Dr. José María Marxuach Echavarría (baptized as José Monserrate Marxuach Echavarría) (April 16, 1848 – 1910), was a Puerto Rican medical doctor and politician who served twice as Mayor of the City of

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the juri ...

. His first administration was before the U.S. invasion of Puerto Rico and his second administration was under United States colonial rule.

Early years

Marxuach Echavarría was born in

Aguadilla, Puerto Rico Aguadilla (, ), founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city and municipality located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is s ...

, and baptized as "José Monserrate Marxuach Echavarría". His parents were Francisco Marxuach Ferrer (son of Juan Marxuach Prats and Francisca Ferrer of

Mataró Mataró () is the capital and largest town of the ''comarca'' of the Maresme, in the province of Barcelona, Catalonia Autonomous Community, Spain. It is located on the Costa del Maresme, to the south of Costa Brava, between Cabrera de Mar and ...

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

) and Beatriz Amalia Echavarría Conti. His mother was the granddaughter of Colonel Rafael Conti y Flores, remembered for his defense of Aguadilla during the

British invasion The British Invasion was a cultural phenomenon of the mid-1960s, when rock and pop music acts from the United Kingdom and other aspects of British culture became popular in the United States and significant to the rising "counterculture" on ...

of 1797, and the great-granddaughter of Colonel Francisco Torralbo y Robles,

governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

of the island from 1794 to 1798. Following in the footsteps of his maternal uncle, José Rafael Echavarría Conti, Marxuach Echavarría traveled to Spain to study medicine at the

University of Zaragoza The University of Zaragoza, sometimes referred to as Saragossa University () is a public university with teaching campuses and research centres spread over the three provinces of Aragon, Spain. Founded in 1542, it is one of the oldest universiti ...

, from which he graduated in 1871 with a ''

licenciatura A licentiate (abbreviated Lic.) is an academic degree present in many countries, representing different educational levels. It may be similar to a master's degree when issued by pontifical universities and other universities in Europe, Latin Ame ...

'' in medicine and surgery. After his return to Puerto Rico he worked as a general practitioner in various towns on the island, including San Juan. In 1881, he was designated President of the Subdelegation of Medical and Surgical Sciences of Puerto Rico.

Political career

In 1897, while holding the post of ''Primer Teniente de Alcalde'' of San Juan, he was selected for the post of Mayor ''ad interim.'' During his administration San Juan's pedestrian and drainage infrastructure–and thus its general level of sanitation–was greatly improved; other modernizations resulted in the tearing down of a stretch of the city's ancient

presidio A presidio ( en, jail, fortification) was a fortified base established by the Spanish Empire around between 16th and 18th centuries in areas in condition of their control or influence. The presidios of Spanish Philippines in particular, were cen ...

walls. In the midst of the 1898 U.S. invasion, Dr. Marxuach Echavarría assisted Dr. Coll y Toste (then serving as Vice-President of the Puerto Rican

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...

) in treating the wounded during the fighting in San Juan. The following year General George W. Davis, the American Military Governor of Puerto Rico, allowed

municipal A municipality is usually a single administrative division having corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality'' may also mean the go ...

elections to be held for the first time since the U.S. invasion. The Puerto Rico Republican Party enjoyed a sweeping victory in San Juan, as a result of which

Manuel Egozcue Cintrón Manuel Egozcue y Cintrón (1855 in Toa Alta, Puerto Rico – 1906) was a businessman and a prominent politician in Spain and Puerto Rico during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. After completing university, he emigrated to Puerto Rico, t ...

become ''Alcalde''; Marxuach Echavarría, who was a political associate of Egozcue's, obtained a seat in the Municipal Council (''Concejo Municipal''). In 1900, Marxuach Echavarría was elected Mayor-President (''Alcalde Presidente''). The dual office, a result of Spanish reforms implemented in 1878, combined the executive duties of a municipal mayor with the offices of a

city council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

president. Marxuach Echavarría was succeeded in office by his predecessor. Dr. Marxuach Echavarría died in 1910.

Notable relatives

Marxuach Echavarría married Josefina Plumey Irizarry (daughter of Juan Bautista Plumey and Petronila Irizarry) in 1873. They had two daughters, Teresa (mother of Puerto Rican radio pioneer Teófilo Villavicencio) and Amalia, as well as two sons, Lt. Col. Teófilo Marxuach and Acisclo Marxuach Plumey (b. 1892). Acisclo was honorary

consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...

of Spain in Puerto Rico in 1935 and held the title of second Grand Master of the Order of Saint John the Baptist of Puerto Rico; Acisclo's extensive art collection included works by Puerto Rican painters Ramón Atiles y Pérez,

José Campeche José Campeche y Jordán (December 23, 1751 – November 7, 1809), is the first known Puerto Rican visual artist and considered by art critics as one of the best rococo artists in the Americas. Campeche y Jordán loved to use colors that referenc ...

, Luis Paret y Alcázar, and

Francisco Oller Francisco Oller (June 17, 1833 – May 17, 1917) was a Puerto Rican painter. Oller is the only Latin American painter to have played a role in the development of Impressionism. One of the most distinguished transatlantic painters of his da ...

. Marxuach Echavarría was also the grandfather of Colonel

Gilberto José Marxuach Colonel Gilberto José Marxuach a.k.a. "The Father of the San Juan Civil Defense" (November 19, 1910 – April 18, 1957), was a former officer in the United States Army who in 1951 founded and became the first director of the Civil Defense in ...

, known as "The Father of the San Juan Civil Defense".

References

External links

Complete List of Alcaldes of San Juan

Boletín histórico de Puerto Rico

Smithsonian American Art Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marxuach Echavarria, Jose M. 1848 births 1910 deaths People from Aguadilla, Puerto Rico Mayors of San Juan, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican general practitioners Puerto Rican people of Basque descent Puerto Rican people of Catalan descent Republican Party (Puerto Rico) politicians

Early years

Political career

Notable relatives

See also

References

External links