PRADA - Portugal to Guiria, Venezuela to Trinidad

[mike2]

Hello,

I am researching Camilo Prada who married Maria Basilia Malvina da Costa aka Corrado and who lived in Guiria in Venezuela, then moved to Trinidad, where he died, in 1875.

[Bobbie]

Mike

I received your note addressed to me & replied to it on Tuesday 6th dec but did not take a copy which I meant to do. So I asked Jim Lynch to tell me how to retrieve it but he said he could not find any message so I must have made a mistake in transmitting it. If you did not receive it please write again saying the recent post has not been received & I will try again & hope to get it right this time. It took quite a long time to write as I had to dig my research on what I had discovered on all the Pradas but hopefully will not take so long next time.

best wishes

Bobbie

[mike2]

Hi Bobbie,

I did not receive your recent post.

Would I be right to say that you are the descended from Pedro Jose Prada, Son of Pedro Louis Prada, Son of Camilo Prada. All i know of Pedro Jose is that he joined the British Army and later moved to Glasgow where he became a Dentist and got married. I was not able to find his birth record, but got his parents marriage information and baptism information of three of his sibblings: Francisco Henrique, Lucas Antonio (did they call him Camilo Antonio?) and Gregoria Maria. Gregoria Maria was burried in her uncle's grave (Enrique Prada) in 1978 and not with her parents in the Trujillo Blanc Mausoleum.

I have alot of information on the Prada Family (my wife is descended from the brother of Pedro Louis. His name was Camilo also, but was known as Camilio (I suppose "little Camilo"). I am willing to share my info. newspaper articles, photos (not of family members), trees etc.

Also, my wife was a "Blanc" and has the family tree, of which we can link Maria de Jesus, the wife of Pedro Louis.

I have no information on Camilo or his wife. They showed up in Guiria, Venezuela and seem not to be Catholic as two of the children had to get special permission to be married in Guiria. They are Portuguese, but from where and of what religion I do not know.

Perhaps you have not seen this: The link should carry you to the Port of Spain Gazette of January 3rd 1907. Look on page 3. Pedro Prada Ltd advertised almost daily. The site contains newspapers from Jan 1907 to Dec 1914. Also if you look you would see ads from Arthur Vaughan.
http://www.dloc.com/UF00094730/00001?se ... %3dgazette

Hope you have a great day

Cheers






cheers

[Bobbie]

Trying again on Pradas Reply to Mike 2 on Caribbean surname index 28.12 2016
I am sorry I do not have any more names of my great grandfather Pedro Prada who died 6.Aug 1908 announced in Mirror on 7.8.1908 or earlier family history of Pradas. The paper on his obit & his wife’s Jesuita (obit Mirror 17.Mar.1912). They both seem to have been born In Camana Venezula & Pedro was 58 at his death, & had 7 children.
He had a brother called Enrique a doctor who qualified in Edinburgh & another called Camilla (?Camillo) & a sister down in Pedro’s obit as Mrs Tinoco.
Pedro/Jesuita schildren were Peter who live in England
Virginia m Arthur Vaughan my grandparents.
Malvina, a nun in Ireland & Canada
Enrique, a doctor
Maria who worked in a hospital & was a beautiful seamstress
Pedro Louis but this is only 6. I do not know the missing child.
Both Pedro & Arthur was merchants in P o S, certainly not a dentist nor as far as I know ever in Glasgow. Pedro ‘s wife Jesuita was a Blanc & sister to Virginia. Pedro worked for the firm of Jules Lamy (? Type worn)
The Blanc death notices I have are for Dr Tony Blanc (Mirror 9.2.1906 aged 29 & brother of Jesuita & Virginia Blanc w/o Dr Enrique Prada

The only Pedro Louis Prada info I have is that he was born c 1850 in Guiria Sucre Venezula whose children I think were Jorge Washington Prada b 1847 – 13. 3 1883
And Pedro bn 1850 & he would be 58 in 1908 so I presume that is my great g’father.

