Giorgio Ricci (b. 1870 in
Verica) was an Italian entrepreneur known for bringing Italian immigrants to
Araucanía in Chile under fraudulent conditions.
Araucanía had been recently incorporated to Chile (1861-1883) when Ricci in 1904 brought to Chile a group of Italian immigrants from
Emilia-Romagna
egl, Emigliàn (man) egl, Emiglièna (woman) rgn, Rumagnòl (man) rgn, Rumagnòla (woman) it, Emiliano (man) it, Emiliana (woman) or it, Romagnolo (man) it, Romagnola (woman)
, population_note =
, population_blank1_title ...
, promising good lands for agriculture. Once in Chile immigrants were disappointed by the fact the lands he granted them were hilly forest not suitable for agriculture. The colony was initially called Nueva Italia but changed in 1907 name to
Capitán Pastene
Capitán Pastene is a town founded by Italian immigrants, located in the commune of Lumaco in the Araucanía Region of Chile.
History
Capitán Pastene was initially founded with the name "Nueva Italia" in 1906. The first settlers were Italians b ...
. Soon however, many left for nearby towns such as
Temuco and
Traiguén
Traiguén () is a Chilean city and commune in the Malleco Province, Araucanía Region.
Demographics
According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Traiguén spans an area of and has 19,534 inhabitants (9,734 men and 9,800 wo ...
or even farther away into Santiago. In 1906 Ricci repeated the scheme bringing
Italian immigrants in Brazil to Nueva Etruria west of
Gorbea. As with Capitán Pastene immigrants were lured into lands not particularly suitable for agriculture. By 1908 very few Italians remained in Nueva Etruria. Ricci was rewarded by the Chilean state with lands for helping colonizing the country.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ricci Giorgio
1870 births
Italian emigrants to Chile
Year of death missing