Italian Influence at Santa Clara
Group Portrait with Reverend Father Bayma, S.J.
Father Bayma, S.J. was a talented mathematician, scientist, and philosopher from Italy who taught at Santa Clara College during the early days of the school.
The Italian Gardens
The Italian influence on Santa Clara College could be seen in the arbor of vinyards Fr. Bayma designed and planted in the Mission Gardens in the early days of Santa Clara College.
Mrs. Ella Pellerano Boitano
Mrs. Ella Pellerano Boitano was a member of the early Italian-American Pellerano Family, an early settler family to the Santa Clara Valley. The family papers can be consulted in the SCU Archives.
Italian Jesuits at Santa Clara College
- Finding Aid for the Papers of John Nobili, S.J.,1851-1856The Nobili Papers contain virtually all the documents of the early days of Santa Clara College. Request an appointment to view these materials in person in the Archives & Special Collections Reading Room.
- Nobili Papers Digital CollectionThe Nobili Papers digital collection contains documents of the early days of Santa Clara College. Included are financial records, legal papers, and correspondence with Church and State officials, parents, and merchants. All documents from the physical collection, with the exception of the1953 McGloin biography, are included.
- Document transferring possession of Mission Santa Clara to John Nobili S.J.Bishop Joseph S. Alemany to Fr. Nobili, Mar. 4, 1851. Item digitized from the Nobili papers and available online.
There are several books written about the history of the Italian Jesuits and the Italian community in Santa Clara. Use the links below to locate these books at SCU Library.
Jesuits by the Golden Gate ; the Society of Jesus in San Francisco, 1849-1969. by Call Number: BX3710.S2 M3
The University of Santa Clara: A History, 1851-1977 by Call Number: LD4881.S32 M33ISBN: 0804710244Publication Date: 1979McKevitt details the change from college to university on pp. 166-180.
SCU Italian American Archival Collections
- Jesuits in Fiction Manuscript Collection, 1679-. byCall Number: PP-McKevittThis collection is the source of the Italian anti-Jesuit cartoons. Make an appointment to view these materials in the Archives & Special Collections Reading Room.
- Victor B. Vari Collection, 1970-2006Call Number: PP-VariDr. Vari was a beloved Italian-American professor who taught at SCU for many decades. Casa Italiana exists because of him, and with his wife, he took many groups of students on field trips to Italy. Make an appointment to view these materials in the Archives & Special Collections reading room.
- Finding Aid for the Alberto F. Porta Papers, 1881-1990Alberto Francisco Porta, born in Mondovi, Italy in 1853, was a civil engineer and taught at Santa Clara in the early 20th Century. Make an appointment to consult these materials in the Archives & Special Collections Reading Room.
- Pellerano FamilyThe Pellerano Family was originally from Italy and immigrated to the United States sometime in the last half of the nineteenth century. Follow this link to learn more about the family and access photographs, documents, and more.
Archives & Special Collections Librarian
Monica Keane
Contact:
Norman F. Martin Reading Room
Archives & Special Collections
Library and Learning Commons, 3rd floor
Archives & Special Collections
Library and Learning Commons, 3rd floor
408-554-4094
Subjects: Archives & Special Collections
Archives Visit Resources
A selection of archival materials related to the Italian American Experience class have been digitized and are available below. The materials have been organized into four different general topics:
Anti-Catholic Sentiment
- La Raspa - I Gesuiti scacciati e ricevuti [ITALIAN]
- La Raspa - Apparizione misteriosa in Vienna [ITALIAN]
- "See, Where His Grace Stands 'Tween Two Clergymen!" (Cartoon and accompanying article)
- The Vision of Loyola -- Our New Board of Education (Cartoon and accompanying article)
Father Nobili and the Founding of Santa Clara College
- Biographical Sketch of the Reverend Father Nobili, S.J.
- Document transferring possession of Mission Santa Clara to John Nobili S.J.
- Nobili Letter Re: Disappearance of Son
- “My little college begins to enlarge”: Father Nobili to Father DeSmet
- De la Pena to Nobili 3 [ITALIAN]
The Pellerano Family Papers
- Finding Aid for the Pellerano Family Papers
- Nicholas Pellerano School composition: "San Jose"
- Photograph of Business Classroom in Commercial Building, 1890 (we could surmise that Pellerano is in this picture, or that these are his classmates)
- 1890-1891 Course Catalog (listing Nicholas Pellerano as a student and describing early life at the college)
- La Banca D'Italia from Gl'Italiani in California (F870 I8 P3 1911) [ITALIAN]
Italia dall'A alla Z (Italy from A to Z) by Vincenzo Fraschetti (alphabet book for Italian children living abroad)
- OSCAR record for the book (provides important metadata and clues about the book's origin, purpose, and attributes)
- PDF of Selections of the book (covers, title pages, illustrations and poems of select letters)
- D for Duce poem [ITALIAN]
- E for Emigrante poem [ITALIAN]
- G for Genova poem [ITALIAN]
- M for Radio Marconi poem [ITALIAN]
- T for Tripoli poem [ITALIAN]
- U for Uva poem [ITALIAN]
Finding More Primary Sources Online
We have scanned over 50,000 items in the SCU Digital Collections! You can search for and download digitized archival items to use in your Omeka project.