John Camarta was born in 1891 in Jenga, the province
of Ancona, in central eastern Italy. He emigrated to North
America during 1909. He worked in an iron ore mine in Minnesota for five years before moving to Alberta in the
spring of 1914. Over the years he set up his homestead with
his wife and sons, worked in the coal mines of Castor and
Drumheller, and eventually operated his own mine for a time.
After 52 years in North America he returned home for the
first time in 1961. He was pleased with the changes that had
taken place in Italy, but stayed in Alberta because he
thought he had things pretty good here.
The interview was conducted by Giancarlo Grelli for the Dante Alighieri Oral History Project in 1973.
This oral history project was initiated by Sabatino
Roncucci, a founder of the Dante Alighieri Society, for the
purpose of documenting immigration history so that it
could be shared not only with the Italian community but also
the community at large.
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