John,
The only documents I have state nothing more than Island of Flores.
Minta family members have long suggested that it was complex name
simplified upon immigration. The first appearance of Manuel Minta (and
brother Mathew) has it spelled as Menta in the 1880 US Census, but always
Minta thereafter except for a few typos in phone directories (Minto). In
all family memories and documents it was never anything but Minta.
Manuel Minta has been lionized in our family stories, probably because he
was a lively character, perhaps a bit of a swashbuckler. We think he
confused facts later in life.
For example, this brief obituary seems to be a series of discrepancies when
compared to facts and inferences from our family tree.
Contra Costa Gazette, 15 Jun 1918:
"*Dies at Age of 100 Years* [headline]
Manuel Minta, one of the best known pioneer residents of Contra Costa
and Alameda counties, died at his home in Oakland this week at the age of
100 years. At the advanced age which few humans reach, he was hale and
hearty up to within a few weeks of his death. Three daughters and five sons
mourn the death of their aged parent."
------ Notes ------
Aunt Mary also says 100 years of age, but we're going with US Census data,
which has him 90 to 92 years of age at death.
It's hard to understand how the Contra Costa Gazette could have confounded
Oakland with Oakley. We have no records of where he died but he was living
in Antioch/Oakley in 1910 at age 82. We've always assumed he is buried
there at Holy Cross Cemetery, Antioch, in the Minta Plot with his wife and
2 children, but there is no individual marker for him.
We know of only 3 daughters and 3 sons, although there may have been early
deaths that were never recorded. Nevertheless the obit actually implies 3
daughters and 5 sons are alive, but that could be a turn of phrase.
Steve
On Thursday, October 18, 2012 4:38:57 PM UTC-7, John Vasconcelos wrote:
>
> *Steve,
> I have been manually searching for a Manuel Minta in the Flores Marriages
> book with no luck thus far. Do you have any documentation as to which
> Parish any of these events took place The book is tabulated by parishes of
> which there are 10 on the Island so each parish has to be searched
> individually so it's a long processes.
>
> Are you absolutely sure of the spelling? Could it be a nickname (alcunha)?
> Any other information which may shed light on this family would be helpful
> Regards,
> John Vasconcelos
> (Both parents from Flores)*
>
> On Thu, Oct 18, 2012 at 9:29 AM, badger <[email protected] <javascript:>
> > wrote:
>
>> Family lore and much research has led us to a dead end on the origin of
>> the Minta name from the Azores.
>>
>> We'd sure appreciate some pointers.
>>
>> Our oldest known relative with best information is:
>>
>> Manuel Minta
>>
>> Birth: 17 Jan 1828 in Flores Island, Azores
>> Immigration: abt 1852 to California
>> Marriage: bef 1872 to Philomena R Thomas (or Joseph), likely Flores Island
>> Residence: 1880 to death in Oakley/Antoch area, Contra Costa County, CA
>> Death: Jun 1918 in Contra Costa County, California, USA
>>
>> Scarce Information on his brother and sister:
>> Mathew Minta, birth abt 1840, likely Azores; 1880 in Contra Costa County
>> Mary Minta, birth abt 1852, likely Azores; 1910 in Contra Costa county
>>
>> Details at Ancestry.com: Minta Family
>> Tree<http://trees.ancestry.com/tree/45606850/person/6388123471>
>>
>> Another source (different birth date):
>> Greg Small's Genealogy - Manuel
>> Minta<http://gsmall.us/Family/Gimbel/getperson.php?personID=I00222&tree=Gimbel>
>>
>> Thanks from his great grandson,
>> Steve
>>
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