Preserving the Past: Rosalyn Queen on Family, Food & Tradition
A Taste of Heritage: Rosalyn Queen’s Story
When Rosalyn Queen sits down to talk about her life, what emerges is a moving tribute to family, faith, and food. A lifelong resident of Clarksburg, Rosalyn has spent decades documenting and celebrating Italian-American culture through her beloved newspaper column The Grapevine and her cookbook Arrivederci: Recipes and Customs Every Italian Girl Takes from Home (see below for an excerpt featuring Rosalyn’s family recipe for Pita Piata). Her interview is a journey through East View’s tight-knit community, outdoor bread ovens, and Sunday meatballs (made from memory, a recipe was not written down in those days!).
In this new podcast, she shares her family’s story—how her father came from Italy, survived hardship, and proudly served in the U.S. Marines, even changing his surname at Ellis Island to protect his passage. Rosalyn recalls the joy of baking Easter bread, the discipline of preserving and canning peppers, and the reverence of celebrating on Christmas Eve with the Feast of the Seven Fishes. Her stories are both deeply personal and profoundly universal.
She speaks with conviction about the importance of preserving culture through shared meals, handwritten recipes, and the West Virginia Italian Heritage Festival which she helped lead for many years. As she says herself, “Every Italian dish has a story.” In Rosalyn’s case, every story is a dish, lovingly passed down and served with soul.
As evidenced by her recollections, family is very important to Rosalyn. Sadly, in the spring of 2025, Rosalyn and her family experienced the loss of her son, Marty. He is remembered as an entrepreneur and business owner, a coin collector and car enthusiast. Marty was a proud resident of the East View community of Clarksburg. He loved and adored his three children and two granddaughters - and his dog and best friend, Max.
Rosalyn and her children and grandchildren continue to make a mark on our North Central West Virginia Community in many ways - from volunteering for community events, serving in public office, to running successful businesses, as well as continuing to preserve history through writing and storytelling.
The Clarksburg History Museum would like to extend a sincere thank you to Rosalyn for her time to do this interview, and for her dedication in helping us share these stories. Rosalyn reminds us that heritage isn’t just about where we come from—it’s about what we carry forward.
In the archives of the West Virginia Italian Heritage Festival, Rosalyn can be found for many years, sharing her passion for preserving traditions.
Honorary Recipient
In April 2025, Rosalyn was awarded an Honorary Bachelor of Humanities degree from Glenville State University for “her unwavering dedication to the humanities, extensive volunteerism, and for her insightful weekly news column.”
Rosalyn enjoyed the ceremony with her children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren, and was awarded her degree by Dr. Manchin.
Arrivederci is written by Rosalyn Queen © 2006 ISBN: 1-884687-62-8
Credits
Host, Research, & Scheduling: Martha Jett
Production & Marketing: Clarksburg History Museum volunteers
Mixing & Editing: J. Joseph
Music: West Virginia Mountain Melody performed by Steve Peters
Special thank you to: Rosalyn Queen
Cover art is from the cover of Arrivederci and is an original painting by Raffaella "Folly" Basile, a Clarksburg native who has paintings hanging throughout the United States. Seen in the background of the cover art, the artist depicts Clarksburg's Immaculate Conception Catholic Church.