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Leonardo received the sad news of his twin brother's death from his new home
in New Zealand. After producing two children ~ Gigha in 1859 and Matilda in 1861 ~
and being naturalised in 1863, Leonardo had decided to move to New Zealand seeking
work. Departing without his family ~ in the tradition of his Ticinese ancestors ~ he
organised an expedition of five men with pack horses to go to Cadrona near Hokitika
in New Zealand. In Hokitika, he bought the Crovm Hotel, where his family eventually
came to live. The same year as Alessandro's death, and five years after his retum to
Australia, Stefano opened a wine shop in Vincent Street, Daylesford (ref figure 9).
He sold wine imported from Melboume and his premises housed a billiard room and a
meeting place for the Swiss and Italian community.
As the operator of a large and well-known Daylesford business establishment,
Stefano joined in various community activities and associations. In 1867, he became a
member of the Daylesford Fire Brigade and then later the Daylesford and District
Citizens' Band ~ in which he was to participate for 50 years. He was associated with
the Daylesford Hospital, contributing both in cash and kind, and a member of the
Independent Order of Odd Fellows (lOOF), an Anglo-Australian non-Catholic
organisation.'*' Traditionally dependent on the support of family, an interest in broader
community affairs represented a shift in values for the Italian-speaking peasantry: the
life of a business person demanded wider social contacts and involvements. As
immigrants, however, the Italian speakers also found support in social groups linked
with their heritage, many joining and playing an active role in the Swiss and Italian
Association (which should not be confused with the much larger Swiss Society of
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