Many Evrytanians immigrated to America following other Greeks during
the 1890's. Most settled in large northern cities such as New York, Philadelphia,
and Baltimore; a few settled in the South. Many of these immigrants suffered humiliations
due to language, cultural, and religious differences. Many of the original immigrant
Evrytanians came to America from the village of
Viniani.
Despite difficulties first encountered by the immigrants of the 1890's,
the decade between 1910 and 1920 proved profitable for many Evrytanians living
in the Carolinas, Georgia, Maryland, and Virginia. Most were owners of restaurants.
After 1925, a new era began in the South, with many well-established
Evrytanians gaining the respect and friendship of their communities. Many returned
to Greece at the beginning of the Great Depression, while others remained in America.
After WW II, in which the state of
Evrytania
suffered more than other areas with the Nazi occupation and the communist-inspired
guerilla warfare that followed, many persons left Evrytania; many returned to
America and many others came for the first time.
The lives of many fellow Evrytanians has improved over the past century
in America. While such assimilation into the "melting pot" has proved profitable,
there are costs. One large cost is the loss of being able to read the original
literature. One way to share this knowledge is by translating many of the literary
works into English, a language that has become primary for many of our youth.
Professor Paul N. Chryssikos, a long-time, and deceased in 1997, member of our
Association, often donated his time to this excellent cause. One of Paul's translations
which he performed for the Youth of Evrytania, is the poem by Mihalis Stafylas
"EVRYTANIA". This is available from all local chapters.
The Evrytanian Association came to fruition during 1944 in
Charlotte,
North Carolina.
