English: Many Italians migrated from Northern Italy to Barre, beginning in the 1890's. Many of these men were gifted sculptors who brought their talents and greatly contributed to the growth of the fledgling Barre granite industry. Most of these early Italian immigrants chose to live near one another. The majority settled in the northern section of Barre City. Here they developed their own community, complete with shops and their own newspapers, printed in Italian, of course.

For many years Barre lacked a significant tribute to the Italian heritage of many of Barre's citizens. This oversight was corrected in 1985 when the Italian-American monument was erected in Dente Park in the northern part of Barre. The apron clad figure of a sculptor with chisel and hammer in hand is 23 feet in height and weighs 43 tons. The monument, designed by Elmo Peduzzi, was sculpted by Philip Paini from a model crafted by sculptor Giuliano Cecchinelli. The memorial is dedicated to sculptor Carlo Abate who came from Italy to Barre at the turn-of-the-century and established the first art school in which students could learn drafting, design and other skills associated with the granite industry. The statue is carved out of Barre granite and is located on Route 14 (North Main Street) in Barre, Vermont.

source: www.central-vt.com/web/sculpt/index.html