Here's a little story of wartime romance gone askew that attracted a big audience after The Associated Press picked up and distributed nationwide the initial report, published in The Chariton Leader of Sept. 30, 1947. The original story appeared under the headline, "War Time Romance Goes Astray But Has Happy Ending." Here's the original report.
+++
An investigation of court records here today revealed a storybook ending to the case of Clara Josephine Corazzo (Corazza), 20, a native of Italy and her child.
A war-born romance in Italy which went astray had a happy ending last week with the marriage of Miss Corazzo to Gilbert Borrell, a brother of the ex-G.I. who brought the attractive Italian girl to the United States. Justice J.H. Hickman performed the ceremony.
The story started of course in Italy when army regulations prevented the marriage of Robert Borrell of Chariton and Miss Corazzo. He was returned and discharged and immediately arranged for the transportation of the Italian girl and his child to the United States.
She arrived at New York to find that Borrell had changed his mind and had married. Her intended's mother, Mrs. Rosa Borrell, however, arranged for her transportation to Lucas county and she arrived the last of June.
An action for child desertion was brought against Robert Borrell in August in the Lucas county court and Judge H.C. Taylor returned a verdict that Borrell should pay $15 a month until the child reaches 16 or until further order of the court.
Miss Corazzo and her child, however, faced deportation if her passport together with a marriage certificate was not on file with immigration authorities by Oct. 1. She was admitted to this country for the purpose of marriage to a citizen.
That was the situation until last week when a new development came. It was announced that Gilbert Borrell, a brother of the man that she had come to this country to marry, and Miss Corazzo were united in marriage.
+++
The passenger manifest for the S.S. Marine Perch, a U.S. troop ship that arrived in New York from Genoa on June 10, 1947, includes the names of Giuseppina Corazza, 20, a native of Treviso, Italy, and her son, Gilberto, age 1. The destination given on the manifest was Chariton, Iowa, and the sponsor, Robert Borrell.
I'm not sure what became of Giuseppina and Gilberto after 1947. Perhaps that could have been resolved with more research (the best I could do quickly involved an entry in the Social Security Death Index that records the June 5, 2007, death at an unspecified place of a Giuseppina Cutolo --- born May 30, 1928 --- and known alternately as Giuseppina Borrell and Giuseppina Borrelli).
Gilbert Borrell was 47 and had been married two more times when he died of a heart attack in Des Moines on May 5, 1963. He was buried with his parents in the Chariton Cemetery, survived by his wife, Mary, two daughters and seven stepdaughters.
Robert Borrell also was married at least twice. He was 66 when he died on April 30, 1991. Buried at Fort Bliss National Cemetery, he was survived by his wife, Shirley, and six stepchildren. A son, Gilberto, was not noted.
No comments:
Post a Comment