Azorean Americans]]> Children of immigrants]]> Mills and mill-work]]> Ethnic neighborhoods]]> Music]]> Fathers and sons]]> Civic leaders]]> Portuguese language]]> Cultural assimilation]]>
Biographical Note:
Born in Manchester, New Hampshire, in 1933; parents from Graciosa, Azores, immigrated to the U.S. ca. 1926; both parents worked in textile mills in Manchester and Lowell; father a loom fixer, mother a spinner; they settled permanently in Lowell ca. 1936; members of St. Anthony Catholic Church, they had three daughters and one son, John J. who was educated in Lowell’s public schools; his father was a trombonist who played in and managed Lowell’s Portuguese Colonial Band; Mr. Leite joined the band as boy, playing the trumpet and later the trombone; after serving in the U.S. Army in post-war Europe, he returned home and matriculated at Lowell State Teachers’ College; after graduating from the college he taught in the area’s public schools, performed as a professional trombonist in well-known local bands, and formed his own band; beginning in the 1970s Mr. Leite became secretary/treasurer of the Lowell local of the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), AFL-CIO, and after its merger with other locals in 1995, he was elected president of AFM Local 300.

Scope and Contents:
Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali covers John Leite’s family background, growing up in Lowell’s Portuguese neighborhood “Back Central” in the 1930s and 1940s, activities at St. Anthony Catholic Church, Portuguese music and musicians in Lowell, and Lowell’s changing musical culture. There is a great deal of material on the personalities and musical playing styles of a number of prominent Portuguese musicians in Lowell from the 1950s into the 1990s. [For more on John J. Leite and his role in the American Federation of Musicians, Local 300, see “Oral History with John Leite, 1999,” interview by Gray Fitzsimons, Historian, Lowell National Historical Park]]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Graciosa (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Manchester (N.H.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Community organization]]> Factories]]> Portuguese language]]> Marriage]]>
Biographical Note:
Born in the Azores on the island of Faial in 1940; following the volcanic eruption of Vulcão dos Capelinhos on Faial, Maria Pombeiro immigrated with her family to the U.S. in 1958 and settled in Lowell in the Portuguese neighborhood of “Back Central”; her father obtained employment in a paper-tube factory in Lowell and Ms. Pombeiro soon found a job in a clothing factory, also in Lowell, where she worked until the 1970s; after this factory closed she obtained a job at the Raytheon Corporation’s plant in South Lowell and then Andover, Massachusetts, doing electronic assembly work; after being laid off at Raytheon she worked at a medical supply manufacturing company in Billerica, Massachusetts. In addition to her work in manufacturing, Ms. Pombeiro was married (at St. Anthony Catholic Church in “Back Central”) and raised a family in Lowell.

Scope and Contents:
Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; Ms. Pombeiro discusses the Capelinhos volcanic eruptions on her native island in 1957-58; her family’s decision to immigrate to the U.S. and settle in Lowell; her work and the working conditions in a Lowell clothing factory in the late 1950s, into the 1970s, and her subsequent work at the Raytheon Corporation plant in South Lowell. Ms. Pombeiro also discusses Lowell’s Portuguese community, businesses and shopping in the “Back Central” neighborhood, and Portuguese foods that she enjoyed in Lowell.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Faial (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Soccer]]> Community organization]]> Civic leaders]]> Ethnic groups]]> Oral History Interview with Renato Lima, September 17, 2016
Biographical Note:
Born on the island of Faial in 1939; one of four children (three boys and one girl) of Joaquin and Antonieta deLima; Renato Lima was educated in the Faial schools and graduated from high school on Terceira island; began playing soccer as a boy and became one of Faial’s highly skilled players; moved to the island of Terceira after the devastating eruptions (1957-58) of Vulcão dos Capelinhos; after working in a governmental job for the water department on Terceira, and playing soccer for the successful Sport Clube Lusitânia, Mr. Lima immigrated to the United States in 1962, settling with Portuguese friends in Lawrence, Massachusetts, where his brothers and sister would also settle; Mr. Lima obtained a factory job in Malden Mills (in Lawrence); moved briefly to Taunton, Massachusetts, where he was paid to play on a Portuguese soccer team (Taunton Sports Soccer Club), but returned to Lawrence after one year and worked for a rubber and vinyl manufacturer; he married a Portuguese woman whom he had met on Terceira and who immigrated from Terceira to Lawrence to marry him; remained an avid soccer player and fan, and was also active in Lawrence’s Portuguese-American Club.
Scope and Contents:
Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali, this interview covers the aftermath of the volcanic eruptions on the island of Faial and the effect on the largely agrarian population; much of the focus is on the Portuguese community in Lawrence, the various factories where Portuguese émigrés worked, the city’s small Portuguese Catholic parish (Saint Peter and Paul Catholic Church), and the relationship between Lowell’s Portuguese and those in Lawrence.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Capelinhos Volcano (Azores)]]> Faial (Azores)]]> Lawrence (Mass.)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Children of immigrants]]> Music]]> Instrumentation and orchestration (Band)]]> Immigrant families]]> Engineering]]> Civic leaders]]> Community organization]]> Oral History Interview with Richard F. DeFreitas, February 27, 2016
Biographical Note:
Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1939; son of Josephine (Cotta) and Joaquim DeFreitas; Richard F. DeFreitas’s mother (1911-1994) was born Lowell her parents, Josephine (Almeida) and Francisco C. Cotta were from Terceira and were among the first communicants of Saint Anthony Catholic Church; his father (1908-1994) was born in Madeira and, at the age of eleven, immigrated to the U.S. with his parents (Ludevina and Francisco DeFreitas); the DeFreitas family settled in Manchester, New Hampshire; Joaquim and Josephine married in 1936, and settled in Lowell on the fringe of the “Back Central” neighborhood; they were communicants of Saint Anthony’s, and became active in the Holy Ghost Society; Josephine worked as a knitter in the New Knit Company’s factory in Lowell; Joaquim became a master mechanic at the Brox Construction Company in Dracut, Massachusetts; as a young boy, Richard F. DeFreitas attended the city’s public schools and learned to play the clarinet (his father played guitar and, with a number of Portuguese men, formed a band that played in local clubs); by age twelve he played in the Portuguese Colonial Band;  in the 1950s, the family moved to Chelmsford, Massachusetts, on a former poultry farm near the Chelmsford-Lowell line; by his teens at Chelmsford High School, DeFreitas was an accomplished clarinetist musician; graduated from Lowell Technological Institute with a degree in engineering; while playing in various bands in the area, Mr. DeFreitas worked in engineering for the Raytheon Corporation, followed by Ditran, Division of Clifton-Litton Industries, producers of analog-to-digital conversion electronic equipment for the computer industry; after working at two other electronic manufacturing firms in the area, he accepted an engineering job in California he worked for electronic computer-related manufacturing firm; Mr. DeFreitas returned to Chelmsford and worked for Hybrid Systems Corporation before founding his own company DeltaLab Research, Inc. While at Hybrid and DeltaLab, Mr. DeFreitas received several patents for analog-digital conversion and audio products used in sound and musical recordings.

