Leaving the town of TorrebeIvicino in the province of Vincenza, Veneto Italy, Luigi Luccarda arrived in Australia in August, 1922. He settled in Balgownie and five years later he would become a citizen, receiving his Naturalisation Certificate. He purchased a home in Paynes Lane, Tarrawana, NSW.
Luigi was the first of four siblings to arrive in Australia. Two brothers and a sister would eventually join him. Pio Luccarda arrived in 1938, Arduino arrived in 1940 and sister Ida arrived in 1950. Soon the Luccarda name would be known throughout the Italian community of Wollongong.
In those early days, Luigi worked as a Miner. He had a two person sulky for transport. Many of the roads were just dirt tracks. When his brother Pio arrived, he stayed with Luigi at his home. Shortly after, brother Arduino arrived and traveling with him were Lucia (Pio`s wife) and their son Francesco, and they too stayed with Luigi.
Back in Italy, Ida (known as Aunty Ida), was working for Marzotto. Marzotto founded a wool weaving mill and eventually a spinning mill, making combed yarn and fabrics. Ida ran the office and she was very good at it. The Marzotto group had become quite an entity and still are to this day, specialising in textiles. The company didn’t want Ida to go as she was an invaluable employee. Ida was also an incredibly skilled seamstress.
When Ida arrived in Australia she lived with Luigi in his house. Ida, like many women, was hard working with sheer tenacity. Her talents and skills would become well known in the community. Ida wanted to open a sewing business. She had made several garments for people. Ida was hoping to acquire several sewing machines to start her business, but somehow, it didn’t eventuate.
At that time, many immigrant men, looking for work and looking for accommodation, were reliant on the boarding houses. Not only did the boarding houses provide a place to stay, but for so many who couldn’t speak the language, the boarding houses with other Italian immigrants, became their refuge.
On Luigi’s property, there was an old cottage that had been vacant for some time. Ida came up with the idea to make it into a boarding/guest house. Even though there were other boarding houses in the area, the demand and need was there. Another draw card were the bocce courts that Luigi built on his property. They were frequented by many.
The boarding house became tenanted quite quickly and Ida was the person responsible for the cooking. Ida would cook simple yet wholesome meals and was she very good at organising. The boarding house serviced single men. Ida wanted to make the boarders feel the comforts of home, as many were homesick and in need of familiarity.
All meals were provided as part of the boarding fee. The meals were eaten in the main house, in a dining room specifically for the boarders, as the boarding house had no kitchen, just bedrooms and bathroom facilities.
Luigi would be responsible for making coffee for morning breakfast and for providing the boarders with their lunch as they went to work. For each person, it usually consisted of a panino, two pieces of fruit and a piece of cake or a pastry. Ida would make the panini the night before as well as cook the main meal for the evening.
The boarding house usually accommodated 8 - 10 men at a time, but there were times when it would accommodate up to 17 men. Some stayed for weeks, or a few months, whilst others stayed for years.
Quite often, people would call in for a meal, and Ida was very giving and she provided for them, even if they were not boarders. The Luccarda place soon became a meeting hub. It was place to gather together, have a home cooked meal, play bocce or enjoy some wine and life didn`t seem so bad.
By the mid 1950`s Ida and Luigi were offering small wedding receptions on the property. Luigi extended his house and the first wedding reception happened around 1955. Ida was the sole cook for the weddings and the boarding house. She had help in the kitchen with aids and cleaners, but she was responsible for all the cooking. She truly epitomised being hospitable, and Ida managed both sides of the Luccarda business.
The Luccarda Italian style wedding receptions were the first of their kind in the area. It also became a big operation, as family members would help out too. It soon became apparent that the wedding receptions were becoming a big business to run. More staff were needed and they were outgrowing their space.
The receptions had become so popular that Luigi would find himself extending his premises again and again, reducing some bocce courts to do so. By the 1960`s they could hold wedding receptions for at least 200 people, and that number would only increase.
I spoke extensively with Rosalie Luccarda who was one of the daughters of Arduino. Rosalie would work on the weekend helping out with the wedding receptions. Rosalie and her sisters would help set up for the function, wait on tables and help out in the kitchen. It really was a family affair with the running of the boarding house and reception centre.
Some of the men who were boarding would help out too. Some worked in the kitchen, some were waiters and others where they were needed. The Luccarda family were well organised, creating memorable moments for the bride, groom, family and friends.
There was only one kitchen that serviced the meals for the boarders as well as the wedding receptions. Considering that it was only a domestic kitchen for the most part, and with no dishwasher, they eventually obtained two commercial ovens which were placed in another room outside, but close to the kitchen. These ovens could cook up to 40 small chickens at once as well as large portions of vegetables. What a godsend this would become. It was Luigi’s job to cook at the ovens.
The setting up of the tables would start early morning around 9 am. The wedding cake was delivered on the day, usually early. The tables had to be clothed, chairs in place, napkins, glasses, cutlery, bread rolls, bottles of wine etc. They would usually finish the set up by lunch time and then the boarders lunches had to be prepared too. After the boarders were fed, it was back to more preparations and by late afternoon the first meal was placed on the table ready for the guests as soon as they sat down. The Antipasto plate, covered in white paper. Typically the plate would have Italian cold meats, gardiniera, anchovies, capers and olives.
Then there was always the serving of the second course that consisted of a soup (a light minestra), pasta was usually the third course (sometimes it was not even served) and the main course was chicken with rough cut baked potatoes and salad. All served on one plate. Every plate had half a chicken! Finishing off was dessert, which was trifle. The bowls of trifle were placed in the centre of the tables, approximately 4 - 6 serves per bowl. Then lastly the wedding cake was served with coffee. No coffee machines back then, lots of metal pots on the stove, with coffee poured out into espresso cups then served.
It would take a team of people to serve a wedding reception like that and they did it. Without the equipment that is used today, it was certainly demanding work. They did it well and were very generous to their guests.
The Luccarda boarding house and wedding reception centre really was a turning point for the Italians in the Wollongong area. Whilst many Italians lived further south, due to such a large work force at the Port Kembla Steel Works, the towns of the surrounding suburbs to the north of Wollongong such as Corrimal, Tarrawanna, Balgownie and Fairy Meadow, would become heavily populated with Italians, forming quite a large band of community. Soon, other Italian owned businesses would set up in those towns as well. Tarrawanna, certainly did earn it’s nickname of `Little Italy`.
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