St. Louis's the Hill

The Hill was named for its proximity to the highest point in St. Louis. Italians, mainly from Northern Italy, immigrated to the area starting in the late 1800s; however, by 1910, Sicilians were also immigrating to the Hill. Agencies in Italy were employed by mining companies and other industries to help Italian citizens gather all the required documentation for immigration. Italians came to the Hill because of its proximity to the factory and the mines and because it was a district that allowed them to purchase land and build a home. The Parish of St. Ambrose was founded 1903. After the original church was destroyed by fire, the new church was completed in 1926. The Hill has been home to some of St. Louis's nationally known residents, including baseball heroes Joe Garagiola and Lawrence "Yogi" Berra.

Rio Vitale has selected the best images from a collection of longtime residents and called upon the most knowledgeable members of the community to narrate this visual voyage. It begins as a modest mining neighborhood made up of Italian immigrants from Northern Italy and grows into one of the largest Italian American neighborhoods in the United States today.