Arthur Vaughan & Jesuita had 5 children: Guy 1910-1981 who lived in Canada
Ruth (my mother) 1913- 1994 m Charles Demorée Newbold (1909 -1993) lived in Jamaica -1947 then Kenya 1948- 1970 then England
Maud 1916 -2002 m Claud McMullen lived in US
Tess a teacher 1923 – 1996 lived England
Mary 1923- m Garth Gentilin (both still alive living in NY)

As we left the WI so early (soon after my birth in 1941) I hardly knew any of my relatives so cannot give you much info on them.
I have a sister Margaret Ruth now Deverell lives in Ireland
I live in Edinburgh now & legally am Kathleen Elizabeth Smith but called Bobbie

[mike2]

Hi Bobbie,

I live in Trinidad and have done a bit of research into the prada Family. You have quite a treasure trove. I will share what I have:

Camilo Prada was born sometime in the early 1800’s. He married Maria Basilia Malvina “Corrado” Da Costa. They lived in Guiria Venezuela (just across the water from Port of Spain Trinidad). They moved to Trinidad and 3 of their children were merchants. Their Chirlden were:

Jorge Washington who married carmen Garcia in Guiria
Rosa Hortencia who married Simon Tinoco in Guiria
Camilio who married Charlotte Contant in Trinidad
Pedro Louis who married Maria de jesus Blanc
Enrique Prada who married Virginia Blanc

There are no birth records of anyone in this family. Civil records did not start till 1872, and although there are catholic church records, the only two that exist of Prada are of the weddings of Hortencia and Jorge Washington.

I have Pedro Pradas children as follows:


• Pedro Louis Prada (Junior) – (aka Peter) born around 1882. He moved to England after his parents died and married Beatrice Eldridge in 1915. They has 2 daughters - Beatrice Maria (1919-2004) and Elise Virginia (b1924) His wife died in 1937, and Pedro followed in 1939. Pedro’s address in England was the visiting location for Enrique, his wife and his children when they visited England.
• Gregoria Maria (known as maria) was born 9th May 1888. Maria was so close to Enriques children that the newspaper mistakingly noted her as sister in law to George May when he died. Maria travelled regularly to England to visit her brother Pedro Louis. I believe that she never married. (There is another Maira Prada who had a daughter called Elsie. This Maria attended St Joseph Convent. She also travelled with Enrique Prada to England. She died in 1976 and was buried on 8th June. She was 77 years old and lived at Pembroke Street when she died. She was buried in Enrique Pradas grave in the Laperouse Cemetery. – I could not find her death recorded in the newspaper to confirm her children, parents or sibling information etc)
• Lucas Antonio – born 18th October 1889.- I believe that he was known as Camilo Antonio. (Jorge Guillermo also had a son called Camilo Antonio). He is not mentioned among the Mourners at either of his parents funerals. Perhaps he was abroad, perhaps he was dead.
• Francisco Henrique (Enrique) – born 3rd December 1891.
• Pedro Jose Prada – (aka Peter) born around 1896. After his parents died, he joined the British Army. In 1920 he began his medical studies (doctor or dentist) in Glasgow Scotland. He stayed in Scotland, got married and had several children.
• Virginia Prada – Named after her grandmother, Virginia married Arthur Louis Vaughan (junior), Arthur was a businessman and merchant with a store in Downtown Port of Spain at the time. Somewhere around 1911 they had a son GUY. Guy migrated to Canada. I did not know he had other siblings. I have guys wife noted as JR Vaughan.

[mike2]

HI Bobbie,

I do have info on the other family members, if you want i would share that with you. Here is a small biography that i have put together on Pedro Louis Prada:

PEDRO was born somewhere around 1850 in Guiria. Just like his other siblings, there is no birth record.

In 1880 Pedro married the eldest daughter of Antonio Blanc and Virginia Trujillo: Maria de Jesus Blanc. They married on December 18 (a week before Christmas) in the Catholic Cathedral in Port of Spain – He was 30 and she was 18 (Jesuita was born 22 nov 1862 in Guiria) . In those days she was considered a minor. You were an adult if you were 25 years old. The marriage record lists Pedro’s occupation as a merchant clerk.

