Puerto Rico was settled by a succession of peoples beginning 2,000 to 4,000 years ago; these included the Ortoiroid, Saladoid, and Taíno. It was then colonized by Spain following the arrival of Christopher Columbus in 1493. Puerto Rico was contested by other European powers, but remained a Spanish possession for the next four centuries. An influx of African slaves and settlers primarily from the Canary Islands and Andalusia vastly changed the cultural and demographic landscape of the island. Within the Spanish Empire, Puerto Rico played a secondary but strategic role compared to wealthier colonies like Peru and New Spain. By the late 19th century, a distinct Puerto Rican identity began to emerge, centered around a fusion of indigenous, African, and European elements. In 1898, following the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico was acquired by the United States.
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Monument of Roberto Cofresí located in Boquerón Bay.
Roberto Cofresí y Ramírez de Arellano[a] (June 17, 1791 – March 29, 1825), better known as Pirata Cofresí, was a pirate from Puerto Rico. He was born into a noble family, but the political and economic difficulties faced by the island as a colony of the Spanish Empire during the Latin American wars of independence meant that his household was poor. Cofresí worked at sea from an early age which familiarized him with the region's geography, but it provided only a modest salary, and he eventually decided to abandon the sailor's life and became a pirate. He had previous links to land-based criminal activities, but the reason for Cofresí's change of vocation is unknown; historians speculate that he may have worked as a privateer aboard El Scipión, a ship owned by one of his cousins.
At the height of his career, Cofresí evaded capture by vessels from Spain, Gran Colombia, the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, and the United States. He commanded several small-draft vessels, the best known a fast six-gun sloop named Anne, and he had a preference for speed and maneuverability over firepower. He manned them with small, rotating crews which most contemporaneous documents numbered at 10 to 20. He preferred to outrun his pursuers, but his flotilla engaged the West Indies Squadron twice, attacking the schooners USS Grampus and USS Beagle. Most crew members were recruited locally, although men occasionally joined them from the other Antilles, Central America, and Europe. He never confessed to murder, but he reportedly boasted about his crimes, and 300 to 400 people died as a result of his pillaging, mostly foreigners. (Full article...)
The film entered development in 2014 at 20th Century Fox; Kushner began writing the screenplay in 2017. In January 2018, Spielberg was hired and casting began that September. Justin Peck choreographed the dance sequences. Principal photography occurred in New York and New Jersey; filming began in July 2019 and ran for two months. (Full article...)
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Román Baldorioty de Castro (23 February 1822 – 30 September 1889) was Puerto Rican abolitionist and spokesman for the island's right to self-determination. In 1870, he was elected as a deputy in the Cortes Generales, the Spanish parliament, where he promoted abolition of slavery. In 1887, Baldorioty de Castro was the founder of the Partido Autonomista (Autonomist Party), also known as "Partido Autonomista Puro" (Pure Autonomous Party), "Partido Histórico" (Historic Party), and "Partido Ortodoxo" (Orthodox Party). (Full article...)
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El Mesías in August 2012
Gilbert Cosme Ramírez (born May 25, 1976) is a Puerto Ricanprofessional wrestler, better known by his ring namesEl Mesías, Mil Muertes, Ricky Banderas and King Muertes. He began his career in the International Wrestling Association based in Puerto Rico. While performing in the company, he won the IWA World Heavyweight Championship on five instances and held minor championships on fifteen separate occasions, before leaving the company in 2006. On March 12, 2006, he debuted in Lucha Libre AAA Worldwide (AAA), a promotion based in Mexico, as a character named Muerte Cibernetica and was involved in an angle where this character was "killed". In November 2006, Cosme was involved in the tapings of the Wrestling Society X television series, where he was the second and last wrestler to win the WSX Championship.
Following a month of performing in the International Wrestling Association, Cosme returned to AAA in a special event presented by the company, this time under the ring name of El Mesías. In September 2007, the company organized a unification tournament where all of the champions and first contenders participated. Over the course of the tournament, he won the GPCW Super-X Monster Championship and IWC World Heavyweight Championship, and on the tournament's finale, he became the first wrestler to win the AAA Mega Championship. While working in Mexico, Cosme signed a contract with Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) where he debuted as Judas Mesias on September 13, 2007. In March 2008 his association with TNA came to an end and he focused most of his time on AAA. In 2010 Cosme debuted for Puerto Rican World Wrestling Council, where he won the Universal Heavyweight Championship. He also wrestled in Lucha Underground under the ring name Mil Muertes. (Full article...)
