Progreso Municipality (In the

Spanish language Spanish () or Castilian () is a Romance languages, Romance language of the Indo-European languages, Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin spoken on the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. Today, it is a world language, gl ...

: “progress”) is a

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

in the Mexican

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Yucatán Yucatán, officially the Free and Sovereign State of Yucatán, is one of the 31 states which, along with Mexico City, constitute the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 106 separate municipalities, and its capital city is Mérida. ...

containing (270.10 km²) of land and located roughly 25 km north of the city of Mérida.

History

Progreso is one of the youngest towns in the Yucatán.

Juan Miguel Castro ''Juan'' is a given name, the Spanish and Manx versions of ''John''. The name is of Hebrew origin and has the meaning "God has been gracious." It is very common in Spain and in other Spanish-speaking countries around the world and in the Philippi ...

Martín, owner of several sisal haciendas, including an estate called Hacienda San Pedro Chimay was the founder of the Port of Progreso. He began urging development of a new port in 1840 to further the

henequen ''Agave fourcroydes'' or henequen is a species of flowering plant in the family Asparagaceae, native to southern Mexico and Guatemala. It is reportedly naturalized in Madeira, Italy, the Canary Islands, Costa Rica, Cuba, Hispaniola, the Cayman I ...

trade. The town was authorized under President

Ignacio Comonfort Ignacio Gregorio Comonfort de los Ríos (; 12 March 1812 – 13 November 1863), also known as Ignacio Comonfort, was a Mexican politician and soldier who was also president during La Reforma. He played a leading role in the liberal movement und ...

on 25 February 1856 and was officially founded on 1 July 1871 as the Port of Progreso. On 8 January 1875, the first City Council was formed and the town was elevated to a villa, soon after decreed a city by the state government, and construction of the city hall commenced. In 1881, freight and passenger rail service began and in 1893, the lighthouse opened. In 1936, the Danish company "Christiane & Nielsen" began construction of malecón (sea wall), which was completed in 1947. It was upgraded in 1968 In 2011, work began to rebuild the malecón and upgrade the entrance of the port.

Governance

The municipal president is elected for a term of three years. The president appoints nine Councilpersons to serve on the board for three year terms, as the Secretary and councilors who oversee police and police stations; health and public works; transportation and education; special events; disability regulations; recruitment; and parks and public gardens. The Municipal Council administers the business of the municipality. It is responsible for budgeting and expenditures and producing all required reports for all branches of the municipal administration. Annually it determines educational standards for schools. The Police Commissioners ensure public order and safety. They are tasked with enforcing regulations, distributing materials and administering rulings of general compliance issued by the council.

Communities

The head of the municipality is Progreso, Yucatán. The populated communities include Campestre Flamboyanes, Chelem, Chen Huayún, Chicxulub Puerto, Chuburná, El Divino Redentor, El Paraíso, Estopas Peninsulares, Ha Uay, Jesús Nazareno, La Gracia de Dios, La Perseverancia, Montesino, Progreso, Rancho San Pedro, San Antonio, San Ignacio, San Juan, and Yucmich. The major population areas are shown below:

Local festivals

Every year a

carnival Carnival (known as Shrovetide in certain localities) is a festive season that occurs at the close of the Christian pre-Lenten period, consisting of Quinquagesima or Shrove Sunday, Shrove Monday, and Shrove Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Carnival typi ...

is celebrated from 15 to 30 April and 1 June is a fiesta for the Navy. On 7 August, the feast of San Telmo, patron of fishermen, is recognized.

Tourist attractions

*19th Century Maritime Customs Building * Municipal Palace * Progreso lighthouse * Customs Pier considered the longest in the country * Chapel of San Antonio Yaxactún * Hacienda Cuyo de Ancona * Hacienda San Ignacio

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Progreso Municipalities of Yucatán