Barre's Italian Pride

It all began in October 1982, when Vico Masi, City Clerk for the City of Barre, gathered some of his Italian friends together to talk about public recognition of what they described as "Italian pride." That group of first and second generation Italians pointed to the contributions made by their countrymen to the Barre granite industry over the past century and agreed that something should be done to publicly recognize the artistry and skill that has been sculpted and carved into millions of monuments that populate cemeteries in all areas of the United States."

Three years later, in October 1985, a twelve and a half foot tall Barre granite statue, "The Sculptor"' was set on a ten and a half foot tall pedestal, "erected by descendants and friends of all Italian-Americans whose achievements have' enriched the social, cultural and civic vitality of this city, region and state."

Another Barre sculptor, Giuliano Cecchinelli made the model, from a design concept created by Elmo Peduzzi. Peduzzi's concept was the winner of a design competition sponsored by the Italian-American Memorial, Inc.; a non-profit group organized specifically to carry out the project.

The monument was dedicated to Carlo Abate, an Italian immigrant who came to Barre in 1896 and has been described as "the personification of the Italian immigrant in Barre." Abate was an artist, a sculptor more specifically, and possessed with a skill not common to many people.

When he died in 1941 at the age of 81, he was generally considered to be one of Barre's foremost sculptors. He was an instructor at the Barre Evening Drawing School where he taught drafting to many, many youngsters who grew up in the Barre granite industry.

The sculpting process began when a 30-ton block of Barre granite was taken from the quarry, and trucked to a saw plant. Once trimmed, the block was taken to a manufacturing plant where the sculptor began the laborious process of relieving huge chunks of stone to create rough outline.

The project was completed when the statue, estimated to weigh about eight tons, was place atop its Barre granite pedestal in Dente Park, in the section of Barre where Italian immigrants established their homes, There are broad smiles on the faces of many Italian descendants in Barre today because the tribute to "Italian pride" is a permanent part of the Barre landscape.