Spanish Migration to Colonial Australia

Out of the Mainstream: Spanish Migration to Colonial Australia Eva María Gil Guerrero Master of Arts in Modern History Institute for Sustainable Industries & Liveable Cities, Victoria University Thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts (Research) February 2020 i Abstract This thesis analyses the group of Spaniards who migrated to the Australian colonies in the nineteenth century. Southern-European migration to colonial Australia has been broadly researched in the case of Greeks and Italians mainly because their modest numbers in the 1800s dramatically increased in the following century. Spaniards, however, did not migrate to the antipodes as often as Greeks and Italians in the twentieth century. Still, in the previous century, their numbers were quite similar. This fact is noteworthy because nineteenth-century Spain still maintained some colonies in the Caribbean and in the Pacific, where migration was encouraged by authorities, and had historical and economic ties with its Latin American ex-colonies, which were preferred by Spanish migrants. Therefore, what were the motivations of the group of Spaniards who headed to the Australian colonies? The purpose of this research is then two-pronged: to investigate these motivations together with their migration experiences and to fill the gap in current research. The main focus of this research is to provide a wide-ranging account of the Spaniards who migrated to Australia in the colonial period, identifying their motivations and type of migration and analysing their occupations, social behaviour and degree of assimilation. Therefore, family reconstruction and prosopography methodologies were used to construct a database of the key life events of this population. This data was analysed using both a quantitative approach and a qualitative approach which has allowed the identification of patterns and connections. As a result of this research, some significant conclusions can be drawn: the first Spanish settlers to colonial Australia were convicts who established themselves in the colonies after serving their terms. Although migration to the Australian colonies was discouraged by the Spanish authorities, the strength of some pull factors, such as the gold rushes, attracted the first Spaniards to Australia. The lack of official incentives was overcome by some private initiatives, including the establishment of a Catholic religious mission in Western Australia and the chain migration in Victoria. In these two private initiatives, the combination of charismatic and reliable pioneers who offered financial support, and job opportunities were pivotal to their success. This investigation also examines and analyses valuable information on assimilation and transregionalism. In conclusion, this research on Spanish migration to colonial Australia will shed some light on Spanish migration, settlement and transcultural lives in colonial Australia. i Master by Research Student Declaration “I, Eva Maria Gil Guerrero, declare that the Master by Research thesis entitled Out of the mainstream: Spanish migration to colonial Australia is no more than 60,000 words in length including quotes and exclusive of tables, figures, appendices, bibliography, references and footnotes. This thesis contains no material that has been submitted previously, in whole or in part, for the award of any other academic degree or diploma. Except where otherwise indicated, this thesis is my own work.” Signature Date 10 March 2020 ii Dedication To my husband, Francisco Marco, our children, Darío and Valerio, my lovely mother-in- law, Sita, and my dear parents, Carmen and Juan Manuel, for their unconditional support throughout this project. iii Acknowledgements I would like to thank my supervisors Ass. Prof. Dianne Hall and Dr. Karina Smith for their guidance and support throughout my research. Their academic knowledge and expertise have been essential to fully comprehend some peculiarities of the Australian colonial society and different perspectives on ethnicity and gender. Many thanks to Dean Laureate and Prof. Robert Pascoe, Emeritus Prof. Phillip Deery and Dr. Grazina Pranauskas for their insightful comments and valuable feedback as the panel of experts during my research. I have been very fortunate to have such academic professionals to guide me through completion. My gratitude to the personnel of the Public Record Office of Victoria (PROV) and the Bendigo Regional Archives Centre (BRAC) for their assistance during my visits. Also, to the Bendigo Family History Group, whose members provided me with valuable information about Bendigo in the nineteenth century. I want to acknowledge the great help and generosity of Mr. Ben Parer and his father, Dr. Michael Parer, descendants of the Parer family in Australia, who hold part of the family archive. They have provided me with valuable sources to complete this research. I also want to thank Anne Richardson for her help with the Clota branch of the family. Special thanks to Mr. James Lerk who is investigating the tomato growing industry in Bendigo and made me aware of the role of some Spaniards in the success of this industry in the late nineteenth century. iv Table of contents Introduction ................................................................................................................... 1 Chapter One. Historical background ........................................................................... 11 1.1 Spanish historical context ............................................................................. 11 1.2 Australian historical context .......................................................................... 21 Chapter Two. Migration and settlement ....................................................................... 26 2.1 Early settlers and convicts ............................................................................ 26 2.2 New Norcia ................................................................................................... 38 2.3 Gold seekers ................................................................................................ 41 2.4 Chain migration ............................................................................................ 56 Chapter Three. Identity and assimilation ..................................................................... 74 3.1 Migration experience .................................................................................... 76 3.2 Social interactions......................................................................................... 96 3.3 Spanish women’s identity ........................................................................... 106 Conclusion ................................................................................................................ 113 Appendix 1. Parer family tree .................................................................................... 116 Appendix 2. List of Spanish migrants to colonial Australia and their first news .......... 117 Bibliography .............................................................................................................. 131 v List of figures and maps Figure 1. Spanish convicts transported to Australian colonies (1813- 1864) ............................................................................................... 28 Figure 2. Number of Spaniards migrating to Victoria by origin (second half of the nineteenth century) ......................................................... 68 Figure 3. Spaniards’ main occupations in Australia in numbers (1813- 1910) ............................................................................................... 79 Figure 4. Percentage of Spanish migrants in each colony (1813-1910) .......... 84 Map 1. Regions and provinces of Spain ...................................................... 17 Map 2. Spanish migrants to some countries in millions (1882-1900) ........... 19 Map 3. Selected Spanish migrants’ regions of origin (nineteenth century) ........................................................................................... 68 vi List of Tables Table 1. European migration (1851-1913) ..................................................... 12 Table 2. Worldwide immigrant arrivals to selected destinations (nineteenth and twentieth centuries) ................................................ 22 Table 3. Spanish convicts transported to Australia by place of origin and trade (nineteenth century) ......................................................... 30 Table 4. Number of Spaniards who migrated to the New Norcia mission (nineteenth century) and number of those who remained in Australia ....................................................................................................... 39 Table 5. Identified Spanish miners per region in Australia (nineteenth century) ........................................................................................................ 47 Table 6. Identified Spanish miners’ marital status and death data (nineteenth century) ......................................................................... 54 Table 7. Parer and extended family migration (second half of the nineteenth century) .......................................................................... 63 Table 8. Some of the hotels and restaurants owned by the Parer family and relatives in Melbourne (second half of the nineteenth century) ..........................................................................................

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