'Hub' of annual Brier Hill fest marks 95 years this year

YOUNGSTOWN

For 25 years, the Brier Hill Italian Festival has been a tribute to the Italian immigrants who settled in an iconic neighborhood on the northwest side of town.

The festival, which began Thursday and continues through Sunday, will provide plenty of Italian food and table vendors, nearly nonstop live Italian music, games and hot pepper and wine contests.

It is at the corner of Calvin and Victoria streets.

A small building serves as the hub of the annual event that recaptures the heyday of the city’s Italian population in the first half of the 20th century.

What some may forget is the building itself will celebrate its 95th year, and there is one Italian-American family that sees it as more of a home than anyone else.

At the top of the building is an engraving – “F. Ford 1921” – for Francesco Fiordaliso, who constructed the building from the ground up in 1921.

His descendants carry on his legacy and the life he provided for his wife and children after arriving in this land of opportunity.

Read more of its history in Friday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.