For my novel, Eleanor, set in 1925 Anchorage, Alaska, in the process of researching where my characters came from, I learned of a sliver of San Diego area history that fit perfectly with my general plot. I recalled that the local welfare project for the church I belong to was a tuna cannery. Also, I knew San Diego, where I spent my childhood and youth, provided excellent fishing opportunities.
My father loved to fish, and I have the proof. (Yes, the person almost shorter than the fish is yours truly.) Whether ocean or freshwater, it did not matter. It was his favorite activity.
One photograph of a traditional Portuguese celebration in San Diego cinched the deal. I decided then my hero, Frankie Perry—a very American name that fit well in the “Roaring Twenties” era—was christened Francisco Pereira.
Several immigrant groups of fishermen arrived along the Southern California coast, including Japanese, Chinese, and Italians. The Portuguese came from both Portugal and the Azores.
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| 1857 map of Point Loma and San Diego Bay |
The first known Portuguese fisherman in this region in the nineteenth century was José Machado. Born in the Azores in 1830 (probably Pico), he came to California in 1852. In 1854, he became one of the original Portuguese pioneers who began California shore whaling at Monterey Bay. In 1858, by then known as Joseph Clark, he was hired by Alpheus and Prince Packard to construct their proposed whaling operation at Ballast Point on Point Loma. Thus began the Portuguese fishing industry in San Diego.
Word of fishing opportunities made their way back to the Portuguese who lived in the Azores. Manuel Francisco Madruga was born in Pico, Azores, in 1849, arrived in San Diego in 1879 and immediately joined the whaling company that had been active for many years. Not long after, Manuel turned to more traditional fishing. Using his small boat and line, he earned enough money to begin raising a family. He built a small house in the La Playa area of Point Loma. This settlement became the focus of the subsequent Portuguese community of San Diego/Point Loma. The distinctive blue doors on their houses gave the area the name of “the blue door shacks”.
The above photograph is a more current view of San Diego and the Point Loma peninsula looking from northeast toward the southwest. The finger of land jutting out into the ocean at the top of the photo is Point Loma. La Playa, where the tuna fleet anchored their boats, is along the bay side of the peninsula.
The fishermen from Pico, Azores, were soon followed by Portuguese immigrants from the island of Madeira, from mainland Portugal, and Cape Verde. The Portuguese population in La Playa grew until it overflowed into a neighboring community, Roseville.
As the century drew to a close, it became apparent the whaling industry was dying. However, fishing for other species grew, especially in 1900 when the Joe Azevedo Fish Cannery was provided the wholesale market, and the Manuel Cabral Grocery catered to the retail needs of the fishing business. In 1909 saw the establishment of the first sardine cannery in the La Playa area.
However, in 1908, the Portuguese began to fish for tuna, a fish not popular in commercial markets. By 1911, the first tuna canneries opened. Then First World War greatly expanded demand for tuna as people began to appreciate its taste.
By the 1960s—the decade when I lived there—San Diego was considered the tuna capital of the world, processing more than 70% of all the canned tuna produced in the United States.
Back to the Portuguese on the Point Loma peninsula. Not only did they embrace their new homeland along with honoring their centuries-old heritage, they brought with them a then-600-year-old tradition—the annual Festa do Espírito Santo.
This festa, has been celebrated by the Portuguese people since the time of Queen Saint Isabel of Portugal. At one time during her reign, there was a terrible famine in Portugal. The story goes that this queen saved bread from her own table to give to the hungry. According to legend, the King tried to stop her from mingling with the poor. The Queen was once caught hiding something in her cloak. When he demanded that she open her cloak to show the concealed food, she said a prayer and threw open her cloak. Instead of bread, red roses tumbled out. It is for this reason that statues of Queen St. Isabel are depicted with the mantle of flowers.
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The Queen depleted all her funds while seeking food for her people. and she had no financial resources left except her crown, the symbol of her royalty. One morning, at Mass, she promised the Holy Spirit, "I will give my crown to the Church if you will send me a miracle, so my people will be relieved of their hunger." As she left the church, she saw ships coming into the harbor loaded with wheat and corn!
For over 700 years Portuguese people have celebrated this event in the Festa do Espírito Santo (Feast of the Holy Spirit). As part of the celebration, they thank and pray to the Holy Spirit to intercede in times of danger or calamity.