The couple moved to Clarence Street in St James and began their family. Later they would move to Oxford street in Port of Spain. By 1895 they were operating a large Store on Marine Square (king Street) Port of Spain: Pedro Prada Ltd. They also owned 2 cocoa estates. One in Palmiste (trinidad) and one in Savannah Grande (now known as Princes town)in Trinidad called San Pedro Estate. On the way to Mayaro, through Princes town in the Poole area there are three streets called “Prada Settlement 1, 2 and 3. And there is a road and village called San Pedro (the old estate area).

Pedro then moved his family to a house at Queens Park West, not far from his younger brother Enrique who lived in a house with the name “Mille Fleur”.

There is a story in the Port of Spain Gazette about Pedro Prada. I Paraphrase – Sometime around the middle of May 1896 a certain Mr Valasquez presented himself to Pedro Prada with an introduction letter. This letter from a good friend of Pedro Prada in Carupano Venezuela, a Mr Solis, asked for credit to Mr Valasquez for 2 months, with Mr Solis being Responsible. Credit was offered to the young man and he took goods valued at $300. (not sure how that translates to 2017 dollars). It so happened that aboput a week later Mr Solis came to Trinidad on business and dropped in to see his good friend Pedro Prada (on the 21st May). In conversation it was discovered that Mr Solis never sent nor signed such a letter. They decided to seek Mr Valasquez out. They discovered that he left Port of Spain on the 19th on the Dutch Steamer “Prins Maurits”bound for Carupano. Pedro Prada was able to retrieve $120 in shirts and bulky items that the schemer did not take with him on the ship. It was further discovered that the schemer wrote a letter asking other businessmen to give him Credit amounting to $1200, and his recommender in this new letter was none other than Pedro Prada. That credit he did not receive. He then went to General Machado, the Venezuelan Consul. To the Consul he presented himself as Jose Maria Dias, and presented a letter from the Collector of Customs at Carupano. “My good friend, please offer any kindness to my God son” it said. “I need nothing” he told the General, “O well .. perhaps $20”. And some days later “Perhaps $65”. Afterward, some investigations led the Consul to believe that the schemer was the disowned son of a wealthy man from Venezuela who did a similar thing in La Guayra. – What a story! What a schemer!

Pedro died in 1908 and his wife followed him in 1912. Soon after the store closed. Maria de Jesus’ parents owned a large gravesite in the Laperous Cemetary in Port of Spain – The Trujillo Blanc Mausoleum. Both Maria and Pedro were buried there.

The Blanc Family came from Cogoleto Italy. Cogoleto is a small town just outside of Genoa Italy. The towns most famous son is Christopher Columbus. In the late 1700’s Ignatius Stephanus Bianchi moved from Cogoleto to Marseilles France. He had four sons and three daughters in France. The daughters he left with the Italian name, but the sons he gave the French version of Bianchi. He baptized them with the last name Blanc.

The four sons of Ignatius came to Trinidad in the early 1800’s: Genesis Louis Marie Blanc (born 1791) left Trinidad for Guiria Venezuela. There he cleared the Forrest and Planted Cocoa.

In the mid 1800’s the son of Genesis Blanc, Antonio moved to Trinidad with his Family from Guiria, Venezuela. By that time the family had made a bit of money for themselves in the Cocoa business. Antonio Blanc had married Virginia Trujillo the daughter of businessman and planter Julian Trujillo of Guiria and his wife Juana Ventura Valdés de Yarza Casanova also of Guiria. It would seem that of the eight children that the couple had, only three survived to adulthood : Antonio who became a medical Doctor and two daughters who married two Prada brothers Pedro & Enrique. Some of Antonios (snr) Siblings also came to Trinidad from Guiria.

Regards

[mike2]

Hi Again Bobbie,

Hope your 2017 is going well.

MALVINA & MARIA - I was looking through the baptism records i have and kicked myself for overlooking something - Gregoria Maria was baptized Gregoria Maria Malvina Prada. This is the person you referred to as Malvina. Then I checked the age of the Maria who travelled to the UK several times during her lifetime and i have come to the conclusion that due to her age she could not be the Maria Malvina, instead she is the Maria that you say was the seamstress. I mixed up the two.

