Ivo João Darin

 

Maria Lucia Martins in Baurú, in August 1980

 

Dulcinéia Coelho, Sandra Helena, Ivanete & Maria Lúcia in Baurú-SP.

Alberto Luiz Bellini & Maria Lúcia Martins, in 1980. 

Albina Rosa de Jesus cutting her birthday cake on 2nd August 1980.

Rute, Albina, Maria Lúcia & Sandra. 

Günther Karg Jr & Sandra Helena. 

Maria Lúcia in 1960, thirty years earlier. 

Fernando Antonio Amorim & Albina Rosa de Jesus

 

Claudio (7) mounted on a swan; Dulce (9) holds Maria Rosa (1) and Luiz (4) mounts a pony at a Marília photo studio in 1939.

Fernando Antonio Amorim & Albina Rosa de Jesus were married on 2nd February 1918; 

1. José Amorim, born in November 1918, died in infancy of diarrhea;

2. Ana Amorim, born in 1920, died in infancy too;

3. ANTONIA Amorim, born on 26 August 1921, in Ourinhos-SP;

4. JOÃO Amorim, born on 24 September 1923, in Ourinhos-SP;

5. MÁRIO Amorim, born on 26 May 1926, in Ourinhos;

6. DULCE ROZA Amorim, born on 27 August 1929, in Ourinhos;

7. CLÁUDIO Amorim, born on 6 December 1931, in Ourinhos;

8. LUIZ Amorim, born on 16 March 1934, in Marília-SP;

9. MARIA ROSA Amorim, born on 4 March 1938, in Marília-SP.

Day of DEATH of members of the Amorim Family, originally from Sebastião do Rio Bonito-RJ, then moved to Ourinhos-SP in 1920; Marília in 1932 and finally São Paulo-SP in 1960 forward...

1. Placidina Maria Nazareth, died in 1923, in Ourinhos-SP;

2. Florência Rosa de Jesus aka Dindinha, died on 28 November 1949, in Marília;

3. Joaquim Pavão de Oliveira aka Quincas, died on 11 August 1951, in Marília;

4. Chica aka Virgilina Maria Nazareth, died on 5 January 1952, in Marília;

5. Emília Nazareth aka Tia Nenê, died on 23rd December 1955;

6. Margarida Rosa de Jesus, died on 30 April 1966, in Marília;

7. Fernando Antonio Amorim aka Murim, died on 3rd February 1969, in Marília; 

8. Mario Amorim, died on 4 March 1971, in São Paulo;

9. João Pavão de Oliveira, died on 24 November 1978, in Marília-SP;

10. Anna Rosa de Jesus, died on 19 August 1981, in Ourinhos;

11. Albina Rosa de Jesus aka Altina, died on 5 March 1984, in Marília;

12. Virgílio Amorim, died on 4 September 1986;

13. João Amorim, died on 14 March 1987, in São Paulo;

14. Cláudio Amorim, died on 24 November 1993, in São Paulo;

15. Francisca Oliveira, died on 23rd May 1994, in São Paulo;

16. Regina Célia Amorim, died on 2nd January 1997, in São Paulo;

17. Arthur Bellini, died on 18 May 1997, in Marília;

18. Yolanda Darin, died on 13 February 2006, in São Paulo;

19. Nadir Martins, died on 29 July 2009, in Baurú-SP;

20. Luiz Antonio Amorim, died on 30 August 2009, in Marília;

21. Maria Rosa Amorim Bellini, died on 2nd November 2012, in Marília;

22. Luiz Amorim, died on 21st August 2013, in Marília;

23. Alberto Luiz Bellini, died on 11 April 2015, in Marília; 

24. Paulo Cesar Coelho, died on 22nd January 2021, in Guarujá-SP;

25. Dulce Roza Amorim, died on 30 January 2021, in São Paulo;

26. José Martins, died on 7 January 2022, in Lençois Paulistas-SP;

Albina Rosa de Jesus aka Altina at Cemitério da Saudade, in  Marília.

