Westerly, home to 'soupy,' will soon have a sign to note it

WESTERLY — Soupy is getting its own sign.

Westerly expects to take delivery this spring of a custom-made sign that will go on display in Columbus Circle to denote the town's stature as a key locale for the dry-cured pork sausage that, by Italian tradition passed down from immigrant ancestors, is made yearly every winter in homes around town.

It was in 1994 that the town decreed soupy to be the official Town Meat Product, Assistant Town Manager Melissa Davy noted last week. Davy worked with Town Councilor Mary Scialabba to get the ball rolling last year on efforts to get a permanent commemoration of the fact in a prominent location.

The pair were able to get grant funds from the William G. Pomeroy Foundation to have the sign produced. The foundation's Hungry for History grant program celebrates America’s food history by telling the stories of local and regional food specialties across the United States. One of the foundation's initiatives is helping people celebrate their community’s history. It provides grants to obtain signage in the form of roadside markers and plaques. Since 2005, it has funded more than 2,000 signs across the United States, according to its website.

"This program is designed to commemorate significant food dishes created prior to 1970 and the role they played in defining American culture and forging community identity," the foundation says. "Hungry for History is intended to help communities nationwide put the spotlight on their renowned locally and regionally created food dishes with historic roadside markers."

As designed, Westerly's sign will read, "Soppressata, dry-cured pork sausage made with unique blends of spices, according to tradition by Westerly families since late 1920s."

Now, anyone familiar with Westerly and its history will say that soupy was around much earlier than the late 1920s, Scialabba and Davy concede. The Pomeroy Foundation, however, uses stricter standards than family lore or tradition to verify the information that goes on the signs.

"Mary and I met with multiple Westerly residents to obtain first-hand, primary source documentation of soupy's history in Westerly," Davy said. "Unfortunately, because all provided documentation had to be from a primary source, we could not prove soupy's presence in Westerly prior to the 1920s to the historian's satisfaction, and that is why the marker will say 'since late 1920s'. But we all know it's been a part of our community since long before that decade."

Another wrinkle in the project is that food tourists and other out-of-towners who go looking for a sign mentioning "soupy" won't find that word anywhere on the new placard.

That's because the word soupy itself has been trademarked, and no one wants to run afoul of intellectual property laws. A quick check of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office shows "Soupy," referring to sausage, is actively registered to Fortuna's Sausage Co. of Vermont. Fortuna's operated a deli here for many years, and still has ties to the area.

In 2002, The New York Times said Westerly "is considered the world capital of soupy: a peppery, dry-cured sausage first produced by people who moved to Westerly from Calabria, Italy, around 1900 to work in the quarries and the factories. Their descendants — and many others — continue to make it today."

Soupy's popularity hasn't waned with time, and in many quarters it's grown with the spread of information online. The meat, known alternatively as zuppi, suppi and soupie by its adherents, is as popular as ever in Westerly. 

Last August, members of St. Pius X Church held a "Homemade Soupy & Wine Festival," and the United Theatre announced recently it will host its inaugural Soupy Fest on March 23, "to celebrate Westerly’s place as the world capital of soupy by honoring and highlighting the history of this famous culinary delight with tastings, a premiere documentary short-film screening, a soupy-trail map of Westerly, and a celebrity judged contest rating the best family-made soupy in town."