Latino History of Rhode Island | Hidden Stories of the 1940s and 1950s

Cecilia Rodríguez was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Passenger lists show that she boarded a ship in 1936 to the United States as a 26-year-old. A friend relays, that she came at the bidding of her sister, Jeanine, who was living in Massachusetts at that time. By 1939, records show that she was living in Providence and by 1942, she had met and married Albert Saglio. Albert was originally from New York and he owned a restaurant called the Spaghetti Place, which was located on Matthewson Street in Downtown Providence.

According to Blanca Herrera's oral history accounts, Cecilia became a close friend and benefactor of numerous individuals from Spanish-speaking countries who ended up in Rhode Island. Blanca recounts how she would never have moved to Providence and her husband, Darío, would never have learned about a job at St.Joseph's Hospital, if not for Cecilia.

Blanca met Cecilia in 1954, while the Herreras were living in Fall River, MA. Cecilia convinced the couple to move to Rhode Island, and to help them out, the Saglios invited them to live in their home until the they found one of their own. Blanca found a strong, extended Latin family in Rhode Island, thanks to the Saglios, and she considered Cecilia, a fellow Argentinian, her best friend.

Nancy Ortega's story on this page, mentions Cecilia's influence on her family, and especially her mother, Estela. Nancy's parents, Zanoni and Estela Ortega, moved to Rhode Island from Mérida, Yucatana, Mexico in 1949. Nancy recounts how Estela as the only Mexican in Rhode Island at the time, felt so isolated until she met Cecilia. Through Albert's restaurant, Estela was able to buy avocados so she could make guacamole. The Saglios became godparents to their son, Ken, who was the first Ortega child born in Rhode Island.

Cecilia and Albert also became godparents to one of the Herrera children, and baptized many other children whose families they brought together in their home.

Cecilia was very involved at the International Institute of Rhode Island and it was through that organization that she managed to connect with various other immigrant families, from all over the world. She became the president of El Club Panamericano, a group consisting of all Spanish-speaking individuals, in the early 1940s. Through this group, she helped organize weekly potluck dinners, special educational events, Spanish-language movie nights, cultural dance classes and an annual fashion show.

Albert died in 1970, and Cecilia raised her family and lived in Rhode Island until she passed away in 2002, at the age of 91.

If you have any information to share about Cecilia Saglio or El Club Panamericano, please contact Marta V. Martínez.

Zanoni and Estela Ortega, were from Mérida, Yucatan, (México) and moved to Rhode Island in the late 1940s. Zanoni's younger brother, Gimel who came first, in 1947, convinced his brother to move to Rhode Island.

Dr. Ortega, was a radiologist. He graduated from the University of Mérida, Mexico, where he also received his medical Degree and then he came to Providence to do his residency at Roger Williams Hospital and St. Joseph Hospital before joining the Veterans Administration Medical Center. He was also a Major in the U.S. Army.

Upon his brother's beckoning, on March 5, 1949, Zanoni took a bus from Mérida to Rhode Island. In October, his wife, Estela, traveled by bus and then by train, with their three children to join him. NOTE: Gimel moved to Worcester 2-3 years later, married and later settled in Florida, with his wife and family.

Nancy Ortega White, who spoke to us about her parents, remembers her mother saying how when she first came to Rhode Island, she felt extremely isolated. Estela couldn't speak English, she had no family to help her with the children, she was basically alone.

Nancy relates how there were no markets where her parents could buy Mexican products. If her mother wanted to host a dinner party and cook traditional Mexican dishes, the entire family would drive to New York City to buy ingredients and products, such as avocados or cornmeal to make tortillas, because she made them by hand.

The Ortegas had two more children after they moved to Rhode Island. After they had been here for close to ten years, they finally began to meet other Spanish-speaking individuals through the International Institute of Rhode Island, where Cecilia Saglio [mentioned on this page], was very active. Most were doctors and other professionals, and none were laborers or business owners. The International Institute was definitely a place that changed Estela, especially when she joined El Club Pan Americano. The IIRI became a place where the couple met others who were from Latin America and could finally speak the Spanish language, share the traditional Mexican dishes, and where Estela found close friends and solace.

Nancy Ortega White interview by Marta V. Martínez
May 2020

Blanca Herrera was born in Argentina and grew up in Bahia Blanca, a resort near Buenos Aires. Her father worked for the railroad, and he traveled a lot so Blanca and her sister spent most of the time with their grandparents so the girls could stay in one school.

Her husband, Darío, studied medicine at the University of Buenos Aires. According to Blanca, "he was a very idealistic person, and completed a very fast career in medicine — he was quite brilliant, a very intelligent person and he just wanted to learn, and to keep learning. He was interested in medical research and his specialty was Cardiology."

During the Perón dictatorship, Dr. Herrera, like many other professionals, wanted to leave Argentina and he looked into an internship in the United States. That is how in 1954 the Herreras ended up in Fall River, MA.

According to Blanca, once they arrived in Fall River, her husband immediately began to work long hours. "It was isolating for me," remembers Blanca, "I was alone most of the time and I didn't know anybody. I spent many lonely days and nights at home, while he was at the hospital."

Before the year was over, Blanca met Cecilia Saglio, an Argentinian woman, who suggested that they move to Providence. Blanca says: "Because I was so alone in Fall River, as soon as I met her, we became instant friends." She then adds that she could not think of anything better than to move to Providence after learning from Cecilia that there was a small Spanish-speaking community waiting for her there.

Cecilia’s husband, Albert, was originally from New York, and Cecilia came to this country when she was quite young [read her story on this page]. Albert owned a restaurant called the Spaghetti Place, located on Matthewson Street in Downtown Providence, and where he employed many Latino immigrants for years, until the business closed.

Once Blanca left Fall River, Dr. Herrera stayed there for a while to finish some work, and then he moved to Providence, where there was a job waiting for him at St. Joseph’s Hospital in Providence.

One memory that Blanca has during her first few months here is that of Hurricane Carol, which hit Rhode Island on August 25, soon after she and Dario had arrived. Blanca was already living in Providence and Darío was commuting, and when the Braga Bridge that connects the two states was washed out by the hurricane, Dr. Herrera was forced to stay in Fall River, working at the hospital, until it was repaired.

During that time, the Herreras lived with the Saglios. Blanca adds: "The Saglios offered us their home while we settled in and found our own apartment, 15 months later.

Cecilia introduced Blanca to others at the International Institute of Rhode Island. "The International Institute was a really great place for people like myself, a place where we could meet others from our culture," says Blanca. "My husband worked hard in his job at St. Joseph's and I finally found the support, the friendship of other Latin women, that I did not have while in Fall River."

Blanca Herrera and [daughter] Mariana Herrera Galle interview by Marta V. Martínez
April 2020