Discover the museums, places, and stories that preserve the memory of Italian emigration around the world. A journey through the experiences, faces, and destinies of those who left Italy to build a new future elsewhere, bringing with them their language, values, and traditions. A living heritage that continues to speak of identity, connections, and that quintessentially Italian ability to find oneself, even far from home.
Explore the interactive map and find the emigration museum closest to you. Discover the stories of those who left, the places of memory, and the roots of millions of Italians around the world.
From difficult starts to great goals: biographies that inspire generations
René Gerónimo Favaloro was born on July 14, 1923, in La Plata, Argentina, into a family of Italian descent. He grew up in a modest environment where education and social commitment were core values. After earning his medical degree, he initially chose to work as a rural doctor, dedicating years...
Lido Anthony Iacocca, known to everyone as Lee Iacocca, was born on October 15, 1924, in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to Italian immigrant parents. Raised in a family that deeply understood the value of sacrifice and hard work, Iacocca carried with him throughout his life the pragmatic and determined...
Juan Manuel Fangio was born on June 24, 1911, in Balcarce, Argentina, into a family of Italian descent. His parents, Loreto Fangio and Herminia D’Ettorre, came from Castiglione a Casauria, in the province of Pescara, bringing with them to South America a culture of hard work, discipline, and...
Edward Domenico Re (1920–2006) was one of the most respected figures in the U.S. judiciary, serving as Senior Judge of the United States Court of International Trade and as a distinguished law professor. Born in Salina, in the Aeolian Islands, he emigrated to the United States at the age of eight...
The Materia family represents an important chapter in the history of Sicilian emigration to Argentina, particularly in the fishing and industrial sectors. Their story is reconstructed in Roberto Pennisi’s book Italianos en el puerto de Mar del Plata and is notable because it revolves around a...
Anthony T. Rossi, born Antonio Pasquale Rossi, was born on September 13, 1900, in Messina, Sicily. In 1917, at just 17 years old, he emigrated to the United States, settling in Florida, where he began a new life defined by hard work and entrepreneurial vision. Like many Italian immigrants, he...
Amadeo Peter Giannini was born on May 6, 1870, in San José, California, to Italian immigrant parents seeking a better future in the United States. As part of the great wave of immigration that would transform America, Giannini grew up with a simple yet revolutionary idea for his time: money should...
Salvatore Ferragamo was born in 1898 in Bonito, a small town in the province of Avellino, Italy. From a young age, he showed an extraordinary passion for shoes and craftsmanship: while other children played, he observed, learned, and experimented. After his initial experience as an apprentice...
Joseph Roland Barbera was born on March 24, 1911, in New York City to parents of Sicilian descent. Raised in Brooklyn, in a working-class neighborhood largely populated by Italian-American families, he grew up immersed in an environment shaped by hard work, humor, and imagination—elements that...
Lucio Fontana was born on February 19, 1899, in Rosario, Argentina, to Italian parents. The son of the sculptor Luigi Fontana, he grew up in an environment where art was not an abstract concept but a daily practice, rooted in material, gestures, and experimentation. In 1905, he returned to Italy...
