Beginning in the 1870's, Italians came in great numbers to Colorado. In the Roaring Fork Valley, Italian immigrants did the hard, dirty work wanted by no one else, and most were coal miners in the mines at Sunlight, Spring Gulch, and Marion. Though initially few in number, they were joined by others who heard of the mines' employment opportunities. John Amicarella sought a better life for himself, leaving his native Italy and wife in 1895 to immigrate to New York City. Although he found work there, friends told him of employment at the coal camp of Sunlight in Colorado, where he found a future for his family. After 10 years toiling in the mines, several trips back to Italy, and pleading, he convinced his wife Mary to come to the United States. In 1905 she passed through Ellis Island with children Adeline, George, Lawrence, and Tony. The Amicarella family eventually grew to ten children. In time, their descendants left coal mining for less dangerous professions, and the Amicarellas and many other Italian immigrants contributed greatly to the prosperity of the region as ranchers, bankers, business owners, builders, physicians, and more.