Early Welsh settlers in Patagonia

On 27th July 1865, over 150 settlers from Wales arrived on The Mimosa, at Puerto Madryn in Southern Argentina, with the intention of establishing Y Wladfa (the Welsh Colony in Patagonia).

The notion of a Welsh colony in South America was proposed by Professor Michael D. Jones, a non-conformist preacher based in Bala, who had spent several years in the United States, where Welsh settlers had adapted to the new lifestyle very quickly. He advocated establishing a Welsh speaking colony, far from the influence of the English Language, in Patagonia. The destination was chosen for its isolation and the Argentines' offer of 100 square miles of land along the Chubut River.

The Mimosa sailed from Liverpool in May 1865 and after approximately eight weeks arrived at Puerto Madryn. Unfortunately, the settlers found that Patagonia was not the fertile land they had been promised. They had been led to believe that it was similar to the fertile lowlands of Wales. In fact, it was a windswept pampas, with no water, very little source of food and no woodlands to provide building materials or shelter. Some of the settlers’ first homes were simply dug out from the soft rock of the cliffs in the bay.

At first, the colony looked as if it were doomed to failure. The settlers had to walk forty miles across the desert, pushing in wheelbarrows their meagre belongings and food, finally managing to reach the proposed site for the colony in the Chubut valley. It was here in 1865, where the river Camwy cuts through the desert from the nearby Andes, that the permanent settlement of Rawson was established. The settlers on The Mimosa included miners, carpenters, brick makers, cobblers and tailors, but very few farmers. This proved to be a serious disadvantage, as the terrain was dry and dusty and it was difficult to grow crops. Life for the settlers was made even more difficult by arguments over land ownership, bad harvests and floods. In addition, there was no direct route to the ocean to import necessities. Without the help of the Tehuelche Indians, who at first had been suspicious and unfriendly, the settlement may not have survived the early food shortages.

Simple irrigation of the Chubut River was successful, and over the next several years, new settlers arrived from both Wales and Pennsylvania. By the end of 1874, the settlement had a population of 270, with a patchwork of farms beginning to emerge. In 1875, the Welsh settlers were granted official title to the land by the Argentine Government, and this encouraged many more people to join the colony, with more than 500 arriving from Wales. There were further migrations from Wales between 1880-87, and 1904-12. The settlers had seemingly achieved their utopia with Welsh speaking chapels, schools and local government.

These now productive and fertile lands soon attracted settlers of other nationalities to Chubut, eroding its Welsh identity. By 1915, the population of Chubut numbered 20,000, with approximately half of these being from nationalities other than Welsh. Over the years, use of the Welsh language declined, and after 1914, there was little contact between Wales and Chubut. Change began to occur, however, when large numbers of Welsh people visited Patagonia in 1965 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the colony. There has recently been a co-ordinated attempt by the Argentine government and the National Assembly of Wales to promote and maintain Patagonia's Welsh heritage and identity. Teachers are being sent there to assist in keeping the language alive, eisteddfodau are being held, chapels are being supported and bara brith is being served in Welsh teahouses. In 2006, sporting links were established when Wales played Argentina in a rugby international at Puerto Madryn.