Félix Saurí Vivas
Félix Saurí Vivas (December 1850 – 25 December 1915), also known as Félix Saurí y Vivas, was a Spanish-Puerto Rican businessman and interim Mayor of Ponce, from 13 May 1895 to 11 July 1895.[1]
Félix Saurí Vivas | |
|---|---|
| 96th Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico | |
| In office 13 May 1895[1] – 11 July 1895[1] | |
| Preceded by | Eduardo Armstrong |
| Succeeded by | Juan José Potous |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 1850 Mataró, Barcelona, Spain[2][3] |
| Died | 25 December 1915 (aged 65)[4] Ponce, Puerto Rico |
| Nationality | Puerto Rican |
| Children | Rafael[5] |
| Residence(s) | Casa Saurí, Ponce Puerto Rico |
| Occupation | businessman, hacienda holder |
| Profession | politician |
Career
Saurí Vivas was born in Mataró in the Province of Barcelona to Pedro Saurí and Teresa Vivas.[4] He immigrated to Puerto Rico, where he was a businessman and hacienda holder.[6] He became mayor of Ponce in 1895.[7] In the same year, he also founded, with Juan Serralles Banco Crédito y Ahorro Ponceño, one of the leading banking institutions in Puerto Rico for almost a century.[8]
Casa Saurí
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In 1882, Saurí Vivas built a two-story home, which later became known as Casa Saurí, in downtown Ponce, across from Plaza Muñoz Rivera, in today's Ponce Historic Zone. The house is said to be the third-oldest residence still standing in Ponce.[9] It is located on the southwest corner of Calle Union and Calle Reina. In 1912, his home was used as the first site of Liceo Ponceño, Puerto Rico's first girls-only school.[10]
After Liceo Ponceño vacated the home around the 1950s-1960s, the house was occupied for several years by various small businesses, including a travel agency and a toy store. Subsequently, it was vacant for several years. Then, in 2006-2009, the 1882 Casa Saurí was meticulously renovated and adapted as part of a new hotel, the Ponce Plaza Hotel & Casino, which opened in 2009. The hotel design included a four-story addition located next to the house, and a parking garage.[11][9]
Legacy
In addition to leaving the majestic house in downtown Ponce as his legacy, mayor Félix Saurí Vivas is also honored at Ponce's Park of Illustrious Ponce Citizens.[12] His remains are located in the Cementerio Católico de Ponce.
See also
References
- Socorro Girón. Ponce, el teatro La Perla y La Campana de la Almudaina. Gobierno Municipal de Ponce. 1992. Page 317.
- 1910 United States Federal Census
- New York, Passenger Lists, 1820-1957
- Puerto Rico, Civil Registrations, 1885-2001
- Luis Fortuno Janeiro. Album Histórico de Ponce (1692-1963). Page 374. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuno. 1963.
- SAURI v. SAURI. 45 F.2d 90 (1930). Archived 1 July 2012 at archive.today SAURI v. SAURI et al. No. 2440. Circuit Court of Appeals, First Circuit. November 26, 1930. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- Ponce: Mayors. Archived 2012-07-07 at the Wayback Machine Encyclopedia Puerto Rico. Fundación Puertoriqueña de las Humanidades. 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- Memorias del Primer Congreso sobre la Emigración Española hacia el Area del Caribe desde Finales del Siglo XIX. Santo Domingo, República Dominicana: Fundación García Arévalo : Casa de España en Santo Domingo : Centro Cultural Español, 2002. Accessed 13 June 2019.
- "Abre hotel Ramada en Ponce con inversión local", NotiUno, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 2 July 2009. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- Luis Fortuño Janeiro. Album Histórico de Ponce (1692-1963). Page 374. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Imprenta Fortuño. 1963. Retrieved 21 March 2012.
- Hotel Ponce Plaza. Archived 26 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine, Bonnin Orozco Arquitectos. 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2011.
- Politics. Travel Ponce. Politics section. Retrieved 28 February 2013.
Further reading
- Fay Fowlie de Flores. Ponce, Perla del Sur: Una Bibliográfica Anotada. Second Edition. 1997. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Universidad de Puerto Rico en Ponce. p. 110. Item 566. LCCN 92-75480
- Guillermo Atiles Garcia. Kaleidoscopio. Ponce, Puerto Rico: Establecimiento tipográfico de Manuel López. 1905. (Colegio Universitario Tecnológico de Ponce, CUTPO)