Pictured to the left are my parents Maria Marques da Gama and her husband Joao da Gama, Jr., Portuguese immigrants who migrated from the Portuguese island of Madeira to the Hawaiian Islands in 1907. They and their 1-1/2 year old daughter Maria (my sister) and approximately 1060 other Portuguese immigrants left Funchal, Madeira on May 1, 1907 on the British steamship Kumeric.

Also on board the Kumeric were my paternal grandparents, Joao da Gama, Sr. and Maria Vieira de Mondonça and their children (my uncles and aunt) José 20, Joaquin 13, Antonia 11, Joao 10 and Manuel 7. My maternal grandparents Manuel Berenguer and Carolina Marques were on board as well along with my grand- father Berenguer's brother José and his wife Shandrinia and their two children Manuel 6 and Maria 3.

At the time the Kumeric departed for Hawaii, the city of Funchal, Madeira had a smallpox epidemic; therefore, all passengers were vaccinated prior to boarding. Although they were vaccinated, many passengers fell ill with smallpox. Entries in Kumeric's passenger manifest indicates that twelve passengers died on board, unfortunately little 1-1/2 year Maria, the daughter of Joao da Gama, Jr. and Maria Marques (my sister) was one of the unlucky ones. The entry on the passenger manifest notes that she died on June 26, 1907, one day before the ship arrived in Honolulu, Hawaii. Because of the contagiousness of samllpox, all of the passengers who died on board were immediately buried at sea.

The da Gama and the Berenguer family's move to Hawaii was during the time when many Portuguese families and individuals got caught up in the great Portuguese migration to Hawaii which began in 1878 and ended in 1913. The Kumeric was the 23rd ship of 29 ships that made the journey of which in all, transported approximately 25,000 immigrants to Hawaii. Under an agreement between the Portuguese government and the Hawaiian government, the immigrants were given a place to live, some food subsistence, free medical care and approximately $9.00 per month; however, they were obligated to work for the sugar-cane plantation owners for a minimum of 3 years. After completing their 3 year obligation, some left for California; however, many remained and were instrumental in the development of the Hawaiian islands.

After leaving Madeira on May 1, 1907, the first leg of the Kumeric's journey included rounding Cape Horn and a stop in Lota, Chile after 35 days at sea. This stop was required in order to take on more coal. The last leg of the journey from Lota, Chile to Hawaii, a distance of 5,909 miles, was completed in 22 days arriving in Honolulu, Hawaii on June 27, 1907. The entire journey took 57 days and covered a distance of approximately 15,000 miles.

Because of having smallpox on board, all of the passengers and crew were taken to Quarantine Island and were quarantined for approximately two weeks. After the quarantine period, the "da Gama and Berenguer" family members were finally allowed to enter Hawaii on July 12, 1907. After being admitted, they were transported to a sugar-cane plantation on the Island of Maui, Hawaii. Later that year my Grandparents Manuel Berenguer and Carolina Marques two other sons, Manuel, Jr. 20, and Joao Berenguer 13, (my uncles) who initially were not allowed to leave Madeira, joined the family in Maui. They traveled by ship from Madeira to New York City (Ellis Island), thence by train from New York to Oakland, California and then finally by ship from Oakland to Hawaii.

All Berenguer family documents, which included baptismal records, their passports and the Kumeric's passengers manifest indicated that their surname in fact was Berenguer; however, on July 12, 1907, the day they were admitted into Hawaii after being quarantined, the Consul General of Portugal in Hawaii inadvertently changed their surname to Bringues or Bringuel, the latter of which the family has used to this day. The change was made possibly because the immigrants could not read or write. The representative from the Consul General's office who made the entry more than likely wrote their names down the way the Berenguer family pronounced it.

