1media/Old Ashtabula.jpg2022-04-06T12:14:56-07:00Ashtabula, Ohio: Historical Context8plain2022-04-18T20:06:42-07:00Ashtabula is a small town in the north eastern most county (Ashtabula County) of Ohio, on the shore of Lake Erie. In 1880 the population of the town was around 4,400. Just ten years later the population would almost double to 8,300 persons. By 1920 the population continued to grow to over 22,000. During these thirty years the town of Ashtabula was going through large industrial growth, which drew many foreign laborers to the region. Ashtabula's location made it an important point during the height of the coal and iron ore trade in the early 20th century.The Italians were not the first major immigrant group to the region. The first groups to settle were the Swedish and Finnish who settled by the harbor and worked at the docks. Italian immigrants, mainly men, came to to work low skill labor jobs and send money back home to families in Italy. Something about Molise and Sicily "The Sicilians and The Hill People" map?
