"gracelia" - Annamore West Virginia

[bobard]

My mother amor menendez fernandez lived in "gracelia" West Virginia which is really Annamore, West Virginia - near Clarksburg. Her mother was Manuella Menendez and her father was Emelio Fernandez who died at a young age. Her mother remarried a Jose Maria Rodriquez all from Austurian around Aviles. The family later moved to Donora, Pennsylvania. Both of these men had come from Spain and had been boarders at the home of Jenirosa and Manuel Menendez in Annamore "gracelia" West Virginia - they rented rooms.The men worked at a zinc and steel mill (union steel?). This was in the early 1920's.My grandfather on my dad's side was Celestino Alvarez "el joven". They called the other grandfather - Jose Rodriquez "pork chopas(chops)".

[Art]

Welcome, Bobard. It's interesting that our families have some similarities in our stories.

I think there are a number of misspellings that might confuse others. (By the way, it's not just you; these are common mistakes. Anmoore, for example, is often misspelled.) I'll suggest some changes here:

My mother Amor Menendez Fernandez lived in "Grasselli" West Virginia which is really Anmoore, West Virginia - near Clarksburg. Her mother was Manuella Menendez and her father was Emilio Fernandez who died at a young age. Her mother remarried a Jose Maria Rodriquez. Both sides of the family [<-- Art corrected after feedback from Bobard] were from Asturias around Aviles. The family later moved to Donora, Pennsylvania. Both of these men had come from Spain and had been boarders at the home of Generosa and Manuel Menendez in Anmoore "Grasselli" West Virginia - they rented rooms. The men worked at a zinc and steel mill (Union Steel?)" [Art: See note below.]. This was in the early 1920's. My grandfather on my dad's side was Celestino Alvarez "el joven". They called the other grandfather - Jose Rodriquez "pork chopas (chops)".

You may be right about Union Steel. There were a number of industrial companies in Donora.

[Speaking of Donora, PA...] Union Steel Company constructed a rod mill that later became the American Steel and Wire Works. In 1902, the Carnegie Steel Company completed a facility that consisted of two blast furnaces, twelve open hearth furnaces, and a forty foot blooming mill furnace. At the same time, the Matthew Woven Wire Fence Company erected a facility. A third rod mill was constructed in 1916. A year earlier the Donora Zinc Works began production.

http://www.docheritage.state.pa.us/documents/donora.asp

Apparently, Donora Zinc Works was owned by US Steel Corp.

I would guess that many of the Asturians in Donora worked in Donora's zinc industry there because they had experience in other plants in the US and Asturias. I do know, however, that some Asturians, like one of my great uncles, worked in steel industry.

[bobard]

Art, the whole family is from Asturias - both sides.

[Art]

Great! I've corrected my message.

By the way, I find the spellings of these places difficult, too. I always have to look them up online to be sure!

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Estupendo. He corregido mi mensaje.

A propósito, me resultan difíciles deletrear los nombres de esas lugares, también. Siempre tengo que buscarlos en línea para averiguar cómo deletrearlos.

[Louis Alvarez]

Bobard,
Your Grandfather, Porkchops, was my sister's father-in-law. She is married to his son Jess. Amor and Freda are his sisters. I think Anmoore was also called Grassella or Grasselli, definitely not Graciela.

A zinc smelter was started in Anmoore shortly after 1900 and moved to Spelter shortly after.

Jess and Nina, my sister, live north of Philadelphia and have 2 children, David and Diane.

Jess has relatives that he has visited and who have visited them from Gijon.

Our family, on both our Mother and Father's side come from Castrillon as do my wife's aunts who live in La Plata & Piedras Blancas.

Lou Alvarez