Maria Rosa at the same grave a few years later; Rosângela is seen at the background. 

Marília-SP.

Cotia-SP.

José Martins (1926-2022) & Maria das Dores Vital

José Martins (19), José de Oliveira (21) & Mario Amorim (20) in 1945.  

As we have seen in earlier posts:

Jacinto Antonio Amorim & Placidina Maria Nazareth had at least 9 children:

1. João Amorim

2. Maria Nazareth

3. Adelina Nazareth

4. Firmino Amorim aka Danga

5. Joaquim Amorim (died when only 2 years old)

6. Aspasia Nazareth (accidentally electrocuted)

7. Emília Maria Nazareth aka Tia Nenê (1889)

8. Fernando Antonio Amorim (1895)

9. Virgílio Amorim 

Emília Maria Nazareth had two daughters from different men

1. Catarina Nazareth 

2. Virgilina Nazareth aka Chica

Catarina Nazareth, not yet 17, married Domingos Martins (22) on 12 January 1925, in Ourinhos. Martins was born in Ribeirão Preto-SP, in 1903; his father Christovam Martins and mother Rosalia Lopes hailed from Málaga, Spain. Catarina & Domingos had 5 children: 

1. José Martins (23rd July 1926)

2. Nair Martins 

3. Francisca Martins

4. Nadir Martins (19 July 1937 + 29 July 2009)

5. João Martins (1939) adopted by Virgilio Amorim and renamed João Amorim.

After Catarina Nazareth's untimely death at the age of 33, in 1941, Domingos who was 38 years old simply went away and abandoned all his children to the care of his mother-in-law Emília Maria Nazareth and her brothers Fernando and Virgílio. Domingos ended up marrying a Maria da Glória Gonzaga from Tarumã-SP and they had 4 daughters: Natália, Aparecida, Aldevina e Rita. 

Zé was raised by his grandmother Emília (Tia Nenê). After Catarina gave birth to Nair, in 1929, Zé was weaned and given to Emília, who lived with Chica, her youngest daughter. In 1932, Chica married a Black ex-soldier called Gilberto, they used to call 'Geriberto'. As Fernando Amorim moved to Marília with his family, Chica, her new husband Gilberto, her mother Emília and grandson Zé Martins went to work at a coffee plantation in Ribeirão Claro-PR, just across Paranapanema River. 

Ribeirão Claro-PR just across the wide Paranapanema River, where Zé Martins, his grandmother Emília, aunt Chica & her husband Gilberto went to work as labourers in 1932. 

José Martins in 1950, in Marília.

When Zé Martins was 22 years old, he met and married Maria das Dores Vidal aka Dorinha.

José Martins weds Maria das Dores Vital, born in Marília, on 19 April 1932; Her father was Miguel Vital and Maria Rosa Pereira, known as dona Rosa, her mother. Miguel & Rosa had:

1. Geny Vital, who died from a weak heart in her early 30s.

2. Nércio, born on 17 August 1930; died on 30 April 1961; 

3. Ernestina, went away and returned only 20 years later; 

4. Maria da Dores aka Dorinha born on 19 April 1932; jumped off a train on 28 January 1975;

5. Luzia Pereira, was born in 1948 or 1949; Luzia's father was not Miguel, hence her different surname. Luzia was nursed by dona Rosa who also nursed her granddaughter Maria Lúcia Martins.

Zé Martins weds Dorinha; the bride's baby sister Luzia Pereira is he flower girl. 

Maria Lucia dressed up as an Angel, in June 1951, when she was 16 months old.

Maria Lucia Martins, 3o ano do Grupo Escolar Thomaz Antonio Gonzaga, Marília, 1960.

This scrap of paper with names of the Pereira, Vital and other families related to Maria das Doris Vital, Maria Lucia Martins's mother - was found among the things left by my aunt Rosa Darin, after she died in 1995. As Rosa lived opposite the house where some of Dorinha's relatives lived on Rua 9 de Julho, next to Rua Bom Fim, in Marília, I guess someone belonging to one of those families made a point of writing down their names as a matter of discerning who was who. 

