Bermuda National Gallery.

The arrival of Richard Moore and the sixty colonists in the Plough on July 11, 1612 marked the beginning of migration to Bermuda from the British Isles as well as from many other countries.

Most of the immigrants arriving from other islands were English speaking, except for one group, the Portuguese. Although the Azorean group were representative of the Portuguese, historical research reveals that there had also been a strong Madeiran presence in Bermuda since 1849.

To understand why Bermuda was so attractive to so many Portuguese agricultural workers, one must be aware of the current events in Bermuda and the Azores during the mid-nineteenth century.

In Bermuda, the seafaring economy was undergoing a transitional period.

The glorious age of the Bermudian seaman, engaged in carrying trade between the eastern American ports and the West Indian waters was seriously threatened with the arrival of steamships as competitors.

The once thriving ship building industry was also experiencing a marked decline. It was a time for the Bermudian leaders to find alternatives to boost the Island's economy.

The people of the Azores were looking to improve their lot. They immigrated to places like the United States because of the growing whale-hunting industry there and because of the plagues, which devastated vineyards and orange groves in the Azores. Bermuda was also a viable destination.

As a result, the 1840's became an important period in Bermuda's history. Led by Governor Reid, new ideas on developing an agricultural economy were emerging. However, in 1847 this was no easy task as inhabitants of Bermuda were not interested in doing the work.

In order to change Bermuda into an agricultural economy, there was a need for workers in the fields. This presented a problem due to the lack of manpower available.

Governor Reid recommended in 1845 to import a limited number of agricultural workers to the Island from Europe. Within a short time a grant of money was made available by the legislature to finance the importation of agricultural labourers to Bermuda.

When Bermuda extended an invitation to the Portuguese agricultural workers of Madeira in 1849, there was a quick response. Maderirans, already accustomed to island farming, looked upon the proposed two year contract as an economic opportunity. There were fifty-eight men, women and children who answered the Bermuda call. On November 4th 1849 the Golden Rule, arrived in Bermuda.

Throughout the 1850's the Madeira community grew steadily.

From 1864 there were several unsuccessful attempts by the Bermuda government to import agricultural labourers from the Azores, Germany, England and Sweden.

Finally in 1872, forty immigrants were imported from Sweden.

Throughout the 1880's, and particularly in the 1890's, the number of Portuguese immigrants arriving in Bermuda was considerable. With few immigration restrictions, and no immigration officer at either port, the Portuguese literally came and went at will. Most arrived on small vessels from New England and the Azores.

It was the Portuguese planters who worked the Bermuda farms in the late 1870's and 1880's that were largely responsible for the unprecedented influx of Azoreans to the Island in the 1890's and early 1900's. A total of sixty-nine applications for Portuguese workers were submitted to the immigration board, under the bonus or passage-assisted policy between 1883-1894. Of the sixty-nine applications, fifty-nine were submitted by the Portuguese themselves requesting permission for relatives and friends to come to Bermuda.

Portuguese already established in Bermuda were independently sponsoring their own relatives and friends, and had been doing so successfully since the 1870's.

A small percentage of Portuguese settlers owned their own property prior to 1908, but the amount of acreage leased by the Portuguese planters was considerable. For a large number of the early immigrants, the agricultural way of life continued into the 1920's.

The continued large waves of Portuguese migration to Bermuda during the late 1880's and 1890's resulted in a dramatic increase in the number of Portuguese living on the Island. But there was still a shortage of agricultural workers in the 1920's. To alleviate this problem, the Immigrant Labour Board imported ninety-six workers from the Azores.

The Tuckers Town project was directly responsible for hundreds of Portuguese being brought to Bermuda in the late 1920's. As many as 539 Azoreans worked under contract. Unlike the many hundreds who had preceded them, upon completion of their contracts they were not encouraged to remain on the island.

One hundred and fifty years later, Portuguese Nationals are still being brought to Bermuda under contract either for government or the private sector.

Aware that they must someday return to their homeland, Portuguese Nationals live very industrious lives, preparing for their future while contributing a valuable service to Bermuda.

Courtesy of Bermuda Archives: A sketching of Front Street from the deck of the "Orinoco'' around 1890. The artist is unknown.