After a five year stay in Iao Valley in Maui, working and living on the sugar-cane plantation, the da Gama's and Berenguer family's completed their contractual obligation and saved enough money to pay for their passage to Oakland, California. They made the move in 1912. Their stay in Oakland was short lived because they heard that there was large group of Portuguese immigrants from Madeira living in Santa Clara area. This prompted them to move to Santa Clara where they all settled in the northern part of the city. This is where they remained and raised their families, the men working in the orchards of the valley and the women in the local canneries. It was a hard life during the 1930's; however, with hard work they succeeded in obtaining property and their families grew and prospered as well in Santa Clara Valley.

My parents, Joao da Gama and Maria Marques brought nine children into this world. They were Maria born in Madeira on September 8, 1905 and died on June 26, 1907 from smallpox while on the voyage from Madeira to Hawaii. A second child, who was also given the name Maria, was born in Maui, Hawaii on December 22, 1907. She was followed by Caroline on June 10, 1909, then Helena on March 11, 1912. After their move to California and their final move to their home at 1624 Monroe Street in Santa Clara, their fifth child John was born on August 29, 1914; unfortunately, little John died on June 8, 1915 from toxemia. Next to arrive was Manuel who was born on November 16, 1917. On November 2, 1918, a year after Manuel's birth, Helena, the da Gama's fourth child died in the flu epidemic of that year. The next born was Joseph who was born on May 6, 1921 who was then followed by Daniel who was born on August 25, 1924 and lastly, Raymond (the author of this writing) who was born on January 14, 1930.

The da Gama's last four boys were all born in the family home located at 1624 Monroe Street in Santa Clara which the family acquired in 1913. The home at 1608 Monroe Street was purchased and moved to the Monroe Street site in 1938 and became their family home. This house was formerly located at the south-west corner of Washington Street and the El Camino Real. The home located at 1624 Monroe was converted to a three unit apartment and rented out to help support the family. My father, Joao da Gama passed away on December 29, 1954 and my mother, Maria Marques passed away on September 26, 1960. Approximately ten years after their passing both homes were sold and subsequently were raised to make room for a private condominium complex which occupies the land at this time.

At the time of the sale of the property, six of the nine children da Gama children were living and they too had children of their own. Their second daughter, Maria married Joseph Marchant and they in turn had two children, a son Gilbert and a daughter Geraldine. The da Gama's third child Caroline married John Vierra and they also had two children, a daughter Rosaline and a son John, Jr. Caroline and John Vierra were divorced and Caroline then married Mike Vierra and they had two children, a son Ronald and a daughter Carol Ann. Next to marry was Manuel, the da Gama's sixth child. He married Adeline Silva and they in turn had four children, a son Gerald, a daughter Barbara, a son James and a daughter Donna Marie. Joseph, the da Gama's seventh child married Clara Vierra and they had two children, daughters Karen and Judy. The da Gama's eight child, Daniel married Gloria Maciel and had four of their own, a son Daniel, Jr., a daughter Dianna, a daughter Melody and a son Dennis. The ninth and last of the da Gama's children, Raymond, married Geraldine Roach and they in turn had two sons, Craig and Richard.

As time passed a number of the da Gama children passed away. Joseph, their seventh born died on December 2, 1983, then Maria, their second born, died on October 5, 1989 and Manuel, their fifth, died on January 31, 1996. The Joao da Gama and Maria Marques offspring's remaining and who still reside in Santa Clara are Caroline, Daniel and Raymond. The six children of the original nine who married had children of their own and their children had children and so on. From Joao da Gama and Maria Marques' union, there are presently over 175 direct descendants living on the west coast, most of which are in the Santa Clara Valley. The Berenguer, or should we say the Bringuel side of the family, have many direct descendants as well with most of them also living on the West Coast and in the Santa Clara Valley. There are also relatives from both the da Gama and Berenguer family still residing in Hawaii and in Madeira, each one in their own right, with a story to tell.

This Article is the property of Raymond G. Gamma. Questions relating to this writing may be sent via e-mail to: gammaray@earthlink.net or GammaRa103@AOL