Rodríguez was awarded the ALMVP award in 1999. He won the 2003 World Series with the Florida Marlins and played in the 2006 World Series while with the Tigers. In 2009, he set an MLB record by catching his 2,227th game, passing Carlton Fisk. He had the best career caught-stealing percentage of any major league catcher, at 45.68% (versus a league average of 31%), and he had nine seasons with a caught-stealing rate of 50% or higher. Only one major league catcher (Yadier Molina) has more putouts. (Full article...)
Real is Queen's only record with a Parental Advisory label. The album departs from her uniquely personal lyrical content and musical style which was, until this album, mainly all about detailing hood life in Puerto Rico, heartbreak, and love. It alternates musically between reggaetón and hip hop, experimenting with electronica, funk, dancehall, pop, R&B, and acoustic ballads. The wide range of styles and musical exploration earned Real mainly positive reviews from critics. Many praised Queen's raspy vocals and production quality, whilst others criticized the lack of instrumentation. (Full article...)
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"A Puro Dolor" is a song recorded by Puerto Rican band Son by Four. It was written by Omar Alfanno and released as the first single of the second studio album of the band in 2000. Two versions of the track were produced by Oscar Llord for the album; one as a salsa and the other as a ballad. The ballad version was arranged by Alejandro Jaén.
The song reached number-one on Billboard Top Latin Songs chart, and became the longest running chart topper of its history, spending 20 weeks at the top; this record was broken five years later by Colombian singer Shakira with "La Tortura" which spent 25 weeks at number-one. "A Puro Dolor" also reached the Billboard 100; this led to the recording of an English-language version of the track "Purest of Pain", which was also charted in the United States. (Full article...)
Hurricane Erika was the strongest and longest-lasting tropical cyclone in the 1997 Atlantic hurricane season. It developed from a tropical wave on September 3 and moved west-northwestward across the tropical Atlantic Ocean, steadily intensifying until it attained hurricane status on September 4, becoming the fifth named storm and third hurricane of the season. Erika passed a short distance to the north of the Lesser Antilles, and later turned to the north in response to an approaching trough. The hurricane quickly strengthened to become the only major hurricane of the season, reaching maximum sustained winds of 125 mph (201 km/h) on September 8; after maintaining its peak strength for 24 hours, Erika began to weaken as it passed over cooler waters. It turned to the east, weakened to a tropical storm, and became extratropical after passing near the Azoresarchipelago.
The hurricane produced light rainfall and winds throughout the northern Lesser Antilles. The passage of Erika carried a cloud of volcanic ash to Antigua from the eruption of the Soufrière Hills Volcano on Montserrat, a rare occurrence. Strong waves from the hurricane produced beach erosion and coastal flooding in northern Puerto Rico, and caused the death of two surfers. Moderate wind gusts in the northern Leeward Islands and Puerto Rico left thousands of residents without power, and resulted in $10 million (1997 USD, $12.6 million 2006 USD) in damage in the U.S. Caribbean territories. Erika also produced gusty winds and light rain in the Azores. Erika was the only tropical cyclone in the Atlantic Ocean in the months of August and September, the first occurrence of such event in an Atlantic hurricane season since 1929. (Full article...)
The species name, angelae, is a tribute to Angela Kepler, one of its discoverers. These birds are insectivores, as they feed by gleaning small insects off the habitat leaves. (Full article...)
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Cornelius Packard "Dusty" Rhoads (June 9, 1898 – August 13, 1959) was an American pathologist, oncologist, and hospital administrator who was involved in a racist scandal and subsequent whitewashing in the 1930s. Beginning in 1940, he served as director of Memorial Hospital for Cancer Research in New York, from 1945 was the first director of Sloan-Kettering Institute, and the first director of the combined Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center. For his contributions to cancer research, Rhoads was featured on the cover of the June 27, 1949 issue of Time magazine under the title "Cancer Fighter".
