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Memories
•
The Madeiran-Portuguese 1n Lowell
(Joseph Freitas, a computer
consultant residing in Tewksbury, grew up in Lowell's Portuguese neighborhood.)
By JOSEPH FREITAS
LOWELL - Madeira, Portugal's volcanic "Pearl of the Atlantic," with a mean temperature of
70-80 degrees year-round, is a
vacation mecca for the British,
French, Swedes and Italians,
and to an increasing extent,
Americans of Portuguese descent who are aware of its extraordinary natural beauty.
In the late 19th and early 20th
centuries, this tiny archipelago
exported many of its citizens to
America, progenitors of future
Americans like screen star Mary
Astor (nee Lucille Vasconcells)
and John Dos Passos, eminent
author of"American Trilogy," a
contemporary and friend of
Fitzgerald and Hemingway.
Many of these immigrants
found their way to Lowell,
among them, my parents, Daniel
Francisco Freitas and Constantina Souza Freitas, who made
their home on back Central
Street in St. Anthony's parish,
which was founded in 1908 to
accomodate the spiritual needs
of a growing Portuguese presence in the city.
Today, this church is comprised mostly of Portuguese from
the Azores, who have come here
in the past 25 years.
The accompanying photo,
taken in 1929, illustrates the
closeness of this community.
Directed by Firmo Correia
(whose son Manny is a tax auditor for the state), the group
performed plays, mostly musicals, for the entertainment of St.
Anthony's parishioners and
Portuguese people in other communities.
Front row
Among those in the front row
are the late Joe Lawrence;
Joseph DeFreitas of Birch
Street (whose son, Joe Jr., is
assistant clerk of courts in
Ayer); Leo Fernandes, now 85
and still square dancing with his
wife, Violette; Tony Santos of
the Lusitania Bakery, eventually sold to Manny Barros, who renamed it Barry's (which is still
doing well under Manny Jr.'s
aegis); Joe Freitas of Waite
Street; Antonio Batista, and August Fernandes. The four Fernandes sisters recently visited
cousins in Madeira.
Stars of the Madeiran-Portuguese community, 1929
In the second row we find
Hazel Pitta, whose husband
owned a grocery store at the corner of Central and Union
Streets; the two Souza sisters
and Delphina Machado Quintal.
In the third row are Joe
Oliveira, one of the six "Oliver"
Broth.ers, who, along with their
parents, were exceptionally
fine musicians; Manny Freitas,
now retired from the Mass. Bay
Authority; Manny Quintal, husband of Delphina; and Joe Costa's brother, Arthur.
The fourth row includes Joe
Ribeiro, a fine basketball player in his day, now retired from
the B&M; Freddy Avila (attorney Herb Pitta's father-in-law);
John-Maria Ferriera, who ran a
chicken farm in Tewksbury; Firmo Correia; and Charles Borges,
now confined in a local veteran's hospital. Correia had
another son, Eddie, who invested in tuna clippers and real
estate on the West Coast.
This group continued to
change slightly throughout the
30s. There were constant rehearsals at a brick, sixapartment block on Tyler
Street, which had a huge basement. Tyler Street (where
Zayre's is now located) had
quite a few Madeiran families
living on it, including the Caldeiras, Pachecos, Freitas', and
Manuel and Julia Gonsalves,
who maintained a boarding
house which catered to unattached males newly arrived
from the old country.
Contributed their talents
People like Joe Camara
(father of Joe Jr., a music
teacher in the Lowell School
System), and Tony Gomes
(whose widow, Mary, remarried
John Thomas, another
Madeiran) all contributed their
talents. Mary's brothers (Silva)
all became wealthy contractors.
Lowell licensing commissioner
Eddie Santos had a wonderful
voice and participated for many
years.
Pearl Rodriques, grandtnother of Broadway aspirant
Grady Mulligan (who obviously
gets his talent from the Portuguese si'de of the family); along
with my sister Julia. and
brother-in-law Armand s·antos,
who plans to winter this year in
Madeira, were contributors. I
especially remember the
beautiful and talented Madeline Bettencourt Stys, now de-
ceased, on a set that rivaled
something out of Hollywood,
singing on a swing.
George Mello, whose voice
was good enough to merit a tryout with Arthur Godfrey; and
Alice Joncas, mother of Steve
Joncas (partner of Sen. Paul
Tsongas in several developmental projects), made a marvelous
duo. Abel Alves, retired to Rye,
N.H.; Jack Freitas, who formed
the Royal Madeiran Orchestra
which played all over New England, and countless others, gave
freely of their talents.
This Madeiran-influenced
church group eventually purchased a piece of land on Village
Street. It became the Holy Ghost
Park and is the center of a new
vitality that still exists within St.
