POW #: P1050
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: November 19, 1941
NATURALIZED: March 19, 1925
BORN: 1879
DIED: 1951

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Sculptor

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations)

Alimando Fabri settled in Vancouver in 1911. Born in Tuscany, he had travelled to Germany and Russia to study his art. Prior to arriving in Canada, Fabri was working in the United States.

Fabri was active in the Italian Canadian community in Vancouver. A member of the Order Sons of Italy, his profile was also elevated in the community by his sculptural work, which appeared in the Marine Building, the Georgia Hotel, and other university buildings and corporate offices.

At the time of his internment, he was the father to Ennio Vittorio (Victor) Fabri. The information available suggests that although married at some point, Fabri was likely widowed in 1940.

Fabri was transferred to Camp Kananaskis on July 2, 1940. There, he shared a hut with his son and Fred Ghislieri, Herman Ghislieri, Piero Orsatti, Fred Lenzi, Carlo Casorzo, Santo Pasqualini and Angelo Ruocco. The other four occupants seem to have been Germans.

The reasons for Fabri’s release are not available. Other biographical information is also lacking.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro
 

Do you know…
What happened to Fabri after the war?
 

SOURCES:

• Artists in Canada, CHIN, online records. Fabri, Alimando. http://www.pro.rcip-chin.gc.ca/bd-dl/aac-aic-eng.jsp
• Canadian Naturalization 1915-1951, LAC, online records. #189 Fabri, Alimando. http://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/databases/naturalization-1915-1932/index-e.html
• Culos, Ray. Vancouver’s Society of Italians. Vancouver: Harbour Publishing, 1998.
• LIbrary and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Propery: RG 117, Vol. 700, File 16264.

POW #: K261 / P1039
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: December 21, 1941
NATURALIZED:
BORN: January 10, 1910
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Trail, Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Lawyer

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations) and monthly reporting to RCMP in Vancouver

At the time of his internment, Ennio Vittorio (Victor) Fabri was a partner in the firm of Cameron & Fabri, Barristers and Solicitors in Trail, British Columbia (residing at the Crown Point Hotel). His family, including wife Niva and father Alimando, remained in Vancouver. 

Fabri seems to have been active in local politics, but may have denied any involvement with fascism:

…I was greatly surprised as he had, before entering into partnership with me and on many occasions afterwards, told me that he had at no time any connection, direct or indirect, with any pro-Fascist organization … (Letter from A.G. Cameron to E.T. Read, May 5, 1941, RG117 Vol 652, File 3498, LAC)

In fact, Fabri did assist the local candidate of the Liberal Party during the federal election in spring of 1940:

…Mr. Fabri was Official Agent for the Liberal Candidate during this last Election, and being Official Agent, he handled funds for the campaign…Mr. Donald McDonald, defeated Liberal Candidate has asked me to have this account transferred…I might state further that Mr. Fabri received and deposited $100.00 of this account only a few days before he was taken into custody. I can give you very little information about Mr. Fabri…He was very active in Political circles and we were all much surprised when we learned that he had been taken into custody as an enemy of our country. (Letter from James Skinner, Secretary of the Trail Liberal Association, to Custodian of Enemy Property, July 23, 1940, RG117 Vol 652, File 3498, LAC)

However, Fabri’s name does appear on the government list of “Members of the fascio of Canadian Nationality whose Examination should be ordered under Regulation 21 of the Defence of Canada Regulations”.  He is also noted as being the secretary of the Vancouver fascio, Circolo Giulio Giordani, in an article published in L’Eco Italo-canadese in 1938.

In Vancouver, it would appear he was very active in the Italian Canadian community. He was involved with the Sons of Italy Society and served on the Sacred Heart Rectory Building Committee. He also kept company with other members of the fascio and associated with the Italian consulate representative.

His father Alimando Fabri was also interned.  Along with the other Vancouver internees, both men were transferred to Camp Kananaskis. There they shared a hut with Fred Ghislieri, Herman Ghislieri, Piero Orsatti, Fred Lenzi, Carlo Casorzo, Santo Pasqualini and Angelo Ruocco. The other four occupants seem to have been Germans.

In Kananaskis, Fabri acted as the camp spokesman for the Italian contingent. He was involved in managing the legal affairs of William G. Ruocco, also interned. Ruocco was named as the executor of the estate for his father-in-law. Fabri handled much of the correspondence – his mother-in-law was the stepdaughter of Ruocco’s father-in-law. He also assisted hut-mate Pasqualini, who was facing financial ruin and a very ill wife at home.

Fabri’s internment may have caused or increased an existing dispute with law partner A.G. Cameron, who took over the business. Fabri had given power of attorney to Cameron on June 10, 1940, presumably upon his arrest, at his workplace. Cameron then sold most of Fabri’s assets, including the furniture stored by the hotel:

…he had furniture stores in their basement which was sold by A.G. CAMERON …1 Chesterfield, 1 Chesterfield chair, 1 Bed room suite (4 pcs.) 1 Dining room suite…had been seized as they were the property of the firm and had been taken in as a fee. The proceeds from the sale of the goods $385.00 was applied on an obligation of the firm in respect to a chattel mortgage. Mr. CAMERON stated that through fault of FABRI’s in not searching a title the firm had become liable in the amount of $455.00. Mr. Cameron stated that there were six chairs and an office table in his office which had belonged to FABRI and he had them valued at $50.00 and considered they should also be applied on this obligation. Mr. CAMERON also stated that FABRI had law books in the office which he did not consider to be worth more than five dollars. (Letter from R.C.M.P. to Custodian of Enemy Property, September 16, 1940, RG117 Vol 652, File 3498, LAC)

Cameron also claimed money resulting from the sale of shares held by the firm. He argued he was entitled to the money as he himself now had to pay charges against the firm due to Fabri’s negligence or errors in legal cases:

In all, I consider that I suffered damage and paid out moneys in excess of $186.33 and under the circumstances I fail to see why Mr. Fabri can have any financial claim on me…I might add that I have been terribly embarrassed by the fact that Mr. Fabri has been interned in the view of the fact that I served with the B.E.F. from 1914 to 1919 in England, France, Belgium and Italy. (Letter from A.G. Cameron to E.T. Read, May 5, 1941, RG117 Vol 652, File 3498, LAC)

As a result, Fabri suffered significant financial losses. He expressed his anger at not only the internment, but also at the Custodian of Enemy Property:

As a result of the handling of my affairs by your agents, I lost my business, my bank account, my house furniture, my stocks, my law books and office furniture, numerous personal items and documents, to say nothing of an extremely valuable stamp collection and my share of the accumulated profits of the law firm in which I was a partner. Your agents permitted by former partner, A.G. Cameron to take possession of all the above assets on the flimsiest pretext imaginable and, so far as I am aware, made no attempt to protect my interest or assets. (Letter from E.V. Fabri to G.G. Beckett, February 12, 1943, RG117 Vol 652, File 3498, LAC)

Fabri was granted release on December 16, 1941. Freed on December 21, 1941, he returned to Vancouver. Shortly after his internment, Fabri was managing a business owned by his father on Granville St.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro
 

Do you know…
Why did Fabri move to Trail?
Did Fabri practice law again?
 

