Our Farm Roots
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Alessandro Girolamo Giovanni Secchiaroli
Our farming roots began in northern Italy. Born Dec. 20, 1886,
Alessandro was the son of sharecropping farmers, Crescentino and
Teresa Pierpaali Secchiaroli. He was born in the village of Monte
Porzio near the city of Ancona, which lies on the eastern coast of Italy,
not far from the Adriatic Sea. His parents were Marchegiani, meaning
from the province of Le Marche, an area known for its wineries. When
Alessandro was still young, they moved to a nearby village, Corinaldo.
On land owned owned by a hospital, his parents raised grapes and
other fruit, chickens, cows and pigs, and gave half the produce to the
hospital.
In 1904, at the age of 18, he took a ship from Bremen, Germany, to
New York. "I came over the United States like the other people did, to
try to make a better living." he said. He went to live with his
brother-in-law in an Italian community on Plum Island, a small island at
the eastern end of Long Island. With the other Italians, he worked for
the government on the construction of Fort Terry. The job ended after
four years, and he decided to move to another Italian community in New
London, CT and look for work there.
He lived on Walbach Street, the heart of the northern Italian
community. The gas and smoke in the foundry drove him out four years
later, sick from breathing them.
When he left the foundry, he wanted more than anything clean, country
air again, the air of his boyhood.
So in 1911, he bought land on Miner Lane in Waterford, where he
started a chicken and dairy farm, and a piggery and refuse business.
He also operated the city piggery at the same time, which was formerly
on the site of Clark Lane Junior High. Once established in his
business, he considered himself ready to get married. His first wife,
Redenta Montesi, was also Italian, and together they raised three sons,
Guido, Gino, and Julio.
Alessandro turned the business over to his sons, Guido, Gino, and
Julio who managed it until the 1980s. Alessandro died in 1978, at the
age of 92. The farm passed down to the 3rd generation, Thomas
Secchiaroli Sr., until his retirement in 2010.
Today, the farming legacy is carried on by Alessandro's great-grandson
(4th generation),Jonathan Secchiaroli.
air again, the air of his boyhood.
So in 1911, he bought land on Miner Lane in Waterford, where he
started a chicken and dairy farm, and a piggery and refuse business.
He also operated the city piggery at the same time, which was formerly
on the site of Clark Lane Junior High. Once established in his
business, he considered himself ready to get married. His first wife,
Redenta Montesi, was also Italian, and together they raised three sons,
Guido, Gino, and Julio.
Alessandro turned the business over to his sons, Guido, Gino, and
Julio who managed it until the 1980s. Alessandro died in 1978, at the
age of 92. The farm passed down to the 3rd generation, Thomas
Secchiaroli Sr., until his retirement in 2010.
Today, the farming legacy is carried on by Alessandro's great-grandson
(4th generation),Jonathan Secchiaroli.
Listed on the CT Historic Barn registry in 2013, Alessandro Secchiaroli Barn
was built in the 1920s
was built in the 1920s
