Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
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Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
Good evening all,
Unfortunately my grandmother died before I was born, my family know very little about her, however I was always told that she was born in the Algarve. I managed to obtain my grandparents marriage certificate, however all it states for both grandfather and grandmother that they were born in the Algarve.
I know my grandfather was born in Viseu, however we believe my grandmother is from Moncarapacho, I have been contacting various registry offices in Porgual with not much luck.
My grandmothers name was Cecilla da Natividade de Souza, she was born on the 1923 and before leaving Portugal we now know she was living in Moncarapacho. Can anyone provide guidance?
Thanking you all in advance
Regards
Mariano
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
Dear Mariano,
You seem to have a relatively complicated case in your hands, but you have important clues.
The surname Souza (now usually written Sousa; Souza is the ancient spelling that fell out of use in the early 20th century) is very common in all parts of Portugal, so it doesn't give any indication of where your grandmother was born.
In any case, is "Cecilia da Natividade de Souza" your grandmother's maiden name? Since you have her marriage record, do you know the names of her parents? Those could be of great help.
How do you know your grandfather was born in Viseu? That is not in the Algarve as you certainly know. Not that I am surprised to see that kind of error in foreign records.
Which specific offices have you contacted in Portugal? If your grandmother was born in Moncarapacho in or around 1923 her birth record should be at the registry office (Conservatória do Registo Civil) in Olhão, which is the municipality Moncarapacho belongs to. Looks like a straightforward case... If she was born there, of course.
You may also have a chance of finding her passport records when she emigrated. If she was living in the Algarve at the time that should have been requested in the district of Faro. The archive in Faro (Arquivo Distrital de Faro) has this kind of records, although I don't know how complete they are. However, it would be important to have an approximate date of her departure.
These are just some ideas. Feel free to ask for more details. I have seen cases that looked far worse than this coming to a happy ending in this Forum.
Best regards,
Rui Pereira
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
Thank you so much for your feedback Rui,
Unfortunately most of my living relatives live in Argentina and came over when they were very young. Each time I speak to them about the place of birth of my grandmother, the location changes, in the first instance I was told she was born in the Algarve when I told them that it was a district, they mentioned 2 or 3 different names, so far I still have been unable to identify her.
I try contacting the Arquivo Distrital de Faro, however as I dont have a town of birth, the response is always the same. I really need to find my grandmothers details urgently now, do you have any other suggestions?, unfortunately my great aunt wants to go to Portugal before she dies and as she has lost her memory the family want to send her to the town her family come from.
If necessary are there services you can recommend in the Tavira, Sao Bras, Olhao areas that do genealogical seaches??, happy to pay a fixed fee if necessary
Thanks in advance
Kind regards,
Mariano
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
I am not sure if my last message was uploaded sucessfully, so here it is again
Thank you so much for your feedback Rui,
Unfortunately most of my living relatives live in Argentina and came over when they were very young. Each time I speak to them about the place of birth of my grandmother, the location changes, in the first instance I was told she was born in the Algarve when I told them that it was a district, they mentioned 2 or 3 different names, so far I still have been unable to identify her.
I try contacting the Arquivo Distrital de Faro, however as I dont have a town of birth, the response is always the same. I really need to find my grandmothers details urgently now, do you have any other suggestions?, unfortunately my great aunt wants to go to Portugal before she dies and as she has lost her memory the family want to send her to the town her family come from.
If necessary are there services you can recommend in the Tavira, Sao Bras, Olhao areas that do genealogical seaches??, happy to pay a fixed fee if necessary
Thanks in advance
Kind regards,
Mariano
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
Dear Mariano,
Sorry for not replying earlier.
The Algarve is not a district itself, but it is a region that corresponds exactly to the district of Faro (all districts in Portugal are named after their capital cities).
As for paid services I really have no experience because I make my own searches. Tavira, São Brás and Olhão are all in the district of Faro, and all records for those regions from 1860 to present are either at the Faro archive or at the local conservatórias (most records from earlier dates are in Lisbon). It's really all the same region (from Faro it's about 10 km to Olhão, 30 km to Tavira and 20 km to São Brás).
I saw that in other topic you are giving the names of your grandmother's parents. In Portuguese those would be João de Sousa and Palmira Gertrudes. That is a major piece of information, one that many people in similar circumstances don't have.
I also noticed you mentioned one Sítio dos Murtais in Moncarapacho. Well, a web search does show there is a place called Murtais in the parish of Moncarapacho. It appears that you are extremely close to success. But I have to ask: can you confirm you found both names "Murtais" and "Moncarapacho" from family information? I just want to be sure that the "Murtais" you are looking for is not some other place with the same name.
You might consider the possibility of contacting the local church in Moncarapacho to see if they have the baptism record for your grandmother (and also of her sister). That record will not have legal value, but it will should give the birthplaces of her parents, making it easy to find their records.
Best regards,
Rui Pereira
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
DearMariano
Like your grandmother was born in 1923, the birth certificate is still on the main registry office, which if you have sufficient details can be obtained online at https://www.portaldocidadao.pt/.
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RE: Da Souza (Looking for a relative in the Algarve)
Hi Rui:
Yes i can confirm you that both murtais and moncarapacho are the names that i was given by my grandmother´s nieces. they also told me about the freguesia Nossa sehnora da graca which i think is the main church in moncarapacho. I sent a mail to the diocece of algarve 2 days ago and now i´m waiting for an answer.
thanks for interest and help, Mariano
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