In a conversation I had with Maria Lucia Martins on 26 December 2024, she went through this list and pointed out who she still remembers:

1. Belarmino Pereira was one of Maria Rosa Pereira's brothers. He worked as a grave digger at Marilia's Cemitério da Saudade. 

2. Brasilina Pereira was dona Rosa's sister. She was relatively well-off.

3. Maria Antônia de Jesus Pereira is possibly dona Rosa's mother.

4. Nelson Vital

5. Miguel Vital married Maria Rosa Pereira and had a few children; 

6. Aparecida de Freitas; 

7. Maria Vieira dos Santos;

8. Zeferina Soares da Cruz;

9. Marta Marques.

left, Dorinha in the 1960s; right: Dorinha on 30 April 1973, two years before her untimely death. 

Maria Lucia & Dorinha, her mother Maria das Dores Vital, in Marília-SP, in 1971.

Maria Lucia in the 1960s; Celso, her boy-friend circa 1962. 

Edna Tsutsui on 4 February 1964; Marinalva around the same time. 

Maria Aparecida Martins, Lucia's half-aunt from Tarumã-SP, on 20 July 1983.

Talking about Cida Martins, we should now talk about this branch of the Martins Family who lived in Tarumã-SP, a town near Assis and Cândido Mota, not far from Paranapanema River which is the boarder between São Paulo and Paraná.

Domingos Martins ended up marrying Maria da Glória Gonzaga in Tarumã-SP and they had 4 daughters: 

1. Maria Natália Martins, born in 1942, (had daughters Adriana & Ida); 

2. Maria Aparecida Martins, born on 6 September1948; 

3. Aldevina Martins 

4. Maria Rita Martins.

In 1951, Domingos Martins who was 48 then, actually exactly 10 years after he had left his 5 children with Catarina Nazareth, fatherless in Avaré, up and went AWOL again. Now, he abandoned wife Glória and 4 daughters who ended up being raised by their  tireless mother. 

Tarumã at the centre of the map not far from Paranapanema River on the south, Marília on northeast, Ourinhos slightly northeast and Londrina-PR crossing the boarder into Paraná State. 

Maria Lucia at our house in Rio Pequeno, in 1977. 

Luiz Carlos & Maria Lucia in 1977. 

João Amorim, Osvaldo, Yolanda Darin, Clelia Hiroko Myiadara, Maria Lúcia, Rute, Sandra & Fernando in 1978.

Marília graveyard

 

Marília's Cemitério da Saudade.

This is an early shot of Marília's Cemiterio da Saudade built in the outskirts of town in the mid-1920s. My grandfather Giovanni Battista Darin arrived in Marilia with his family in November 1927. Less than a year later on 20th September 1928, his brother Francesco Darin (52) died and was buried near the main gate which shows prominently on the photo. Toni Darin's toddler Antonio Darin Filho died on 20 September 1929 and then Elisa & Rissieri Darin's only daughter Lilia Therezinha died a month later on 25 October 1929 and were all buried in the same grave near the main entrance.

Part of the Darin family was really scared of so many deaths in so short a time and decided to go back to São José do Rio Pardo where they had come from about 2 years before and the graves were left unattended.

In the 1940s the local Council (Prefeitura) built a new brick wall around the Cemetery and those graves near the entrance were either transfered or simply destroyed with the remaining bones being taken and thrown into a common grave they called 'Cruzeiro' (Crosses). At Dia-dos-Finados (All Souls' Day) on 2nd November people usually light candles near this mass-grave that burn the whole day. The grave-yard management makes sure the fire is put out before they close down at the end of the day.

