Castellorizians in Port Said

[florence]

Hi Nicholas

When I look through my family papers, from all sides I notice continual reference to Port Said. My maternal grandmother lived there for 18 months (around 1920) before she migrated to Australia. Her widowed mother and younger siblings stayed there for another 2 years before coming to Australia. On my father's side his cousins' parents, the Efstathis lived there for several years from the late 1920s to 1930s.

Why did the Cassies move to Port Said. It appears to be more than temporary but still not permanent. Were they waiting for official papaers or was it seen as a stepping stone to leaving Castellorizo? My father writes in his memoirs of his Efstathis cousins returning "home' to marry. What would home have been -Port Said or Castellorizo? Even if they lived in Port Said would the wedding have taken place in Castellorizo?

I wonder what life was like for the Cassie community in Port Said?

Can you tell me more about the history of Port Said as opposed to Alexandria?

Thanks
Florence

[Administrator]

Florence,

The Castellorizians' special relationship with Port Said has its origins in the building of the Suez Canal in which many of the islanders took part. In fact, Port Said itself was established in 1859 when construction of the Canal commenced, and it was populated with many nationalities who had a connection with the Canal's development, making it one of the most cosmopolitan cities in north Africa.

By the time the Canal opened a decade later, there were 10,000 people living in Port Said and in its sister city of Port Fouad (across the Canal's mouth). A sizeable proportion of this population was of Greek background and it is estimated that there were at least 30 Castellorizian families living there by 1900. Foremost among them was the family of Agamemnon Komninos whose cafe in Port Said became the meeting point for new Castellorizian arrivals and the de facto poste restante for mail deliveries from the island. An example of one such envelope sent from the island to a Castellorizian living in Port Said, but care of Komninos' cafe, appears here:



Other Castellorizians with special connections to Port Said include the Alexandroglou, Salvaris, Malaxos, Koutsouflourou, Savvas, Psaras, Payias and Vlahou families.

Over time, as Castellorizian migration began in earnest, Port Said became the natural stopover for these emigrants. Many stopped there to visit relatives en route to Australia before continuing along the Suez Canal, while others remained there while they awaited clearance for travel.

The story of Port Said in the history of Castellorizo is an important one and would benefit from further study.

Nicholas

[nicholas]

Nicholas, a great peice of imformation.

My great grandfather even had it scribed on his headstone, Nikolaos Em Payias, so it must of been of great significance to him his time spent there. I believe he was a translator.

My own grandfather Nikolaos Zoumbatlis had spoken about our connection to Port Said, maybe there was also a family connection . I was told we had an Egyptian Greek line - not sure where?
It must of been very common for Castellorizians to speak multiple languages. Is that what the Castellorizians did on the Suez?

Nick

[nrgeorgouras]

Nicholas I have been trawling through files and data to find more information about my husband's great grandfather, Nikolaos Em Payias. I understand Grandma Rose Payias had a sister, Maria and a brother, Paul. I believe you would be Maria's son. Nikolaos Payias wife was apparently called Katerina or Ekaterina and was born around 1865 but I cannot seem to find any more information. If you hear of anything please let me know. Nikolaos was an engineer on the Suez Canal.

[tughra]

Hi Nicholas,

Thank you very much for this very interesting information concerning Castellorizians in Port Said
Please find 2 interestings covers

Attachments:

[Administrator]

Hi tughra,

Another wonderful cover - thank you.

It confirms again the role Agamemnon Komninos played in Port Said for his compatriots during these years.

Your post refers to two covers though only one is attached.

Thanks again,
Nicholas

[tughra]

Sorry !!!

3 months after here it is
I could not because jpeg too heavy is ok now

Attachments:

[Administrator]

Thanks very much, tughra!

Another great cover, this time from Dimtirios K Protomastorou (on Castellorizo) to Efstathios K Hloros in Port Said.

Note the French censor's stamp and the stylish pre-printed envelope.

