Chains of Gold: Portuguese Migration to Argentina in Transatlantic Perspective (Studies in Global Social History)

370 Pages·2009·3.44 MB·English

by  Marcelo J. Borges

Chains of Gold
Studies in
Global Social History
Series Editor
Marcel van der Linden
International Institute of Social History, Amsterdam, Th e Netherlands
Editorial Board
Sven E. Beckert
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
Philip Bonner
University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa
Dirk Hoerder
University of Arizona, Phoenix, AR, USA
Chitra Joshi
Indraprastha College, Delhi University, India
Amarjit Kaur
University of New England, Armidale, Australia
Barbara Weinstein
New York University, New York, NY, USA
VOLUME 2
Chains of Gold
Portuguese Migration to Argentina
in Transatlantic Perspective
By
Marcelo J. Borges
LEIDEN • BOSTON
2009
Cover illustration: Commemoration of the anniversary of the Portuguese Republic and
Portuguese festival. On stage, the men’s and women’s commissions of the Portuguese
Mutual Aid Association of Comodoro Rivadavia; at the center, the fl ags and shields of
Argentina and Portugal, 1935. Author’s personal collection.
Th is book is printed on acid-free paper.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Borges, Marcelo J.
Chains of gold : Portuguese migration to Argentina in transatlantic perspective /
by Marcelo J. Borges.
p. cm. — (Studies in global social history, ISSN 1874-6705; v. 2)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-90-04-17648-5 (hbk. : alk. paper)
1. Portuguese—Argentina—History. 2. Immigrants—Argentina—History.
3. Portuguese—Argentina—Social conditions. 4. Portuguese—Argentina—Economic
conditions. 5. Social networks—Argentina—History. 6. Algarve (Portugal)—
Emigration and immigration—Social aspects. 7. Portugal—Emigration and
immigration—Social aspects. 8. Argentina—Emigration and immigration—Social
aspects. 9. Algarve (Portugal)—Social conditions. 10. Algarve (Portugal)—Economic
conditions. I. Title. II. Series.
F3021.P8B69 2009
304.8’820469—dc22
2009012410
ISSN 1874-6705
ISBN 978 90 04 17648 5
Copyright 2009 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, Th e Netherlands.
Koninklijke Brill NV incorporates the imprints Brill, Hotei Publishing,
IDC Publishers, Martinus Nijhoff Publishers and VSP.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, translated,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, without prior written permission
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Th e Copyright Clearance Center, 222 Rosewood Drive, Suite 910,
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Fees are subject to change.
printed in the netherlands
CONTENTS
List of Illustrations ............................................................................. vii
List of Maps, Tables and Figures ..................................................... ix
Acknowledgements ............................................................................ xi
Abbreviations ...................................................................................... xv
Chapter One Maria vai com as outras (Monkey See,
Monkey Do) ................................................................................... 1
Portuguese Migration in Argentina ............................................ 5
Regional Flows and Local Networks ...................................... 11
Spatial Distribution and Immigrant Communities ............. 16
Approach ......................................................................................... 20
Chapter Two Migration in Context: Society, Economy, and
Population in Rural Algarve ........................................................ 25
Th e Land and Its Uses .................................................................. 29
Rural Life and Migration in Two Algarvian Parishes ............. 38
Population and Space ............................................................... 39
Economy ..................................................................................... 42
Social Groups ............................................................................. 47
Domestic Groups ...................................................................... 50
Migration as a Family Strategy ............................................... 54
Demography and Emigration ................................................. 61
Conclusion ...................................................................................... 68
Chapter Th ree Regional Patterns of Migration: A Systems
Approach ......................................................................................... 71
Migration Systems ......................................................................... 73
A Systems Approach to Algarvian Migrations ......................... 75
Th e Algarve and the Southern Iberia Migration System ........ 78
Gibraltar ...................................................................................... 79
Southern Spain and Alentejo .................................................. 84
Other Circuits of Medium-distance Migration .................... 96
Th e Algarve and the Atlantic Migration System ...................... 99
Causes, Continuities, and Changes ........................................ 100
vi contents
Information and Perceptions ................................................... 109
Transatlantic Destinations ............................................................ 115
Portuguese Africa: Th e Colonial Path ................................... 118
Fazer a América: Destination Selection ................................. 121
Conclusion ...................................................................................... 136
Chapter Four Chains of Gold: Migratory Networks in
Two Portuguese Immigrant Communities ................................ 139
Oil Camps and Suburban Gardens: Portuguese Migrants in
Two Contrasting Receiving Societies ..................................... 140
Comodoro Rivadavia: Th e Making of an Oil Town ............ 143
Villa Elisa: From Bourgeois Retreat to Family
Gardening .............................................................................. 149
Th e Dynamics of Chain Migration ............................................ 155
Forging the Chains: Origins and Social Spaces ................... 157
Phases: Pioneers, Migrant Workers, and Families ............... 165
Comodoro Rivadavia ................................................................ 169
Villa Elisa .................................................................................... 183
Os esquecidos: Th e Broken Links of Chain Migration ............ 193
Chain Migration and Ethnic Middlemen .................................. 197
Conclusion ...................................................................................... 206
Chapter Five Making a Living and Making a Life:
Economic and Social Adaptation ................................................ 209
Making a Living ............................................................................. 210
Black El Dorado: Working in Comodoro Rivadavia ........... 211
Women and Work ..................................................................... 226
Gigantic Gardens of Flowers: Working in Villa Elisa ......... 233
A Family Aff air: Generations and Gender ............................ 246
Social Networks and Occupational Chains ............................... 253
Making a Life: Marriage Patterns ............................................... 265
Old and New Social Ties ......................................................... 274
Social and Ethnic Life ................................................................... 283
Conclusion ...................................................................................... 301
Bibliography and Sources ................................................................. 305
Index .................................................................................................... 339
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
1. View of Km 3 oil fi elds in winter. Courtesy of the
Archivo Histórico Municipal de Comodoro Rivadavia–
Patagonia Mosaic Project, Dickinson College ....................... 144
2. Weeding the fi elds in the fl ower garden of the
Carneirinho family, Villa Elisa, 1965. Courtesy of Diario
El Día, La Plata ........................................................................... 150
3. Oil Well 2 drilling team, 1907, Courtesy of Ignacio
Locco–Patagonia Mosaic Project, Dickinson College .......... 214
4. Oil workers on Well 218, 1923. Courtesy of the Archivo
Histórico Municipal de Comodoro Rivadavia–Patagonia
Mosaic Project, Dickinson College ......................................... 215
5. Preparing the fi eld in the quintas of La Plata County.
Courtesy of Diario El Día, La Plata ........................................ 234
6. Cutting chrysanthemums inside a Villa Elisa glasshouse.
Courtesy of Diario El Día, La Plata ........................................ 235
7. Juan Ferreira and his sons fumigating a glasshouse with
carnations, Villa Elisa, 1965. Courtesy of Diario El Día,
La Plata ........................................................................................ 247
8. A fl ower gardener and his family cleaning broken glass
aft er a hail storm, Villa Elisa, 1972. Courtesy of Diario
El Día, La Plata ........................................................................... 248
9. Portuguese wedding picture. Alexandrina Viegas and
João Madeira, Km 8, 1927. Courtesy of Maria Francisca
Viegas de Jesús–Patagonia Mosaic Project, Dickinson
College .......................................................................................... 266
10. Live tableau to commemorate the anniversary of the
Portuguese Republic and the foundation of the local
Portuguese Mutual Aid Association, Comodoro Rivadavia,
1943. Courtesy of Maria Francisca Viegas de Jesús–
Patagonia Mosaic Project, Dickinson College ....................... 284
11. Portuguese festivities, Comodoro Rivadavia, 1950s.
Courtesy of Idalete Madeira and Manuel Gomes
Correia–Patagonia Mosaic Project, Dickinson College ....... 285
12. Ceremony commemorating Portugal Day in a downtown
La Plata park, organized by the Portuguese Club of La
Plata, 1965. Courtesy of Diario El Día, La Plata .................. 286