Every time I visited Marília in the 1990s, I would pay a visit to Cemitério da Saudade. Actually, aunt Rosa Darin would attend a Catholic Mass on Mondays at 2:00 pm, so I made a habit of walking from her abode on Rua 9 de Julho, 2008, up to the Graveyard every week. After Mass, Rosa and I would wander through the lanes and I would ask all sorts of questions about the graves we passed by. I made a point of taking paper and pencil to jot down names and dates of those I had the chance to know during their lifetime or people who lived and died before I was born or too young to know better. Here are some of the notes I took during those pleasant visits:

Gesuína F. de Souza (*4 January 1900 + 12 November 1987) at the same grave Q 57; 159; Sebastião L. Ribeiro (*18 August 1918 + 18 December 1955) who was married to dona Gesuína's daughter Sebastiana, who worked at the waiting room (sala de espera) of Companhia Paulista de Estrada de Ferro after her husband died prematurely at 37. 

Sebastiana de Souza & her mother Gesuína F. de Souza plus Pedro and Paulo, moved to Rua Mato Grosso, some time after their father's untimely death, in early 1956. Pedro was probably one year older than myself (1948) and Paulo, probably one year younger than I (1950). Both were nice kids. I remember a few years later, maybe 1959, Pedro had to go to hospital to have an operation. I don't know what was his problem... but I remember I became really sad when I heard the news for I thought he might die. While Pedro was in hospital, I listened to Giselle Galo's 'Le Lac de Côme', played by the orchestra of Frank Pourcel, from an Odeon extended-play my Father had and almost cried. A few days later, Pedro was back on Rua Mato Grosso alive and kicking. I never forget this particular moment. 

Fernando, my older brother used to be friends with Jurandir, a boy 2 years older than he who lived in that wooden house that dona Gesuína would occupy later. Jurandir lived with an older sister called Iraí, who was married to a barber and had a baby. 

We moved into a house on Rua Mato Grosso, in 1954. After Antonia Amorim married Günther Karg, on 4 July 1953, and went on living in Baurú (she worked as a telephone operator for Companhia Telefônica, a Canadian utility company). Up until then we had all lived at a house on Rua Rodrigues Alves owned by my grandfather Fernando Amorim. Our grandfather was annoyed with the neighbours who had been living in the area since back when that was part of Marília's red-light district. Since Antonia had left home to go to live in Baurú, he planned to sell the house and move out.

São Sebastião do Rio Bonito-RJ (now known as Pentagna-RJ)

 

Church of São Sebastião do Rio Bonito; the town is now known as Pentagna-RJ.

As one can see, São Sebastião do Rio Bonito-RJ, now known as Pentagna-RJ is not far from Rio Bonito-MG on the North side and Valença-RJ on the South side... 

A wider map of the Rio de Janeiro State where my paternal grand-parents came from. One can see Pentagna-RJ formerly known as São Sebastião do Rio Bonito-RJ near the board of Rio de Janeiro-Minas Gerais. One can also see Volta Redonda-RJ which became an industrial region during Getúlio Vargas' period (1930-1945) plus Barra Mansa-RJ and Barra do Piraí-RJ. Further south one can see Baixada Fluminense with Nova Iguaçú-RJ, Duque de Caxias-RJ and Baía da Guanabara... a little further North there are Petrópolis-RJ and Teresópolis-RJ. 

Emilia Maria Nazareth aka Tia Nenê

Emília's mother Placidina Maria Nazareth at her coffin in 1923 in Ourinhos-SP; on the right, Emília's younger brother Fernando Amorim.

As we have already seen, EMILIA MARIA NAZARETH aka TIA NENÊ was the 7th child of my paternal great-grandparents Jacinto Antonio Amorim & Placidina Maria Nazareth. She was born in 1889, in São Sebastião do Rio Bonito-RJ. Tia Nenê aka Sá Nenê, was 6 years old when Fernando Antonio Amorim was born in 1895. 

In February 1908, when Emília was 19, there was a commotion in the area of São Sebastião where she lived with her parents and siblings. Early one morning when everyone was up to go to work, a bundle wrapped in some cloth was discovered on top of a tree stump near their street. To everyone's surprise, the bundle turned out to be a baby-girl which had been born only a few hours back. It just didn't die because February is the height of the Brazilian summer. The police was summed up and a great big search was put in place to find out whose the baby's mother was. The Police knocked on everyone's doors to find out whether they could find a young lady who had just lost a few kilos recently. 

