The launch of the anthology “The Dabneys: a Bostonian Family in the Azores 1806-1871” drew a crowd including Azorean dignitaries at the New Bedford Whaling Museum on Saturday.
The event introduced the English translation of the recently published collection of papers in Lisbon, Portugal, of the Dabneys, a Boston Brahmin family of merchants who settled in Horta, Faial, in the Azores in the 19th century. Their impact on the growth of trade, ship supplying and whaling and their humanitarian activities earned them admiration throughout Portugal and America.
Three generations of Dabneys were U.S. consuls to the Azores.
John Dabney was made first U.S. consul to the Azores in 1806 and started a diplomatic dynasty that has never been repeated in U.S. history followed by his son and grandson.
The project was developed by Luso-American Foundation in partnership with the New Bedford Whaling Museum.
University of Lisbon Social Sciences professor and volume editor Maria Filomena Mónica edited the Portuguese edition based on a 2,000-page “Annals of the Dabney Family,” a collection of letters and diaries compiled by Roxana Dabney years after the family left the Azores.
Mónica said while the Dabneys were very much a Yankee family, they were kind.
“They were elite but I didn’t get the impression they were snobbish at all,” Mónica said.
The family also fell in love with the island of Faial, preferring to live in the Azores over the United States, she said.
Arthur Motta, the museum’s director of marketing and communications, helped edit the English version of the anthology. He said the book has brought to life the most remarkable compilation documenting U.S. foreign relations.
“Extraordinary not only in its breadth, most of the 19th century, but of the people it includes. A galaxy of some of the greatest names of the era,” Motta said.
He also credited the family with their generosity to their host country.
“It is safe to say that hundreds of thousands of Americans of Azorean heritage would not be here today if the Dabneys had not acted to save so many from starving,” Motta said.
There is no question of the undeniable importance of the Dabney family’s contribution to the Azores and its relationship to the United States both economically and social and emotional interaction between the two sides, said Rodrigo Vasconcelos de Oliveira, Azores undersecretary of the presidency for external relations.
“It’s very humbling to be part of a family that has such remarkable history with Portugal and the Azores in particular. Their accomplishments serve as a reminder as to what individuals can do. Our family has taken great pride in the history of those who came before us,” said Dabney family descendent Frederick Dabney.
Also on hand to celebrate the anthology were Nuno Brito, ambassador of Portugal to the United States; Horta Mayor Joao Castro; New Bedford Mayor Jonathan Mitchell; James Russell, president and CEO of the New Bedford Whaling Museum; and Mario Mesquita of the Luso-Amercian Foundation.
A series of book event launches are also planned this month. On Feb. 19, the book will also be launched at 7 p.m. at the Providence Athenaeum, 251 Benefit St., Providence. The event is sponsored by the Department of Portuguese and Brazilian Studies at Brown University.
The Jackson Arts Center at Bristol Community College will set the stage for a launching on Feb. 20 at 7 p.m., organized by the Grimshaw-Gudewicz Art Gallery and LusoCentro.
Finally, the McMullen Museum of Art at Boston College will host a launching on Feb. 21 at 5 p.m., sponsored by the Luso-American Foundation. The museum is at 140 Commonwealth Ave., Newton.
Email Jo C. Goode at jgoode@heraldnews.com.