gerry ferraro was born on august 26, 1935 in the hudson river city of new burg, new york, fourth child and only daughter of domenic ferraro, an italian immigrant who owned a restaurant and five and dime store. one brother died shortly after birth and another died in an automobile accident when he was three, two years before she was born. she was born at home. her mother who had been holding gerard at the time of the crash and washed and pressed his clothes for months after his death, would not go to the hospital for the delivery and leave the third brother at home. she was named for her brother but in her book, ms. ferraro said her mother emphasized that she was not taking his place. gerry is special because she is a girl. her mother soon sold the store and the family's house and moved to the south bronx with the proceeds of the sale of the italy, she sent her to a catholic school. and sent her to tarrytown. her grades earned a scholarship to college from which she transferred to the school's manhattan branch and commuted to queens where her mother had moved by then. ms. ferraro was ed