Nicholas

[kalamaki]

Hi Nicholas

I was born in Port Said and my father's family migrated to Port Said from Kalamaki and then from Castellorizo in 1920. The family consisted of my grandfather Nicholas Malaxos, my grandmother Despina (nee Barbouttis) and their sons Michael, Malaxos (Kiriakos) John, George and Elias and their single daugher Panayiota (the other daughters Paraskevi married to Nicholas Hatzigiorgouras and stayed in Castellorizo and Evangelia married to Emanuel Mouglalis went to Nantes France).
I remember some Castellorizian families in Port Said such as Lemonis, Manifis, Savvas and Cominos. I came to Australia with my family in 1951.
I visited Port Said in 2009 where I met Manolis and Evangelia Manifis, who were the only Castellorizian family still living in Port Said amongs another five or so other Greek families. I visited Port Said again in 2011 and sadly Manolis had passed away and Evangelia and some other Greek ladies are the Committee that maintains the Greek Church of Sotiros, which I visited. It is a large church, well maintained and very impressive. The Greek School that I attended, which is next door to the Church, was donated to the Port Said Council by the Greek Orthodox Community of Egypt and is locked up and in a bad state.

Regards

Nicholas Malaxos

[G.M.B.]

Hello Nicholas Malaxos,

As your Family were from Kalamaki (I visted there 2 years back and saw the old Kassie style homes ) do you or your family have any memories of the Beigeoigi family , now recognised as the Bayss , Baiss oe Beis family here in Australia. The family also has roots in Kalamaki. Is now called Kalkan. I believe they also travelled to Egypt , two brothers migrated to Australia about 1920 and the rest about 1936.

I would appreciate any info ,
regards,
George Bayss.

[kalamaki]

Hi George

I can recall that there was someone called " O Yiorgios tou Mbey" in Port Said. I also visited Kalamaki and found the Church and the spring water, but could not find anyone that remembered the Greeks at Kalamaki. My great grandfather Hatziyiannis Barbouttis had an established timber mill there as well as a vineyard.

Warm regards

Nicholas Malaxos

[Jim]

Hi Tughra.
Re: 19 Nov 2013 Post: Covers Postal

I beleive efstathios K Hloros to be my great grandfather and Dimtirios K Protomastorou and relative. Has any one any information about the immediate family of Dimtirios K Protomastorou ?

Best wishes.
Jimc

[Alec]

Hi Jim,
Demetrios K. Protomastorou was my granduncle, brother of my paternal grandfather Nikolaos Protomastorou.

Demetrios's family is well documented in Allan Cresswell's Castellorizian genealogy website at www.castellorizo.org.

I have not before heard of your family, Cloros or Chlorou, Jim. I doubt very much that Demetrios was related to your ancestor, Efstathios K. Chlorou, more probably they were just friends.

It is interesting that the date of the above letter was June 1917. Demetrios came to Australia in 1917 and quite possibly he was writing to Efsthatios to meet him in Port Said en route to Australia.

I believe that Demetrios travelled with his sister, Eleni Keletzis nee Protomastorou, her husband Konstandinos Keletzis and my father, Evangelos Protomastorou, then 12 years old, the group landing in Darwin. The Keletzis' and my father stayed in Darwin for 3 years before moving to Townsville where they stayed for some time before moving to Sydney. Demetrios came directly to Sydney from Darwin, where he stayed with his brother-in-law, Vasilios(Basil) Photios, the brother of his wife Eleni Photiou Sergi.

Demetrios died in Sydney in 1921 and is buried in Waverley Cemetery.

His family, he had two children Constantine and Evdokia, stayed in Castellorizo then moved to Athens where his descendents still reside though some have moved elsewhere.

Alec Protos

[Jim]

Hi Alec,

Thanks for your information regarding the cover sent by Demtrios to Efstathios. The original spelling of our family name was Hloros although Chloros and Chlorou Chlorus are commonplace substitutes.

Allan Cresswell's Kastelorizo has our family name under Chloros. Other than that information I cannot offer further accurate detail.

best wishes.

JimC