Scope and Contents:
Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; in addition to personal family history, this interview includes information on Lowell’s Portuguese community in the 1940s and 1950s, activities at the Holy Ghost Society and Saint Anthony Catholic Church, as well as the activities of and persons associated with the Portuguese Colonial Band; there is also information on working at various factories in 1940s and 1950s Lowell and the move of the DeFreitas family to the suburbs of Chelmsford in the 1950s; much of the interview focuses on music and musicianship within the area’s Portuguese community, and the various clubs where Mr. DeFreitas and other musicians played; it concludes with some information on the area’s growing electronic and computer industries, including a company founded by Mr. DeFreitas in the late 1970s.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Entrepreneurship]]> Veterans]]> Angola--History--Revolution, 1961-1975]]> Agriculture]]> Ethnic neighborhoods]]> Oral History Interview with Mario F. Veiga, November 21, 2016

Biographical Note:
Born on the Azorean island of Graciosa in 1946; son of Luzomira A. (Augusta) and Manuel J. Veiga; Mario F. Veiga was raised on the family’s farm and attended school until age eleven; he continued to work on the family’s farm until age twenty when he was drafted into the Portuguese Army; served two years in Angola, during the Angolan War of Independence; returned to Graciosa where he married Maria Natalia, whose father was born in U.S. and was therefore a U.S. citizen, but had returned to Graciosa (the home of his ancestors); in 1971 Mr. Veiga and his wife settled in Lowell, where she had lived, beginning around 1960, with her family; he immediately obtained a job in the Prince pasta factory in packing and as a machine operator; after nearly eight years at Prince, he opened a small grocery (Mario’s Variety Store) in the “Lower Belvidere” section of Lowell; about three years later he sold the business and opened a furniture store in the “Back Central” neighborhood; run by Mr. Veiga and his wife, “Mario’s Discount Furniture” proved financially successful and remains in business today (2018).

Scope and Contents:
Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; focuses on Mr. Veigas’ family background, growing up on Graciosa in the 1950s and 1960s; his service in the Portuguese military in Angola in the late 1960s; his marriage and immigration to the U.S.; Lowell’s Portuguese community in the 1970s; working in Lowell’s Prince pasta factory in the 1970s; and owning and operating a family-run business in Lowell’s “Back Central” neighborhood.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Graciosa (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Children of immigrants]]> Cultural assimilation]]> Civic leaders]]> Education]]> Community schools]]> Immigrant families]]> Ethnic neighborhoods]]> Oral History Interview with Francis J. “Jack” Picanso, March 3, 2017

Biographical Note:

