POW - Italian work camp pg 146

Discussion in 'Prisoners of War' started by FB77, Apr 11, 2017.

  1. Bruce A

    Bruce A Member

    Hi Vitellino,

    According to my father, the Bazzano family at the time was: Paolo, the Father, Mummia, the Mother and sons, Domenico, Luigi, Francesco & Giuseppe and daughters Maria, plus another who suffered from epilepsy, name unknown.

    I have photographs of many of the family plus a girl from the escape organisation and a lady courier.

    Many thanks


    Regards,

    Bruce
     
  2. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    Hello Bruce,

    Please send me a private message and the we can communicate directly,

    Vitellino
     
  3. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Gents I am a researcher and I live few miles from Mortara. I am available to help in any perspective. BTW I believe the helper name was Bacigaluppi this sound more natural as a surname. I have lived here almost all my life so I know well places.I also know some Bazzano so happy to help.
     
  4. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    Hello Piero the great,

    I have alerted Bruce to the fact that you have joined the discussion. I hope he replies as he has some interesting photos of the Bazzani family who helped his father,

    Regards,

    Vitellino
     
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  5. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Thanks Vitellino.Looking forward to hear from him. This would actually take few minutes to go there and talk to people i am also close to La Sforzesca.Best
     
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  6. Bruce A

    Bruce A Member

    Hello Piero the great,

    Thanks very much for your offer to help.

    In September 1943 my father, Douglas Allum and George Tudor escaped from Campo 146/18 (Sforzesca). There was a very small farm not far from the camp at which they had never worked but were sure would shelter them from the Germans. When it was safe to do so they helped with jobs on the farm and had their meals with the Bazzano family. This went on for two and a half months until it became clear they must move on before the kind Bazzanos were caught helping them. The Bazzanos put them in touch with guides and provided civilian clothing and boots. I know my father felt much indebted to them.

    l hope the three photographs below are useful, they include members of the Bazzano family.

    Please let me know if I can provide further information.

    Kind regards,

    Bruce

    Mummia Bazzano with Douglas daughter and George.jpg Douglas Paolo Bazzano Maria and George.jpg

    Bazzano son Douglas George and another Bazzano son.jpg
     
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  7. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Thanks will start now .s .And first of all sincere apologies on the previous information which was totally incorrect . In fact your information was absolutely correct . Here the information on Mr Bacciagaluppi :





    Giuseppe Bacciagaluppi - Italian Patriot
    [​IMG]


    Giuseppe Bacciagaluppi was an Italian engineer and was employed by F.A.C.E., the Italian subsidiary of the giant American Standard Electric Corporation, which had a factory in Milan producing telecommunications equipment. He spoke English fluently and in fact, was married to an English woman. The couple lived in a large home in Milan and also had a holiday cottage at Calde on the shores of Lago Maggiore, which is part of the border between Italy and Switzerland.

    It is therefore not surprising that immediately after the Italian Armistice he and his wife set about establishing a network to assist Allied POW wandering near their home in Milan, to get to Switzerland, via Lago Maggiore. He recruited members of his factory staff, and sympathetic local Italians to organise this escape route and was given responsiblity and funds by the Committee for Liberation of North Italy to carry out this task. John Peck of Australia and George Patterson of Canada, became active and valuable members of this organisation.

    Before he was betrayed by a colleague and arrested by the Gestapo on April 4, 1944, his organisation helped hundreds of Allied POW to reach sanctuary in neutral Switzerland. He managed to escape from from the San Vittore Prison in Milan on July 8, 1944 and immediately re-established himself in Lugano on the Swiss shores of the lake.

    Known under the nom de guerres of "Ig Rossi" ,"Anfossi" and "Joe", his area of his responsibility and escape routes was divided into four zones:

    1. Piemonte via Val d'ossola and Luino
    2. Lombardia via Brescia, Bergamo and Varese
    3 Emilia via Lago Maggiore.
    4. Veneto via Brescia, Bergamo, Lake Como and Valtellina

    The Milano network is credited with helping 965 Allied POW to reach Switzerland and the funds spent in these efforts totalled Lira 7,800,000.
    The details are set out in his paper "Rapporto finale sull'attivita svolta dal CNLAI in favore di ex prigionieri di guerra di guerra alleanti" published in "Il Movimento di Liberazione in Italia Sommario", Nr. 33 Novembre, 1954.

    His organisation made extensive use of the North Italian railway system.

    For a good account in English of his partisan activities amd modus operandi see "A Strange Alliance" by Roger Absalom (F2 p39-44).

    Guiseppe Bacciagaluppi was finally arrested and interned by the Swiss in January 1945, but escaped back into Liberated France. He was recommended for a British decoration for his outstanding help to the Allied cause, but this was rejected by the British Government on the ground that it was inappropriate to honour an Italian citizen.

    [​IMG]
     
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  8. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Looks the gentleman had also a very important career on automobile racing . He was , President of the Automobile Club of Milan, and particularly famous in the F1 circuit !
     
  9. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    I believe I have identified the Farm which in fact is not very far from the Sforzesca :Cascina Cararola
    https://www.google.it/maps/@45.2951...4!1s_Fjv9Hkpb_zlm8KhQfqrBQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
    I am in contact with a member of the Bazzano family which lived there and despite not immediately knowing about it recognize the relative with epilepsy and is now investigating in the matter . I will come back as soon as I have some news .
     
