I happened to stumble over this today and thought is was important enough to post here.
Since I do believe in spreading knowledge around for everyone who may need it, I am including this in my blog.
Since my family is from a long line of fishermen, sea captains, etc in New England I know that the Portugese people are also from long lines of fishermen, sea captains, etc. I have brothers, nephews, etc, who are still fishermen today in New Bedford, MA, Virginia, etc.
When I lived in Stonington Borough in CT it was at the time when most of the fishermen who went out to sea from there actually lived in the borough itself. And most of them were Portugese. I remember the Blessing of the Fleet on the fishing docks of Stonington. At that time, the only ones who attended were the fishermen and their families. After the blessing of the fleet there would always be a block dance that evening. A whole block was roped off around the church (I have forgotten the name of the church though). There was music and I remember having a lot of fun. I was in grammar school then and don't quite remember the details, but I know it was fun and lively. My father, Nelson Joseph Machie worked on some of the boats of the Stonington fleet and I can still taste the fresh cod fish he would bring home on occasion. Wish I could have some right now!!
Today, sadly, I don't think there are any of the fishing fleet from Stonington that can actually afford to live in the little borough. And the blessing of the fleet !! You can't even get close to the borough because of all the tourists that want to see the fleet being blessed and diving for the coin which is supposed to bring very good luck to the person who finds it.
I wonder if they really understand the life threatening things that can happen while out to sea in a fishing boat? I read "The Perfect Storm" and thought of my brothers, nephews, other relatives and others who 'go down to the sea in boats' . My relatives knew all the people on that boat. They will NOT read the book and they will NOT talk about that incident either. I don't blame them. I pray for all the fishermen because it is one of the toughest jobs in the world and one of the most dangerous.
Anyway - back to the Portugese ancestry records. . .
If someone is of Portugese descent and is looking for information, this might help them out.
It many not help, but it certainly won't hurt either. Here is the article from
http://www.southcoasttoday.com/UMass Dartmouth to house Portuguese-American archiveBy COURTNEY NUNES
Standard-Times correspondent
February 01, 2009 6:00 AM
DARTMOUTH, MA — The Ferreira-Mendes Portuguese-American Archives, which will serve as the national repository for the history of the Portuguese in the United States, will open next month at UMass Dartmouth.
A formal inauguration is planned for some time in early March, said Judith Farrar, archives and special collections librarian.
In addition to holding the status of a national repository, the archives will benefit scholars studying Portuguese in America, as well as the local community. It will support the research needs of the faculty and students in UMD's undergraduate and graduate programs in the Department of Portuguese, and be a resource to anyone interested in Portuguese.
"It will also benefit residents of the Azores and Portugal seeking information on descendants who emigrated to the U.S.," Ms. Farrar said.
Materials in the archives pertaining to the presence of the Portuguese in the U.S. date back to the late 19th century, but materials from Portugal go back much further, she said.
"Right now, we are in the process of digitizing one of our most valuable resources — an almost complete run of the daily newspaper Diario de Noticias, which was published in New Bedford between 1919 and 1973," said Maria da Gloria de Sa, assistant professor of sociology and faculty director of the archives.
"Within a few months, people from all over the world will be able to search over 50 years of information contained in that newspaper, on any subject related to the Portuguese-American experience just like one would do a Google search."
The university plans to digitize other Portuguese-American newspapers from other parts of the country including California and New Jersey.
The Ferreira-Mendes Portuguese American Archives, endowed in 2005, is named for Taunton radio personality and producer, Affonso Ferreira-Ferreira Mendes. In 1996, they began collecting records, personal and family papers of the Portuguese community in the United States. The materials held by the archives came primarily from Portuguese and Portuguese-American individuals, families and organizations from all over the U.S.
"In some cases people will contact the archives to offer us their papers, photos, libraries, business records, etc.; other times we will go to them," Dr. de Sa said. "Often, people die and leave letters, photos, and other documents that relatives don't want to see lost or destroyed, so they will donate them to us to preserve and make available for research."
Some papers of Portuguese-American author Alfred Lewis, who was born in 1902 on the island of Flores and lived most of his adult life in California, were donated by his relatives in the U.S.
More recent donations include collected papers and/or family history of former Fall River Mayor Carlton Viveiros and Miguel Corte-Real, a historian and genealogist who emigrated to New Bedford from the Azores in the 1960s.
The archives also contain a large number of oral histories collected by UMass Dartmouth faculty and students. Dr. de Sa said some of these oral histories were used to produce the book "Portuguese Spinner, an American Story," published in 1998.
Besides paper-based materials and recording of oral histories, the archives also have video and audio recordings of Portuguese radio and television programs, as well as music and documentaries. "The archives do not just collect materials from so-called 'important people' or organizations. We are interested in all kinds of material that can help us tell the story of the Portuguese in America," Dr. de Sa said.
Letters, diaries, manuscripts, photographs, programs from Portuguese events, pamphlets, old newspapers, magazines, passports, naturalization papers, birth certificates, records of groups and organizations, and recipe books are all of interest to the archives.
Dr. de Sa asked anyone who has such materials and may be thinking of getting rid of them to contact the archives.
For more information on the archives, visit www.umassd.edu/hr/portuguesearchivist12-18-08.cfm.
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