Segundo in Ponce in Municipio de Ponce, Puerto Rico — The Caribbean (The West Indies)
Antiguo Cementario de las Calles Frontisipicio y Simón de la Torre
[Old Cemetery at Frontispicio and Simón de la Torre Streets]
By Devry Becker Jones (CC0), June 5, 2023
1. Antiguo Cementario de las Calles Frontisipicio y Simón de la Torre Marker
Los primeros cementerios en Puerto Rico comenzaron a construirse a finales del siglo 18. Anteriormente se enterraba a los cuertos en los patios de las iglesias. Con el pasar del tiempo, y teniendo en cuenta la salubeidad de la cudadaría, los municipios se vieron en la necesidad de comenzar a asignar terrenos públicos en las afueras de la ciudad. El primer cementario que tuve Ponce se construyó en 1814 al final de la calle Unión.
A medida que somentaba a población, los cementarios tenían que ser clausurados y que quedaban dentro del perímero ubano. Por tal motivo se construían nuevos cementerios más lejanos al centro de la ciudad. Así se construyó el segundo cementerio de Ponce, en la intersección de las calles Frontispicio y Simón de la Torre.
Immulmente sólo se enteriban personas de fe católica. Con el tiempo, se designó un área, al lado este, para el enterramiento de protestantes. Los pobres se enterraban en nichos al lado norte y en el lado oeste se designó un área para aquellos que fallecieron a consecuencia de la epidemia de cólera en 1856. Una cruz en el centro dividía t9odas las secciones.
Decenas
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El cementerio cerró sus puertas en 1918, al encontrarse nuevamente dentro de los predios urbanos. En las décadas subsiguientes se realizaron numerosos, intentos para su remodelación y aperrtura como monumento histórico. En 1991, inauguró como Panteón Nacional Román Baldorioty de Castro.
"En este cementerio descansan los restos de aquellas personas ilustres que con sus actividades industriales comerciales, cívicas, periodísticas, politicas y culturales durante el siglo 19 y principios del 20 inciaron el progreso de Ponce en todas sus manifestaciones".
Ramón Lopez Crespo
Simón de la Torre Gobernador de Puerto Rico
1822 - 1837
Oficial español que se destacó en las batallas de la Guerra de Indepencia de Venezuela. Fue nombrado Comandante en Jefe del Ejército Españo en América del Sur y luego Gobernador Militar de Puerto Rico. Inauuró el Teatro Municipal de San Juan, patrocinó la fundación del Colegio de San Ildefonso, instaló el Consulado Provincial y la Junte de Comercio. Estableció programas de vacunación para la ciudadanía y de apoyo a los agricultores.
Juan Bertoli Calderoni
Arquitecto Municipal y Director del Cuerpo de Bomberos de Ponce
Onundo de la ciudad de Bastía, Córcega, vino a Puerto Rico en 1845 contratado por el Cuerpo de Ingenieros Militares del Gobierno Español. Trabajó en los Cuarteles de Ballajá, en La Fortaleza y otras dependencías y fortificaciones militares de la capital. Se trasladó a Ponce donde residió hasa su muerte. Diseñó el Teatro La Perla, el Hospital Municipal Valentín Tricoche, el Acueducto Alfonso XII y la Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Carmen en La Playa. Realizó la ampliación del Cementerio Municipal de las calles Frontispicio y Simón de la Torre en las décadas de 1860 y 1870.
Panteón Nacional Román Baldorioty de Castro
Es un monumento que alberga historia y patriotismo. Honra la memoria del "padre del autonomismo puertorriqueño" Román Baltorioty de Castro; la trayectoria del ideal autonomista en el país, y a homres y mujeres que le dieron gloria no solo a Ponce sino al pueblo puertorriqueño. Fue inaugurado en 1991 por el Gobierno del Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, la Oficina Estatal de Preservación Histórica, el Instituto de Cultura Puertorriqueña, la Corporación para la Conservación y Administración de los Antiguos Cementarios de Ponce y el Gobierno Municipal.
The first cemeteries in Puerto Rico were built at the end of the 18th century. Previously, the dead were buried in church yards. With time, and taking sanitation into account, the municipalities found themselves in need of allocating public land on the outskirts of the city. The first cemetery that Ponce had was built in 1814 at the end of Unión Street.