Francis J. “Jack” Picanso was born in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1936; son of Rita R. (Stillings) and Anthony Picanso, who were also born in Lowell; the fraternal grandfather, Manuel C. Picanso (1868-1937) immigrated from the Azores (most likely the island of Graciosa), settling in Lowell in 1887; Manuel Picanso was one of the founders of Lowell’s first Portuguese Catholic church (on Gorham and Congress streets) and subsequently helped found Saint Anthony Catholic Church on Central Street; he worked in the Appleton Cotton Mills as weaver and later in the skilled position of loom fixer; Manuel Picanso also purchased a house—most Portuguese immigrants at this time rented in tenements—near Lincoln Square in Lowell in a part of the city where few Portuguese lived; Jack Picanso attended parochial schools in Lowell, graduating from Keith Academy in 1953; he then matriculated at Boston College, graduating with a bachelor of arts in Greek; Picanso returned to Lowell, taught at Keith Academy, followed by two public schools in Lowell, the Varnum elementary and the Daley middle schools; after teaching math at the Daley, Picanso was appointed assistant to the principal at the Daley and also served as president of the employee’s bargaining unit of Lowell’s school administrators.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; focuses on the Picanso family history, notably Manuel C. Picanso, a prominent member of Lowell’s Portuguese community in the late 19th century; also includes information on the small businesses operated by Picanso relatives, as well as marriage and family life with non-Portuguese spouses in pre-WWII and post-war Lowell; part of the interview also focuses on parochial school education in 1940s in Lowell, and Jack Picanso’s career as a teacher and administrator in Lowell’s public schools, beginning in the late 1950s.

]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Irish Americans]]> Children of immigrants]]> Immigrant families]]> Entrepreneurship]]> Meat industry and trade]]> Politics and government]]> Civic leaders]]> Mills and mill-work]]> Oral History Interview with Patricia (Santos) Nickles, February 25, 2017

Biographical Note:

Born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1950; daughter of Ruth E. (Cassidy) and Charles R. Santos Jr. (1923-1990); both born in Lowell. Ruth (Cassidy) Santos (b. 1923) was from an Irish-American Catholic family. Charles R. Santos Sr. (1901-1964) was born to a Portuguese immigrant family on Charles Street in Lowell. His father (Nickles great- grandfather) Alberto(Albert) Santos, born in the Azores (likely on the island of Graciosa), married Aldina Silva. Charles Sr. attended Lowell public schools but left upon completing elementary school. He married Mary Farley of Lowell(1903-1939)who was of Irish-Catholic heritage; worked a few years in a small foundry in the Ayer’s City section of Lowell, and purchased a house near the foundry on 32 Marriner Street. After employment as meat dept. manager at Saunders market on Gorham St. in Lowell, he began a successful family-run wholesale meat company, Charles Santos & Sons Inc. The first of seven children (two girls and five boys), Charles Jr. was educated in Lowell public schools. He graduated from Lowell High School in 1940, after which he worked briefly as a welder at the Charlestown (Massachusetts) Navy Yard. During WW II he left to servein the U.S. Marine Corps in the South Pacific. After sustaining combat injuries related to his participation in the liberation of Guam, he returned to Lowell, graduated from Northeastern University, and worked as manager/president in the family meat business. At this time(1950’s), Santos became involved in local Democratic politics. working as campaign treasurer for the campaign of Attorney James L. O’Dea for District Attorney of Middlesex County and then for John F. Kennedy’s Senatorial and Presidential campaigns. From 1962-1967 he was employed with General Services Administration as a liaison officer for the federal government. He was appointed U.S. Postmaster of Lowell in 1967, serving in this position for 12 years before promotion in 1979 to District/Mgr., Middlesex- Essex, Mass. He concluded his career with promotions to District Manager/Postmaster of Honolulu and the Pacific Region (1981), and then to District Manager of the Boston District (New England States) in 1983, before retirement in 1986.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali focuses almost exclusively on family history, primarily on the Santos (paternal) branch, with some reference to the Cassidy (maternal) family. It includes the experiences of marriage across ethnic lines, education, and occupational roles of family members in Lowell. It also includes information regarding the operation of business in a local family company, as well as that of local and state politics in the 1950’s and 1960’s, including the John F. Kennedy Senatorial and Presidential campaigns.

]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Children of immigrants]]> Immigrant families]]> Bakery employees]]> Ethnic food]]> Mills and mill-work]]> Oral History Interview with Priscilla Hilliard, March 2, 2017

Biographical Note: Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, in 1947; daughter Mary C. (Freitas) and Alvaro Aguiar; the Freitas branch of the family from Azorean island of Faial; Aguiar branch from Madeira Island; Priscilla (Aguiar) Hilliard grew up on Central Street in the heart of Lowell’s major Portuguese neighborhood and was educated in Lowell’s public schools, graduated from Lowell High School, and later, Merrimack College in North Andover, Massachusetts; during part of her school years she worked in the family’s bakery business on Central Street; and later she worked for Raytheon Corporation in a clerical position, followed by professional administrative positions with the Social Security Administration and with Health and Human Services in Boston; in more recent years she has worked as a real estate agent in the Greater Lowell Area.

