US Presence Increases in Brazil

US presence in Brazil increases during the 1920s following a late 1910s wave of American migrants eager to do business in the country. As the world’s largest coffee producer and an industrial center with an appealing consumer market, São Paulo state is a popular American destination. Brazil’s growing community of newly-arrived Americans spurs the formation of associations to defend US economic and political interests, including The American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham) in Rio de Janeiro, the American Association—precursor to the American Society, and the American Chamber of Commerce (Amcham) of São Paulo. Amcham’s Education Committee, created in 1919, lays the groundwork for establishing a school for the children of its members and associated families. This school would eventually become Graded.