SOURCES:

• Culos, Ray. Vancouver’s Society of Italians. Vancouver: Harbour Publishing, 1998.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG117, Vol 652, File 3498.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, C11-19-2-3-pt 4.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol 3563, Part 5.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol 3568, File B.
• Principe, Angelo. The Darkest Side of the Fascist Years: The Italian-Canadian Press: 1920-1942. Toronto: Guernica. 1999.

POW #: P1038
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: December 21, 1941
NATURALIZED:
BORN: 1892
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Marble Worker

RELEASE NOTES: Released conditionally upon his first subscribing to the Undertaking set out in Regulation 24 of the Defence of Canada Regulations, and further that he report once a month to the Officer Commanding, Royal Canadian Mounted Police, Vancouver, B.C.

Onorato Facchin was born in Italy in 1892. During World War I, he served in the Italian military. He lived on Prior St. in Vancouver. At the time of his arrest, Facchin was 48 years old. He was interned for about a year.

Little else is known about Onorato Facchin.

Biography by Louanne Aspillaga
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 2409, Internee File 16596, “Onorato Facchin.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 5.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3568, Internee File B.
• Minister’s Orders, List V1 & V5.

POW #: P787
ARRESTED: August 09, 1940
RELEASED: August 02, 1941
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION:

RELEASE NOTES: Had to report monthly to RCMP

Paolo Facella and his family lived at 7459 Henri Julien Ave. in Montreal. After his release, he worked as an insurance salesperson. He was involved in a committee of former internees, from Montreal, who sought compensation from the Canadian government. Little else is known about Paolo Facella.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 671, Internee File 5089, “Paolo Facella.”

POW #: P260
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: July 14, 1941
NATURALIZED: May 21, 1929
BORN: January 28, 1906
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Wood Pattern Maker, Dominion Wheel and Foundries

RELEASE NOTES: Unconditional release

Guido (William) Faiola came to Canada in 1912. He was married to Vera, and the couple lived at 1448 Dufferin Ave. in Toronto. 

Vera believed that her husband’s internment was her fault because she worked as a stenographer for the Italian consulate. On her request, Guido joined the fascio so that she could keep her job. She testified to Justice J.D. Hyndman, a judge appointed to review the cases of internees, that her husband was not an active member of this group.

Faiola had worked for Dominion Wheel and Foundries since 1936 and was considered a highly skilled worker by his employers. In a letter to Hyndman, E.E. Ritney, an assistant to the company’s president, stated that “as there is a great shortage of good pattern makers in this Province [sic], and we believe throughout the Dominion, it has occurred to us that unless you hold evidence which would make it impossible to give [Faiola] any freedom, we could use him to very good advantage, both to ourselves and to the country.”

Hyndman recommended Faiola’s release in March 1941, but he was not given his freedom until July of that same year.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 668, Internee File 4399, “Guido Faiola.”
• Library and Archives Canada, J.D. Hyndman Fonds: MG 30, E 182, Vol. 14, Letter from J.D. Hyndman to Ernest Lapointe, Minister of Justice, Mar. 13, 1941.

POW #:
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: February 04, 1943
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Windsor
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION:

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release

Giuseppe Falsetto was released from the Petawawa Internment Camp with the following conditions: he had to report monthly to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), could not change his address or travel without first reporting to police, had to obey all laws, could not be involved in fascist activities and had to “do everything reasonably possible to assist in Canada’s war effort.”

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 6, Letter from Louis St. Laurent, Minister of Justice, to S.T. Wood, RCMP Commissioner, Feb. 4, 1943.

POW #: P443
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: October 05, 1943
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Owner, Italia Gente Publishing

Giulio (Jules) Fantacci lived at 32 St. Joseph Blvd. East in Montreal. Little else is known about Giulio Fantacci.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 671, Internee File 5088, “Giulio Fantacci.”

POW #: P578
ARRESTED: July 04, 1940
RELEASED: January 30, 1942
NATURALIZED: April 13, 1932
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Co-owned Butcher Shop

RELEASE NOTES: Had to report monthly to RCMP

Bernardo Fantino lived at 6867 Clarke St. in Montreal. The butcher shop he owned, in partnership with Andrea Mondello, was located at 6786 St. Lawrence St.

Little else is known about Bernardo Fantino.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Canadian Armed Forces: RG 24, Vol. 6586, File 5-1-1.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 664, Internee File 4729, “Bernardo Fantino.”

POW #: P1115
ARRESTED: July 24, 1940
RELEASED: December 12, 1941
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Labourer

RELEASE NOTES: Released conditionally upon subscribing to Regulation 24 of the Defence of Canada Regulations and monthly reporting

Very little is known about Secondo Faoro. At the time of his arrest he was living at 436 Hastings St. East in Vancouver, BC. Government documents indicate that Faoro was a number of the Circolo Giulio Giordani.

Faoro was interned at Camp Kananaskis on July 24, 1940 and was released from Camp Petawawa on December 12, 1941. He was released conditionally upon subscribing to Regulation 24 of the Defence of Canada Regulations. He was also required to report monthly to the Officer Commanding, RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in Vancouver.

Biography by Stefanie Petrilli
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Canadian Armed Forces: RG 24, Vol. 6586, File 5-1-1.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG117, Vol. 701, Internee File 16686 “Secondo Faoro.”
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG117, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 1.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG18, F-3, Vol 3563, Part 5.

POW #: P574
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: July 28, 1942
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION:

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations), reporting monthly and requesting permission prior to changing residence or journeying from the community in which he lived

There is very little information about Giovanni Fasano. Government documents indicate that he was arrested on June 10, 1940, and ordered released on July 17, 1942. The reasons for his arrest and release are not available. His name appears on the government list of “Members of the fascio of Canadian nationality whose examination should be ordered under Regulation 21 of the Defence of Canada Regulations.” The Custodian of Enemy Property maintained a file on this individual. Most of the Italian Canadian internees were released from Petawawa. However, Fasano was among those who were transferred to Fredericton.

Biographical information is lacking. 

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro
 

Do you know…
What did Giovanni Fasano do for a living?
Was Fasano involved with the fascio in Montreal or other community groups?
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 654, Internee File 3665, “Giovanni Fasano.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, C11-19-2-3-pt 4.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 6.