Scope and Contents: Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; focuses on Priscilla (Aguiar) Hilliard’s Portuguese family and relatives; growing up in Lowell’s predominately Portuguese “Back Central” neighborhood in the 1950s and 1960s; Portuguese food and culture in Lowell; religious activities at Saint Anthony Catholic Church in Back Central; small, family-run businesses (hair salon and bakery in Lowell); and Ms. Hilliard’s educational background and career.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Instrumentation and orchestration (Band)]]> Composition (Music)]]> Community organization]]> Portuguese teachers]]> Music teachers]]> Oral History Interview with Luis Gomes, November 15, 2016

Biographical Note:

Born in the city of Horta on the Azorean island of Faial in 1930; Luis Gomes received his education in Horta’s schools and attended Escola Do Magistério to become a school teacher; at the age of eight he started playing the mandolin, at nine the violin, and at 10 the cornet, by age 14 he was making musical arrangements, scoring music from films at the local cinema for bands in the area to play; at the age of 16 he was invited to lead one of those bands; upon completing his schooling in Horta, Mr. Gomes taught school for three years on the island of S o Miguel before becoming a public servant for the police department and moving to Lisbon, Portugal, where in his spare time, he taught private school; at that time, Mr. Gomes also studied at the Conservatório Nacional de Música de Lisboa to further improve his skills as a professional musician, composer, conductor, and music arranger; he received a promotion and transfer to the Azorean island of Terceira to serve as a police office manager and in his free time he led two philharmonic bands and a small jazz orchestra at the American air base on Terceira.

In the late 1960s, Mr. Gomes, his wife and two daughters immigrated to the United States to the Lowell, area; initially he worked as an upholster for his brother-in-law in Wilmington, Massachusetts, and at night attended Boston State College, now part of UMass Boston, where he obtained his Bachelor of Science Degree in Education; he subsequently helped start the bilingual program in Lowell’s public schools and taught in several of the city’s schools; at Lowell High School he taught Portuguese as a second language and, while, working as a teacher, Mr. Gomes founded two bands, his general business orchestra and the well-known Banda do Espírito Santo de Lowell, where he conducted, arranged, and composed music; he led this band until 2000 when he also retired from Lowell High School.

Mr. Gomes was regularly sought out by other Portuguese band leaders, throughout New England, to write and arrange music for their bands; he also performed a significant amount of volunteer work to help the Portuguese community and this ranged from taking new immigrants to hospitals and translating for them, to driving to families’ homes to discuss and encourage their children to go college; he currently volunteers as a director at the Lowell Portuguese Senior Center.  In 2008, Mr. Gomes was awarded the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Portuguese Heritage Award by State Senator Steven C. Panagiotakos, for his “exemplary talent and civic commitment to the Portuguese American community.”

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; focuses on Mr. Gomes’ family background, his education and career, including his teaching in Lowell’s public schools and an early bilingual program in the city’s school system; much of the interview also covers Mr. Gomes’ training and career as a musician, composer, conductor, and arranger of Portuguese music in the Azorean islands, Portugal, and New England, as well as the influences that shaped Mr. Gomes’ interpretation of traditional Portuguese music.

]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Faial (Azores)]]> Lisbon (Portugal)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Mills and mill-work]]> Portuguese language]]> Cultural assimilation]]> Children of immigrants]]> Oral History Interview with Beatrice “Bea” E. (Silva) Hogan, August 6, 2016

Biographical Note:

Born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1942; daughter of Mary (Avila) and Manuel Silva (1895-1976); Manuel Silva (1895-1976) was born on the Azorean island of Graciosa and immigrated to the U.S. with his parents (Mary Bella (Cunha) and Andrew M. Silva) in 1906; Mary (Avila) Silva (1906-1975) was born in Lowell, but her parents were also from Graciosa; Beatrice (Silva) Hogan grew up in Lowell’s major Portuguese neighborhood, “Back Central,” and attended the city’s public schools, graduating from Lowell High School; she married Francis W. Hogan, of Irish and Portuguese ancestry, with the Portuguese side of the family also having the sir name Silva; following high school graduation she worked in a clerical job before having children and then returned to the workplace, managing the women’s department in a Sears department store.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; much of the focus is on family history of the Silva (Portuguese) and Hogan (Irish) families in Lowell, as well as growing up in the 1940s-1960s in Lowell’s “Back Central” neighborhood, the Portuguese businesses and culture in this locale, and in the occupations of the Silva family; there is also some information on the city’s ethnic diversity in various neighborhoods and in the public schools, and cultural differences within the Portuguese community, namely in relation to Madeirans and Azoreans. [For more on Beatrice (Silva) Hogan and these topics, see “Oral History Interview with Beatrice “Bea” E. (Silva) Hogan, September 10, 2016.”]

]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Madeira (Madeira Islands)]]> São Miguel (Azores)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese language]]> Cultural assimilation]]> Children of immigrants]]> Community organization]]> Women in community organization]]> Oral History Interview with Beatrice “Bea” E. (Silva) Hogan, September 10, 2016

Biographical Note:

Born in Lowell, Massachusetts in 1942; daughter of Mary (Avila) and Manuel Silva (1895-1976); Manuel Silva (1895-1976) was born on the Azorean island of Graciosa and immigrated to the U.S. with his parents (Mary Bella (Cunha) and Andrew M. Silva) in 1906; Mary (Avila) Silva (1906-1975) was born in Lowell, but her parents were also from Graciosa; Beatrice (Silva) Hogan grew up in Lowell’s major Portuguese neighborhood, “Back Central,” and attended the city’s public schools, graduating from Lowell High School; she married Francis W. Hogan, of Irish and Portuguese ancestry, with the Portuguese side of the family also having the sir name Silva; following high school graduation she worked in a clerical job before having children and then returned to the workplace, managing the women’s department in a Sears department store.

