José Canaveris

Juan José Canaveris (1780–1837) was an Argentine jurist and politician, who served as military man, lawyer, notary, prosecutor and accountant of Buenos Aires. In 1809 he was honored by the Junta Suprema de Sevilla, for his heroic participation in the defense of Buenos Aires, during the English invasions in the Río de la Plata.

Biography
Juan Joseph Ramón Canaveris Jugluns was baptized on January 21, 1780 (by the Presbyter Santiago Báez), son of Juan Canaveris and Catalina Bernarda de Esparza. His father of French-Italian origin, had emigrated from Piedmont in times of Charles Emmanuel III. His mother was born in the city, belonged to an illustrious Creole family of Basque, Spanish and Portuguese roots. He was married to Agustina Denis, daughter of Juan Denis and María Silva, criollos, descendants of settlers from Ireland, Spain and Portugal. His marriage was held on November 27, 1800 in the Catedral Metropolitana de Buenos Aires by the priest Mariano Olier and certified by vicar Cayetano José de Roó. Canaveris and his wife had several children, born between 1801 and 1820, including María Juana, Juan Manuel, José María, María Justa, Manuel José, María de la Candelaria, Patricia, baptized with that name for being born on March 17, 1811 (Saint Patrick's Day), Feliciano, Gerónimo Emiliano and María Donata. A son, Juan Manuel Canaveris was prosecutor during in the early days of Government of Juan Manuel de Rosas, but then he was forced into exile in Montevideo. José Canaveris had his house one block from the church La Merced, in the neighborhood of San Nicolás. He was neighbor of Vicente Anastasio Echevarría and Edmundo Cramwell (father Guillermo Cranwell), an Irish apothecary established in the area.

His third son José María Canaveris Denis (1808-1870s), was married to Carmen Luna, daughter of Francisco Pantaleón Luna and Francisca Javalera, members of an illustrious family. José Canaveris Esparza (by paternal line) came from an old family of notaries and lawyers from Provence and Piedmont, that like his father were employees of the Court of Auditors. His daughter, Donata Canaveri, was married to Santiago Baretti Durán, born in Genoa.

His wife, Agustina Denis was aunt of Francisco Crespo y Denis, son of his sister Catalina Denis Silva, born in Buenos Aires on April 31, 1761.

Career
Jose Canaveris began his career as government official in the early of 1800s, being later appointed to the position of notary at the Court of Auditors in 1810. During the British invasions of the Río de la Plata, he joined the criollas militias, where was assistant in the Corps of Quinteros and Labradores, a cavalry unit created in 1806. All members of the Canaveris Esparza family had been farmers, had land in Quilmes and San Isidro. The Cuerpo de Labradores Voluntarios de Caballería de Buenos Aires was under the command of Antonio Luciano Ballester, a rich landowner from Buenos Aires, and Juan Clavería, a farmer born in France.

The January 13, 1809 the Supreme Junta of Seville decided on behalf of the king Ferdinand VII, reward the officers of the various organs of the militia, giving the rank of Captain to José Canaveris, being also distinguished Ballester and Claveria, leaders of the battalion.

After the English invasions, Canaveris continued working on administrative tasks in the Court of Accounts, serving as notary and accountant. Between 1815 and 1819 he served in the Junta de Observación, in Comisaría de Guerra, (commissariat of war). And in the Ministerio de Hacienda of Buenos Aires.

In 1820 Juan José Canaveris was appointed official of the Honorable Junta de Representantes, a governmental institution established by Manuel de Sarratea. A year later he was appointed as Accountant of the Court of Accounts of Buenos Aires.

Canaveris also devoted much of his time to teaching, especially in the primary education. He had a school of first letters located a few meters from the Church of San Miguel de Arcangel. His family was also related to public education, his brother Mariano Canaveris (1783-1840s) was a schoolmaster in Olivos, Buenos Aires Province. And his son Juan Manuel Canaveris, served for some time as a teacher at the School of La Piedad.

In his career as a lawyer he had been the legal representative of Pedro Basualdo, a humble farmer, who was obliged to return the lands he had leased for many years. The farm in question was located in the vicinity of Reconquista River. This litigation was carried out between 1813 and 1814 and was known as the Correa's against Basualdo.

Canaveris was involved in political conflicts between federales and unitarios, during a visit to Juan José Viamonte, Governor of Buenos Aires, a group of bandits had opened fire on the house of Viamonte. At that meeting between Viamonte and Canaveris, had also participated Miguel de Azcuénaga and Gervasio Espinosa. This meeting is mentioned in the correspondence of Doña Encarnación Ezcurra will send her husband Don Juan Manuel de Rosas.

Canaveris also suffered persecution during the government of Rosas, his son Feliciano Canaveris had been assassinated by order of Manuel Oribe, a murder who was occurred in January 1843, in the vicinity of Tacuarembó Department, Uruguay). His other son, Juan Manuel Canaveris was lowered to the rank of private, because he tried to join the Oribe's troops, during the Great Siege of Montevideo.

In 1829 were transferred the remains of Manuel Dorrego from Navarro to be deposited in the La Recoleta Cemetery. His son Juan Manuel Canaveris, Epitacio del Campo, Clemente Wright, José María Wright, Miguel de Azcuenaga, and other distinguished officers had participated in the military escort.

In 1833, Canaveris had participated in a meeting organized to discuss the new board of the National Bank. The meeting was attended by important politicians and merchants of the Argentine society as Lucio Mansilla, Pedro de Ángelis and Juan Zimmermann, a businessman belonging to the German community of Buenos Aires. That same year, he was part of the jury charged with ensuring the freedom of the press in the Argentina. In 1835, José Canaveris posted a notice in the British Packet, and Argentine News, an english speaking newspaper, where he offered his services of lawyer and accountant to the British and Americans community in Buenos Aires. His sons and grandsons also had excellent relations with the English community of the city, acquaintances of Gowland's family and business partners of Hodgson & Robinson Co, a textile import company from Manchester. His descendants were partners in Duffy Canaveris and Lerena, a Shipping agency, owned by Samuel Canaveris, and of two citizens of Irish and Swiss origin. The agency was located in San Martín street, neighborhood of San Nicolás (his birthplace). It is not clear if the legitimate father's last name was Canaveris or Junglus, a surname possibly of French origin, and completely unknown in the Piedmont region. His father came from an important family established in the Republic of Genoa. The idiosyncrasy of the sons and descendants of the Canaveris Esparza family, does not resemble those people of Italian roots. Historically they lived in places where English, French, Genoese and Irish communities were established.