POW #: P314
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: November 08, 1940
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Other Ontario
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Owned and Operated Grocery Store

Nicola Fasano arrived in Canada as a young boy in the 1910s. He was married to Concetta, and the couple had eight adult children. Their son Sam, who had been born in Canada, played hockey in the United States but returned to Canada in 1940.

Fasano owned various parcels of land, in and around Cochrane, that totalled $7900. The grocery store he operated was in Concetta’s name. 

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 654, Internee File 3665, “Nicola Fasano.”

POW #: P195
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: March 30, 1943
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Cape Breton
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Business man, Owner and operator of The Waterford Store

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release

Pietro (Peter) Favretto was interned for about three years at Petawawa and Fredericton. He was known among the Italian Canadian Cape Breton community, because of his grocery store, The Waterford Store. His employee, butcher Giacomo (James) Venzon, was also interned.

Little information is gathered from Favretto’s government files other than he was an important member of the Fascio who was naturalized. Other information on Favretto is found in fellow internees’ files; for example Giovanni Dal Bello’s file states:

Many of the [Cape Breton] persons interned owned automobiles and had apparently been quite active around the country. Except for the business of The Waterford Store (Peter Favretto) we have taken all the automobile license plates off and are not willing to allow the dependents of these interned persons to drive around the country…We are still unwilling to allow the dependents of interned enemies to drive around the country in automobiles, because we feel sure that other persons would be going around with them, and in the event that there was an accident, then the Custodian would be open for an investigation, which we want to avoid.

It is unclear why Favretto received special treatment, while other internees from the same area, who were also business men (such as Dominic Nardocchio, Mario Furini, Giordano Gatto, Frank Martinello, Giovanni Pozzebon, and Rodolfo Razzolini) did not receive the same privilege.

In another source, Bertolo Gatto mentions travelling to Italy in 1937 with Favretto and Felice Martiniello, for his sister’s 60th anniversary as a nun.  Martiniello’s government file also mentions this trip but as a state-sponsored trip paid for by the Italian government. Such trips caused suspicion with the Canadian government agents who were investigating the activities of Italian Canadians.

Other information on Favretto is based on accounts by the children of fellow internees. Esperando Razzolini, son of Rodolfo Razzolini, says, “They seemed to have taken all the business men away. And one, Favretto, later moved to Montreal. But they bet him up ― he took a beating.” Geno Scattolon, son of Romano Scattolon, recalls: “All we know is that he [my father] was in Sydney Jail. And his favourite, good friend, Peter Favretto, from New Waterford, was beaten up badly. Yeah…was beaten up badly.”

After the internment period, it seems that Favretto kept in contact with at least one of his fellow campmates. Geno Scattolon states that he and his father went to visit Favretto in Montreal in the summer of 1949.

Biography by Louanne Aspillaga
 

SOURCES:

• Interview with Esperando Razzolini, son of Rodolfo Razzolini. Video interview. June 23, 2011. Columbus Centre Collection.
• Interview with Geno Scattolon, son of Romano Scattolon. Video interview. June 22, 2011. Columbus Centre Collection.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 643, Internee File 2868, “Pietro Favretto.”
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property, RG 117, Vol. 2018, Internee File 5059, “Giovanni Dal Bello.”
• Migliore, Sam and A. Evo DiPierro.  Italian lives, Cape Breton Memories. Sydney: UCCB Press, 1999.

POW #: K333
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: July 20, 1940
NATURALIZED:
BORN: 1878
DIED: 1979

CAMP(S): Kananaskis
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Barber

Francesco Federici was a businessman and prominent member of the Italian Canadian community in Vancouver. He was among the founding members and the president (in 1906) of the Sons of Italy Society – the first Italian mutual aid society in the city.

He had first immigrated to the United States in 1891, sponsored by an uncle in San Francisco. He seems to have settled in Vancouver in 1900. He was possibly connected via marriage to local doctor P. Ragona.

Federici was close friends with Agostino G. Ferrera, the first Italian consul in Vancouver. In the 1930s, he helped finance his friend’s cheese factory in Chilliwack.

At the time of his arrest in 1940, Federici owned the barbershop located in Hotel Vancouver. He had been a member of the local fascio — Circolo Giulio Giordani. However, in 1935 he had spoken against the Italian involvement in Ethiopia in local newspapers.

Along with Italo Rader (also interned), he was a long-standing member of the Rotary Club.

According to government documents, which noted his previous links to the fascio and Italian government agents, he was not considered to be enough of a threat to remain interned. He was released 40 days after his arrest.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro
 

Do you know…
Federici’s first job in Canada?
His full death date?
 

SOURCES:

• Culos, Ray. Vancouver’s Society of Italians. Vancouver: Harbour Publishing, 1998.
• Library and Archives Canada, Canadian Armed Forces: RG 24, Vol 6586, File 5-1-1.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property (CEP): RG117, Vol 651, File 3426.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property (CEP): RG117, F-3, Vol 3563, Part 1.

POW #: P222
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: July 14, 1941
NATURALIZED: Canadian born
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Operated Shoe Store/Repair Shop

RELEASE NOTES: Unconditional release

Giuseppe Ferrari and his family lived at 414 Dupont St. in Toronto. This was also the address of his shop. His daughter Jean had a beauty shop at the same address. While Ferrari was interned, an unnamed friend oversaw the two businesses. A son, possibly Basil, was trained as a radio engineer.

Ferrari was Master of the Littorio Lodge of the Order Sons of Italy. He was also involved in an organization known as the Circolo Scolastico Recreatico.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 648, Internee File 3286, “Giuseppe Ferrari.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 146, Vol. 97, File AH-1999/00227, “The Organization and Activities of the Italian Fascist Party in Canada,” Ottawa, 1937.

POW #: P821
ARRESTED: August 14, 1940
RELEASED: January 16, 1942
NATURALIZED:
BORN: May 21, 1914
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Hamilton
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: Labourer, International Harvester; Musician

RELEASE NOTES: Had to report monthly to RCMP

The information regarding Francesco (Frank) Ferri is anecdotal, and it is taken from Kenneth Bagnell’s Canadese: A Portrait of Italian Canadians:

On Christmas Eve, 1941, Frank Ferri and his band from Hamilton, along with a choir he had assembled, gathered in the [Petawawa] mess hall to play carols and sing the old songs of Christmas before their fellow prisoners. At nine o’clock sharp they packed their instruments and, along with hundreds of men in the audience, began to make their way back to their huts…  At the door, one of the [camp] officers stopped Ferri. “Frank,” he said, “you and the others have had a good Christmas Eve. The guards haven’t. They’re out there in the towers alone. It’s no way to celebrate Christmas Eve. How about you and the band and choir going outside to give them some Christmas music.” Ferri went back to his group and they gathered in the hard snow of the camp compound [to perform for the guards] (Bagnell, 94).

