Luis Leoncio Yordán Dávila (12 September 1869–29 December 1932) was an attorney and mayor of

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce ( , , ) is a city and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The most populated city outside the San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan metropolitan area, Ponce was founded on August 12, 1692Some publ ...

, from 1917 to 1918.

Origin

Some sources state Yordan Davila was born in Guayanilla while others state he was born in Ponce. Either way, he appears to have been born on 12 September 1869, the son of Ramon Yordan Gonzalez and Cruz Davila Torres.

Family life

Yordán Dávila married Angela Pasarell Pasarell. Their children were Luis Angel Yordan Pasarell, Rafael A. Yordan Pasarell, Oriol Yordan Pasarell, Belise Yordan Pasarell, and Jorge A. Yordan Pasarell.

Career

Yordán Dávila was a member of the

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico () is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. The House, together with the Senate, control the legislative branch of the go ...

. He was also president of the local chapter of the

American Red Cross The American National Red Cross is a Nonprofit organization, nonprofit Humanitarianism, humanitarian organization that provides emergency assistance, disaster relief, and disaster preparedness education in the United States. Clara Barton founded ...

during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

. He also presided over the committee for the erection of the Luis Munoz Rivera statue on Plaza Las Delicias in Ponce. In 1905, he was the fiscal commanding officer at the Ponce Firefighters Corps. In 1909, he co-founded the journal ''La Conciencia Libre'' (The Free Conscience) in Ponce. From 1910 to 1930, he was a lawyer and public notary. It was during this time that, in 1916, he became mayor of Ponce.

Mayoral work

Yordán Dávila is best known for being one of the main proposers of the bronze statue commemorating prominent poet, journalist, and politician

Luis Muñoz Rivera Luis Muñoz Rivera (July 17, 1859 – November 15, 1916) was a Puerto Rican poet, journalist and politician. He was a major figure in the struggle for political autonomy of Puerto Rico in union with Spain. In 1887, Muñoz Rivera became part ...

that was eventually built and later (1923) unveiled in the Ponce

town square A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Relat ...

that now bears the name Plaza Muñoz Rivera.

Death

Luis Yordan Davila died on 29 December 1932. He was buried at

Cementerio Civil de Ponce Cementerio Civil de Ponce (Ponce Civil Cemetery), a.k.a., Cementerio Municipal de Ponce, is a historic burial ground in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It was founded in 1901. It was designed by Manuel V. Domenech. Some of the people buried at Cementerio ...

. Luis Fortuño Janeiro said of him, "Ponce lost one of the factors that most enriched its living."Luis Fortuno Janeiro. ''Album Histórico de Ponce (1692-1963).'' Page 254. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuno. 1963.

References

* Fay Fowlie de Flores. ''Ponce, Perla del Sur: Una Bibliografía Anotada.'' Second Edition. 1997. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Universidad de Puerto Rico en Ponce. p. 216. Item 1109. * Cayetano Coll y Toste. ''Boletín Histórico de Puerto Rico.'' San Juan, Puerto Rico: Cantera Fernandez. 1914–1927. (Colegio Universitario Tecnológico de Ponce, CUTPO). * Fay Fowlie de Flores. ''Ponce, Perla del Sur: Una Bibliografía Anotada.'' Second Edition. 1997. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Universidad de Puerto Rico en Ponce. p. 336. Item 1675. * Ponce. Gobierno Municipal. ''Informe actividades administrativas y económicas del Municipio de Ponce.'' (Also titled ''Informe del Alcalde de la Ciudad de Ponce'') Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta El Día. 1917. (Archivo Histórico Municipal de Ponce) {{DEFAULTSORT:Yordan Davila, Luis 1869 births 1932 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Puerto Rico American Red Cross personnel Burials at Cementerio Civil de Ponce People from Guayanilla, Puerto Rico Puerto Rican Roman Catholics Mayors of Ponce, Puerto Rico 19th-century Puerto Rican people 20th-century Puerto Rican lawyers 20th-century Puerto Rican politicians