As the population suffered, the cemeteries had to be closed and remained within the urban perimeter. For this reason, new cemeteries were built farther from the city center, such as this second cemetery of Ponce at the intersection of Frontispicio and Simón de la Torre Streets.
At first only Catholics were buried here. Over time, an area on the east side was designated for Protestant burials. The poor were buried in niches on the north and west sides. An area was designated for those who died as a result of the cholera epidemic in 1856. A cross in the center divided all of these sections.
Dozens of tombstones and mausoleums identify surnames of Corsican, Mayorcan, Canadian, German, English and other nationalities that show the how cosmopolitan Ponce has been through the times.
The cemetery closed its doors in 1918 when it was once again within urban development. In the following decades, numerous attempts were made to remodel it and open it as a historical site. In 1991, it was opened as the Román Baldorioty de Castro National Pantheon.
"In this cemetery rest the remains of those illustrious people who, with their industrial, commercial, civic, journalistic, political and cultural activities during the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th, initiated the progress of Ponce in all its manifestations".
Ramón Lopez Crespo
Simón de la Torre Governor of Puerto Rico
1822 - 1837
Spanish officer who stood out in the battles of the Venezuelan War of Independence. He was appointed Commander in Chief of the Spanish Army in South America and later Military Governor of Puerto Rico. He opened the Municipal Theater of San Juan, sponsored the foundation of the Colegio de San Ildefonso, and installed the Provincial Consulate and the Board of Commerce. He established vaccination programs for citizens and support for farmers.
Juan Bertoli Calderoni
Municipal Architect and Director of the Ponce Fire Department
Originally from the city of Bastía, Córcega, he came to Puerto Rico in 1845 hired by the Spaniard Corps of Military Engineers. He worked in the Ballajá Barracks, in La Fortaleza and other dependencies and military fortifications in the capital. He moved to Ponce where he resided until his death. He designed the La Perla Theater, the Valentín Tricoche Municipal Hospital, the Alfonso XII Aqueduct and the Nuestra Señora del Carmen Church in La Playa. He carried out the expansion of the Municipal Cemetery on Frontispicio and Simón de la Torre streets in the 1860s and 1870s.
Román Baldorioty de Castro National Pantheon
It is a monument that houses history and patriotism. Honors the memory of the "father of Puerto Rican autonomy" Román Baltorioty de Castro; the trajectory of the independence movement in the country, and to the men and women who brought glory not only to Ponce but also to the Puerto Rican people. It was dedicated in 1991 by the Government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the State Office for Historic Preservation, the Institute of Puerto Rican Culture, the Corporation for the Conservation and Administration of the Old Ponce Cemeteries, and the Municipal Government.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Cemeteries & Burial Sites • Religion & Religious Structures • Wars, Non-US. A significant historical year for this entry is 1814.
Location. 18° 0.933′ N, 66° 37.058′ W. Marker is in Ponce in Municipio de Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is in Segundo. It is at the intersection of Calle Frontisipicio and Simon de la Torre, on the right when traveling west on Calle Frontisipicio. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: Calle Protestante 15, Ponce PR 00730, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is on Puerto Rico’s Southern Coastal Zone. Globally, it is one of the Greater Antilles on the Caribbean Sea, in in the Atlantic Ocean, in North America, in the Western Hemisphere, in the Western World, and in the Anglosphere.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within walking distance of this marker: La Danza Puertorriqueña (a few steps from this marker); Primera Iglesia Buatista de Ponce (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); José Luis "Cheo" Feliciano Vego (approx. 0.4 kilometers away); Puerto Rico Quincentenary Memorial (approx. half a kilometer away); a different marker also named Puerto Rico Quincentenary Memorial (approx. half a kilometer away); Luis Muñoz Rivera (approx. half a kilometer away); Don Julio Stenacher (approx. 0.6 kilometers away); The Building / El Edificio (approx. 0.6 kilometers away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Ponce.
Credits. This page was last revised on June 14, 2023. It was originally submitted on June 11, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia. This page has been viewed 422 times since then and 41 times this year. Photo 1. submitted on June 11, 2023, by Devry Becker Jones of Washington, District of Columbia.
Editor’s want-list for this marker. A wide shot of the marker in context. • Photos of the other markers at the display (they likely qualify for their own profiles). • Can you help?
