10/24/2026
"Make it Progresso or make it yourself."
Those of us of a certain age remember that advertisement well. This past Monday evening, WTHS members were treated by long time member and past president Eleanor Taormina to her family's history as her Sicilian great-grandparents arranged a marriage between the Uddo & Taormina families and how the family emigrated through Ellis Island and to New Orleans where Taormina relatives welcomed them and employed them selling the tomato paste & Italian specialty items they imported.
The the business grew, employing many family members across several generations, and during World War II when imports were difficult expanding into their own canneries across several states including New Jersey. In 1949 the first canned, ready-to-eat soup, Minestrone, was introduced. Seeing the name "Progresso" on a neighborhood store in New Orleans, Eleanor's grandparents purchased the name for their growing family of foods. It was obviously a good choice. Eventually the family business was sold in 1969 and has become ubiquitous with with quality products. Having changed hands several times, it is now part of the General Mills brand.
Thank you, Eleanor, for sharing your family photographs, your memories and the history of this wonderful company.
The November monthly meeting will be held Monday the 16th at 7pm at the Museum, 6 Fairview Avenue.