Ferri also paid a visit to a friend he met in camp – Welland’s Dr. Ignazio Scozzafave – and had his band play on the doctor’s front lawn. This occurred almost ten years after the men had been released from the camp.

His brother Panfilo (Benny) Ferri was also interned.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCE:

• Bagnell, Kenneth. Canadese: A Portrait of Italian Canadians. Toronto: Macmillan, 1989.

POW #: P729
ARRESTED: July 20, 1940
RELEASED: July 02, 1941
NATURALIZED: Canadian born
BORN: April 12, 1916
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Hamilton
MARITAL STATUS: Single
OCCUPATION: Labourer, International Harvester; Musician

RELEASE NOTES: Unconditional release

Panfilo (Benny) Ferri lived at 100 Beechwood Ave. in Hamilton. He was engaged to Clara Maurizio for three years prior to being interned. The couple was to marry in December 1940, but Ferri’s internment made that impossible. Ferri had worked at International Harvester since 1935. 

Ferri and his brother Francesco Ferri, who was also interned, were musicians who performed for Hamilton’s Italian Canadian community. Panfilo Ferri played the saxophone.

Ferri admitted to being a member of the dopolavoro. He regularly attended its social events. However, he denied being a fascist, and he was not a supporter of Benito Mussolini. In fact, Ferri was the head of the Italian section of the Canadian Red Cross and helped raise $100 for the war effort.

Ferri was appreciative when Prime Minister Brian Mulroney apologized for the internment of Italian Canadians in November 1990. However, he also wanted financial compensation. He said, “I was supposed to get married a few months before I was put in a camp for almost a year. I lost a year of wages and opportunities. I want something back for that.”    

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCES:

• Ferguson, Jonathan. “Italian’s get PM’s apology for wartime internment,” The Toronto Star, Nov. 5, 1990.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 671, Internee File 5050, “Panfilo Ferri.”
• Library and Archives Canada, J.D. Hyndman Fonds: MG 30, E 182, Vol. 14, Letter from J.D. Hyndman to Ernest Lapointe, Minister of Justice, May 13, 1941.

POW #: P919
ARRESTED:
RELEASED: January 16, 1942
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S):
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Single
OCCUPATION: Unemployed

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional (see below)

Giovanni Folino was born in Italy and arrived to Canada in 1914.  He did not become a naturalized British subject.  He was single and had no other family in Canada.  Folino worked for the Canadian National Railway (CNR) and the Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) but had been unemployed for two years prior to his internment.  As a result, he was living at the Mourling Refuge in Montreal.

On April 23, 1940, Folino was charged with attempted assault on a civilian guard and with trespassing on the CNR Swing Bridge, Lachine Canal in Montreal.  Folino pleaded guilty and he was sentenced to six months imprisonment with hard labour.  Judge DeSerre recommended for Folino’s deportation. 

On September 27, 1940, Alfred Legault, Governor of Bordeaux Gaol (Jail) informed RCMP Montreal of Folino’s nearing jail term end and of Judge DeSerre’s recommendation.  Legault stated that Folino had “a long criminal record” and was “a dangerous character.” The RCMP interviewed Folino to which the latter stated, “I never wanted to be naturalized.  I want to go back to Italy and join the Army.” RCMP records conclude:

The subject impressed the investigator as having a criminal attitude and, in view of his statement that he wished to serve with the armed forces of a nation with which we are at war, the investigator requested the Governor of the Gaol to continue the detention of the subject, pursuant to the War Measures Act.

Government records indicate an internment date of September 27, 1940 although it is unknown if Folino was actually sent to Camp Petawawa or if he remained at Bordeaux Jail.  In another document, Folino was listed as an internee in a mental institution.

Folino was released on January 16, 1942 at 12:13 a.m.  Release notes state:

“Released conditionally upon his first subscribing to the Undertaking set out in Regulation 24 of the DOCR (Defence of Canada Regulations) and further that he report once a month to the Officer Commanding, RCMP, at Montreal, QC and that he be not employed at the Montreal Harbour or in connection with any war industry or essential service.”

Biography by Louanne Aspillaga
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG117, Vol. 701, Internee File 17372 “Giovanni Folino.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 2.

POW #: F12
ARRESTED: September 12, 1940
RELEASED: February 18, 1941
NATURALIZED:
BORN: June 07, 1885
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kingston
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Single
OCCUPATION: Financially Independent

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release (see below)

Maria Egilda Fontanella arrived in Canada in 1924. She lived at 127 Grace St. and was very active in Toronto’s Italian Canadian community as well as the city’s fascist movement. In 1937 and 1938 Fontanella was the fiduciary of the women’s fascio. She had applied for naturalization in 1939 but was denied because of her fascist activities. Her brother Pasquale Fontanella was also an active fascist in Toronto. He was arrested on June 10, 1940, but released shortly thereafter. He may have fled to the United States.

At the time of her release, Fontanella was required to sign a document with the following conditions:

I, now, in consideration of my release or exemption from detention as a citizen of ITALY, hereby undertake and promise that I will report to such officer or official and upon such terms as the Canadian authorities may from time to time prescribe that I will carefully observe and obey the laws of Canada and such rules or regulations as may specially be prescribed for my conduct by competent authority; that I will strictly abstain from taking up arms against and from doing any act of hostility towards the Government of this country, and that, except with the permission of the officer or official under whose surveillance I may be placed, I will strictly abstain from communicating to anyone whomsoever any information concerning the existing war or the movement of troops or the military reparations which the authorities of Canada, or the United Kingdom or any of his Majesty’s dominions or any allied or associated Power may make, or concerning the resources of Canada, and that I will do no act and will not encourage the doing of any act which might be of injury to the Dominion of Canada or the United Kingdom or any of his Majesty’s dominions or any allied or associated Power.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Correctional Service of Canada: RG 73, Box 73, File 23-1-12, “Re: Female Internee Maria Egilda Fontanella,” Dec. 4, 1940.
• Library and Archives Canada, J.D. Hyndman Fonds: MG 30, E 182, Vol. 14, Letter from J.D. Hyndman to Ernest Lapointe, Minister of Justice, Feb. 3, 1941.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, Memorandum from RCMP to the Inter-Departmental Committee, Aug. 26, 1940.

POW #: P880
ARRESTED: September 09, 1940
RELEASED: June 27, 1941
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN: April 14, 1898
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION: President, Dufferin Construction; Officer, Dufferin Shipbuilding Company

RELEASE NOTES: Had to report monthly to RCMP

Renaldo (Leonard) Franceschini was the younger brother of Vincenzo (James) Franceschini who started Dufferin Construction and Dufferin Shipbuilding. Both men were interned during World War II. For unknown reasons, Leonardo was interned three months after his brother James.

Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) believed that Leonardo Franceschini was an active fascist whose liberty was considered a threat to the safety of Canada. Yet, while at the Petawawa Internment Camp, Franceschini demonstrated his loyalty to Canada as the following testimony by fellow internee Libero Sauro demonstrates:

On Thanksgiving Sunday, October 13, 1940, the protestant [sic] group among the prisoners was invited to attend the Thanksgiving Service in the Park [sic] outside of the barracks. Among the group attending was Mr. [Leonard] Franceschini and myself. At the termination of the Service [sic], conducted by Captain Rev. Allan Ferris, the [Canadian] National Anthem was sung. Mr. Franceschini and I and some of the other prisoners joined in the singing of the National Anthem. Returning to the Compound, one of the prisoners, a German, scornfully said: “Look at you singing God Save the King: look where the King has put you[.]” Mr. Franceschini and I had quite an argument with the German prisoner. We maintained that our imprisonment had nothing to do with His Majesty the King. Mr. Franceschini was very firm in his stand of loyalty to the end, in spite of his present predicament. In my conversation with Leonard Franceschini, during the fortyfive [sic] days we stayed in Landsdowne Barracks, he said nothing which would point to any disloyalty to Canada or Great Britain; on the contrary, he was always praising this Country and its Institutions because it afforded opportunities to all alike. And in our discussions with the pro-fascist and pro-nazist [sic] prisoners he protested vigorously to the autocratic methods and lack of liberty and opportunity under the totalitarian regimes.

Franceschini was released within a week of his brother James, who was diagnosed with throat cancer at Petawawa and sent to Toronto for surgery.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, Letter from Norman A. Robertson, Chair of the Inter-Departmental Committee, to Ernest Lapointe, Minister of Justice, Aug. 30, 1940.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 5, Letter from Louis St. Laurent, Minister of Justice, to S.T. Wood, RCMP Commissioner, Mar. 16, 1943.
• Sauro, Libero. In the Matter of the War Measures Act, RSC 206, and in the Matter of the Application of Leonard Franceschini, of the Town of Mimico, in the County of York, Contractor, January 1941. Courtesy of the Family of Libero & Clementina Sauro. Columbus Centre Collection.
• The Globe and Mail. June 30, 1941.

POW #: P328
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: June 20, 1941
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN: March 16, 1890
DIED: September 1960

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Owner, Dufferin Construction and Dufferin Shipbuilding

RELEASE NOTES: Released on compassionate grounds

Vincenzo (James) Franceschini was born to parents Lucia and Giuseppe Franceschini in Pescara, Abruzzo, Italy. His father sold silver and china tableware. James Franceschini arrived in Toronto in 1906. He found work in labour gangs in Toronto and elsewhere in Ontario. According to James McCreath, and Frank Giorno, it was in Toronto that Franceschini began to use the name James instead of Vincenzo.

In 1913, Franceschini married Annie Lydia Pinkham, an Irish Canadian. The couple had one daughter, Myrtle, who was born in 1921. The family lived on a 14-acre estate in Mimico which is now part of the Greater Toronto Area. Franceschini was a Protestant and a Mason.

According to author Kenneth Bagnell, Franceschini started his own business by excavating basements in Toronto. The money he earned from these jobs allowed him to expand his workforce and purchase horses, wagons and a steam shovel. He then expanded his business by constructing homes and buildings.

In 1912, Franceschini founded Dufferin Construction and became well known nationally. As the company became increasingly more successful, Franceschini was able to move into the construction of highways, provincial roads, rail lines and suburbs. Within three years – at the age of 25 – Franceschini became a millionaire.

Franceschini developed an interest in Hackney horses in the 1920s and, by the 1940s, he owned more than seventy. His horses were in competitions in Canada and the United States.

To reduce his overhead, Franceschini found it beneficial to go into the trucking, asphalt, sand, gravel and fuel businesses to supply Dufferin Construction. By the late 1930s, Franceschini was Canada’s largest road contractor, producer of gravel and ready-made concrete.

Immediately following the start of World War II, Franceschini contacted the Canadian government and placed all the resources of Dufferin Construction and its associated companies at its disposal. At that time, Dufferin Shipbuilding was given a contract to build minesweepers.

Franceschini was taken into custody in June 1940 upon his return from a business trip in Halifax. Two Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers took him from his home in Mimico and brought him to the local RCMP detachment on Jarvis St. in Toronto. From there, he was taken to the Automotive Building at the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) grounds and eventually transferred to the Petawawa Internment Camp.

Franceschini’s internment was based on allegations that he was a member of the Partito Nazionale Fascista (National Fascist Party) and the dopolavoro. In 1934, Franceschini entertained Piero Parini, Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs for Italians Living Abroad and a member of Benito Mussolini’s cabinet. He gave the minister two horses. One was shipped to Mussolini on Parini’s request. Other evidence was used against Franceschini to justify his internment: he was knighted by the Italian king in 1934, and he gave gold to the Italian government during the Italian invasion of Ethiopia. He also made a $15,000 donation to the building of Toronto’s Casa d’Italia. However, during an investigation by J.D. Hyndman, a judge appointed to review the cases of internees, no evidence of these two donations was found.

At Petawawa, Franceschini lived in Hut Five and was the barrack’s spokesperson. He did manual labour, constructing roads. His brother Leonard Franceschini, whose real name is Renaldo, eventually joined him at Petawawa.

The Custodian of Enemy Property (CEP) oversaw Franceschini’s businesses during his internment. In December 1940, the CEP sold the equipment at Franceschini’s Montreal cement plant to a competitor for one-tenth of its original value. The CEP also sold his horses and the contents of his personal greenhouse. Authors Bagnell, McCreath and Giorno have suggested that Franceschini’s internment was the result of his successful businesses and not because of any fascist activity.

In June 1941, Franceschini was diagnosed with throat cancer by fellow internee Dr. Luigi Pancaro. Franceschini was flown to Toronto where he underwent a series of examinations at the Christie Street Military Hospital. He was then transferred to the Toronto General Hospital for surgery. It appears that Ernest Lapointe, the Minister of Justice, had hoped that Franceschini would be returned to camp after his surgery. In a letter to the Minister, Dr. Ross Miller – Director of Medical Services, Department of Pension and National Health – wrote: “You have asked me to state definitely whether a man in this condition is fit to be placed in an internment camp, and I have to answer definitely in the negative from the present professional viewpoint.”

Franceschini was released on compassionate grounds and eventually returned to work once he had recovered from his surgery. At that time, Dufferin Construction had eleven large contracts, six of which were with the Canadian government and involved the construction of airports. Dufferin Shipbuilding, which he had purchased in 1924, was still under contract with the government to build minesweepers. However, later that summer, the government took over Franceschini’s shipbuilding company and operated under the name Toronto Shipbuilding.

