Hello, I just wanted to remind researchers how many Azoreans came to Massachusetts, and specifically to Boston and Cambridge, MA (side-by- side on both sides of the Charles River). We visited the "Cambridge Cemetery" yesterday, and saw so many Portuguese surnames on the stones.
My (now) husband's grandparents came over to MA/US ~1905. I don't know where Antonio PACHECO (age 20) first lived on arriving, but very soon after he was in Cambridge. Elsie MOURA (age 12) went to a family on Beacon Hill in Boston as a servant. They married in Cambridge in 1911. I was not able to find out if "Tony" came over with relatives. Around 1910 Elsie arranged for her mother and 4 younger (?) siblings to come over. Just in time for her to marry Tony in 1911 in Cambridge. Elsie's sister, Carolina, married into a large MEDEIROS family. Their sister, Rosa, married into a PERRY family (probably PEREIRA). I have never been able to find out whether their brothers, Frank and Manny MOURA, were already married when they came over, or whether they were younger than their sisters. I don't know what happened to Elsie's father. But, one guess is that he went to Brooklyn, NY, when his wife and children went to Boston, MA. Francisco MOURA was reported to have been a whaler. Over the years, I have met other people with Portuguese names; for instance, I grew up with a step-grandfather, who was half-Portuguese, and his last name was FRANCIS. And, I knew a lady who had married into the RESENDES family of Cambridge, MA. And, many families moved a little north into the City of Lowell, MA. There are Portuguese neighborhoods in both cities, and both have a St. Anthony's Church. I think the other place where is a Portuguese neighborhood is Hudson, MA. (?) I know that Tony PACHECO came from just outside of Ponta Delgada. The MOURA family came from Sao Miguel, but I'm told the name probably originated in Santa Maria. Betty (near Lowell, MA, USA) -- To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. Follow the confirmation directions when they arrive. For more options, such as changing to List, Digest, Abridged, or No Mail (vacation) mode, log into your Google account and visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/Azores. Click in the blue area on the right that says "Join this group" and it will take you to "Edit my membership."
