 Born in Bagheria , Sicily , to father Carlo Sr. , Aiello was part of a large and impoverished family of at least nine other brothers and multiple cousins . His mother died when he was a child . In July 1907 , at age 17 , Aiello emigrated to the United States to join family members already residing there . After arriving in New York City by boat , he worked a series of menial jobs in Buffalo and Utica , New York , before connecting with his father , brothers and cousins in Chicago . The family set up several businesses in both New York and Chicago , including the financially successful Aiello Brothers Bakery , and they become importers of such groceries as olive oil , cheeses and sugar . 
