June in The History of Puerto Vallarta

Please Rate Vote 1 Vote 2 Vote 3 Vote 4 Vote 5

This is an important month, because we remember the men who were instrumental in turning our city into a place known all over the world today.

We begin in June of 1899, when United States citizen Alfred W. Geist purchased 90% of the stock of the Union Mining Company in Cuale, therefore, gaining control of the mines and the land where the Las Peñas Commissary was located. This mining company, started in the mid 19th century, had acquired close to 60 thousand hectares; this land extended from the mining town of Cuale to the Bay of Banderas. The goal was to build a port which would allow access to all kinds of products, machinery and tools for mining, salt for silver, supplies and other objects such as: clothing, wine, furniture and luxury items for the mountain population.

The government of President Benito Juarez had sold this land to him under the condition that the land be populated and become productive. From this agreement Las Peñas ranch, Puerto Vallarta’s original name, was born.

On June 16th 1950, the Banco de Comercio of Guadalajara, the first bank in town, opened its offices on Juarez and Guerrero streets.

What was later to be the highway Mascota-Puerto Vallarta was inaugurated, this opened the way for development.

On June 4th 1956, Agustin Yañez Delgadillo, governor of Jalisco, along with Dr. Manuel Baumgarten Joya, renown local congressman from Vallarta, cut the inaugural ribbon for the road that connected Mascota to Puerto Vallarta. This meant a significant advance for our community and the surrounding towns, having been isolated by steep geography. Governor Agustin Yañez, a brilliant writer, was responsible for positioning Puerto Vallarta as a tourist destination, as he commissioned several infrastructure projects such as the airport and the thermoelectric plant installed in 1958, which provided electricity to the head of the municipality and the surrounding towns in Jalisco and Nayarit.

On June 29th, 1945, the young doctor, Antonio Sahagun, graduate of the Universidad Autonoma de Mexico, arrived in Puerto Vallarta. He established the first clinical analysis laboratory in 1947. In 1957 he installed modern X Ray equipment here. He was named municipal doctor from 1962 to 1973, and he was also in charge of the ISSSTE medical services. Dr. Antonio Sahagun was one of the most notable and well loved men of this community.