Pioneers – We Owe Them Our Presence Here

The official start of the Portuguese immigration to Canada is May 13, 1953, when 69 men disembarked at Pier 21, in Halifax, onboard the ship Saturnia. Later that month, seven other men arrived onboard Vulcania and, later, one hundred and three came aboard the Nea Hellas. For the rest of the decade, thousands more arrived in Halifax and spread all over the country, mostly to work on the railway or in the farms.

Fernando Candido, a Portuguese Canadian, conducted extensive research on the group that arrived on the Saturnia. You can read all about it here.

Although 1953 represents the official start of our presence in Canada, a few other Portuguese already called Canada home when that group arrived. In fact, the relationship between both countries goes back centuries – Portuguese fishermen have been fishing off the coast of Newfoundland for over 500 years and, in the process, they left enduring marks in the region. However, very few decided to stay permanently.

The first known Portuguese who resided permanently in Canada is Pedro da Silva, who is considered the first postman in Canada. His story is well documented in various publications. You can learn more about him by clicking on the following link: https://www.tfcg.ca/pedro-dasilva. Bill Moniz, a Portuguese journalist and director who resides in Toronto, published a documentary about Pedro da Silva that you can watch here.

Another famous Portuguese Canadian who resided here before the first wave of immigration from Portugal is José Silva who came to be known as Joey Silva and, more famously, as Portuguese Joe. He was instrumental in shaping the character of British Columbia and, as a tribute to his contribution to the Canada’s most western province, a statue of him was erected at Vancouver’s Stanly Park. Please follow this link to know more about his story: http://shoretoshore.ca/story.php. Bill Moniz also produced a documentary about the story of this remarkable Portuguese Canadian that you can watch here.

Pier 21

For over a decade, the majority of Portuguese who arrived in Canada disembarked at Pier 21, in Halifax. In fact, this was the case with all the Europeans immigrants who had chosen Canada as their destination. As a result of the pier’s significance to the shaping of our country, the Federal Government created the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21, a landmark that contains numerous exhibits and stories about many of the newcomers who disembarked there. You can visit their website here: https://pier21.ca/.

The museum contains interesting documents such as lists of those who arrived on specific ships. It also contains profiles on many of the thousands of immigrants who arrived there. One such story is about Antonio Fernandes Moreira, a newcomer who is on the museum’s Sobey Wall of Honour and who entered Canada on April 14, 1955. You can read all about it here.

If you are ever in Halifax, please find time to visit the Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21 to pay tribute to those who paved the way to our presence in the best country in the world: Canada.

Gallery of the Portuguese Pioneers

The Gallery of the Portuguese Pioneers is located in Toronto, at 960 St. Clair Avenue West. The gallery is a brainchild of Portuguese Canadian entrepreneur Manuel da Costa, who has also founded the Portuguese Walk of Fame, in Toronto. The museum’s website lists Lenita Lopes as its curator.

For those who are unable to visit the museum in person, there is a website where many of the pioneers, including those who arrived on the Saturnia, are profiled. It is the most complete collection of artifacts and stories on the subject in Canada.

To learn more about the museum’s contents and especially about the profile of our pioneers, please visit https://pioneersgallery.ca/