Sound Beach Remembers History of Its Spanish Colony

Twenty members and descendants of the Spanish Colony came to the Sound Beach Civic Association’s monthly meeting Nov. 11 to help share memories of Sound Beach. 

People who emigrated from Spain came  to participate in speaking of the hamlet’s history. Bea Ruberto, the president of the civic, said the gathering was sparked by an article in the Village Beacon Record about civic members looking to consolidate Sound Beach history. 

The colony members all came from the cities of Alhama de Almeria and Tabernas in southeast Spain, which had been a favorite of films and television, having been featured in season six of “Game of Thrones,” “Cleopatra” and “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly.”

Luisa Lopez, the daughter of Vicky Lopez, a Spanish teacher in Miller Place who often shared the rich culture and love of the Spanish culture with the upper level Spanish classes was there. Lopez brought two books, one written in Spanish, the other an English translation, about the colony.

The Manas family recently came from Spain, and for years, Ruberto said, Carlos Manas has maintained the civic website and aided the group in a variety of ways.