Marracci
THE MARRACCI FAMILY
by Fred Marracci, Sr. (1984)
"My name is Fred Marracci, Sr. and I came to the Warren area at the age of nine years. First, I am the son of Peter and Josephine Marracci. My parents were from Europe. My father was born in Brancoli, the province of Tuscany, Italy, My mother was born in La Ciotat in southern France, both immigrated to America in their teen years and made Portland their home.
As destined, they met; they married in 1904, and of that union, I was born September 22, 1905. In 1914 we came to live in the Warren area on the old John Nelson farm. In 1920 we moved to the Slavens farm and remained there until 1936.
Between 1931 and 1936, Peter Marracci and others built the stone house, barn and other farm building in preparation for our residence in the stone house.
1937 came around and with it my marriage to the English girl I had met five years previously in South Africa. Of this union, there were two children, Fred Jr., and daughter Josette.
Memories grow dim now, but I do remember that without our good neighbors, the Snyders, Vardanegas, Johnson, Nelson, Mystroms, Coopers, Lunds, Carlsons, and Christoffersons, we wouldn't have made it through the great depression.
Being unable to join you on this 19th day of August 1984, I extend my greetings to one and all. May you all enjoy happy and healthy years ahead.
Thank you for the Memories."
"Warren Old Timers" Compiled by Barbara Bennett Thompson August 1985September 2, 1921 - St. Helens Mist
"SHERIFF FINDS LIQUOR CACHE - $10,000 Worth of Liquor and Big Still Discovered in Cleverly Concealed Dugout. Arrests Made. Believe Bootleg Ring Broken - Sheriff Wellington, Deputy Sheriff Graves, Traffic Officers abbott and Hatfield and Judge Martin White made a raid on the John Nelson farm about two miles west of Warren Monday afternoon. Marracci and Cuzzolin are the renters of the place. In their barn was a cleverly concealed wine room. It looked like a hay mow, but Wellington had his suspicions as to the hay and when he made a further investigation, he discovered a room built under the hay mow. There were nine 52 gallon barrels of wine in the 'hay mow' or about 635 gallons of wine. Pete Maracci and Joe Cuzzolin are the renters of the farm. Maracci plead guilty to having intoxicating liquor in his possession and Judge Hazen fined him $500, which he paid.
Big Still Found - Sheriff Wellington had an idea that the 'moonshine' supply of St. Helens and Portland was coming from the locality of the Maracci farm. For several nights he and his deputies watched the place, and the road. A deputy sheriff of Columbia county made friends with the 'gang.' He was supposed to be a bad man. The 'gang' fell for his talk and he was taken into their confidence, and that is why Angelo Marino, 'Babe' Confer, I.A. Hendricks and William Page are in jail because the deputy sheriff accompanied them on a trip to Portland to deliver some ten gallons or more of moonshine whiskey. All of the parties with the exception of Marino plead guilty, and Judge Hazen imposed a fine of $50 and costs. Marino's case will be heard in the morning.
Dugout Has Still - After Sheriff Wellington and Deputy Graves had brought the big consignment of wine taken from the Marracci barn to the courthouse and stored it in the vaults, the sheriff, accompanied by Judge White. District Attorney Foote and several others, returned to the farm. After a few hours' search of the premises, Judge White discovered a dugout in a deep ravine. It was cleverly camouflaged and the men walked by it several times before they discovered the path leading to the dugout. When the door was opened they saw a room 12x12 feet and in it a still which could produce 25 gallons of moonshine per run. Five hundred gallons of the liquor was in vats and ready for the second run and 250 pint bottles of the finished product were ready for delivery. Several barrels of mash were working and ready to be converted into 'moonshine.' At the prevailing prices, the sheriff estimates that the outfit was worth about $10,000. He is of the opinion also, that the moonshine will be sold in St. Helens and vicinity during the coming several months as the believes the confiscated still was the main source of supply in the liquor traffic. Mr. Wellington states that other developments will soon follow and that he is sure that he will break up the big 'bootlegging ring' which has been operating here for some months."