"Tiburones" was nominated for Song of the Year at the 21st Annual Latin Grammy Awards. The song was commercially successful in Latin America, reaching number one in Argentina and Puerto Rico, as well as the top 10 in eight other Latin American countries. Additionally, it became Martin's 49th entry on US Hot Latin Songs chart, making him the first and only artist in history to enter the chart in five different decades. The accompanying high conceptmusic video was directed by Puerto Rican director Kacho Lopez and filmed in Caguas, Puerto Rico. It depicts a citizen protest that will turn into a celebration at the end and is an ode to both LGBT community and women's rights. Billboard ranked it among the "22 Latin Music Videos to Celebrate Pride Month". (Full article...)
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Barrio Fino (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈbarjoˈfino]; English: "Fine 'Hood") is the third studio album by Puerto Rican rapper Daddy Yankee, released on July 13, 2004, in the United States by VI Music and El Cartel Records and internationally by Machete Music and Polydor Records. Released two years after his previous studio album, El Cangri.com (2002), the album was recorded in Puerto Rico between 2003 and 2004. It explores themes ranging from dance, sex, romance, introspection, and protest against political corruption and violence against women. Barrio Fino was instrumental in popularizing reggaeton in the mainstream market, enhancing Daddy Yankee's career, as well as cementing his status as one of the most successful Latin artists of the 2000s. [vague] The album is reported to have sold over 8 million copies in the world.
Daddy Yankee wrote all the tracks, with co-writing credits on seven, and is credited as executive producer. Four of the 21 songs were released as singles. The first single, "Gasolina", charted within the top 10 in Denmark, Italy, Norway, Ireland, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Austria, while "Lo Que Pasó, Pasó" peaked at number two on the US Hot Latin Songs chart. Barrio Fino reached number one on the US Tropical Albums and the Top Latin Albums charts. It became the first reggaeton recording to debut and peak atop the latter chart. It ranked within the top 30 in the United States, Portugal, Switzerland and Spain. (Full article...)
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Map of the Puerto Rico campaign illustrating operations July 25 – August 12, 1898, and showing municipality borders in 1898. Blue are US Naval forces, red are US land forces, and green are Spanish ground forces. Map of Puerto Rico under the US and Spanish flags from August 14 til September 19, 1898. The 23 blue-colored municipalities were under the US flag and the 55 yellow-colored municipalities were under the Spanish flag (Full article...)
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The Jewish immigration to Puerto Rico began in the 15th century with the arrival of the anusim (variously called conversos, Crypto-Jews, Secret Jews or marranos) who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage. An open Jewish community did not flourish in the colony because Judaism was prohibited by the Spanish Inquisition. However, many migrated to mountainous parts of the island, far from the central power of San Juan, and continued to self-identify as Jews and practice Crypto-Judaism.
It would be hundreds of years before an open Jewish community was established on the island. Very few American Jews settled in Puerto Rico after it was ceded by Spain to the United States under the terms of the 1898 Treaty of Paris, which ended the Spanish–American War. (Full article...)
The Puerto Rican parrot is the only remaining native parrot in Puerto Rico and, as its current population is currently estimated at 58-80 and around 300 in captivity, is one of the 10 most critically-endangered species in the world.
Brigadier General José M. Portela Youngest C-141 Starlifter aircraft commander and captain. Also the only reservist ever to serve as director of mobility forces for Bosnia.
... that Sergeants José and Francisco Díaz, members of the Toa Alta Militia who helped defeat Sir Ralph Abercromby and defend Puerto Rico from a British invasion in 1797, were cousins?[1]
... that Captain Félix Arenas Gaspar was a Puerto Rican Captain in the Spanish Army who was posthumously awarded the Cruz Laureada de San Fernando (Spain's version of the Medal of Honor) for his actions in the Rif War?[3]
... that CWO2 Joseph B. Áviles, Sr. was the first Hispanic promoted Chief Petty Officer and later the first Hispanic Chief Warrant Officer in the United States Coast Guard?[5]
... that Private First Class Fernando Luis García was the first Puerto Rican, from a total of nine, to be awarded the Medal of Honorposthumously and that his remains were never recovered? There is a headstone with García's name in the Puerto Rico National Cemetery in the city of Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
... that On January 6, 1914, First Lieutenant Bernard L. Smith established the Marine Section of the Navy Flying School in the island municipality of Culebra?[6] As the number of Marine Aviators grew so did the avid desire to separate from Naval Aviation.[7] By doing so, the Marine Aviation was designated as separate from the United States Naval Aviation. The creation of a "Marine Corps Aviation Company" in Puerto Rico consisted of ten officers and forty enlisted men.[8]
... that when the United States entered World War II, the military was in need of nurses and that Puerto Rican nurses wanted to volunteer for service, however they were not accepted into the Army or Navy Nurse Corps?[9] In 1944, the Army Nurse Corps (ANC) decided to accept Puerto Rican nurses.
