Juan Angel Tió Malaret

Juan Angel Tió Malaret was born February 26, 1874, in San Germán, Puerto Rico, to Salvador Tió Urgell and Angela Malaret Anglada, both from Girona, Catalonia, in Spain.

Tió Malaret was director of Caja de Ahorros, a small bank in Puerto Rico, until 1909. He then founded Caja Popular de Ahorros y Préstamos, incorporating it in 1917 as Banco de San Germán. He presided the institution until 1965. Tió was also owner of sugar mills Igualdad (in Añasco) and Playa Grande (in Vieques) until their expropriation at the start of World War II.

In 1917, Tió Malaret was elected to the first Senate of Puerto Rico for the Republican Party, representing the District of Mayagüez. He served in that position until 1920.

In 1925, he served as mayor of San Germán for several months. He was elected to the Senate again in 1928, this time as a member of the Alianza Puertorriqueña party, and served until 1932. At the 1932 elections, he was elected as mayor of San Germán again, serving until 1935.[1]

Angel Tió was also a writer and a poet. Some of his writings are featured in the book Horas Disipadas. He also wrote the book Esencias del Folklore Puertorriqueño, which was edited in 1967 by the San Germán Cultural Center.

Angel Tió was married to María Teresa Laura Nazario de Figueroa y Rodríguez de Astudillo. He died on August 12, 1965. He was buried at Antiguo Cementerio Municipal in San Germán, Puerto Rico.

• Breve semblanza de Juan Angel Tió Malaret