Gagliardo Family

Letter from Nick Gagliardo, reprinted in Central Park Historical Society Newsletter, October 2002

1938 - We moved to Bethpage from Brooklyn, 350 Broadway, one house south of Powell Ave. on the east side. Farther Andrew, mother Margaret, children: Dominick, Rosalie, Nick and Frank.

1938 - 1948 - The four children went to Powell Ave. School ( the school yard and our back yard met behind the annex). Then we went to Farmingdale High School.

1940 -1950 - Margaret's Dress Shop was located in the barn in the back of the yard.

1947 - Dominick went into the Marine Corps.

1951 - Dominick married Angie in October. Frank also went into the Marine Corps in October and Nick went into the Marine Corps in December.

1952 - Rosalie married in April.

1953 - The Gagliardo's moved from Bethpage.

1965 - Frank was killed in Vietnam.

1972 - Rosalie died after open heart surgery in October. Andrew died in December of a heart attack.

1992 - Margaret died from cancer in November. Dominick and Angie live in Maryland and West Palm Beach. Nick and Gen live in High Point, North Carolina.

Below information from CPHS NEWSLETTER, February 1997

The Gagliardo family lived on Broadway, Bethpage. Their home stood on the east side of Broadway, where the stores now line the street, and their back yard faced the Powell Avenue School. Their home was a large house with a big yard. On their property was a large building that housed a sewing factory. There were rows of industrial sewing machines run by neighborhood women. These women assembled women's blouses and dresses. Bundles of cut goods was dropped off on Monday, and then these ladies assembled garments throughout the week. They were picked up by a "jobber" on Friday. The "jobber" then took them to 7th Avenue, New York City where they were shipped to merchants throughout the country for sale in department stores. Today this would be referred to as a "cottage industry" and were performed in homes and outbuildings all around Long Island in the 1940's and 1950's.