Pathe Roosters - The Rest of the Story

[CurtA]

Last July I posted my initial findings regarding the creator of the Pathe Rooster store displays.  After countless searches with no further luck, I gave up looking.  This past week I decided to try again and this time I found some very interesting additional information.  I thought that I would never find substantial proof of the factory that produced them or pictures of Luigi Biagiotti, the sculptor.  A genealogical search provided some unexpected information.

 

I was able to document some specific family history:

Luigi (Louis) Raffaello Giuseppe (Joseph) Biagiotti:

Luigi (Louis) Raffaello Giuseppe Biagiotti was born on 16 May 1863, in Barga, Lucca, Tuscany, Italy.  His father, Giovanni Biagiotti, was 40 and his mother, Maria Luisa Barbara Marchetti, was 31. He married Maria Adelania Attilia Biagiotti on 30 April 1887, in Manhattan, New York City, NY. They were the parents of at least 5 sons and 5 daughters. He lived in New York City at 45 Greenwich Ave., New York Co., NY, in 1915 and then Manhattan, New York City, NY, in 1920. He died on 29 August 1953, in Middle Village, Queens, NY, at the age of 90, and was buried in Brooklyn, New York City, NY.

 

He apparently had several companies that produced plaster architectural details that are still decorating many old buildings in New York.  I found references to Odostone Mfg. Co., Biagiotti & Co. and Plaster Saints Co.  

 

You know all of the statues that are found in various catholic churches?  Luigi made a lot of them, along with church interior decorations.  In 1933 he was involved with creating the code of fair competition for the "Ecclesiastical Statuary And Church Furnishings Industry" (who knew that was an industry that needed regulating).

 

 

I also found several pictures of Luigi, including one taken in his factory...

 

I also found a newspaper article from 1984, interviewing his descendants who were still operating the business at the time, however, it seems to no longer exist.  If I discover any more information, I will update this thread...

 

I hope you found this to be as interesting as I did... Thanks for reading.