Signs, Symbols and Stones: The Portuguese American Urban Ethnic Landscape
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Part 1: An Introduction to the Landscape
Billboard in New Bedford. Photo by the author. Wouldn’t it be fun to wander in an urban ethnic landscape — maybe even get lost — and learn about a different culture? This series will take us to such an urban ethnic landscape, close to home yet far enough away to make it different and exciting.…
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Part 2: Monumentalization of the Landscape
Portuguese American women on an art installation in Provincetown harbor. Photo by the author. We’re wandering in an urban ethnic landscape — maybe even getting lost — learning about a different culture, that of Portuguese Americans in southeastern New England. So — signs, symbols and stones (monuments). Today we’ll look at some monuments in and…
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Part 3: Flags and National Symbols
The Portuguese flag (from Wikipedia) Welcome back; we’re continuing our expedition through the urban ethnic landscape, learning about a different culture, that of Portuguese Americans in southeastern New England. Mostly we’ll be looking at three cities in the area: Fall River and New Bedford, Massachusetts and nearby East Providence, Rhode Island. So — signs, symbols…
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Part 4: Cultural Symbols in the Landscape
The Galo de Barcelos on a Portuguese restaurant in New Bedford. Photo from antoniosnewbedford.com Are your feet sore yet? We’re continuing our expedition through an urban ethnic landscape, learning about a different culture, that of Portuguese Americans in southeastern New England. I grew up in this area and in the Portuguese American culture. Now I’m…
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5 War Monuments in the Landscape
Monument honoring Revolutionary War hero Pedro Francisco in New Bedford. Photo by the author. Signs, symbols and stones (monuments). Today we’ll learn some more about ‘stones:’ some interesting things about military monuments in this urban ethnic landscape. We’re continuing our expedition to learn about a different culture, that of Portuguese Americans, and how aspects of…
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Part 6: Portuguese vs. Pilgrims
Tiled image of Dighton Rock at the Museu da Marinha in Lisbon. Photo from the museum at ccm.marinha.pt I jokingly call this post the “Pilgrims vs. Portuguese.” We’ll focus on three monuments in Massachusetts: Plymouth Rock, the Pilgrim Monument in Provincetown and Dighton Rock. We all know the story of Plymouth Rock near where the…
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Part 7: Clues to Portuguese Culture from Signage
The Azores Market in Fall River. Photo by the author. Signage is one of the most obvious ways that a different culture presents itself in the American landscape. We’re continuing our expedition to learn about a different culture, that of Portuguese Americans, and how aspects of that culture are visible in the landscape of southeastern…
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Part 8: Signage and Saudade for the Homeland
I-195: The Portuguese American Interstate Highway. Map from Rand McNally Road Atlas, 2018. As we continue our expedition it’s time to show a map of the area we have been looking at (above) in these posts. The main region of Portuguese American settlement in New England is in the three cities of Fall River and…
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Part 9: Religion in the Landscape
New Bedford’s annual Feast of the Blessed Sacrament. Photo from Feast of the Blessed Sacrament site on Facebook More than 95% of Portuguese Americans identified as Catholics when they arrived in the United States. For almost all of the immigrants the Catholic parish and its church acted as a magnet for the development of neighborhoods.…
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Part 10: The Portuguese American “Yardscape”
New Bedford’s sea of three-deckers. Photo by George Riethof on m.imagekind.com In this post we will look at the urban environment of the Portuguese Americans: housing, gardens and the ‘yardscape,’ and efforts to attract tourists through a Portuguese cultural district and museums. We’re continuing our expedition to learn about a different culture, that of Portuguese…