Dufferin Construction still competed for and received contracts after Franceschini’s return. The company built a section of the Canadian segment of the Alaska Highway.

In his later years, Franceschini moved into a large home he had built in Mont Tremblant, Quebec, after having sold the estate in Mimico. He was inducted into the Canadian Hackney Hall of Fame as were some of his horses. He passed away in September of 1960.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCES:

• Bagnell, Kenneth. Canadese: A Portrait of the Italian Canadians. Toronto: Macmillan, 1989.
• Giorno, Frank and James McCreath. “Internee 328, Camp Petawawa, June 1940-June 1941.” Beyond Barbed Wire: Essays on the Internment of Italian Canadians. Eds. Licia Canton, Domenic Cusmano, Michael Mirolla and Jim Zucchero. Toronto: Guernica, 2012.
• Library and Archives Canada, J.D. Hyndman Fonds: MG 30, E182, Vol. 14, Letter to Louis St. Laurent, Minister of Justice, Dec. 18, 1940.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 4, Ross Miller, MD, Director Medical Services, Dept. of Pension and National Health, to Ernest Lapointe, Minister of Justice, June 20, 1941.

POW #: P409
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: July 08, 1942
NATURALIZED: February 21, 1921
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Metal Polisher, Northern Electric Company Ltd.

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations) and reporting twice a month

Pietro Luigi (Peter Louis) Frare was married to English-born Anna Evans. The couple adopted two children: Joseph Maurice Pierre and Regine Francis. They were 13 and 15 years old at the time of their father’s arrest. Frare was a citizen (a naturalized British subject). He made a living working as a metal polisher in a factory.

Frare’s name appears on a spring 1940 government list of “Important members of the fascio naturalized whose internment is recommended.” Although the nature of any fascist support is unclear and the extent of his community activities is not known, Frare was a member of the Order Sons of Italy in Montreal. The manager at the Bank of Montreal wrote on his behalf: “Mr. Frare who I am told was apprehended for his connection in the past with the Order of the Sons of Italy … had been our customer for nearly twenty years and known to us as a good citizen” (A. Beaudry, Letter to Custodian of Enemy Property, July 11, 1940). This association with the community organization likely also played a part in his arrest. In trying to get help towards his release, Frare asked his wife to write to the Grand Order of the Sons of Italy in New York. It is unclear if such a letter was written and what assistance, if any, was given. Frare remained interned for over two years.

In discussing his situation with his wife, Frare noted his frustrations: “I agree with you when you say that you will never forget or forgive about my being put in here. After all, someone has to suffer so that someone else will get his laurels, from men that have worked for them. I have worked for them for years and the only gratitude I have received is this. I will trust God that in the end justice will prevail” (Peter Frare, POW Letter to Anna Frare, June 9, 1941). Frare may be alluding to the suspicion, rampant in some communities, of the use of informants. Research has uncovered evidence of police relying on unsupported information provided by informants in the Montreal community.1

While Frare clearly had some deep resentment about his internment, he noted: “I do not work hard here and treatment is fair enough. At night I do a little washing for others and I hope to be able to send you some money out of what I make” (Peter Frare, POW Letter to Anna Frare, February 19, 1941).

Frare’s family struggled financially. His wife was ill and had to be hospitalized for 41 days. The bill amounted to almost $90.00. The Custodian of Enemy Property (CEP) refused to pay out of the assets they had confiscated until Mrs. Frare had used up all other assets in her own possession. This was not unusual. While at times the CEP seemed to act with compassion, some decisions appeared callous.

1 Travis Tomchuk has researched the role of the informant Augusto Bersani. See “Special Agent 203: The Motivations of Augusto Bersani” in Beyond Barbed Wire: Essays on the Internment of Italian Canadians. Edited by Licia Canton et al. Guernica: Toronto, 2012.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro
 

Do you know…
What was the extent of Frare’s involvement with the Order Sons of Italy?
Did an informant play a role in Frare’s arrest?
What happened to Frare after the war?
 

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 658, Internee File 4074, “Pietro Luigi Frare.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, C11-19-2-3-pt 4.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 6.

POW #: P452
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: April 03, 1941
NATURALIZED: March 30, 1927
BORN: May 12, 1899
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Owner, small business

RELEASE NOTES: Unconditional release but must report to RCMP on arrival for further instruction on registration and parole

Not much is known about Gabriele Frascadore. He arrived in Canada in 1915. He was married with seven children ranging from 8 to 27 years old, and five were still dependants. At the time of his arrest, he owned several properties. He had operated a grocery store since 1925.  One of his relatives, Giuseppe (Joseph) Frascadore, worked in his store and was also interned.

In support of Frascadore’s wife, Joseph Jean, Liberal M.P. (Mercier), wrote to the Secretary of State:

Madame Gabriel Frascadore … est venue me consulter au sujet de ses biens qui sont actuellement sous séquestre. D’après ce qu’elle m’explique son mari avait plusieurs propriétés et un petit commerce. On lui a laissé les revenus du commerce pour vivre elle et sa famille de six ou sept enfants et elle prétend qu’il lui est impossible de vivre avec les revenus de ce commerce. N’y aurait-il pas moyen de permettre au séquestre de lui avancer une certaine somme à même les revenus de ses propriétés pour lui permettre de recontrer ses dépenses les plus urgentes (Joseph Jean, M.P., to Pierre F. Casgrain, Secretary of State, December 23, 1940).

The reasons for his arrest are not known.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro

Do you know…
Why was Frascadore interned?
 
SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 667, Internee File 4870, “Gabriele Frascadore.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3568, File B.

POW #: P577
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: September 25, 1943
NATURALIZED: Yes
BORN: 1917
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Single
OCCUPATION: Operated family store

RELEASE NOTES: Released conditionally upon subscribing to Special Undertaking.

Giuseppe (Joseph) Frascadore was born in 1917 ― likely in his native Italy.  At some point, he followed a relative, Gabriele Frascadore, to Montreal, QC.  On March 30, 1927, Frascadore became a naturalized British subject.

On June 10, 1940, Frascadore was arrested at the family store.  He was closing up for the evening when RCMP officers came for him and told his family that he was being taken in for questioning. Frascadore said, “They let me finish counting the money. Then when I got outside, they started to turn the place upside down looking for dynamite or party lists or I don’t know what. Across the street at our house it was the same story. I went in for questioning and came back 40 months later.” At the time of his arrest, Frascadore was living on Du Buisson St. in Montreal, QC.  Frascadore arrived at Camp Petawawa on July 4, 1940.   

