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Confederados Reunion Confederados ReunionAprilThe "Confederados" are the descendants of a small band of Southerners who fled the United States at the end of the Civil War to establish a new life in Brazil. Led by Colonel William Hutchinson Norris, an Alabama state senator who arrived in December 1865 and purchased a large farm about 80 miles northwest of São Paulo, the newcomers found the area's reddish soil reminiscent of Mississippi clay and the climate perfect for growing cotton and watermelons. As the word spread, thousands of Southerners followed—an estimated 2,900 a year landed in Rio de Janeiro between 1867 and 1871, and many more arrived at other Brazilian ports. They settled in a number of places, but the most successful colony was the one started by Norris. Americana, as it is known today, is a center for the textile industry in Brazil.
Many of the Americans missed their homeland and eventually returned there; the number of Confederados living in and around Americana leveled off at about 500 by the turn of the century. They hold four gatherings a year, the largest and most important of which—known as the Festa Confederada —takes place in April. In celebration of their heritage, they eat hot dogs and candied apples, drink cold beer, dance in hoop skirts and Civil War uniforms, and display the flag of the Confederate States of America. The April reunion takes place in a small local cemetery between Americana and Santa Barbara, where more than 400 of their ancestors are buried.
CONTACTS:
Prefeitura Municipal de Americana
Av. Brasil, 85
Vila Medon, 13465-901 Brazil
55-19-3475-9000
www.americana.sp.gov.br
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