A religious people, in the late 1800s and early 1900s, the Portuguese on Point Loma found being able to worship as they chose proved difficult. To attend Mass in an established place of worship, community members were required to either travel by a lengthy horse and buggy trip to Old Town San Diego or to sail or row to Downtown San Diego. On occasion, Portuguese-speaking visiting priests came from Northern California to officiate at religious activities. For years during those times, they celebrated Mass in an abandoned warehouse adjacent to the private residence of José Leal Monteiro, near the corner of Cannon and Scott Streets in Roseville. Isabel Soares, at the age of nine, played the organ and sang.
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| First St. Agnes Church built in 1908 |
In 1908, St. Agnes Church was constructed under the direction of Father Mesny, who was alleged to be one of the very last Mission Padres. Commonly, he could be seen riding into Point Loma on his quaint horse and buggy. Before the parish was formed and given a resident pastor, St. Agnes was a mission church to Mary Star of the Sea in La Jolla and then to Sacred Heart in Ocean Beach.
A simple wooden structure with a beautiful square steeple was built by the fishermen of the community. Each donated part of their earnings toward the new house of worship. Men were left on land to build as others went to sea to earn wages to pay for the new structure.
The interior of Saint Agnes was wooden with a central altar over which was a statue of St. Agnes. There were two side altars: the one on the right held a statue of Our Lady of Good Voyage, patroness of the fishing fleet; the one on the left held a statue of the Sacred Heart. The floor, as well as a rail with kneelers, were made of wood. Mass was predominantly held in Latin and the music always brought them a little bit of home.
The church was officially blessed by Bishop Thomas James Conaty on March 14th, 1908, and St. Agnes became the fishermen’s church. The new church became the center for community activities.
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| Early Festa do Espírito Santo procession arriving at St. Agnes |
The centuries-old Festa do Espírito Santo no longer needed to be celebrated at the home of Manuel Cabral. It was celebrated at the new church. Festas or “processions of faith” were now taking place in a proper consecrated venue. A sterling silver coroa (crown), with plate and scepter adorning a dove, was used to represent the royalty of Queen Saint Isabel and the power of the Holy Spirit. Ms. Mary Miller (Oliver) became the first queen crowned in the St. Agnes Church in 1914. Mr. Frank Silva, a Cape Verdean immigrant, assembled donations for the first crown still used today.
A parade from La Playa into the western part of town was a splendid sight with turn-of-the-century derby hats, suits, and lacy white linen dresses adorned with wide brimmed ornate hats. With the growing population, church social activities were in need of a larger facility. The Cabrillo Pavilion was rented and the parade would then follow from the Cabrillo Pavilion to the church and back where the communal “sopas” were served. Cabrillo Terrace was the new community being built above St. Agnes for the new affluent citizens; however, all residents in this area were united in their faith, traditions, and love of their new homeland. In World War I, a special table was set up to serve the soldiers and sailors who came to participate in this festa.
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| 1915 Festa do Espírito Santo procession |
Above is the image that convinced me my hero should be of Portuguese descent. This 1915 photograph shows the procession members a decade before the time of my story. Yet, the American flags and traditional banners were proudly carried to display the Portuguese immigrant’s honor to their homeland and love for their new home.
In San Diego, The annual St. Agnes festa procession, the Festa do Espírito Santo is the oldest ethnic religious celebration, dating back to the time when the first families settled here in 1884 and was formally organized in 1910.
Now around seven hundredyears-old, the annual Festa do Espírito Santo is held annually as the queen is blessed and crowned in Mass by the Holy Spirit.
To find articles about more current Festa do Espírito Santo celebrations, please CLICK HERE, HERE, and HERE.
My latest release, Eleanor, is now available for purchase as an ebook and at no additional cost with a Kindle Unlimited edition. To find the book description and purchase options, please CLICK HERE
Sources:
https://www.sandiego.org/explore/events/festivals-and-street-fairs/festa-do-espirito-santo.aspx
https://portuguesemuseum.org/?page_id=1808&category=3&exhibit=&event=272
https://coolsandiegosights.com/2019/03/24/history-and-faith-at-st-agnes-catholic-church/
https://www.portuguesetribune.com/articles/st-agnes-san-diego-from-whaling-to-fishing/
