April 4
RELEVANCE/THESIS: In order to cope with the uncertainty immigrants often encountered in their new surroundings, the Cape Verdean community turned to religious and social organizations for reassurance, support, and financial assistance. These churches and benevolent societies became cornerstones of the Cape Verdean community in Fox Point. During the Great Depression two mutual aid societies - the San Antonio Club and the St. Isabel Society - were founded to provide sickness and death benefits for their members. These organizations appealed to immigrants who needed a source of security, but who did not trust the large insurance companies. Catholic and Protestant organizations also served as community gathering spaces and reinforced the unique and family-centered identity of the Cape Verdean immigrant community.
HOLY ROSARY CHURCH:
The Holy Name Society and the Sociedade Santiago - voluntary associations established in the 1920s
- There is a brief history of both organizations in the Coli and Lobban article. We will supplement these short references with stories from the Fox Point community and the Holy Rosary Church.
- While we recognize the potential tension between the church and the Cape Verdean community members we have met with, we do find this narrative important and significant to the story of Fox Point.
- Images/objects (4 images + religious objects - rosary, iconography, etc.)
- The article includes an image of the Spirito Cabo Verdeano, a twenty-five member marching bad that played American marching music for annual parade celebrating Cape Verdean ethnicity. We are hoping to use the photo if we can obtain permissions and find a high-resolution image.
- The article also includes an image of the Sociedade Santiago. We hope to supplement this photo and include other images of the annual dance and banquet held at Holy Rosary. According to the Coli and Lobban article, there was an orchestra, a singing presentation, and a Mass attended by 450-500 adults and their children.
- Flickr images of the CV Society Procession:
1) http://www.flickr.com/photos/foxpoint/2414376931/
2) http://www.flickr.com/photos/foxpoint/2471583337/
SAN ANTONIO CLUB
The San Antonio Society (Associacao Caboverdeana Santo Antonio), established in 1934
- Main points: role during the Great Depression, caring for community, establishing CV identity
- Images/objects:
1) membership certificates, applications, constitutions - We plan to duplicate some of the applications and bind them together into a notebook/ledger for visitors to browse. The applications are written in Portuguese and have information about the applicant and the member who nominated them.
2) flag/banner display + image of the SA meeting room - Using the American flag and SAC banner to talk about leadership, Americanization, and celebration.
3) ledgers - There are ledgers from San Antonio Society meetings that are written in Portuguese and translated into English. We would like to display the originals with a translation to give a flavor of the meetings and the issues discussed. We haven't looked at the ledgers yet, but hopefully, they will say something about the SAC's work during the Great Depression.
ST. ISABEL SOCIETY
- The St. Isabel Society was a women's club established in 1934
- Main points: the important role of women in the CV community
- Images/objects:
1) We have the gavel and the bell used at the St. Isabel Society meetings.
2) Flickr mages of the one-year anniversary of the society
1) http://www.flickr.com/photos/foxpoint/3256702924/
2) http://www.flickr.com/photos/foxpoint/3256702636/
SALVATION ARMY
- Main points: providing aid during the Great Depression, involvement of the SA in the CV community
- Claire has found two articles describing summer Bible school hosted by the local SA, but we haven't found anything in the archive about it.
- Images/objects:
SHELDON STREET CHURCH - may not be included?
- Main points: ??
- We are currently working on acquiring images/objects relating to the church, particularly anything related to the activities offered at the chapel in the 1930s - Boy and Girl Scouts, Sunday school, Americanization classes, Bible study, The Christian Endeavor Society (whatever that is!), plays and performances, etc.
WHAT WE NEED FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS:
- images/objects related to Holy Rosary celebrations and events
- images/objects related to Sheldon Street Church celebrations and events
April 1
note: images/objects denoted in orange
RELEVANCE/THESIS: In order to cope with the uncertainty new immigrants encountered in their new surroundings, the Cape Verdean community turned to religious and social organizations for reassurance, support, and financial assistance. These churches and benevolent societies became cornerstones of the Fox Point community. The concept of mutual aid societies like the San Antonio Club appealed to immigrants who needed a source of security, but did not trust the large insurance companies that often discriminated and exploited immigrant clients. Both Catholic and Protestant organizations served as community gathering spaces and provided sickness and death benefits to their members. They also reinforced the unique and family-centered identity of the Cape Verdean immigrant community.
SECTIONS (in no particular order):
Group #1: The Catholic organizations/churches in Fox Point - Holy Name Society, Sociedade Santiago, Holy Rosary Church
- The Holy Name Society and the Sociedade Santiago were two Catholic voluntary associations established in the 1920s.
- There is a brief history of both organizations in the Coli and Lobban article. We will supplement these short references with stories from the Fox Point community and the Holy Rosary Church.
- While we recognize the potential tension between the church and the Cape Verdean community members we have met with, we do find this narrative important and significant to the story of Fox Point.
- Artifacts/objects:
- The article includes an image of the Spirito Cabo Verdeano, a twenty-five member marching bad that played American marching music for annual parade celebrating Cape Verdean ethnicity. We are hoping to use the photo if we can obtain permissions and find a high-resolution image.