It didn't take too long for the Police to zero in on Emilia who had to admit that the child was hers. She had given birth to the girl with no help from anybody and decided to get rid of it to save her reputation. The little girl was eventually baptized and given the name of Catarina Maria Nazareth, born on 2nd February 1908. Emília said Manoel de Aragão, who worked as a drover (tropeiro) was the father, but he never acknowledged his part so little Catarina was raised by mother Emília and grandmother Placidina. 

When Catarina was 4 years old and her mother was 23, Emília became pregnant from a Black man (his name has never been mentioned). Emilia's sisters Maria, Adelina and Aspasia wouldn't hear of their younger sister having a child of a Black man inside their home so Emilia had to have her second daughter out in the open, just like the first time although for a different reason. Thank God it was summer again, otherwise it would've been a messy business with both mother & child risking their lives. 

On 3rd December 1913, Emilia Maria Nazareth gave birth to Virgilina Francisca Nazareth, since birth known as Chica, who was unlucky to be of a darker skin than a mixed blood child could be. So life went on for Emilia and her two daughters until 1919, when the whole family left the State of Rio de Janeiro and moved to Ourinhos-SP, near the boarder of Paraná, where everyone worked as labourers at coffee or sugar-cane plantations. Emilia was 30 years, Catarina (11), Chica (6) when they arrived in Ourinhos.

As time went by, Catarina, not yet 17, married Domingos Martins (22) on 12 January 1925, in Ourinhos. Domingos, who worked as 'carroceiro' (cart man) was a fair man with blue eyes having been born in in 1903 in Ribeirão Preto-SP; his father Christovam Martins and mother Rosalia Lopes were both from Málaga, Spain. Catarina & Domingos Martins had 5 children:

1. José Martins, born on 23rd July 1926, even though he was registered on 10 September 1926. 

2. Nair Martins, born (probably) in 1929; married Joaquim Maciel; died in 1965 (36 years old); 

3. Francisca Martins - born circa 1931. 

4. Nadir Martins, born on 19 July 1937; died of a heart attack, on 29 July 2009, in Baurú-SP;

5. João Martins, probably born in 1939; João was 1 year old when Catarina died, so her uncle Virgilio Amorim ended up adopting João Martins who had his surname changed to João Amorim, the same name of his mother's cousin João Amorim.

After having 5 children or maybe more, for we don't know whether she had still-born babies or children who lived only a few days - Catarina was frail and dispirited. They had moved to Avaré-SP, 115 km away east of Ourinhos and probably lived in squallor for I was told Catarina contracted tunga penetrans known as 'bicho-do-pé' which is a sort of flea which burrows under the skin of humans and if not treated it can cause blood poisoning aka septcemia. They said Catarina walked barefoot near their pig sty. Catarina was taken to a hospital but never recovered having died at 33, in 1941.

Soon after Catarina died, Domingos Martins took a trip somewhere never to return, leaving all 5 children at their own devices. This is actually a male trait: when the going gets tough one might as well, fuck off. Hearing the news of Martins' desertion of his children, uncle Fernando Amorim traveled from Marília to Avaré to try and sort the whole mess. José (14) went to live with his grandma Emília, in Marília. Nair (12) and Nadir (4) went to live with Fernando and his family in Marília. Joãozinho (2) was legally adopted by Fernando's younger brother Virgilio Amorim who had only daughters and longed to have a male child. I don't know about Francisca Martins' fate, who was 10 then. She probably went to work as a handmaid for some next-of-kin in Ourinhos. Nair lived with her great-uncle Fernando Amorim for a few years. She went to primary school in Marília where she learned to read and write. By the time she was 15, Fernando thought Nair was unruly and could not follow instructions so she decided to go back to Ourinhos to live with another relative; probably went to live at the same place where Francisca had been living for the past 3 years. Dulce Amorim told me, Nair used to write back to Marilia (from Ourinhos) telling about her new life...until she herself got married to Joaquim Maciel and had a few children. 