Years later, 66-year-old Frascadore talked freely about his internment experience.  He admitted to having been involved in the youth section of the Dopolovaro.  As squadron chief for Montreal East, he oversaw activities such as physical fitness, Italian school, and marching at festivals.  In 1983, he was still living in Montreal East. He owns a bar called Chez Jos and in the back room he has a portrait hanging of Mussolini.  When asked about Mussolini he said, “I admit it, I supported Mussolini.  I still think he was a great man, but we had sympathy for Mussolini as long as it was in peace. During the war, it was different. Canada was our country and we were ready to fight for it.”  Frascadore believed that Italians like himself were interned because there were people in government that believed that they were traitors; however Frascadore believed that Italians never posed any sort of threat.  He said that the internees were simple people, many of whom lacked any real idea of what fascism was in a political sense.  For example, he knew many who were members of the Dopolavoro but then went overseas to fight for Canada. He went on to say that the real fascists walked free while the “small fry” were interned.

Looking back Frascadore called his internment “an adventure,” adding that those who really suffered were the family men, but as a young single guy he did just fine: “I was on the work crew at Petawawa.  We used to go out and chop wood for 20 cents a day. I liked it. I also got to play softball and tennis.  It was like a college for me.  I had classes in German, Accounting, and other things I don’t remember.” 

Biography by Louanne Aspillaga
 
SOURCES:

• Kilbertus, Paul.  “Italian-Montrealers recall how they went to ‘camp’.” The Gazette. May 18, 1983, I-4.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG117, Vol. 705, Internee File 22105 “Giuseppe Frascadore.”
• McBride, Michelle. From Indifference to Internment: An examination of RCMP responses to Nazism and Fascism in Canada from 1934 to 1941. Thesis (M.A.). Memorial University of Newfoundland, 1997.
• Minister’s Orders List.

POW #: P548
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: June 19, 1942
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Owner, gas station; Owner, Frascarelli Construction Co.

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations) and reporting monthly

Nicola (Nicholas) Frascarelli married Canadian-born Carmela Galardo in 1920. They had three children: Leo, Marie-Antoinette and Anna. He first worked for his father, a contractor. After two-and-a-half years, the family moved into an apartment. Frascarelli used his wife’s inheritance to start his own business.

Interviewed by Filippo Salvatore, Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli claimed that her husband became a successful contractor, who built churches and homes in Montreal, and he had contracts outside the city. He was well known in the local Italian Canadian community: “he was the one who built the Casa d’Italia”. In fact, the construction of the Casa d’Italia was a special effort for Frascarelli; he supplied some free labour and charged significantly less for his work. He was proud to be a guest of honour at the official opening. He was seated next to the mayor of Montreal, Camillien Houde, who was also interned.

Frascarelli’s wife was socially and policially involved. In her interview, she noted that she knew Prime Minister Saint Laurent and Thérèse Casgrain, whom she called a friend. She worked with Casgrain on the women’s right to vote, being elected president of the Italian section of the Comité du suffrage provincial (Provincial Suffrage Committee) which, in 1929, became the League for Women’s Rights. For this work, later in life, a park in Montreal’s Little Italy was named after her.

Galardo-Frascarelli was the recipient of the silver medal of the Order Sons of Italy (OSI), taking part in parades organized by the OSI. She states she founded the Loggia Anita Garibaldi in 1923. The woman’s lodge had 300 members, offered informational meetings and provided help to needy families.

In 1938, Frascarelli incorporated Frascarelli Construction Co. Although the company seems to have had significant debts, in 1940 it had a valuable contract for excavation work with Shell Oil Co. of Canada Ltd. At some point, Frascarelli went into business with Donato Palangio (also interned). It is unclear if or how Palangio was involved with Frascarelli Construction Co. The relationship went sour and Frascarelli sued Palangio on April 23, 1940, for fraud and conspiracy to commit fraud. The partnership Frascarelli & Palangio seems to have been declared bankrupt in the fall of 1940, while both men were interned at Petawawa.

On June 10, 1940, Frascarelli was arrested. His wife described that day:

Once war was declared, two agents of the Mounted Police came to our place and searched the entire house, trying to find compromising evidence. They didn’t find anything. However, they still arrested my husband because of his work. He sold gas. They suspected him of wanting to commit terrorist acts by blowing up the gas depot. That’s why he was arrested (Interview with Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli).

The couple’s involvement with the Order Sons of Italy and the Casa d’Italia could have drawn the attention of the authorities, but his wife claimed that an informant was also to blame: “The person to cause the most suffering was Camillo Vetere. He was the one to provide the Mounted Police with the list of people to arrest. He was a friend of my husband’s, but in spite of that he had him arrested. He acted like a traitor” (Interview with Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli).

In fact, government sources seem to have focused on Mrs. Frascarelli, claiming she was actively involved with the woman’s fascio (Concordia Femminile) from 1936 onward. Described  as an active female leader of Italian fascism, during the war Mrs. Frascarelli noted that she found employment in a factory which made uniforms and coats for the Canadian Army.

She protested when her 20-year-old son Leo received a conscription order. She presented herself to the authorities: “I explained to them that Canada could not arrest my husband because he was considered to be a traitor and require my son to be a soldier in the Canadian Army” (Interview with Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli). Leo did not have to serve.

During Frascarelli’s internment at Petawawa, his wife was able to visit once. Two guards, flanking Frascarelli, remained with the couple throughout their meeting. His wife was allowed to kiss Frascarelli.

Frascarelli was considered for release, but his detention was ordered to be continued on July 18, 1941. His wife noted that there were “three tries,” but that he was on good terms with the camp authorities, having helped build the barracks housing the internees: “Thanks to the excellent letter of recommendation provided by the military authorities at the camp, my husband had no trouble starting up his contracting business again and buying for example the dynamite he needed” (Interview with Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli).

After his internment, not only was Frascarelli able to rebuild his business, but he also returned to community work. In 1947, Frascarelli and other prominent Italian Canadians of Montreal began the process to reclaim and incorporate the Casa d’Italia.

He died at the age of 75. His year of birth is not noted in government or other published sources.

Biography by Lucy Di Pietro

Do you know…
Was Nicola Frascarelli a member of the Order Sons of Italy or the fascio?

SOURCES:

• Commemorative Program: The Internment of Italian Canadians, 1940-2010.  Montreal: CCPI – Casa d’Italia, 2010.
• Interview with Carmela Galardo-Frascarelli. In Filippo Salvatore’s Fascism and the Italians of Montreal: An Oral History, 1922-1945. Toronto: Guernica, 1998, p. 183.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 657, Internee File 4003, “Nicola Frascarelli.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, F-3, Vol. 3563, Part 1, 5.
• McBride, Michelle. “The Curious Case of Female Internees.” In Enemies Within: Italian and Other Internees in Canada and Abroad. Edited by Franca Iacovetta et al. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2000.
• Principe, Angelo. “The Italian Canadian Fascist Women and the Government Wish-Washy Policy.” In Beyond Barbed Wire: Essays on the Internment of Italian Canadians. Edited by Licia Canton et al. Toronto: Guernica, 2012.