- The article also includes an image of the Sociedade Santiago. We hope to supplement this photo and include other images of the annual dance and banquet held at Holy Rosary. According to the Coli and Lobban article, there was an orchestra, a singing presentation, and a Mass attended by 450-500 adults and their children.
- We would like to locate images and/or objects that illustrate the importance of these events and the Catholic identity to the Cape Verdean community (parade, banquet, Mass, etc.).
- Next steps:
- Daniel is meeting with Holy Rosary on Thursday to ask about images and artifacts we may be able to use in the exhibit.
- After he has met with the Church, we will consult with Claire how best to present the material we have located.
Group #2: The Protestant organizations/churches in Fox Point - San Antonio Society, St. Isabel Society, Sheldon Street Church
- The San Antonio Society (Associacao Caboverdeana Santo Antonio) and the St. Isabel Society were two Protestant benevolent societies, both established in 1934.
- There is a brief history of both organizations in the Coli and Lobban article. We will supplement these short references with stories from the Fox Point community and the Sheldon Street Church.
- Artifacts/objects:
- San Antonio Society
1) membership certificates, applications, constitutions - We plan to duplicate some of the applications and bind them together into a notebook/ledger for visitors to browse. The applications are written in Portuguese and have information about the applicant and the member who nominated them. We need to check on privacy issues concerning medical histories on the reverse side of the application.
2) flag/banner display - We were considering a projection of an image of the SA meeting room with the American and Portuguese flags prominently displayed alongside the San Antonio banner. We have the original American flag and banner, as well as a few other items featured in the photograph. We thought we could situate the items in the space of the projected image. Our back-up would be to have the image blown-up, the items highlighted, and the corresponding artifacts displayed.
3) ledgers - There are ledgers from San Antonio Society meetings that are written in Portuguese and translated into English. We would like to display the originals with a translation to give a flavor of the meetings and the issues discussed.
- St. Isabel Society
- We have the gavel and the bell used at the St. Isabel Society meetings. We would like to display these two items along with images of the Society and a panel discussing the important role of women's clubs in the Cape Verdean community.
- Sheldon Street Church
- We are currently working on acquiring images/objects relating to the church, particularly anything related to the activities offered at the chapel in the 1930s - Boy and Girl Scouts, Sunday school, Americanization classes, Bible study, The Christian Endeavor Society (whatever that is!), plays and performances, etc.
- The Coli and Lobban article includes a photograph of a Sunday school class and a photograph of Boy Scout Troop 40 in the late-1920s. We are hoping to use the photo if we can obtain permissions and find a high-resolution image.
- Next Steps:
- Tam is locating images and/or stories related to the St. Isabel Society.
- Amy is locating images and/or stories related to the Sheldon Street Church.
- We need to discuss all three of these sections in more depth with Claire and relevant community members.
Group #3: The Salvation Army
- The Salvation Army Heritage Museum and Historical Society did send a photograph of the SA Band in Providence, c. 1922.
- We are currently working with the Salvation Army National Archive and Research Center in Alexandria, VA, to locate information about the SA's work in the Fox Point community. Claire has found two articles describing summer Bible school hosted by the local SA, but we haven't found anything in the archive about it.
- Due to time constraints and the abundance of other information pertaining to local churches and organizations, we may scrap this group from our section.
WHAT WE NEED FROM COMMUNITY MEMBERS:
- images/objects related to Holy Rosary celebrations and events
- images/objects related to Sheldon Street Church celebrations and events
- information/images/objects of the Salvation Army in Providence
OTHER NEEDS:
- permission and/or high-res images from Coli and Lobban article
- cases for ledger, gavel/bell
- projector/screen(?)
- Portuguese flag
March 25-26
- attempted to contact Salvation Army
- called Broad Street Office (Frank Sullivan) but he didn't have any information about the Fox Point neighborhood
- left voicemail + email for Salvation Army Heritage Museum and Historical Society (Kathryn Bearcroft)
- left voicemail + email for the Salvation Army National Archive and Research Center (Susan Mitchem)
March 26
- I met with Claire and other members of the Fox Point community
- we outlined 8 groups to be discussed in the San Antonio section of the exhibit:
1) Holy Name Society
2) Sociedade Santiago
(^ two earlier societies which we may choose to include?)
3) San Antonio Society
4) St. Isabel Society
5) Sheldon Street Church
6) Holy Rosary Church - Claire said the relationship between the church and the Fox Point community is tenuous
7) Salvation Army
8) Cape Verde Club (East Providence)
- possible artifacts:
1) gavel and bell from St. Isabel Society
2) membership certificates from the San Antonio Society
3) LOTS of application forms from the San Antonio Society
4) American flag from the San Antonio Society
5) JFK photograph hanging in a few pictures of the San Antonio Society
6) some crockery (plates, glasses) saved from the San Antonio Society dinners
7) numerous photographs of the societies including some Claire has already blown-up (including the dinner table we talked about recreating)
8) San Antonio banner (from 1934)
9) San Antonio Constitution (English and Portuguese)
10) San Antonio meeting ledgers and dues books
March 19
- email sent to Claire Andrade-Watkins requesting a meeting to discuss the San Antonio, the church communities, and the Salvation Army.