Scope and Contents:

This is the second of a two-part interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; much of the focus is on Lowell’s “Back Central” neighborhood in the 1940s-1960s, its businesses, culture, and prominent Portuguese families, as well as religious practices in the parish of St. Anthony Catholic Church, and the related religious societies; the city’s ethnic diversity in the post-World War II period; and cultural differences within the Portuguese community, namely in relation to Madeirans and Azoreans; and marriage across ethnic lines. [For more from Beatrice (Silva) Hogan on other topics related to Lowell’s Portuguese community, see “Oral History Interview with Beatrice “Bea” E. (Silva) Hogan, August 6, 2016.”]

]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> São Miguel (Azores)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Cultural assimilation]]> Civic leaders]]> Portuguese language]]> Factories]]> Community development, Urban]]> Oral History Interview with Dimas Espinola, October 19, 2017

Biographical Note:

Born on the Azorean island of Terceira, in the village of Biscoitos, in 1950; Dimas Espinola immigrated with his family to the United States in the late 1960s, settling in Lowell’s  “Back Central” (predominately Portuguese) neighborhood; his father, formerly a furniture maker in Biscoitos, obtained a job as a loom fixer in the Wannalancit Mills; his mother worked in a shoe factory; Mr. Espinola received his formal education in schools on Terceira and, upon arriving in Lowell, he secured a work permit and, at nearly 17 years of age, he was employed in a manufacturing job in the Paris shoe factory on Bridge Street; at the same time Mr. Dimas, a communicant at St. Anthony’s Church, began working closely with the pastor, Rev. John F. deSilva; among his activities was translating English for Portuguese members of the community, which included various issues affecting the neighborhood, including a state-proposed extension of the Lowell Connector highway that threatened many homes and businesses in the “Back Central” neighborhood; in addition to his community activism and work with the church, Mr. Dimas also became involved with the Portuguese-American Center (and its soccer team), as well as the Holy Ghost Society; he remained in the shoe industry for many years, becoming a foreman and factory manager.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by consulting historian Gray Fitzsimons; a large part of this interview focuses on the organized opposition (and Mr. Espinola’s role in this opposition) to the Lowell Connector highway extension in the early 1970s and the threat of demolition of a large section of the “Back Central” neighborhood; it also contains some information on the family background of Mr. Dimas, the family’s immigrating from the Terceira to the United States, the working lives of the Espinola family in Lowell’s shoe factories in the 1970s and 1980s, as well as observations on the various businesses and cultures that would have been gravely impaired had the highway extension been constructed.

]]>
Fitzsimons, Gray]]> English]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Factories]]> Women in community organization]]> Labor unions]]> Ethnic groups]]> Oral History Interview with Nomesia Iria, April 18, 2018

Biographical Note:

Born on the Azorean island of São Miguel in 1953; Ms. Iria’s mother was a homemaker; her father worked as a chauffeur; similar to many children of this period, Ms. Iria attended public school through the fourth grade; eventually she married and had two children while living on São Miguel; in 1980 she, her husband, and two children immigrated to the United States, settling initially in New Bedford, Massachusetts; at the suggestion of her husband’s brother, who lived in Lowell and worked in a higher-paying electronics job, she and her family moved there; for a short time Ms. Iria commuted to Lawrence, Massachusetts, for a job in a shoe factory; however, upon obtaining a job in the Prince Pasta factory, which was located in South Lowell and had nearly 400 workers, the majority being Portuguese; she began working as a machine operator close to her home in the city’s “Back Central” neighborhood; owned by the Pellegrino family, Prince Pasta had a company union; in 1995 a group of Prince Pasta workers, including Ms. Iria, campaigned to affiliate with United Electrical Workers Machine of Workers of America (UE) and, in an intensely fought union election, the workers voted in favor of the UE;  Iria was then elected chief steward; two years later the Pellegrino’s sold the company to the Ohio-based Borden Corporation; soon thereafter Borden cut a number of employee benefits and instituted a 12-hour work day; despite union concessions Borden suddenly closed the Lowell factory; Ms. Iria joined with other workers, as well as city and elected officials in an attempt to save the plant, but to no avail; she subsequently worked as an organizer for the UE, before returning to a job as a machine operator at a beverage company; she remains involved in community work.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; included is information on Ms. Iria’s family on São Miguel, prior to her immigration to the United States; much of the interview covers her working career in factories, initially in New Bedford and Lawrence, and then Lowell; she discusses in some detail her experiences at the Prince Pasta factory, the nature of the work and the division of jobs by gender and nationality, the change from a family-owned business to a corporate-controlled manufacturing facility, as well as the change from a company union to one affiliated with the United Electrical Workers Machine of America; her role as a union organizer and shop steward is discussed, as well as her attempts, along with coworkers, to keep the plant open following the Borden Corporation’s sudden decision to shut it down; she also discusses the tensions within her family stemming from the demanding roles as mother, wife, homemaker, worker, and union activist.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> São Miguel (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Immigrants]]> Immigrant families]]> Portuguese language]]> Community organization]]> Oral History Interview with Ilda Sousa, November 25, 2016

