My grandfather Antonio left Portugal to go to France to escape being enlisted in the army. To get there, he walked from our home in Rio Frio in the northern part of Portugal all the way to Paris, France. He survived by eating anything he came across, including leaves, trees and whatever animal he could […]
In 1953, a group of Portuguese men boarded the Saturnia ship as part of the first wave of officially sponsored immigration by the Canadian government. Here are some interesting facts that you may not have known about this 632 ft long liner: The Saturnia was built by the Italian company, Cosulich Societa Triestina di Navigazione […]
“I rise today to pay tribute to Antonio Sousa, a true Portuguese pioneer and role model to all Portuguese Canadians. As the MPP for the riding of Davenport, the riding with the largest population of Portuguese Canadians in Ontario and perhaps in Canada, and as a proud member of the Portuguese community, I was fortunate […]
Fernando da Silva Fernando da Silva was born in the heart of Lisbon, on Rua da Trinas in Madragoa, on October 3, 1931, right next to the “Newspaper Sellers” collective, where he later began singing. Fernando Silva arrived in Canada on August 10, 1956. He married Cristina da Silva, with whom he had 2 children: Fernando and […]
José de Freitas was born in Santa Luzia in Funchal, on May 27, 1925. He arrived in Halifax on June 2nd, 1953. His first job was picking mushrooms in Milton. Later, in Toronto, he worked in a seed factory, an iron company, a battery factory, and in bread distribution. Since he had always had white […]
The following blog entry has been extracted from the booklet ’60 Years of Immigration’, which tells the stories of several Portuguese-Canadian immigrants who’ve settled in Oshawa, Ontario. This work was put together by David Ganhão, with the help of some friends. No dia 31 de Outubro de 1975, parti de São Miguel para vir para […]
Every year, during the week of June 10, the Portuguese-Canadian community in Toronto comes together to celebrate Portugal’s national day. Since the initial migration of Portuguese people to Toronto, the community has doubled in size, resulting in a larger celebration to commemorate their origins each year. In Toronto, celebrations in honour of Portugal Day began in […]
I had a chance to sit down with a friendly neighbour a few weeks back to chat about his experience of emigrating from Portugal to Canada, his hardships, successes, and what life is like for him living in Toronto today. Andrea da Costa: Where were you born? Frank Rodrigues: I was born in Funchal on Madeira […]
Francisco da Silva Marques Nascimento: 1941 Naturalidade: Seia – São Romão Residência: Brasil – Rio de Janeiro “Até aos meus 15 anos vivi com os meus pais e cinco irmãos em São Romão (Serra da Estrela). O meu pai era tecelão e a minha mãe doméstica. Viajou sozinho para o Brasil e, passados quatro anos, […]
Much like the story of Romeo and Juliet, Inês de Castro and Dom Pedro were fated to die for their love, except that their love story wasn’t fictional. The story begins with an arranged marriage between Dom Pedro, the son of King Dom Afonso IV, and a woman of good social standing in the Portuguese […]