Distinctly Montana Magazine

28 D I S T I N C T LY M O N TA N A M A G A Z I N E • S P R I N G 2 0 2 6 the Ice Age. They appreciated this mountainous, verdant scen- ery. They liked it enough to dub their holdings "Bella Vista," meaning "beautiful view." To start and end each day at the fort, Border Patrol guards in charge took roll call. The Missoulian described the ritual's first instance: "Each stepped up snappily. Some grinned. Others came to attention and gave the Fascist salute. Some carried mu- sical instruments. One happy fellow, glad to have his feet on the ground, was strumming a guitar as he answered." The rest of Il Conte Biancamano's several hundred crewmen ar- rived at Fort Missoula a few days later. So did many other Ital- ians thereafter. The majority came from other captured ships. Some, though, came from New York's World Fair. Authorities interned waiters, like Cipolato, and other workers from the exhi- bition's Italian Pavilion. With considerable talent among Fort Missoula's over 1,000 Italian detainees, concerts became a centerpiece of the micro- cosmic civilization, confined by a ten-foot-high, barbed-wire- topped fence, and lookout towers sentried by guards. The ships' chain of command transferred to the camp, rendering its own quasi-government. Austin Haney of the Fort Missoula Historical Museum explains that many feared presiding ship's officers more than guards. They organized educational programs. Detainees included fig- ures like Father Alfredo Bruno. So, they held mass. They worked, building new barracks to confront overcrowding. Others worked in the laundry, tailor, shoe shop, or bakery. And "two roly-poly, good natured, moustached gentlemen operating the camp's bar- ber shop are always busy," wrote reporter Nick Mariana in 1941. They bought cigarettes and stamps at the camp store. They pub- lished a newsletter, wrote and staged drama, played calcio and bocce, befriended feral cats, and ate ample pasta. "THEY LIKED IT ENOUGH TO DUB THEIR HOLDINGS 'BELLA VISTA,' MEANING 'BEAUTIFUL VIEW.'

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