The Great Baltimore Fire of 1904 was first reported Sunday, Feb. 7, at about the time parishioners would have been leaving morning Mass at St. Leo?s Catholic Church at Stiles and Exeter.
The blaze, which took 1,200 firefighters a day and a half to get under control, threatened to engulf the entire enclave of Little Italy.
“People offered prayers to St. Anthony ? many prayers ? in hopes the church and their homes would be saved from ruin,” said the Rev. Sal Furnari, St. Leo?s assistant pastor.
One hundred and two summers later, the weekend-long St. Anthony?s Festival still honors the 13th-century saint of Padua, Italy, believed by many to have saved Little Italy from destruction.
Eggplant, chicken parmigiana, sausage and peppers, pizzas, vino, Birra Moretti (yes, the Italians make beer, too) and cannoli charmed the senses. Hundreds gathered to watch annual bocce tournament.
In the basement of the old St. Leo?s School, a block from church, Louis and Michael Tirochi, their father, their four sisters, plus a dozen nieces, nephews and cousins made more than 100 gallons of tomato sauce Friday night and then enough ravioli to serve 2,000 lunch and dinners Saturday and Sunday.
The homemade meals were expected to raise $12,000 to $14,000, with all the proceeds going to St. Leo?s ? which still has Mass in Italian once a month ? and will celebrate its 125th anniversary in October.
