Likewise, John’s on Bleecker Street has long been understood to have been established in 1929 but documents show 1915 to be the actual year. In 1915 Milone took over a bakery at 175 Sullivan St. The 1916 city directory notes him selling “Pies” there which given Milone’s career is almost certainly a term for pizza. By the time John Sasso (a relative of Milone’s by marriage) takes over the pizzeria with a partner, the 1925 city directory lists “Pizzeria Port’Alba” at 175 Sullivan St. which, given his history, was likely Milone’s name for it in 1915. The pizzeria eventually moved to Bleecker Street and is known today as “John’s.” A neon sign in the window still shows the name “Pizzeria Port’Alba”—an echo of the true history of the pizzeria.

Regas, an independent researcher, was originally researching Chicago pizzerias when he discovered holes in New York’s origin story. His findings include the earliest known documents that mention pizza and pizzerias in America. While historians have speculated that businesses where the dough was made primarily for pizza, may have existed in America during this period, no record of these establishments, or their owners, has been brought to light until now.

Regas’ book on the history of pizza in the U.S. will be released later in 2019. He has started sharing information that supports his claims including archival records, newspaper advertisements with translations, photographs, and family stories at pizzahistorybook.com.

Perhaps the most famous early 20th century U.S. pizzeria was at 53 Spring St. in New York City. Now called “Lombardi’s Pizza” (relocated at 32 Spring St.), it’s often claimed Gennaro Lombardi established the first U.S. pizzeria there in 1905. However recently discovered evidence shows this claim to be false in two respects: it wasn’t the first pizzeria, and it wasn’t established by Lombardi. City directories show Giovanni Albano’s pizzeria at 59 1/2 Mulberry St. (NYC) was already operating in 1894. Additionally, Filippo Milone, perhaps the U.S.’s most significant early pizza maker, very likely established the 53 Spring St. store as a combination pizzeria/grocery in the summer of 1898. By August 1904, Italian-American newspaper advertisements show a subsequent owner, Giovanni Santillo, operating “Antica Pizzeria Napoletana” at 53 Spring St. months before Lombardi even arrived in the U.S. in November 1904. Gennaro Lombardi may have worked for Santillo in 1905 as a newly arrived 17-year-old immigrant, but he didn’t own it in 1905. After a series of owners, Lombardi—who owned the pizzeria briefly in 1908—repurchased it from Francesco D’Errico around 1918 and ran it until he died in 1958. Once called “Antica Pizzeria Napoletana,” then “Grande Pizzeria e Ristorante Napoletano,” and then—after the family bought the building in 1939—”Lombardi’s Restaurant”, this post details the forgotten early history of the men who owned this legendary pizzeria. 

PHOTOGRAPHIC EVIDENCE:

What evidence supports Lombardi’s claims? The earliest and only known evidence showing Lombardi owned the business before 1918 is the famous photograph of Antonio Pero and Gennaro Lombardi in front of the pizzeria. Previously, the photo was thought to have been taken in 1905. However, a detailed analysis shows the photo was almost certainly taken in the fall of 1908 shortly after the 21-year-old Lombardi bought the pizzeria from Giovanni Santillo who then returned to Italy.

However, in 1908 Lombardi doesn’t remain owner for long. When the 1909 Trow’s Manhattan Business Directory is released in the spring of 1909 a baker named Francesco D’Errico (a relative of Lombardi’s through marriage) is now listed as the restaurant’s sole owner. D’Errico was previously a baker at 234 N. 5th St. in Williamsburg (Brooklyn). It appears likely that D’Errico and Lombardi exchanged businesses as Lombardi eventually appears for the first time in a directory in the 1912 Trow’s Brooklyn Business Directory as the owner of the bakery at 234 N. 5th Street.

WORLD WAR I REGISTRATION CARD EVIDENCE:

When did Lombardi buy back the Spring St. pizzeria from D’Errico? We’re fortunate WWI Registration Cards document when the buy back occurred. They show an ownership change after June 5, 1917 but before September 12, 1918. Since the 1918 City Directory still listed D’Errico as the owner the ownership change probably occurred sometime in mid-1918.

And from then until the day he died in 1958, Gennaro Lombardi was the owner of the pizzeria at 53 Spring Street. Initially called ….

CONCLUSION:

Putting together all the primary source evidence we get the following chart as to who owned the Spring Street pizzeria.