Remittances from emigrants

The Era of Emigration and the Financial Boom of Chiavari

With the exodus towards the Americas, the activity of Chiavari’s banks and financial institutions grew significantly. These institutions derived a large part of their profits by advancing emigrants the money necessary for their expatriation and then receiving remittances. The Chiavari banks thus became an economic pillar for those seeking fortune overseas.

The Crucial Role of “Banco Ghio”

Among the various banks, “Banco Ghio” stands out. This institute helped emigrants to leave by preparing “travel cards”. These cards established a lower price than the ticket in exchange for compulsory work on board. Banco Ghio organized passages on steamers bound for La Plata, Argentina. In this area, there is a populous city and a district of the province of Buenos Aires called Berisso. About 70,000 people live here, known as “berissenses”, who keep alive the memory of their ancestors from the Cogorno and Lavagna area, where the Berisso surname is widely spread.

The Alternating Fortune of Emigration

Emigration, in its entirety, represents a story of mixed fortunes. Many emigrants remained as poor as before, while others found fortune. There were several who, as soon as possible, returned to their homeland to settle there permanently. This return flow enriched the local communities culturally and economically.

Generosity and Charity from Emigrants

Many were those who, from the Americas, contributed generously to parish subscriptions and charitable works in their countries of origin. A significant example is Domenico Canata, a native of Breccanecca. Having emigrated to Uruguay in 1868, he studied and became a pharmacist, later donating a large sum to the parish of Breccanecca for the foundation of an elementary school. Even the pharmacist Benedetto Chiappe, from Peru, offered the money necessary to build the kindergarten in Cogorno which would be named after him in 1903.

The Cogornese Colony in Peru

In Peru, there was a real colony of emigrants from Cogorno. The greatest exponent of this community was Eugenio Cogorno, who emigrated before the outbreak of the First World War. He attracted numerous fellow villagers, providing them with work in his various companies: leather goods, shoe factories, cinemas and the cement industry. Later, upon returning to his homeland, he invested considerable sums in the purchase of properties in Lavagna and other coastal centers in Liguria, contributing to the economic development of the region.

An indissoluble bond between Liguria and the Americas

Stories of emigration and economic success inextricably link Liguria and the Americas. Each emigrant who left took with him a piece of native land and, through remittances and donations, returned part of the fortune found overseas, enriching local communities and perpetuating a cycle of growth and development that is still felt today in the socio-economic fabric of the region.

Sources

Bruschi R., Lebboroni S., “Ritratto di Cogorno. L’antico feudo dei Conti Fieschi attraverso le sue memorie storiche”, Genova, De Ferrari Editore, 2000

Porcella M., “La fatica e la Merica”, Genova, Sagep, 1986

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