Reggio, Louisiana

Reggio

Reggio, also named Bencheque, is an unincorporated community belonging to Saint Bernard Parish, in the Louisiana state, in United States. This place, inhabited since the second half of the eighteenth century, have a small Isleño American population

History

The early settlers arrived to Saint Bernard Parish were Spanish families from Canary Island, that arrived to the region between 1778 and 1784. After of settlement from Toca villages in 1779, called "El Primer Asentamiento" (First Settlement), a second Canarian group was established in the region (originally "El Segundo Establecimiento") which they named Benchijigua in honor to the village of Benchijigua on the island of La Gomera, place of origin of this second population. The number of Gomeros who migrated to Louisiana was 393 people, making up 85 families, most of them from the Tenerife island[1]

However, with the arrival of French-speaking sugar planters to the region, the name of the village changed to Bencheque, and is currently known as Bencheque-Reggio.[2]

References

  1. ↑ Santana Pérez, Juan Manuel; Sánchez Suárez, José Antonio. Emigración por Reclutamientos canarios en Luisiana (in Spanish: emigration by Recruitment: Canarian people in Louisiana). Servicio de Publicaciones, 1992. Page 133
  2. ↑ http://www.losislenos.org/history.html St. Bernard Isleños. LOUISIANA'S SPANISH TREASURE. Los Islenos. Retrieved December 22, 2011, to 19:28 pm.

Coordinates: 29°49′53″N 89°45′16″W / 29.83139°N 89.75444°W