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The Brazilian Town Founded By Confederate Soldiers
And the roots that still exist there today
After every major political upheaval, Americans have the habit of grumbling into their cups. They scoff and say that they are going to leave. Thousands of Americans threaten to leave the country for greener pastures after every election cycle. They say they’re going to Canada, Mexico, or Europe. Few actually ever leave. But that is not always the case. Sometimes people do flee the United States with no intention of ever going back. One group of people that had a large number of good reasons to leave were Confederate soldiers, politicians, and their families following the events at Appomattox Courthouse.
The Civil War took a huge toll on the Confederate South. Hundreds of thousands of men and boys were killed or maimed. Farms were left without workers, both white and black. Infrastructure was destroyed en mass. The rebel states were under Union occupation. Slavery was abolished. Lives were in tatters from Nashville to Atlanta to Richmond.
So many of them decided to leave. Groups of Confederate families pooled their resources and chartered ships that sailed from New Orleans and Mobile Bay to South America — primarily Brazil.
When they arrived, the ex-Confederates founded a town. Americana. The town still exists today in São Paulo and has ties going all the way back to 1865–1866.
Americana, São Paulo, Brazil
The municipality of Americana is located in São Paulo, Brazil. It has a population of a quarter of a million people. The town was officially founded in 1875 after the completion of a major rail link. The area began to be populated by Confederates starting in 1866.
Thousands of Confederates streamed into Brazil after the conclusion of the American Civil War. Sympathizers, land owners, soldiers, politicians, and women who had lost their husbands and fathers. They congregated in an area called Vila dos Americanos. This whole area was shaped and founded by ex-Confederate Americans.
