Home Away from Home: A History of Basque Boardinghouses

The transition to American life for Basques immigrating to the U.S. in the mid-nineteenth century was eased by the numerous Basque-run boardinghouses located throughout the American West. These boardinghouses and hotels helped immigrants minimize cultural shock and enjoy the companionship and support of their countrymen. Many served as informal employment agencies, as recreational centers for traditional handball games, and as social and cultural centers. To the Basque sheepherders, the boardinghouses offered lodging during their rare holidays in town, and for those who never established families, homes after retirement. For town-dwelling Basques, the boardinghouses were gathering places for the entire community.

In this meticulously researched study of Basque boardinghouses in the United States, Jeronima Echeverria offers a compelling history of the institution that most deeply shaped Basque immigrant life and served as the center of Basque communities throughout the West. She weaves into her narrative the stories of the boardinghouse owners and operators and the ways they made their establishments a home away from home for their fellow compatriots, as well as the stories of the young Basques who left the security of their beloved homeland to find work in the U.S. Few immigrant groups in this country have been so well served by a single institution, and few institutions have played so profound a role in preserving the culture and sense of community of their ethnic clients.