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  10. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Dear Bruce ,
    I have the pleasure to inform you that I have identified the direct descendant of the Bazzano family in Margherita Bazzano . She is now 70 and was born in 1946 . So the memory of your father was not present if not by talks . It looks your father was not in the Farm I mentioned but in another closer to Vigevano .I believe was this one but will need to double check . Cascina Salsiccia:
    https://www.google.it/maps/@45.2873...4!1s1uw8NUILRBwMwEYapD3jrw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656
    The picture you sent created a kind of a shock to Margherita in a positive sense but if you have more please send as unfortunately all people in the picture now passed away and for the lady this was a come back . I am available to help in communication with the family whatever you wish . Also if you plan to come down happy to escort around .The memory that she passed about your father were of an extremely good person .
    The other point is that I collaborate with a research group who has created a virtual museum of the memory . The group specialize on research on lost planes but has expanded on other WW2 topics .I copy the webpage which is unfortunately in Italian only but you can translate it with Google .
    I am asking then the authorization to write this story there as well .
            Gruppo Ricercatori Aerei Caduti Piacenza
    I leave you also my phone number should you wish to contact me , whatsapp etc +393356378324
     
  11. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    What an exciting outcome, Bruce..thanks Piero.
     
  12. Bruce A

    Bruce A Member

    Dear Piero,

    I only read your posts late on Wednesday evening so my apologies for replying so late.

    I am completely overwhelmed by your response, I cannot thank you enough. What you have discovered in such a short time is way beyond what I had hoped to find out for myself. The information you've provided has thrilled my 86-year old mother greatly although I have yet to discuss this with my brothers.

    Once I have spoken with the rest of my family I will respond in more detail but many many thanks for taking the time to investigate all this on our behalf. Please pass on my best regards to Margherita and let her know that my father, Douglas regretted not being able to repay his debt of gratitude to her family. My mother reiterated this point when I spoke with her yesterday.

    Unfortunately, I have only three other photographs taken when my father was at the farm: one each of Douglas and George but the third shows a young member of the escape organisation and a courier who helped in their escape.

    Douglas @ Bazzano Family.jpg



    George @ Bazzano Family.jpg

    Douglas and George with escape organisation member and courier.jpg

    Unfortunately, I have been unable to discover a letter sent to Douglas by one of the Bazzanos in 1946 but assume these photographs were included as he surely would not have carried them with him escaping to Switzerland!

    Kindest regards,

    Bruce
     
  13. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Dear Bruce ,
    I got in touch newly with Margherita who was now very keen to know more about you and when mentioned that your mother is still alive she was very intrigued . She had now crystalized some other memories of the events upon what she heard despite sad of the fact she lost some years ago her brother who ilved through the events and would have clearly a better memeory has he was present at those times . She insist that the Farm was the Cascina Salsiccia which is now inhabited by the owners who were there at the time as well , the Marchesani family . Funny enough I had a Marchesani in my classrom when I did high school in Vigevano in the 80s I wonder if he is the one . So I plan to visit the Farm soon and make some questions to gather more information . So I am trying now to collect more history on the POW camp of Mortara and satellites to write this story on our website , I think it will be a good piece to add . I will let you know when ready , I will try to do it bilingual .On the other hand for any need at your disposal .
    Best Regards
     
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  14. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    Hello Piero,

    What is the name of your website? If you have already posted it, I have missed it.

    Regards

    Vitellino
     
  15. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

  16. vitellino

    vitellino Senior Member

    Thanks a lot.

    Vitellino
     
  17. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Dear Bruce I hope you are still following the thread . I was particularly busy with another story which was published last sunday on the Corriere della Sera and if interested you can follow on our website . I am now going to dig more on this topic and the picture with the ladies who helped your father to escape is particularly interesting and I am trying to get more news out of it . I will be back soon also after I am able to talk with the Marchesani family . Best
     
  18. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Just a status update . I am now in contact with senior researchers in Vigevano and we are trying to deepen this topic . trying to identify the member of the organization and overall other particular . I hope to hear from Bruce soon . Will post the news as soon we get tjem .Best
     
  19. Bruce A

    Bruce A Member

    Hi Piero,

    In response to your earlier post regarding Guiseppe Bacciagaluppi, my father's memoirs support the view that it was his network that saved him from the Germans and specifically quoted his name but without any evidence.

    If the photographs of the lady courier and helper I posted can identify their group, we may be able to confirm our suspicion.

    Regards,

    Bruce
     
    Last edited: Aug 20, 2017
  20. Pierothegreat

    Pierothegreat Active Member

    Dear Bruce ,
    great to hear from you . Expecially as I have good news .I was able to talk to Mr.Marchesani who lives in Cascina Salsiccia and the story was not new to him at all . He confirm they were relatives with the Bazzano and he indicated me to talk with Mr.Paolo who seem to even have documents ! So I am on top of this and I am sure shortly I will be back with more details . In addition I am in contact with a professor who did a book on the Mortara camp and its satellites . So this is getting traction !
     
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