26° and Sunny
Image
Above, photo of a De Baggis & D'Errico calendar on display at the Franklin Historical Museum.
October is Italian Heritage Month*
In the days before good highways – and the preservatives – that helped fuel the rise of big, regional and national baked goods suppliers, most towns and cities of any size had a local baker or two. One of Franklin most long-lived and beloved was De Baggis & D’Errico.
Joel D’Errico, a local businessman and former town councilor, said his grandfather Rocco D’Errico, founded the business around 1905 with Augustino De Baggis. The business relationship was then deepened by the marriage of Rocco to Augustino’s sister, Allessandrina De Baggis, in 1908.
The partners built a new home for their bakery around 1910 or 1911 on Ruggles Street and, according to Joel, the D’Erricos lived to the right of the building, 11 of them, and the De Baggis’ lived on the left, 13 of them. “The kids were the employees of the bakery in the middle,” added Joel.
Above, rocks being broken for bakery foundation around 1910, courtesy of Joel D'Errico
Above, interior view of bakery in the early 20th century, courtesy of Joel D'Errico
“It grew and and grew” to all surrounding towns and as far afield as North Attleboro and Milford, delivering to most of the markets in the area, he explained. The two-day old bread (hard as the Rock of Gibraltar, recalls Paul DeBaggis, a grandson of Augustino), typically went to local farms, including Garelick, as feed for the cows.
And, according to Joel, during the Depression, the partners made sure “no one in Franklin went without bread.”
At its peak, the company had about 10 delivery trucks. During the late 1940s, the company introduced the MityGud brand for its products. There was even a MityGud section inside the JJ Newberry's department store on Main Street. Things went swimmingly through the 1950s and even into the 1960s. But times were changing.
“I think automation just caught up with D & D,” said Paul DeBaggis. “We were wrapping sliced bread on a machine that...was primitive and we baked with coal until 1959 –the bakery just didn't keep up with the times.”
When management tried to “get with the times,” the results were sometimes disastrous. “They built this huge 30 by 40 foot freezer -- they thought freezing the pastries was the answer, and actually had all shifts make extra to freeze the stuff,” said Paul.
“I ask you, is frozen pastry ever as good as fresh?”
What’s more, noted D’Errico, the large supermarket chains such as Stop & Shop were building their own bakeries. So, finally, the company was sold around 1970.
Looking back wistfully, D’Errico said, “It is too bad they didn’t get into the big supermarkets. Piantedosi Baking Company,” now located in Malden, was started by immigrants in Boston at about the same time as D&D, he said, and they are a still a major supplier in the region.
Still, the business helped the families get their start in the USA. “My father went to Boston College as did my uncle, Vinnie DeBaggis,” Joel added.
* Italian Heritage Month was established by President George H.W. Bush in 1989.