Biographical Note:

Born in the village of Fontes on the Azorean island of Graciosa in 1926; daughter of Antonio A. and Conceicao A. (da Cunha) Labao; her parents had immigrated to the United States in the early 1900s; her mother settled in Lawrence, Massachusetts, living with relatives from Graciosa and working in a textile mill; her father, who had immigrated from Graciosa to California, was a railroad worker, shoveling coal on a steam locomotive; they met and married in Lawrence; had two daughters, Noemia (who died in infancy) and Deidamia (born in 1910); in 1912 they returned to Graciosa to the village of Fontes and had nine more children (eight daughters and one son); the children, including Ilda Sousa grew to adulthood on Graciosa, but between 1950 and the mid-1960s a number of them immigrated to the United States and settled in Lowell; as a young girl Ilda da Cunha left school to serve as a domestic worker for a wealthier family in Fontes; there she met Aristides A. Sousa, who was born on Graciosa in 1918 and worked as a handyman; they married in 1950 and had one daughter, Marisa D.; in 1966 they immigrated to the United States, settled in Lowell in the “Back Central” neighborhood, and became communicants of Saint Anthony Catholic Church; Ms. Sousa obtained a job in a shoe factory (Grace Shoe), while her husband was employed as a machine operator for a pasta maker (Prince Pasta); she and her husband (who died in 2004, at the age of 85) were members of and active in the Holy Ghost Society and the Holy Trinity Society.

Scope and Contents:

Interview conducted by local historian Mehmed Ali; much of the interview focuses on the lives of the parents of Ilda Sousa, their immigration to the U.S. in the early 1900s and the experiences of Ms. Sousa’s mother in New York City and Lawrence, Massachusetts, as well as their lives on Graciosa, after their return to the island in 1912; through the translation of her daughter Ms. Sousa then describes her life growing up on Graciosa, her marriage there, and her immigration to the U.S. in 1966; included are descriptions of her work place in a Lowell shoe factory; her activities with the Holy Ghost Society, and her experiences in Lowell’s “Back Central” neighborhood.]]>
Ali, Mehmed]]> English]]> Lawrence (Mass.)]]> Graciosa (Azores)]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Azorean Americans]]> Bakeries]]> Children of immigrants]]> Community organization]]> Easter service]]> Ethnic neighborhoods]]> Immigrant families]]> Loreto, Our Lady Of]]> Wine and wine making]]> Click here to view the items in this collection.]]> Please note that this collection was not digitized by the Portuguese American Digital Archive. By clicking the link above, you will be brought to the Library of Congress' website. Read below or on the project's website for more information on the digitization of these records.



The Lowell Folklife Project was conducted in 1987-1988 as a cooperative project of the American Folklife Center and the Lowell Historic Preservation Commission, with support from the Massachusetts Council on the Arts and Humanities, to document contemporary ethnic neighborhoods, occupations, and community life related to the history of industrialization in Lowell, Massachusetts.

This year-long study yielded an ethnographic collection consisting of 196 hours of sound recordings covering a wide range of subjects and activities, including oral history interviews, religious services and festivals (Catholic and Greek Orthodox holy week and Easter services and religious processions; a Cambodian Buddhist wedding ceremony; Cambodian and Laotian New Year's celebrations; Puerto Rican festivals), musical events, parades, ethnic restaurants,
and neighborhood tours. An additional 23 hours of sound recordings of musical events and oral history interviews were copied from originals lent by Lowell residents. Collection materials also include correspondence; field notes; questionnaires; neighborhood maps; reports; publications;
administrative files; interview transcripts; black-and-white photographic prints, contact sheets, and film negatives (ca. 10,000 images); and color slides and prints, (ca. 3500 images).
Documentation was created by fieldworkers working for the American Folklife Center: Peter Bartis, Michael E. Bell, Douglas DeNatale, Barbara Fertig, Carl Fleischhauer, John Lueders-Booth, Mario Montaño, Martha K. Norkunas, Tom Rankin, David Alan Taylor, Eleanor F. Wachs,and members of the Refugee Arts Group.