Anthony's. Its influence is now
Azorean, but it's really not that
different - it's still Portugue
During Labor Day Weeken
the park is the scene of a "Festa
do Loreto." Come on out, eat
some "bacalhao," "carne de
speto;" listen to some music,
dance under the stars and make
believe you're in Madeira.
You'll enjoy it.
�
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
Ares Family Collection [1937-1985]
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Digital copies of the photographs were donated by Joseph Ares. Photo albums donated by anonymous drop-off at the Morse Institute Library in Natick, MA and are now physically housed at the Center for Lowell History in Lowell, MA.
Description
An account of the resource
The Ares Family Collection includes three sets of items: photographs donated by Joseph Ares, photographs donated by Carmen Ares, and two photo albums created by Victor Ares. The items focus on the musical and military lives of multiple members of the Ares families.<br /><br /><strong>Biographical Note:</strong><br /><p><span>The Ares family was a large and well-known family in the Lowell area. They lived at 7 Court Avenue in Back Central and the family included twelve children.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>The head of the household, Ricardo Ares, was born around 1888-1891 in Ferrol, Spain. His parents were Joseph Ares and Carmen Carballeira Ares (born around 1872). He immigrated to the United States in 1909. In 1917, he was working as a machinist at the Saco Lowell Machine Shop.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>Rose Santos, Ricardo’s wife, was born on May 12, 1898 in Lowell, MA. Her parents were Manuel Santos and Anna Cunha Santos, both immigrants from Portugal who married in Lowell on November 1, 1896.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>Ricardo and Rose met in Lowell and married on September 1, 1918 at Saint Anthony’s Church. They were married by Rev. John Perry. Both Ricardo and Rose were operatives in mills at the time. They went on to have twelve children, most of whom were talented musicians. The Ares family quickly became known for their musical talents, especially in 1941 when some of the Ares children performed on the City Library Hour radio program. Their band name was the “Ares Hillbilly Orchestra” and they performed at many events under this name.</span><span> </span></p>
<p><span>What follows is a brief overview of the lives of the twelve Ares children:</span><span> </span></p>
<ul><li><b><span>Victor Ares</span></b><span> (June 18, 1919-July 29, 1988) - After graduating from high school, Victor completed his basic training at Camp Croft in South Carolina and was a proud veteran for his entire life. As a sousaphone player, he served in the 179</span><span>th</span><span> infantry band in the 45</span><span>th</span><span> Division of the United States Army. He was awarded many medals and was a life member of the Earl Harvey chapter of Disabled Americans. Victor worked at the American Hide and Leather Company but eventually was employed with the Massachusetts Department of Corrections for 20 years before his retirement.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Frances Ares Weldon</span></b><span> (December 17, 1920-January 21, 2011) - Frances was the oldest daughter in the Ares family. She eventually married Frank Weldon and moved to California, where she remained for the rest of her life.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Mary Rose Ares Wilkins</span></b><span> (May 5, 1922-April 16, 1993) - Mary Rose married Francis P. Wilkins at Saint Anthony’s Church on April 29, 1956. Rev. John Silva officiated. At the time, she was employed at the Megowan Educator Food Company and took part in the church choir.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Richard “Richie” Ares</span></b><span> (March 17, 1924-August 11, 1966) - Richard was a WWII veteran. He served with the U.S. Army in Europe. Working at Reiss Associates during the day, he continued his musical interests throughout his life. He was part of bands such as The Versatiles and Saint Anthony’s Players. He married Kathleen Carter and had five children.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Joseph “Joey” Ares</span></b><span> (October 13, 1925-June 6, 1987) - Joseph was another WWII veteran but, conversely to his older brothers, he served in the U.S. Navy. He married Beverlyn B. Bessette in New Bedford on September 5, 1948. Joey and Beverlyn moved to California, where they remained until his death in 1987.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Francis “Frankie” Ares</span></b><span> (January 25, 1927-January 15, 2014) - Frankie Ares was an accomplished guitarist and found his way into many musical groups and radio programs in Lowell. He is featured in the 1954 radio program, Melodies of Portugal, which you can listen to on this site. He worked as a mechanical technician. He married Lorrain A. LeBrun and they had three children.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Theresa Ares Machado</span></b><span> (October 2, 1928-October 6, 2011) - Theresa was a dedicated member of Saint Anthony’s Church in Lowell. She got married there on November 27, 1955 to Daniel Machado (son of Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Machado of 9 Elm Street). The marriage was performed by Rev. John Silva. Theresa worked at the Educator Bisquit Company for 30 years before joining the Canteen Corporation. She also worked as a cafeteria worked in Lowell schools.