“The Founding” is a vivid and detailed story of European immigrant life at the turn of the 19th century in New England, by local author Amanda Grappone Osmer. The tale follows the origin journey of a well-known New Hampshire family through difficult times on their way to settling in Concord.
The storytelling sources a wide variety of newspaper accounts, weather conditions, ships’ logs, and family diaries into a well-documented account of how difficult and precarious daily life was for most people a hundred years ago.
At times, the book reads like a Martin Scorsese screenplay, setting the scenes with references to organized crime, tense interactions, and threats or acts of violence. Various families’ details described in the book, immigrants experienced lives defined more by loss than by gain, as hard work was no guarantee of success or even survival. The author avoids the yellow-hued nostalgia of days past, instead describing immigrant life for what it really was—an uncertain battle with periods of unemployment, failed ventures, the burdens of illness or injury, terrible working conditions, and untimely deaths. Conflict comes from the family’s lack of opportunity in America—and although conditions were much better than in Italy—it still carried high risks given the competitiveness in an economy with an abundance of cheap labor and few protections for workers or entrepreneurs. There is also conflict between people in positions of more and less power; from older to younger brothers, to inequalities between the roles for men and women, with ongoing tensions between native and immigrant forces.
The black-and-white book cover photo shows the two main characters in early 19th-century clothing, with stern faces staring into the camera lens. The storyline follows the journey of these people, Rocco Grappone and Emanuela d’Orlando, who emigrated separately from Italy and met in America. Rocco is a character with an uncertain past who pursues his family tradition of stone cutting to make a better life for himself and his family. The records are not clear if Rocco escaped Italy to avoid organized crime or if he got mixed up with criminal elements once he arrived in America. Either way, he rises above these struggles and commits to the hard, honest work of a family man. Emanuela, or “Emma,” is the rock-solid woman at the home front, yet she also works with her daughters in nearby factories to keep the family afloat financially or save for the next business venture. In her life, Emma bore six children and lost two, all the while managing a large garden and livestock, supporting a growing family, helping neighbors, and even feeding the passing homeless.
The book tells a sweeping story of immigrant struggles over an extended period of social instability and integration into a new, difficult world. Until you read a book like this, it’s easy to forget how dangerous work conditions were, how often businesses failed, and how extended family was the primary safety net against illness, injury, death, and other misfortunes.
The book covers interesting events from the period, including a 1919 car tour of the “Four Vagabonds” that included industrialist Henry Ford, inventor Thomas Edison, tire guy Harvey Firestone, and the naturalist John Burroughs. This quartet of famous Americans rode with family, friends, and reporters on a 50-car convoy to demonstrate that automobile travel was both reliable and adventurous even on the rough roads of New Hampshire.
Overall, The Founding meets its goal of telling a captivating history of uncertain times where two people held together an extended immigrant family, took care of their neighbors, and founded a fledgling automobile company. The book describes how families struggled and survived an onslaught of troubles while taking big chances with the limited capital they saved as day laborers and factory workers. Readers familiar with downtown Concord may also enjoy references to local landmarks that remain after a century, including the State House, Phenix Hall, and the Waters Funeral Home.
The author, Amanda Grappone Osmer, is the great-granddaughter of the main characters and now the co-owner of the automobile company called Grappone Automotive based in Bow and Concord. The book is currently available at Gibson’s Bookstore in Concord and multiple locations across the region.
