  Dad always gave me the same answer.  My nonno was not comfortable with the political climate in Italy at the time.  Having experienced the effects of World War 1 close up and then the rise of Mussolini, and Fascism, was enough for my nonno to make the decision to leave.

The area around Bigolino was hit particularly hard during World War 1.  Fighting along the Piave River was close by.  Many families made the decision to flee as refugees to the other side of the Piave as a result.  My grandmother's family - the Rossetto family - was one of those families.  After the war, they returned to a house that was badly damaged by a bomb.  Even items that had been buried for "safe keeping" had been destroyed.

Not long after the war ended in 1918, Italy saw the rise of Mussolini - "Il Duce" - and Fascism in 1919.  His supporters, known for using heavy-handed actions, did not hesitate to strike out at anyone that spoke out against Mussolini.  For most of the population, who carried on with their lives as normal, this did not cause any problems.  My grandfather was a softly spoken man who was not particularly interested in causing any political stirrings.  The Rossetto family, on the other hand, were different.  Being much more out-spoken, it wasn't long before they caught the attention of the local Fascists.

L to R: Elvio, Dorina and Vito in Bigolino, circa1927-28

The Rossetto's were far from revolutionaries but they were were not shy to speak their mind.  These comments made them targets and on one occasion, my great-grandfather, Modesto Rossetto, was forced to drink a large amount of cod liver oil as punishment.  Fearing for further actions towards the family, several of the Rossetto children decided to leave Italy for a life elsewhere.  My grandfather decided to join them and arrived in Australia on the 25th of July, 1927.  My grandmother, Giovanna (nee Rossetto), followed on the 30th of November, 1931, with their three young children in tow; Dorina aged 8, my dad, Vito (Albino) aged 7, and Elvio aged 6.

Entry documents for Bruno Rebuli, dated 1927, above, and below, Giovanna and the children, dated 1931

onno

A time to return

My last entry to this blog was dated 2010.  It is incredible how quickly time goes by.  Looking back on the past nine years I can't help thinking that not a lot has changed.  But at the same time, many things are also different.

I won't make excuses for not adding to this blog for such a long time but instead explain that the main reason was the fact that I really didn't have that much to add.  I have also been unwell for a big part of that time.  I underwent a minor surgical procedure to remove a parathyroid adenoma in December of last year and I have every hope that it is nothing but improvement from here.

As for not having much to add.  That really hasn't changed a great deal.  However, I do have a little more than when I first started this blog in 2009.  This is partly due to Madeleine Regan, who has been working on a project called "Veneto Market Gardeners 1927 - From the Veneto to Frogmore and Findon Roads 1920s to 1970s".  As part of this project, she returned to Italy last year and found documents relating to many families, including the Rossetto and Rebuli families.  All this has sparked a new excitement for me and I have since gone through my collection of old photographs.  Many of the older photographs are quite damaged and I have been dedicating time to restoring them.

L-R: My Zia Dorina, Nonna (Giovanna), Zio Elvio and my dad (Albino but known as Vito) in Bigolino, Italy.  Circa 1929

I have also arranged for new searches with the National Archives of Australia.  And I have recently added to Madeleine's website with a blog entry briefly discussing my family's return to Italy in 1968.

I look forward to expanding on all of this in further blog updates.  In the meantime, I keep hoping that more information will come to light.  Time will only tell.

About to return

It has been a while but I have finally something to add.  Not a lot, but it is still something.  I will be back very soon.

My grandfather's journey

My Nonni Rebuli - Bruno and Giovanna.  Circa 1922

My grandfather Bruno Rebuli was a quiet man, of “regular” height with brown hair and blue eyes. He was also known for his hard work and strength. What made him want to find a new life for his young family in such a far away land as Australia can only now be left to conjecture. My father often said that my grandfather was uncomfortable with the political climate in Europe at the time. Hardly surprising due to fact he personally witnessed the brutal impact of World War I on the Bigolino area. Rumours of another world war looming must have been the only incentive my grandfather needed. With a brother-in-law already established in Adelaide, South Australia, my grandfather, aged 33, left his family behind and made his way to the Italian seaport city of Genoa to board the 5,359 ton vessel called the Carignano headed for Australia.

Ship records for the Carignano show that the majority of the 123 passengers were men. None of them could speak English and I am sure they new very little about the new country they were travelling to. One can only imagine what was going through their minds as they said goodbye to their birthplace, parents and siblings knowing very well that they probably would never see them again. What were they thinking during the long sea journey and as they first saw what would be their new home? It is a sad fact that a large proportion of men that migrated from Italy to Australia during that era all died young. Could it be because of the extreme stresses and difficult conditions they endured to create a home for their families? There can be no doubting that the sacrifices and hardships they must have faced would have been enormous. However, I do not recall ever hearing anything about my grandfather complaining or making an issue of it. I am sure he simply saw it as something he needed to do for the wellbeing of his family.

Bruno Rebuli’s entry papers into Australia states that he had served in the 2nd Alpini and had the meagre sum of 16 pounds on his person. It shows the arrival date of the 25th of July, 1927 at Fremantle with his intended address to be c/o (brother-in-law) Rossetto, Domenico, JP Cape Spencer, SA and also lists a Costa, Romano, residing at 32 North Street, Adelaide, as an acquaintance. The papers say his intended occupation in Australia was to be a farm labourer. I have heard that he spent some time working on Kangaroo Island – sometimes for several weeks at time - clearing scrubland and other claims that he (quote) “worked in the outback with camels”. Adelaide in the late 1920’s was only a small city and the outback probably was not that far out of suburbia. However, I have also heard of camel trains that transported Mica from Alice Spring mines to Adelaide and perhaps that is to what they are referring.

It would be four years before his wife and three children would join him.