Guido Nincheri
Montreal, Quebec
Guido Nincheri, referred to as Canada’s Michelangelo, arrived in Canada with his wife Giulia Bandinelli in 1914. He began designing stained glass windows and frescoes in churches throughout Quebec, Ontario, and the northeastern United States. Nincheri’s internment was linked to a fresco he painted in Montreal’s Notre-Dame-de-la-Défense church, that is still there. The fresco celebrates the 1929 Lateran Treaty between the Vatican and the Sovereign State. It establishes Catholicism as Italy’s state religion. Nincheri and his team were forced to comply with the demands of the parish priest at la-Défense who instructed the crew to include Mussolini. Afraid they would not get paid, they agreed to do so.
Giulia, Guido’s wife, convinced the Canadian authorities that the church’s curate, father Manfriani, forced the group to produce this work. She showed them the original sketches that did not include the dictator. Guido Nincheri was interned for a few months.
Nicola Doganieri
Montreal, Quebec
Nicola Doganieri was married to Francesca Granato and had 7 children. He manufactured and delivered bleach as well as serving as the editor of the Italian newspaper, L’Operaio. Nicola attended events at the Casa D’Italia and helped the Italian community as much as possible.
On June 10, 1940, the RCMP stormed his home and took him away. For 3 years Francesca was left alone to feed 7 children. She took up work as a housekeeper and received food from the local church. In 1941, Doganieri’s youngest daughter died but he was not able to attend her funeral. He was released from Fredericton in 1943.
Nicola Germano
Montreal, Quebec
Nicola Germano was a staunch fascist in Italy and made no qualms about it when he arrived in Canada. He came to Canada to provide for his wife and children who lived in Italy. He worked at Canadian Tube and Steel and he supported the local Casa d’Italia and the “Dopolavoro” programs. He was the trustee of the “Fascio” (Fascist party supporters group) in his neighbourhood in Montreal. On June 10, 1940 he was one of the 600 men picked up and transferred first to jail, then to Petawawa. His family in Italy had no clue about what had happened to him. His wife became ill, and she passed while he was interned. He was released 3 years later.
Alberto Boccini
Nanaimo, British Columbia
Alberto G. Boccini was born in Florence Italy and married Elfie Iussa. They had two children, Roger and Roland. Prior to WWII they emigrated to Vancouver with their son Roland. Roger remained with his paternal grandparents until 1949.
Boccini was the publisher of the pro-fascist Italian language newspaper, L’Eco Italo-Canadese. He took over the paper from Bruno Girardi in June 1938. This newspaper, which received funds from Italy through the Vice-Consul in Vancouver, the Italian clergy, and various community organizations, was distributed across all of western Canada.
This paper published news on local fascist activities organized by the clubs, fascist propaganda, as well as articles describing Italy’s supremacy. On June 10, 1940 Boccini was arrested and interned at Kananaskis and then Petawawa. Boccini contracted tuberculosis while interned at Petawawa and was released as a result. He died within two years of his diagnosis.
Antonio Rebaudengo
Calgary, Alberta
Antonio Rebaudengo, born in Piozzo Cuneo, Piemonte, married Angelina Ceresero in 1920. In 1921, the couple had a child, Mario. Antonio had trained to be a mechanic while Angelina sold and repaired furs. They moved to Canada for political reasons. Antonio was anti-communist; he felt he could not get a job in his field in Italy unless he joined the communist party or a union association. Antonio had been sponsored by his brother and he took his family from Italy to Calgary Alberta.
Antonio Rebaudengo was interned from June 1940 to September 25, 1943. He was transferred from Kananaskis to Petawawa, and finally to Fredericton. All this is documented in his newfound diary, now on display at the Glenbow museum in Calgary, in which he had written about his experience, his feeling, and thoughts.
