Preserving, exploring, and sharing Portuguese Canadian history
WHAT’S NEW?
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New Research partnership with York University
As of April 2024, Gilberto Fernandes has been appointed to the position of Research Lead for the PCHP within the Department of History at York University. In this role, he will continue his academic research and public history work on the Portuguese diaspora in Canada and around the world, build on the PCHP’s archival collections…
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Lusophone Studies Association visited the PCHP archives
Today, during the Lusophone Studies Association’s international conference at York University, a group of attendees visited the Clara Thomas Archives and Special Collections at Scott Library, where they learned about the PCHP and looked at a sample of our collections. Thank you to the conference organizers for including this tour in their program and for…
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Collaboration with Vhils in mural honouring Cleaners’ Action
The internationally renowned street artist Vhils (Alexandre Farto) has created a mural in Toronto’s Little Portugal neighbourhood – on 1628 Dundas St. West (just west of Brock Ave.) – honouring Portuguese “cleaning ladies” and their labour activism through the Cleaners’ Action movement in the 1970s-80s. The Embassy of Portugal in Canada, the Little Portugal BIA,…
WHO WE ARE
The Portuguese Canadian History Project (PCHP) is an incorporated non-profit organization founded in Toronto in 2008 by Dr. Gilberto Fernandes and Dr. Susana Miranda, and later joined by Dr. Raphael Costa and Dr. Emanuel da Silva. Since 2009, we have partnered with the Clara Thomas Archives & Special Collections (CTASC), York University Libraries. Our objectives are to:
- Preserve the collective memory of Portuguese immigrants and their descendants in Canada.
- Democratize access to historical knowledge in its production and consumption.
HOW WE CAME TO BE
As graduate scholars researching the history of Portuguese immigrants and their descendants in Canada, we encountered few records in public archives that reflected the complex experiences, networks, and dynamics in the communities that we studied. In the course of our oral history fieldwork, we found that multiple individuals and organizations held on to rich collections of historical records that they produced and amassed. In some cases, these collections were at risk of being lost forever. The PCHP emerged in response to this reality and to bridge the gap between public archives and immigrant communities.
What we do
Archive
We seek historical records in the hands of private individuals and organizations; assess their contents and state of preservation; facilitate their donation to the CTASC; provide context, translation, and metadata for their archival processing; and assist in their digitization. Since September 2009, we have helped transfer 10 collections from authors, community advocates and organizers, a documentary filmmaker, a newsman, a poet, a politician, scholars, a social service agency, and a union local.
Educate
Using the records that we have transferred to the CTASC and our own expertise has historians of the Portuguese in Canada, we have developed multiple public and digital history initiatives, including physical and online exhibitions, public lectures and panels, TV documentaries, and walking tours. When possible, we include our archival donors in the development of these educational projects.
Collaborate
Besides creating and animating the archives, our model is predicated on a pragmatic collaborative approach, whereby we complement and empower our partners as we seek common goals. Besides the CTASC, we have worked with numerous organizations and individuals, including academics, artists, researchers, diplomats, high school teachers, secondary and post-secondary students, documentary filmmakers, public history professionals, and local businesses. We are also proud to have served as a template and inspiration to other community archives and public history organizations in Toronto.
Portuguese Canadian History Project 