Items related to the Portuguese American community in Lowell are as follows:

Oral Histories:
• Interview with Manuel Barros, Jr.
• Interview with Manuel Barros, Sr., Part 1
• Interview with Manuel Barros, Sr., Part 2
• Interview with Francisco (Frank) Corvalno
• Interview with Maria Cunha
• Interview with Henry DeSousa
• Interview with Henry DeSousa, Part 1
• Interview with Henry DeSousa, Part 2
• Interview with Henry DeSousa, Part 3
• Interview with Henry DeSousa, Part 4
• Interview with Bob Estacio
• Interview with Manuel and Umbelina Figueira
• Interview with Anthony Garcia
• Interview with Adrien Luz, Part 1
• Interview with Adrien Luz, Part 2
• Interview with Adrien Luz, Part 3
• Interview with Gabriela Oliveira
• Interview with Fr. Eusebio Silva, Part 1
• Interview with Fr. Eusebio Silva, Part 2
• Interview with Fr. Eusebio Silva, Part 3
• Interview with Maria Silva
• Interview with Jose Simao

Audio Recordings:
• Carnaval, Holy Ghost Park, Part 1
• Carnaval, Holy Ghost Park, Part 2
• Carnaval, Holy Ghost Park, Part 3
• Carnaval, Holy Ghost Park, Part 4
• Carnaval, St. Anthony’s Church, Part 1
• Carnaval, St. Anthony’s Church, Part 2
• Carnaval, St. Anthony’s Church, Part 3
• Fado Music at IV Seasons, Part 1
• Fado Music at IV Seasons, Part 2
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Part 1
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Part 2
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Band Concert, Part 1
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Band Concert, Part 2
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Band Concert, Part 3
• Loreto Fest Committee
• Mass, St. Anthony’s Church, Part 1
• Mass, St. Anthony’s Church, Part 2
• “The Portuguese in Lowell,” Bicentennial Presentation
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 1
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 2
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 3
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 4
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 5
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 6
• Weekend Festival, Holy Ghost Society Park, Part 7

Photographs:
Church (St. Anthony’s)
• Prayer card for Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts; Meeting of former St. Peter's Church parishioners, Lowell, Massachusetts (24 photos)
• Easter Mass, St. Anthony Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Easter Mass, St. Margaret Church, 374 Stephens Street, Lowell, Massachusetts; Easter Mass, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• Copy of photos of prayer card for our Lady of Loreto, St. Anthony Church Rectory, Lowell, Massachusetts (2 photos)
• 1-33, not part of the Lowell Folklife Project collection; Christmas manger, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (38 photos)
• St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (23 photos)
• Father Silva's office, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (19 photos)
• St. Anthony's Parish, Lowell, Massachusetts; Home of Arlindo Espinola and Dionisia Espinola, Lowell, Massachusetts (19 photos)
• St. Anthony's Parish during Easter Sunday Mass, Lowell, Massachusetts; Home of Arlindo Espinola and Dionisia Espinola, Lowell, Massachusetts (18 photos)
• Interior of St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (11 photos)
• Interior of St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)

Community
• Medeiro's Portuguese American variety store, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• On the grounds and in the wine cellar of the residence of Manuel Figueira, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• On the grounds and in the wine cellar of the residence of Manuel Figueira, Lowell, Massachusetts (34 photos)
• St. Anthony's parish, Lowell, Massachusetts; Martin's Fish and Produce, Lowell, Massachusetts; The Lowell Union of Portuguese Americans, 944 Central St., Lowell, Massachusetts (38 photos)
• Lowell Union of Portuguese Americans, Lowell, Massachusetts (17 photos)
• Manuel Figueira and Doug DeNatale, at home of Figueira, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Manual Figueira at his home, showing his winepress, grape arbor, and garden, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Manual Figueira at his home, showing his winepress, grape arbor, and garden, Lowell, Massachusetts (10 images)
• Street scenes of Central St., Lowell, Massachusetts; Father Silva at St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (14 photos)
• Central St. fish peddler, Lowell, Massachusetts; Martin's Fish and Produce, Lowell, Massachusetts; Office of the Lowell Union of Portuguese Americans, Lowell, Massachusetts (17 photos)
• Christmas manger, Lowell, Massachusetts; Manuel Barros' home, Tewksbury, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Religious yard shrine in the yard of Joe Mello, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Religious yard shrine in the yard of Joe Mello, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Religious yard shrine in the yard of Joe Mello, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Joe Mello's yard, North Common Housing Project, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Joe Mello's yard, North Common Housing Project, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Joe Mellos' yard, Lowell, Massachusetts; Grape arbors in Back Central, Lowell, Massachusetts (2 photos)
• Joe Mellos' yard, Lowell, Massachusetts; Grape arbors in Back Central, Lowell, Massachusetts (2 photos)
• Joe Mellos' yard, Lowell, Massachusetts; Grape arbors in Back Central, Lowell, Massachusetts (2 photos)
• Joe Mellos' yard, Lowell, Massachusetts; Grape arbors in Back Central, Lowell, Massachusetts (8 photos)
• Gardens of Back Central, Lowell, Massachusetts (8 photos)
• Religious yard art, Joe Mello's yard, Lowell, Massachusetts (8 photos)