LIST OF MAPS, TABLES AND FIGURES
Maps
1.1: Portugal by Districts ................................................................. 13
1.2: Argentina by Provinces ............................................................ 19
2.1: Algarve ........................................................................................ 31
4.1: Comodoro Rivadavia and Environs ....................................... 146
4.2: Villa Elisa and Environs ........................................................... 152
4.3: Social Space of Origin of Algarvian Immigrants in
Comodoro Rivadavia and Villa Elisa ..................................... 162
4.4: Areas of Origin of Portuguese Immigrants in Comodoro
Rivadavia ..................................................................................... 166
4.5: Areas of Origin of Portuguese Immigrants in Villa
Elisa ............................................................................................. 167
Tables
1.1: Regional Origins of Portuguese Migrants in
Argentina .................................................................................... 8
1.2: Portuguese Immigration in Argentina by Decade,
1857–1959 ................................................................................... 10
1.3: Portuguese Emigration to Argentina by Districts of
Origin, 1914–55 ......................................................................... 14
1.4: Portuguese Migration in Argentina by County of
Origin, 1910s–1960s ................................................................. 15
2.1: Residence of Out-of-Town Spouses in Boliqueime and
São Brás de Alportel, 1878–1920 ............................................ 42
2.2: Occupations of Male Head of Households in
Boliqueime .................................................................................. 46
2.3: Occupations of the Grooms and Fathers at the Time of
Marriage in Boliqueime and São Brás de Alportel,
1878–1920 ................................................................................... 46
2.4: Household Types in Boliqueime and São Brás de
Alportel ....................................................................................... 53