Now Maria's first cousin's daughter remembers Maria well. She says that Maria had no children, that she knew of. So my information that she had a child could be mistaken.

Malvina travelled to England in 1910 with Jesuita. Just to confirm, is Jesuita a home name for Maria De Jesus?

You said that Malvina was a nun. At both the funerals of Pedro (snr) and Maria de Jesus the st jospeh of cluney nuns were present. So perhaps Malvina was among them. I found no record of her burial in Trinidad, so your note about her being abroad makes so much sense to me now.

Concerning Pedro Louis (Jnr) he lived at 1 Smyrna Mansions, Smyrna Road, Hampstead, London in 1929 he moved to 34 Albany road, Ealing, Middlesex (London, really).

One of his daughters Beatrice Maria Prada NORTH had a play copywritten in 1967 in New York under a nom de plume Scott Richards - it was called "Tainted Money on a Hero". She died in New York in 2004. The other daughter seemed to have stayed in the UK.

Pedro Jose Prada (pedro Jnr younger brother) began his medical studies in the university of Edinburgh in 1920 (oct 6). He then settled in Burnbank Terrace and also Holland Street in Glasgow.

Regards

Have a great day.

[Bobbie]

Hello Mike

If I could do so I would ban repeat names. How can a researcher identify which Pedro or Maria is which?! I was entertained by the con artist but am sure Pedro Prada did not find it funny.

I am afraid I cannot answer your question on Jesuita being a home name for Maria De Jesus - the only record I have is the Mirror notice which said she was the wife of Pedro (decd) & gave the names of her children so I am sure she iwas the mother of Virginia but will admit I was originally told (by who?) that her name was Camilla Blanc. Life's little mystery.

Best wishes

Bobbie

[mike2]

Hi there Bobbie,

Maria de Jesus had a brother (who probably died in Guiria) called Estevan. Her fathers name was Antonio Estevan and one of his brothers was called Estevan. Then that Estevan had a son who he called Estevan.

Pedro Louis Prada's father was called Camilo, PL Pradas brother was also Camilo, but he was called Camilio (i guess Little Camilo). But Pedro Louis was the best at the repeat names. He named one of his sons after him Pedro Louis Prada, but he also called another son Pedro... Pedro Jose Prada. Now Pedro Jose, i very recently found out, was married to a woman with 10 children and who was older than him. I dont know if they had any children together. But i am impressed with this woman. ten children and she could still attract a younger man.

Getting back to repeat names. Pedro Louis (senoir) had a brother called Jorge (George) Washington. Jorge had a son called Jorge Guillermo. ... and it seems everybody had a Maria. Pedro Louis Seniors mother was Maria Basilia Malvina DaCosta. As far as I know Maria skipped a generation. His brother Camilio called his daughter Inez Maria. Pedro Louis senior had 2 daughters called Maria. Even Virginia Vaughan named her daughter MARY.

And then there is Virginia. Maria de Jesus' mother was called Virginia Trujillo. She married Antonio Estevan Blanc and they named one of their daughters Virginia. That Virginia married Dr Enrique Prada. but there must be a Virginia in every generation so Maria de Jesus named her daughter Virginia.

If you are confused have a drink of sherry and just forget about it.

Regards

[mike2]

Roman Catholic church of the Holy Rosary-
Corner Henry and Park Streets, Port of Spain

BAPTISMS

MARIA
Baptismal name: Laboria Maria de Carmen Prada
Born 23 July 1898
Baptised 17 August 1898
Parents: Pedro Prada and Maria de Jesus Prada
Abode: Cumberland
God Parents Carmen Aduze and Juan Amundarian

PEDRO JOSE PRADA
Baptismal name; Maxim Pedro Jose Prada
Born 29 May 1899
Baptised 27 June 1899
Parents: Pedro Prada and Maria de Jesus Prada
Abode Oxford Street
God Parents Enrique Prada and Virginia Prada