1954, THE MICAELENSE YEAR
José-Louis Jacome, September 14, 2020
News from Canada
The article published in the Diário dos Açores daily on April 14, 1954, has some abstracts from a letter sent to the newspaper by a São Miguel emigrant, Manuel de Sousa Matos. He is one of the 330 Azoreans forming the first contingent of emigrants that left the Ponta Delgada port of São Miguel on March 22 aboard the Homeland.
In the Azores, interest was very high at the time for news related to the pioneers of this first great wave of emigration to Canada. Thousands of families were or would soon be affected, torn apart by the departure of many of their loved ones and friends. Since the announcement in 1952 that Canada had opened its doors to Portuguese citizens, emigration to that country had become the topic of the day in the Azores and elsewhere in Portugal. Brazil and the United States, until then the natural destinations for Portuguese emigration, had closed their doors years ago. In the 1950s, Canada became the only opportunity to escape the very difficult economic conditions that had prevailed in Portugal for several decades. In addition, Canada being a new destination for Portuguese emigrants, people knew very little about the country. Some said it was a very cold land; others spoke of savages and endless lands. That is about it. They all wanted to learn more about the unknown country north of the United States, where thousands of their own would seek a better life.
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In 1953, some 130 Portuguese including 18 Micaelenses immigrated to Canada. In 1954, a much larger contingent, 950 Azoreans, would write another page in the country's emigration history. They will leave São Miguel aboard the Homeland and the Nea Hellas ships, in March and April. Of this number, 896 will be young men from São Miguel, Micaelenses. On March 22, 1954, during this first departure, of the 330 Azoreans, 276 were from São Miguel. All Azoreans aboard the next two ships scheduled to depart in April were Micaelenses.
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Thousands of Azoreans and Portuguese would follow in the 1950s, mainly by boat until 1956, then, and increasingly, by air for the remainder of the decade and decades to follow.
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The two main newspapers in the archipelago, Correio dos Açores and Diário dos Açores, have published several articles relaying news from the first group of 330 pioneers, including the following.
Free translation of the article
From our compatriot, Manuel de Sousa Matos from the Arrifes area, who was part of the first group of Azoreans to leave for Canada last month, we have received on April 4 a letter from which we have extracted the following.
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« The trip was really good. The Homeland took 5 days to reach the port of Halifax. We arrived at 3 p.m. and disembarked from the ship 3 hours later. After that, we visited the city for 3 ½ hours.
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Halifax is a beautiful city with nice buildings and lots of movement. While travelling from Halifax to Quebec, we crossed a vast plain covered with snow. We continued towards Montreal where 130 men got out. After this stop, we took another train to Toronto. 29 people got out there, 6 of them were going to areas in Ontario. The others went to London, Hamilton and Niagara. ».
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A ship docking at Pier 21, Halifax.
Ken Eliott Collection, 1965.
Barrington and Gottingen (Vogue Theater) Streets, Halifax, 1950s. Ross Dunn
About the author
Born in São Miguel and living in Montreal since 1958, I published a book in 2018 about Azorean immigration to Canada in the 1950s. “De uma ilha para outra” was published in Portuguese and French. The book and an exhibition that accompanies it were presented in Montreal, São Miguel, Toronto and Boston. The book is sold in Montreal, Toronto and São Miguel, and through my Website. I continue to publish information and stories relating to the first big wave of Azorean and Portuguese immigration to Canada in the 1950s through my Website jljacome.com and my Facebook page D’une île à l’autre.
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