Lagomarcino's


 * Lagomarcino’s **

 Original Author: Katlyn Harris, A&S195 SP12

 Revision Author:

 When you walk into Lagomarcino’s the ambiance is filled with great memories, traditions, and a 1920’s vibe. Angelo Lagomarcino, an immigrant from Northern Italy, founded Lagomarcino’s Confectionery in Moline, Illinois in 1908 with his wife Luigia. The two had three children who were all quickly involved in the business. The business has been passed down through generations and is currently on to the fourth generation. Angelo worked hard, his family worked hard, Relatives who followed from Italy worked hard, and there were no days off. It was a total leap of faith for Angelo to leave Italy and open a confectionary in a town he knew only as the “John Deere Factory.” The store to this day has the same mahogany booths, Tiffany-style lamps and a hexagon terrazzo floor with blue flowers. When Angelo first opened the store, the family sold sodas, ice cream, sandwiches, tobacco, and cigars. Candy and chocolate were not the primary items being sold when the business first started, through the years the family developed more and more sweets. Some of the most popular candies from Lagomarcino’s are hot fudge sundaes, banana split, caramel apples, sponge candy, and of course the green rivers. It was during the depression when Angelo purchased a twenty-five dollar hot fudge recipe that made “Lago’s” what we know today. Although his wife was absolutely furious at the time he purchased the recipe for so much money, it really paid off in the long run. The hot fudge is now even sold at local grocery stores for sale. To further grow the company the family made many changes throughout the years. The first major change was the addition of a second store in Davenport Iowa which opened in 1997. Happy Joe Whitty suggested that the Lagomarcino’s turn his place in the east village into a classy soda fountain. Although this store is much newer and does not have the same décor, its similar enough to remind customers of old times. Lagomarcino’s is known for their old traditions for different occasions. Holidays are the busiest time for the Lagomarcino family. At Christmas time the business would produce about four thousand pounds of homemade chocolate, sometimes that would not even be enough and they would run out. Lagomarcino’s reminds people of little soda fountains they had in their own hometowns. There are many young people who come in and have never even seen a soda machine before. In our decade now, there are very little soda machines so when anyone gets the chance to indulge in one, it brings back great memories. Bill Wundrum describes Lagomarcino’s as being more than a legacy of sweets. It is how the Lagomarcino family has touched the lives of their customers in a very personal way for hundreds of years. Life is his joy; chocolate is his god-given relative.

Hildebrandt, Stephanie. "Old-fashioned Success."//Quad City Times// [Davenport]. Print. Lagomarcino's | The Finest in Chocolates | Quad Cities." //"Breaking into a Filled Chocolate Egg Is a Delicious Easter Tradition" Allison Engel, SAVEUR April 2001//. Web. 09 Apr. 2012. . Schneeberger, Gary. "Lagomarcinos Gives Visitors a Sweet Taste of the past." //Quad City Times// [Davenport] Apr. 1992. Print. Wundram, Bill. //Sweet Memories: The Lagomarcino Story//. Davenport, IA: Lagomarcino's, 2008. Print. www.candyindustry.com. "Moline ILL.Confectioner Tom Lagomarcino Dies." 2009. Web. Mar. 2012.
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