The One Minute Geographer: The Azores: Closer Than You Think

Base map from Great Circle Maps at gcmaps.com. Distances and names added by the author. Distances on the map are shown to the main city of the Azores, Ponta Delgada on São Miguel Island.

In southern New England is the largest community of Portuguese immigrants and Portuguese American citizens in the United States. Most recent immigrants in Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut came not from continental Portugal, but from the Azores Islands that are part of Portugal.

When folks fly in for visits and vacations, mostly likely departing from Boston or nearby Providence RI, they have a fairly short trip: it’s 100 miles closer than flying from Boston to Seattle! Lisbon in Portugal lies another 900 miles to the east of the Azores.

Map from africanbirdclub.org

Before I started the One Minute Geographer posts, I had published a series of longer pieces about the Portuguese American community in New England which you can see here: https://jimwfonseca.medium.com/signs-symbols-and-stones-uncovering-the-mysteries-of-an-urban-ethnic-landscape-11-5629872f2f9f

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