Collection Summary |
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| Creator: | Mirabella, Rosamond Libonati, 1885-1985 | |
| Title: | Rosamond Libonati Mirabella Papers | |
| Dates: | 1889-1985 | |
| Abstract: | Rosamond Libonati Mirabella (1885-1985) was a clubwoman, teacher, and Italian community activist. Rosa Mirabella was a founding member, and second president of the Chicago Italian Woman's Club. When the Chicago Italian Woman's Club affiliated with the Illinois Federation of Women's Clubs, Mirabella served variously as director, vice-president and historian. Rosa Mirabella also served as President of the Women's Auxiliary of St. Frances Cabrini Hospital, where her husband, Salvatore Mirabella, was chief surgeon. In 1949, she was elected to the Chicago Woman's Club. The collection contains correspondence, newspaper clippings, reports, receipts, certificates, and maps. The materials pertain to the Libonati and Mirabella families, Dr. Salvatore Mirabella, Italian-Americans in Chicago, and Mother Cabrini Hospital. | |
| Quantity: | 1.75 linear feet | |
| Identification: | RMirabella | |
Rosamond Libonati Mirabella was born on August 24, 1885 in Chicago, Illinois to Ernesto and Flora (Pellettieri) Libonati. The daughter of Italian immigrants from South Central Italy, Rosamond grew up in the Italian-American community centered on Clark and Polk Streets in Chicago. Young Rosamond Libonati was proud of her Neapolitan heritage and her personal identity was formed within the kin and village based networks of the Old World transplanted to the New. Her extended family resided in a four story building with her uncle, Emilio DeStefano, managing an Italian bakery in the basement and her father managing a restaurant and saloon on the first with residential flats occupying the levels above. Rosamond's mother provided strict discipline and was very ambitious for her children to succeed.
Rosamond Libonati graduated from the Froebel Kindergarten College in 1906 and studied under the pioneering educator, Alice Putnam. Libonati taught in the Bohemian kindergarten, one of the first such kindergarten programs in Chicago, and located not far from her own neighborhood. Rosamond, known as Rosa, married a Sicilian physician, Salvatore "Toto" Mirabella on July 30, 1910. Both families initially resisted their marriage as Sicilans and Neapolitans remained wary of each other in the New World.
Rosa Mirabella and her family combined strong ties with the Italian-American community and ardent American patriotism. Her brothers, Michael and Ellidor, served in the U.S. Army during World War I. Ellidor survived the war and returned to become a successful attorney and outspoken critic of communist and fascist movements in Europe. Rosa Mirabella shared her siblings' political sympathies and the Libonati family tended to see themselves as aristocrats within their community.
After her daughter, Josephine, reached the age of ten, Rosa served as a substitute teacher in Chicago public schools and pursued higher education at the University of Chicago from 1923-1929 where she studied French, English, and Italian. She was a founding member and the second president of the Chicago Italian Woman's Club. A member of the Native Daughters of Illinois, Mirabella's club activities also included the Illinois Federation of Women's Clubs (IFWC) after the Italian Woman's Club became an affiliate. She became an activist within the IFWC and held various offices including director, vice-president, and historian.
Rosa studied art and history, taking courses throughout her life, and took a strong interest in the affairs of the Italian-American community. She was deeply involved in the work of the women's auxiliary of the St. Francis Cabrini Hospital where her husband, Savatore, was chief surgeon. Head of women's activities in the women's division of the Chicago Commission of Civilian Defense, Rosa participated in blackouts and air-raid drills during World War II. Rosa purchased war bonds and sent packages to less fortunate relatives in Italy as well.
Dedicated to fighting negative stereotypes of Italian-Americans and eager to contribute to her community, Rosa Mirabella continued to assume new positions in organizations and clubs throughout the Chicago area. She served as regional vice-president of the Central Cermak Community Council, regional vice-president of the Heart of Chicago Community Council, and as a member in such groups as the Municipal Art League of Chicago and the Friends of American Writers. Mirabella was finally invited into the prestigious Chicago Woman's Club on March 1, 1949, formerly a bastion for affluent American born Protestant women. Rosa Mirabella supported public education in her later years and joined Mayor Daly's beatification committee in 1966. Rosa Mirabella passed away on January 16, 1985, at the age of ninety-nine.
The Rosamond Libonati Mirabella Papers include notes, correspondence, reports, newspaper clippings, receipts, certificates, photographs, and maps. Personal material regarding the families of Mirabella and her spouse are included along with materials of the Italian Woman's Club, Illinois Federation of Women's Club (IFWC), and other official documents.
None.
Index Terms |
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| This record series is indexed under the following controlled access subject terms. | ||
| Subjects: | ||
| Italian Americans--Illinois--Chicago--Sources. | ||
| Libonati family--Sources. | ||
| Mirabella, Rosamond Libonati, 1885-1985 --Archives. | ||
| Mirabella, Salvatore--Sources. | ||
| Mirabella family--Sources. | ||
| Mother Cabrini Hospital (Chicago, Ill.)--Sources. | ||
| Chicago Ethnic Groups | ||
| Midwest Women's History | ||
Josephine Elliott and Mrs. Roland Libonati donated these papers to the University of Illinois at Chicago on May 24, 1985.
Schultz, Rima Lunin and Adele Hast, eds. Women Building Chicago, 1790-1990: A Biographical Dictionary. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 2001.