José Gómez-Mena

José "Pepe" Genaro Ramon Gómez-Mena Vila (1883 – 1960) was a Cuban sugar baron, and Minister of Agriculture during the Miguel Mariano Gomez government (May 20, 1936 - December 24, 1936).

José Gómez-Mena
Born
José Genaro Ramon Gómez-Mena Vila

1883
Spain
Died1960
NationalityCuban
Occupation(s)Sugar baron, Minister of Agriculture
SpouseElizarda
ChildrenLillian Rosa Gomez-Mena
RelativesAlfonso Fanjul Sr. (son-in-law)

Early life

He was born in 1883,[1] the son of Andrés Gómez-Mena, who came to Cuba from Spain, and Eugenia Carlota Tomasa Vila-Perez.[2]

Career

His family owned the New Gomez-Mena Sugar Company.[3][4]

In the 1920s, he had built the Gomez-Mena mansion in Havana, which was bequeathed to his widowed sister María Luisa Gómez-Mena Vila, the Condesa de Revilla de Camargo.[2] The Castro regime seized the Gomez-Mena mansion, and leaving its art and furnishings intact (some 33,000 antiques), renamed it the National Museum of Decorative Arts.[5][2]

He was Minister of Agriculture during the Miguel Mariano Gomez government.

Personal life

He married on 5 Feb 1917 to Olga Maria Patricia Seiglie y Martinez, and they had one child, Lillian Rosa. They later divorced.

In 1936, his daughter, Lillian Rosa Gomez-Mena y Seiglie (1918-1992), married Alfonso Fanjul Sr., which united two of the country's leading sugar fortunes, and created a combined business of ten sugar mills, three distilleries, and Cuban-wide real estate holdings.[4][3][5]

On 8 January 1939, he married Elizarda Sampedro, whose sister Edelmira was the first wife of Alfonso, Prince of Asturias.[6] A pre-nuptial agreement was signed in December 1937.[6]

He died in 1960, and is buried in Hillcrest Memorial Park, West Palm Beach, Florida.[1]

References
  1. "Jose "Pepe" Gomez-Mena". Find A Grave. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  2. Boobbyer, Claire (12 March 2013). "A spotlight on Havana's art deco heritage – in pictures". the Guardian. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  3. "Alfonso Fanjul Sr". Palm Beach County History Online. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  4. Gail M. Hollander (15 November 2009). Raising Cane in the 'Glades: The Global Sugar Trade and the Transformation of Florida. University of Chicago Press. p. 282. ISBN 978-0-226-34948-0. Retrieved 9 August 2017.
  5. "The Castro Collection". The New York Times. Retrieved 2017-08-09.
  6. Vanity Fair. Condé Nast Publications. April 2001.


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