Maria’s Baptismal Record Found
[Research Journal #6, Entry 3]
I began visiting the Portuguese Genealogy Chat on AOL (run by my friends and fellow researchers, Cheri Mello and Linda Crandall) and was boosting my research self esteem. I learned that I could order baptismal records for my Portuguese kin by mail. I was pretty sure the Family History Center in Oakland would have the microfilm I needed, but the last time I went they scared me to death (not on purpose, I don’t think) So, I took the easy way out and sent for the baptismal certificates for my great grandmother, Maria dos Anjos de Braga. Since I was fairly certain of her birthdate, I had a good chance of getting the record I requested.
If you’ve ever ordered records from the Arquivo in Ponta Delgada, you know that it tries the patience of a Saint while waiting for the anticipated results. I think they used something akin to the Pony Express back in the mid 1990s! At least, it felt like it!
Several weeks later, I received my records. I had some assistance translating the record. Maria was baptised 16 Jun 1876 in Divino Esperito Santo Church, Maia, Ribeira Grande, Sao Miguel Island, Azores. Her parents were given as Zosimos [sic] de Braga and Maria da Conceicao. Her grandparents were Jacintho de Braga and Rosa Barquiera and Felicianno de Mello and Rosa Botelho. Felicianno and Rosa were Maria’s parents! I needed other records to confirm this information, but I now had somewhere to start.
First Stop: Passports and Consulate Logs
My great great grandparents, Jozimas de Braga and Maria da Conceicao de Mello arrived in Hawaii in Jun 1882. I had information from the census on when my Gr Gr Grandparents migrated to Hawaii. I checked the ship indexes and found their entry. This helped me find them in the Azorean Passports
The couple was recorded in the consulate logs, but only Jozimas parents were listed. I then looked up the couple in the passport book by Robert DeMello. This is what it says:
Braga, Zosimo [sic], 32
Father Jacinto Braga
Mother Rosa Pacheco
From Maia
Wife Maria da Conciecao [sic], 36
Children: Jose 7, Maria 5, Maria 2 years old
#282 Monarch
While the passport revealed details about Jozimas de Braga and his parentage. There was nothing about Maria’s parents. I was going to have to do research in Portuguese language records. I’d never researched those records before. I have to admit they scared the dookies out of me! I didn’t know Portuguese except for a few swear words–and I didn’t think that would be very helpful!
Finding Maria’s Father
[Research Journal #6, Entry #1]
My Gr Gr Great Grandmother was Maria da Conceicao (de Mello) de Braga left for Hawaii in 1882. She didn’t leave many clues as to who her parents were. I knew she was from the town of Maia, Ribeira Grande, Sao Miguel Island, and that she married Jozimas de Braga. Beyond that, her history was a blank. I wanted to figure out who her parents were so that I could go further back in my research. I had explored all California and Hawaii resources. I was ready to move on to the records of Sao Miguel Island.
In this journal, you’ll see that I found out the names of her parents easily. However, locating her father was a big challenge.