So this is the saga of Catarina Nazareth and her husband Domingos Martins who went AWOL.  

In 1920, when the whole family migrated to Ourinhos-SP, Chica was 7 years. In 1926, when Chica turned 13, she started working as a handmaid for Sá Lodi, mother of Manoel de Oliveira, who was married to Anna Rosa de Jesus, Emilia's sister-in-law's sister, Albina.

On 16 December 1932, when Fernando (37) & Albina (35) moved yet again, this time to Marília, his sister Emilia (43) came along with her youngest daughter Chica (19) who by this time already had a baby boy born in Ourinhos called Álvaro, of an unknown Black man. 

Virgilina Francisca Nazareth (*3rd December 1913 + 5 January 1952) soon met a Black man called Raimundo Andrade da Silva, born in 1901, who adopted Álvaro, and went on to have 2 daughters and another boy:

Virgilina aka Chica & Raiumundo's children: 

1. Alvaro (Chica's first child, probably born in 1930, in Ourinhos, when she was 17 years old)

2. Regina Andrade da Silva (born in Marília, probably in 1938)

3. Guiomar Andrade da Silva (born in Marília, probably in 1942)

4. Milton Andrade da Silva, born in Marília, on 18 April 1945. 

In conversation I had with Dulce Roza Amorim on 20 November 2006, she told me a few things about Chica's family. Raimundo showed up in Marília circa 1934, from 'nowhere'. No one knew where he came from. He had a shack by a brook that ran through the low northern section of Marília, called Alto Cafezal, running parallel with Rua Bom Fim. He owned a horse and managed to buy a cart which he loaded with wood he'd cut in his backyard and delivered to households around town. There was no cooking gas in the 1930s. Apparently, Emilia aka Tia Nenê, also lived with Chica and Raimundo near this brook. 

Dulce said Chica would only visit Murim's house (nickname of Fernando Amorim, her uncle) after dark for she was afraid she'd stained his reputation for having business with a Black person. Slavery had been abolished only 45 years before and Blacks were deemed as sub-humans then. She'd have a cup of coffee and off she went on her way. 

Chica worked as a handmaid during the day while Raimundo kept busy with his 'lenhadora' (firewood) business. They lived a hand-to-mouth existence. Chica became very frail and died of malnutrition on 5 January 1952, only 38 years old. Regina was 13, Guiomar was 9 and Milton only 6. The children were supervised by their grandmother Emília who was 62 years old. 

Raimundo outlived Chica by 4 years. Raimundo Antonio da Silva died of hyper-tension on 29 October 1956. Regina and Guiomar were adopted by a white family who belonged to a Lutheran Church in Marília. Milton, who was 10 when his father died was kept by his grandmother (Tia Nenê) who died 

In the lack of Emília Maria Nazareth's photographs I took the liberty to post a photo of her mother, Placidina Maria Nazareth, lying in an open coffin at Ourinho's cemetery, in 1923, a few moments before being lowered 7 feet into her grave. This is Placidina's only extant photo. For some unique reason I happened to be present when Emília died in a bedroom in her brother's house on Rua Mato Grosso, 397, on  ....  1956. My family lived in a house just in front of Fernando & Albina's abode. One day I thought I had someone shoutin 'Tia Nenê is dying!!'. It was Nadir Martins' crying, her own flesh and blood, actually her granddaugher. I rushed to our grandparent's house, climbed the steps to the front porch of a wooden house, for I knew Tia Nenê had been staying for the last few days. I don't remember whether I saw her alive, but I'm pretty sure I saw her body for a prolongued stretch of time. Actually, I think I saw Tia Nenê when she was still grasping for air on the verge of dying... or maybe it is my imagination playing with me. That's why, this post-mortem photo of Placidina reminded me of her daughter Emília...