Portuguese immigrants took to farming in Clayton

In the 18th century, life was especially difficult in the nine volcanic islands of the Archipelago of the Azores.

There were many good reasons to leave the islands, about 800 miles off the coast of Portugal. Volcanic activity, earthquakes, cyclones, crop diseases, overpopulation, famine, widespread poverty and conscription of 16-year-old boys for an 8-year commitment in the Portuguese Army were all factors in the desire to start a new life elsewhere.

Early immigrants from the Azores were young men who stole away to work on New England whaling ships that had come into port. Many settled in East Coast cities and worked in textile factories or fisheries, then sent for family members and friends to join them. Others immigrated to Hawaii on a contract labor basis to work on sugar cane plantations.

Almost 90 percent of Portuguese immigrants who came to California were from the Azores. By 1880, they made up 20 percent of the population in some Contra Costa communities. Some came during the Gold Rush and became miners; others pursued the traditional trades of fishing and dairy farming. Many Portuguese who were working on the East Coast and in Hawaii came to California, where they could realize their dream of owning land.

The stories of families who settled around Clayton between 1850 and 1915 reflect many experiences common to Portuguese immigrants who came to California at that time. The majority listed their occupations as “farmers” in censuses. Escaping poverty and achieving an elevated standard of life were the main driving forces, and new immigrants worked primarily as laborers in local fields and vineyards and on cattle ranches.

Tony Peter Gomez and his father worked on the “hay-press circuit,” going from ranch to ranch baling hay. Prior to her marriage, Maria Cardoza Joaquin earned wages as a domestic servant to support her parents in the Azores. She came to New York in 1896 by steamship and purchased an “immigrant ticket” on a train for Oakland. Maryanne Duarte worked as a servant to Charles Rhine in 1880, and Mary Bettencourt was his housekeeper in 1900.

The next steps from mere wage earning were renting land and then owning land. Portuguese immigrants owned many larger ranches in Morgan Territory east of Clayton. Brothers Antonio and Jose Correa Azevedo eventually purchased many sections of grazing land on the east side of Mt. Diablo.

Manuel Bente Nunez Sr. arrived in 1874 and owned property in the area by 1885. He proudly became a naturalized citizen in 1888. His Morgan Territory holdings were so profitable that in 1902 he was able to buy an additional 480 acre parcel and eight Clayton town lots. One of the lots included the house of Charles Rhine. Manuel’s great granddaughter, Norma Bloching, says he bought the home so his children could attend the Clayton School. He and his wife never learned to read or write, and it is estimated that 70 percent to 80 percent of Portuguese immigrants of the time were illiterate.

With son-in-law William Bloching, Manuel ran the Eagle Saloon on Main Street and sold meat from livestock raised on his Morgan Territory property in his butcher shop.

Other notable Portuguese family names in Clayton history are Silva, Pereira, Galvin, Inez, Viera and Baeta.

A quote from James Guill’s history of the Azores Islands illustrates the farmer’s love for his land. In the early 1900s, Tony Jerome, an immigrant from the Azores living in the San Joaquin Valley, said: “I don’t remember making a decision to become a farmer. It just seemed to be the most natural thing for me to do. Sometimes when I am working in the fields, I reach down and get a handful of good clean dirt. I let it dribble through my fingers and I feel as if I had just shaken hands with all my ancestors.”

Debbie Eistetter is membership chair of the Clayton Historical Society. Visit claytonhistory.org or come to the museum on Main Street, open 2-4 p.m. Wednesdays and Sundays. Admission is free. Call 925-672-0240.