Work Life
• Tony Medeiros holding up fish in back of his fish truck at Central and Elm Streets, Lowell, Massachusetts (3 photos)
• Maria Cunha at work, Lowell, Massachusetts; Manuel Barros, Barry's Pastry Shop, Lowell, Massachusetts; Maria Silva's knitting and crocheting projects, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Francisco "Frank" Corvalno, First Bank, Central St. Branch, Lowell, Massachusetts (7 photos)
• Tony Medeiros in back of retail fish truck in neighborhood of St. Anthony's Parish, Lowell, Massachusetts; Street scenes of various unidentified individuals, Lowell, Massachusetts (13 photos)
• Barry's Pastry Shop, Central St., Lowell, Massachusetts (32 photos)
• Barry's Pastry Shop, Central St., Lowell, Massachusetts; Martin's Fish and Produce Market, Lowell, Massachusetts (17 photos)
• Barry's Pastry Shop, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Fish salesman, Central St., Portuguese yards, Back Central, grape arbors, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)

Carnaval
• Carnaval celebration, Pioneer Club, Lowell, Massachusetts (22 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts (33 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (38 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Pioneer Club, Lowell, Massachusetts (11 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts (6 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Carnaval celebration, Pioneer Club, Lowell, Massachusetts (5 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts; Carnaval celebration, Pioneer Club, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts; Carnaval celebration, Pioneer Club, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts; Carnaval Celebration; St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Carnaval celebration, Holy Ghost Society, Lowell, Massachusetts; Carnaval Celebration; St. Anthony Parish Hall, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)

Fado at IV Seasons
• Olivete Maria singing at the IV Seasons Restaurant, Lowell, Massachusetts; Manuel Barros, Jr., Barry's Pastry Shop, Lowell, Massachusetts; Manny Silva and customers at rear of fish trucks, Back Central Street, Lowell, Massachusetts (12 photos)
• IV Seasons Portuguese Restaurant during dinner and the musical performances of Duarte Tavares, Mario Bulhoes, and Olivete Poulart, Lowell, Massachusetts (19 photos)
• IV Seasons Portuguese Restaurant during dinner and the musical performances of Duarte Tavares, Mario Bulhoes, and Olivete Poulart, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• IV Seasons Portuguese Restaurant during dinner and the musical performances of Duarte Tavares, Mario Bulhoes, and Olivete Poulart, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Fado musicians, IV Seasons Restaurant, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• Fado musicians, IV Seasons Restaurant, Lowell, Massachusetts (13 photos)

Feast of Our Lady of Loredo
• Skateboarding, Merrimack St., Lowell, Massachusetts; Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, St. Anthony's church, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Festival of Our Lady Of Loreto, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (14 photos)
• Procession for Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts; Dick Taffe, Lowell, Massachusetts (14 photos)
• Festival of Our Lady Of Loreto, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Festival of Our Lady Of Loreto, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (12 photos)
• Parade from St. Anthony's Church in celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (37 photos)
• Mass at St. Anthony's Church on the occasion of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (7 photos)
• Parade from St. Anthony's Church in occasion of the celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (31 photos)
• Parade from St. Anthony's Church in celebration of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 images)
• Committee of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (13 photos)
• Committee of the Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts; Martin's Fish and Produce, Lowell, Massachusetts (32 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto procession, St. Anthony's Church, Lowell, Massachusetts (6 photos)
• Loreto Organizing Committee, St. Anthony's Parish, Lowell, Massachusetts; Fish peddler and tow truck drivers, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• St. Joseph's cemetery, Lowell, Massachusetts; Portuguese Festival of Our Lady, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 images)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (24 photos)
• Our Lady of Loreto, procession, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (15 photos)
• Portuguese Festival of Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (16 photos)
• Holy Ghost Park, Portuguese Festival ol Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts; St. Anthony's Church on the morning of the procession of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (16 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto procession, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (38 photos)
• Our Lady of Loreto Procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (38 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• Back Central festival, Lucy Larcom Park, Lowell, Massachusetts; Our Lady of Loreto preparation and procession, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (36 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (1 photo)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Feast of Our Lady of Loreto, Lowell, Massachusetts (9 photos)
• Fish salesman on Central St., Our Lady of Loreto Festival at Holy Ghost Park, Lowell, Massachusetts (11 photos)
• The Feast of Our Lady of Loretto procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• The Feast of Our Lady of Loretto procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photos)
• The Feast of Our Lady of Loretto procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (20 photso)
• The Feast of Our Lady of Loretto, after the procession, Lowell, Massachusetts (3 photos]]>
American Folklife Center, Library of Congress]]> American Folklife Center Website

A copy of all items can be found at the Center for Lowell History in Lowell, MA.

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English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]>
Passports]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Birth certificates]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Faial (Azores)]]> Birth certificates]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Olivia Alasse Baptismal Record (Emilia's sister)]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Emilia Alasse's Baptismal Record (Olivia's sister)]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Passports]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> São Miguel (Azores)]]> Passports]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Brazilian Americans]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Graciosa (Azores)]]> Passports]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Passports]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Graciosa (Azores)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]> Baptismal records]]> Portugal--Emigration and immigration]]> Azorean Americans]]> Portuguese American women]]> Portuguese]]> English]]> Lowell (Mass.)]]> Terceira Island (Azores)]]>