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Albert Ares </span></b><span>(May 5, 1930-August 13, 2007) - Similarly to his brother Joey, Albert served with the U.S. Navy for four years after graduating from high school. After his service, he held various jobs at the McGowen Educator Food Company and Lowell Wiper Supply Company. He served as a delegate for TWUA-CIO in 1949. He married Phyllis Vallee on April 8, 1956 and they eventually moved out to California.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Henry “Hank” Ares</span></b><span> (March 20, 1933-February 22, 2007) - Hank was another very accomplished musician in the Ares family. He was a member of bands such as the Come Back Kids and the Tri Tones. After graduating from high school (where he was a member of the LHS Band for four years), he served in the Air Force and attained the rank of staff sergeant. He was stationed overseas during the Korean War. Later in life, after retirement, he was sworn in to the State Police as a special agent in Lowell, specializing in animal cruelty and abuse cases.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Rosemary Ares Foote</span></b><span> (September 10, 1935-October 10, 2017) - Rosemary continued the musical tradition by being part of the Saint Anthony’s church choir. She married Harry Foote around 1957.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>George Ares</span></b><span> (born October 15, 1937) - As many of his siblings before him, George played in the Lowell High School band. He was part of the Boy Scouts and eventually married his wife, Judy.</span><span> </span></li>
<li><b><span>Carmen Ares Nickerson</span></b><span> (born in 1940) - Carmen was the youngest child in the Ares family. She married Ralph Nickerson and continued the family musical tradition by performing in local theater in Chelmsford, MA. She is the donor of this collection and currently resides in Hampton Beach, NH.</span><span> </span></li>
</ul><p><span>Rosa Santos Ares, the matriarch of this family, died in Lowell on May 6, 1956 after a brief illness. Her husband, Ricardo, married Juanna Martinez in 1959 and they eventually moved back to Spain. He died in Spain on September 17, 1974.</span><span> </span></p>
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History
Date
A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource
1937-1985
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
JPEG
PDF
Language
A language of the resource
English
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Image
Physical Object
Text
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Lowell (Mass.)
Blackstone (Va.)
Jefferson County (N.Y.)
New Bedford (Mass.)
Salem (N.H.)
Salisbury (Mass.)
Taunton (Mass.)
Subject
The topic of the resource
Veterans
Beaches
Musicians
Instrumentation and orchestration (Band)
Antique and classic cars
Wedding attendants
Graduation (school)
United States. Army.
World War, 1939-1945
Portuguese American women
Madeirans
Music--Portuguese influences
Catholic Church--Dioceses
Text
A resource consisting primarily of words for reading. Examples include books, letters, dissertations, poems, newspapers, articles, archives of mailing lists. Note that facsimiles or images of texts are still of the genre Text.
Text
Any textual data included in the document
Mary Astor
Lucille Vasconells
John Dos Passos
Daniel Francisco Freitas
Daniel Freitas
Constantina Souza Freitas
Constantina Freitas
Firmo Correia
Firmo Correa
Manny Correia
Manny Correa
Joe Lawrence
Joseph DeFreitas
Joe DeFreitas
Leo Fernandes
Violette Fernandes
Tony Santos
Manny Barros
Joe Freitas
Antonio Batista
August Fernandes
Hazel Pitta
Delphina Machado Quintal
Joe Oliveira
Manny Freitas
Manny Quintal
Arthur Costa
Joe Ribeiro
Freddy Avila
Herb Pitta
John-Maria Ferriera
Charles Borges
Eddie Correia
Eddie Correa
Manuel Gonsalves
Julia Gonsalves
Joe Camara
Tony Gomes
Mary Gomes
John Thomas
Mary Silva
Eddie Santos
Pearl Rodrigues
Grady Mulligan
Julia Freitas
Armand Santos
Madeline Bettencourt Stys
George Mello
Alice Joncas
Steve Joncas
Abel Alves
Jack Freitas
Dublin Core
The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/.
Title
A name given to the resource
"The Madeiran-Portuguese in Lowell"
Subject
The topic of the resource
Madeirans
Portuguese American women
Music--Portuguese influences
Source
A related resource from which the described resource is derived
Donated by Joseph Ares.
Publisher
An entity responsible for making the resource available
UMass Lowell, Center for Lowell History
Rights
Information about rights held in and over the resource
In Copyright - Educational Use Permitted: This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. In addition, no permission is required from the rights-holder(s) for educational uses. For other uses, you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Format
The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource
PDF
Type
The nature or genre of the resource
Text
Coverage
The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant
Lowell (Mass.)
Creator
An entity primarily responsible for making the resource
Freitas, Joseph
Description
An account of the resource
Article detailing Madeiran musicians in the Lowell area in the 1930s.
Barry's Pastry Shop
Holy Ghost Park
Lusitania Bakery
Royal Madeiran Orchestra