... that in World War II, Private First Class Joseph (José) R. Martínez , born in San Germán, Puerto Rico, became the first Puerto Rican to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor, when he destroyed a German Infantry unit and tank by providing heavy artillery fire, saving his platoon from being attacked in the process?[10][11]
Image 5"El desastre es la colonia" (the disaster is the colony), words seen on light meter six months after Hurricane Maria (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 8The original Lares revolutionary flag. The first "Puerto Rican Flag" used in the unsuccessful Grito de Lares (Lares Uprising). (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 9Sugar cane workers resting at the noon hour, Rio Piedras. Photograph by Jack Delano, a photographer for the Farm Security Administration. Ca. 1941. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 10Raising the US Flag over San Juan, October 18, 1898. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 11Los Reyes Magos painted by Hipolito Marte Martinez, "In Puerto Rico, Melchior is always represented with dark skin" (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 12The first Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, established in 1900. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 22An 1899, caricature by Louis Dalrymple (1866–1905), showing Uncle Sam harshly lecturing four black children labelled Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Cuba (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 23The 45-star flag, used by the United States during the invasion of Puerto Rico, was also the official flag of Puerto Rico from 1899 to 1908. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 24'La escuelo del Maestro Cordero' by Puerto Rican artist Francisco Oller. (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 25Hurricanes Irma and Maria sharply reduced the availability of electricity throughout the island (from History of Puerto Rico)
The Puerto Ricans forming the ranks of the gallant 65th Infantry on the battlefields of Korea…are writing a brilliant record of achievement in battle and I am proud indeed to have them in this command. I wish that we might have many more like them.
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^Condon, John Pomeroy (1993). "U.S. Marine Corps Aviation". 75th Year of Naval Aviation – Volume Five of a Commemorative Collection. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps. p. 3. Retrieved August 24, 2009.[dead link]
![Image 1 Monument of Roberto Cofresí located in Boquerón Bay. Roberto Cofresí y Ramírez de Arellano[a] (June 17, 1791 – March 29, 1825), better known as Pirata Cofresí, was a pirate from Puerto Rico. He was born into a noble family, but the political and economic difficulties faced by the island as a colony of the Spanish Empire during the Latin American wars of independence meant that his household was poor. Cofresí worked at sea from an early age which familiarized him with the region's geography, but it provided only a modest salary, and he eventually decided to abandon the sailor's life and became a pirate. He had previous links to land-based criminal activities, but the reason for Cofresí's change of vocation is unknown; historians speculate that he may have worked as a privateer aboard El Scipión, a ship owned by one of his cousins. At the height of his career, Cofresí evaded capture by vessels from Spain, Gran Colombia, the United Kingdom, Denmark, France, and the United States. He commanded several small-draft vessels, the best known a fast six-gun sloop named Anne, and he had a preference for speed and maneuverability over firepower. He manned them with small, rotating crews which most contemporaneous documents numbered at 10 to 20. He preferred to outrun his pursuers, but his flotilla engaged the West Indies Squadron twice, attacking the schooners USS Grampus and USS Beagle. Most crew members were recruited locally, although men occasionally joined them from the other Antilles, Central America, and Europe. He never confessed to murder, but he reportedly boasted about his crimes, and 300 to 400 people died as a result of his pillaging, mostly foreigners. (Full article...)](view_image.php?q=Portal:Puerto_Rico&sq=CIA&lang=en&file=File:Blank.png)
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