Entry 55: Black Smock with a White Collar - Grembiuli Nigru cu Collettu Iancu
- Basilia Staltari
- Jul 18
- 3 min read
Updated: Jul 19
Location: Calabria, Italy
Date: 1953
Girolama Moschilla experienced her first major disappointment in life in the summer of June 1953, on the last day of the school year. As she trudged home, it seemed as if a heavy, grey cloud loomed over her, casting an invisible weight only she could feel. The dark cloud mirrored the deep sense of loss she felt, mixed with the intense frustration of not being allowed to continue to the next grade. Although she loved everything about school and thrived in the classroom, this gloomy day marked the sudden end of her formal education after just five short years of primary schooling.
As an eleven-year-old, Girolama's thoughts were focused on the unfairness of not being able to do what she desired, unaware that historically, girls from the Moschilla and Trimboli families, including her own mother Concetta, had never gone to school. (Concetta learnt to read and write at home with the help of her older brothers, Vincenzo and Rocco Antonio.) Girolama was born during an era when it was customary for parents to view education as unnecessary and irrelevant, especially for daughters. The belief was that keeping girls at home provided more immediate and practical benefits; they could help with numerous farm chores and develop cooking and other domestic skills in preparation for future roles as wives and mothers.
Girolama's oldest sister Angelina, left school after finishing Year 3. Her other older sister, Maria, missed out completely as the education system at the local school in rural Flavia didn't cater for children who couldn't hear. Her third sister, Cecilia, had recently been the first sibling in her family to progress past Year 3, so without knowing it, Girolama was actually quite fortunate to have attended school for five whole years!
Being self-motivated and a passionate learner, Girolama was determined to build upon the foundations established during her time at school, and continue to advance her reading and writing abilities from home. Her father, Salvatore, and brother, Giovanni, were living and working in Australia, so she had plenty of opportunities to practice her skills, as she and her mother handled most of the letter writing to stay in contact with them. Furthermore, although there were no spare funds for the purchase of books or other reading materials, Concetta bought inexpensive blank exercise books for Girolama to write in, which marked the beginning of her diary keeping - something she continued to do throughout her entire life.
But for now, the focus is on the summer of 1953 and the ending of Girolama’s joyful days in the classroom. There would be no more writing answers on the teacher’s blackboard with white chalk, no more poems to memorise, and no more commands for students to stand at attention, with backs upright and arms straight by their sides. Her black smock uniform with a white collar would now be handed down to her younger sisters, Rosa and Giuseppina, to wear.
EXTRA INFORMATION 1
Girolama's cousins, Angelina and Giuseppe Trimboli, went to school in a different location. In Siderno, town children also wore a black smock uniform with a white collar. As seen in the photo, the uniform featured horizontal white stripes to indicate the student's grade: Angelina's three stripes represent third grade, while her younger brother, Giuseppe, has a single stripe for first grade.
The photo was taken in 1953 and sent by Francesca to her husband Vincenzo Trimboli, who was temporarily working in Australia.
EXTRA INFORMATION 2
In June 1952, Girolama's sister, Cecilia, successfully finished Year 5. When the new school year started in September 1952, their mother, Concetta, requested a certificate to commemorate this milestone achievement. Concetta recognised that educational limitations for girls were finally beginning to change; she treasured the document, carefully storing and preserving it as a family keepsake.
EXTRA INFORMATION 3
EXTRA INFORMATION 4
A poem memorised by the Moschilla siblings when they attended the school at Flavia was Pianto Antico written by Giosue Carducci.
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