#American Corner

America Turns 250. What Connects It to Ungheni — from an Oscar to a Fire Station

On 4 July, American Corner Ungheni marked «Freedom 250» — 250 years since U.S. independence. Behind a one-day reception, however, lies a story few people in Ungheni know: a screenwriter born in Ungheni wrote «The Apartment» and won an Oscar in Hollywood; in 1877 the Russo-Turkish war passed through Ungheni station, and an American officer wrote about it; from the old market town people left for New York and Philadelphia. And over the past three decades, America has left concrete traces — from bus stops and a fire station to an «American Corner» in the library. A documented inventory of what has been confirmed and what remains legend.