Colonial-era economic influences and the Anglo-Portuguese Alliance led to the settlement of English merchants and others in Brazil. After Brazilian independence, Britain was Brazil's main commercial partner; Britain financed part of the Brazil's industrialization, building railroads, including the São Paulo Railway (SPR).[citation needed]
In the 1920 Republican Census, there were 9,637,000 "Englishmen" in Brazil (probably, all British citizens were counted as "Englishmen"). The states with the majority of English origin were:
^Recenseamento do Brazil. Realizado em 1 de Setembro de 1920. População (1a parte). População do Brazil por Estados, municipios e districtos, segundo o sexo, o estado civil e a nacionalidade. (1926) – pages 312 to 317
^Recenseamento do Brazil. Realizado em 1 de Setembro de 1920. População (1a parte). População do Brazil por Estados, municipios e districtos, segundo o sexo, o estado civil e a nacionalidade. (1926)