POW #:
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: November 22, 1940
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Other Ontario
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION:

RELEASE NOTES: Obligated to report monthly to the authorities

Not much is known about Sebastiano Frederico. He was from London, ON.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP, RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, “Minister’s Orders – Italian,” no date.

POW #: P230
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: June 28, 1941
NATURALIZED: 1926
BORN: August 11, 1899
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Toronto
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Shipping Clerk, Florentine Lighting Company

RELEASE NOTES: Unconditional release

Francesco Frediani arrived in Canada in 1912. He was married to Etelvina (b. June 8, 1899). The couple lived at 1051 Mount Pleasant Rd. in Toronto with their son Frederick (b. October 24, 1927). 

Frediani was interned because of his alleged fascist activities. Etelvina was arrested in October 1940 because of her involvement in Toronto’s Italian Canadian fascist movement. She was released without being interned. Etelvina had served as fiduciary of the Fascio Femminile from 1935 to 1937. Based on coverage in the fascist Italian-language newspaper Il Bollettino Italo Canadese, Mrs. Frediani donated her wedding ring to the Italian Red Cross during the Ethiopian campaign and spoke at the opening of a “fascist school” in Mimico, Ontario, which is now part of Toronto.

Etelvina was employed at both the Reuben Cloth Company (110 Spadina Ave.) and Ascot Clothes Limited (545 King St. West) during World War II. It is not known if she had these jobs prior to her husband’s internment or if she sought work as a result of having lost his wages. According to records in Francesco Frediani’s Custodian of Enemy Property file, Etelvina received relief payments after she lied about her income.        

Biography by Travis Tomchuk

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 1995, Internee File 4371, “Francesco Frediani.”
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, Memorandum from RCMP to Inter-Departmental Committee, Aug. 26, 1940.

POW #: P467
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: March 04, 1942
NATURALIZED:
BORN: August 01, 1907
DIED: June 10, 1988

CAMP(S): Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Montreal
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Shoemaker; Tailor

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release upon undertaking Regulation 24 (Defence of Canada Regulations)

Leonardo Frenza was born in Ripabottoni, Molise, Italy in 1907. He was married to Assunta Sauro. Their daughter Antonia Maria (Ninetta) was born in 1926. In search of work, Frenza immigrated to Canada shortly after Ninetta’s birth. He later sent for Assunta and Ninetta, who arrived in Montreal in 1932. Their second daughter, Edda, was born in 1934. The Frenzas lived on Cartier St. in Montreal.

Frenza was a member of Fascio Giovanni Luparini. As he explained in an interview with Kenneth Bagnell, “I was like the rest of us, nostalgic for home, for Italy, for my own people. So I joined every Italian group I could. That was fine. I was in the Sons of Italy and even became secretary of the Grand Lodge in Montreal. And we had over ten lodges. But I also joined the Fascio and really that was a mistake. I was a fool.”

On June 10, 1940, two Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) officers arrested Frenza at his home. All papers regarding the Order Sons of Italy were seized. The family was not told where Frenza was being taken.

Frenza worked in the kitchen at the Petawawa Internment Camp. His internment forced his family to go on relief (welfare). Assunta also earned income by performing household chores for her neighbours and cleaning the local church. Assunta’s brother Libero Sauro was also interned.

Neighbours purchased train tickets for Assunta and her children to visit Frenza at Petawawa. Physical contact was not allowed, but the Frenzas were happy to be reunited even for a brief amount of time.

After Frenza was released, he left the shoemaking trade and opened his own tailor shop which specialized in men’s clothing. He also tried to resuscitate the Order Sons of Italy, but very few people were interested. 

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 
SOURCES:

• Bagnell, Kenneth. Canadese: A Portrait of the Italian Canadians. Toronto: Macmillan, 1989.
• Interview with Antonia Maria (Ninetta) Ricci. June 16, 2011. Columbus Centre Collection.
• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 656, Internee File 3856, “Leonardo Frenza.”

POW #: P1051
ARRESTED: June 10, 1940
RELEASED: April 22, 1943
NATURALIZED:
BORN: April 11, 1896
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION:

Gregorio Fuoco was secretary of the Circolo Giulio Giordani, a fascist group in Vancouver. He supplied the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) with a list of the Circolo’s members. Little else is known about Fuoco.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, Memorandum from the RCMP to the Inter-Departmental Committee, July 24, 1940.

POW #: P1119
ARRESTED: July 24, 1940
RELEASED: December 13, 1941
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Kananaskis, Petawawa
TOWN/CITY: Vancouver
MARITAL STATUS: Unknown
OCCUPATION:

RELEASE NOTES: Had to report monthly to RCMP

Vincenzo Fuoco was a member of the Circolo Giulio Giordani. Other information is lacking.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk

SOURCES:

• Library and Archives Canada, Canadian Armed Forces, RG 24, Vol. 6586, File 5-1-1.
• Library and Archives Canada, RCMP: RG 18, Vol. 3563, File C-11-19-2-3, Part 1, Memorandum from the RCMP to the Inter-Departmental Committee, July 24, 1940.

POW #: P208
ARRESTED: July 16, 1940
RELEASED: March 29, 1943
NATURALIZED:
BORN:
DIED:

CAMP(S): Petawawa, Fredericton
TOWN/CITY: Cape Breton
MARITAL STATUS: Married
OCCUPATION: Operated Small Bakery

RELEASE NOTES: Conditional release (see below)

Mario Furini was arrested on July 16, 1940, and released on March 29, 1943. His wife received relief payments while he was interned. At the time of his release, Furino was required to sign a document with the following conditions:

I, now, in consideration of my release or exemption from detention as a citizen of ITALY, hereby undertake and promise that I will report to such officer or official and upon such terms as the Canadian authorities may from time to time prescribe that I will carefully observe and obey the laws of Canada and such rules or regulations as may specially be prescribed for my conduct by competent authority; that I will strictly abstain from taking up arms against and from doing any act of hostility towards the Government of this country, and that, except with the permission of the officer or official under whose surveillance I may be placed, I will strictly abstain from communicating to anyone whomsoever any information concerning the existing war or the movement of troops or the military reparations which the authorities of Canada, or the United Kingdom or any of his Majesty’s dominions or any allied or associated Power may make, or concerning the resources of Canada, and that I will do no act and will not encourage the doing of any act which might be of injury to the Dominion of Canada or the United Kingdom or any of his Majesty’s dominions or any allied or associated Power.

Biography by Travis Tomchuk
 

SOURCE:

• Library and Archives Canada, Custodian of Enemy Property: RG 117, Vol. 654, Internee File 3661, “Mario Furini.”