La casa d’Italia di Zurigo

The Casa d'Italia in Zurich was inaugurated in 1932 and expanded in 1935 and 1938. Since its foundation, it has been the cultural and social centre of Italian immigrants in and around Zurich. Its primary school has been attended by thousands of children and its premises have been home to dozens of associations and the most important meetings that have made the history of Italian emigration in Switzerland and the world. For almost sixty years, the Sisters of Charity of the Immaculate Conception of Ivrea lent their missionary work there, serving, firstly, the Orphanage and the Kindergarten of the Italian colony and, later, also the Internationale and the canteen for primary school pupils. The author, who was a teacher at the Casa d'Italia school for almost thirty years, reconstructs the history of the building based on original documents found in Italian and Swiss archives.

Cover: The Casa d'Italia in Zurich in a photo by Renzo Pedrazzoli, 2016.