Paseo de Montejo - Paseo de Montejo

Paseo de Montejo is named after the founder of the city of Mérida, Francisco de Montejo y León (El Mozo), the conqueror of Yucatán. It is an avenue that stretches from the Santa Ana neighborhood in the city center to the exit toward the port of Progreso, Yucatán. The layout and design are inspired by the plan of French boulevards, mainly the Champs-Élysées in Paris. On both sides of the avenue stand beautiful palaces and mansions of the wealthy people of 19th-century Yucatán. Along the entire length of Paseo de Montejo, there are important monuments and buildings symbolizing the city of Mérida and the state of Yucatán.

The Paseo de Montejo avenue extends more than 6 kilometers in length and is lined with palaces and mansions dating back to the times of Mérida’s old aristocracy, as well as restaurants and cafes. This stretch also includes several museums, including the popular Montes Molina House Museum. Built in 1902, the Montes Molina house is furnished with original furniture, exquisite porcelain, antiques, and much more, all dating back to the early 1900s. It stands as a monument to the region’s prosperity in the 19th century.

In the last decades of the 19th century, Yucatán experienced an economic boom due to the so-called green gold (henequen) boom. The first henequen plantations appeared in Yucatán in the 17th century—initially there were livestock farms producing goods for export, and later ranchers switched to henequen production. Henequen is a type of agave that thrives in the climatic conditions of the Yucatán Peninsula. Originally, the henequen was cultivated by the Maya Indians from the eastern region of the peninsula. Fibers are extracted from henequen leaves, which can be used to make strong ropes and twine. When the Spanish arrived, they named this fiber “sisal agave,” commercialized its production, and began exporting the fibers to various parts of the world.

Sisal became the main export product of the region in the early 19th century, but before the invention of the shredding machine, its production did not reach enormous scales. The sisal production boom coincided precisely with the invention of the shredding machine at the end of the 19th century. Wealth, luxury, and everything associated with it literally fell upon the hacienda owners, and henequen even earned the name “green gold.” During this period of prosperity for plantation owners, the mass construction of extravagant mansions along the Paseo de Montejo boulevard in Mérida began. This growth was reflected in a significant increase in the number of complex civil structures, especially residential ones. However, at that time, the city had no avenues and only four elite neighborhoods: Alameda or Paseo de las Bonitas, Camposanto, Cruz de Galvez, and Limonar. During the governorship of Guillermo Palomino (1886-1889), the idea arose to continue urbanizing the capital of Yucatán, taking advantage of the economic boom.

In January 1888, with the support of a group of landowners, industrialists, and merchants of that time, a project was launched to build a boulevard, which they named “Paseo de Montejo,” with the aim of modernizing the city of Mérida and creating its modern center.

After several meetings, local authorities chose a street near Santa Ana park as the ideal place to build the avenue. The laying of the first stone for the avenue’s foundation took place on February 5, 1888. The construction of the avenue was completed in 1904, during the first term of Governor Olegario Molina Solís. Initially, the avenue was 1,280 meters long and ran from 47th Street to 33rd Street. At the intersection of the latter street in 1906, a statue of Justo Sierra O’Reilly was installed, marking the end of the avenue. The avenue was then extended several times. At the end of the last section in 1993, it was decided to build a monument in honor of Gonzalo Guerrero, called the father of mixed marriages, which took place even before the conquest, between the first Spaniards who arrived on the Yucatán Peninsula and the Maya, the indigenous inhabitants. Gonzalo Guerrero was a Spaniard shipwrecked in the 16th century who abandoned his homeland, his king, and his religion and stayed with the Maya, with whom he became kin.

Sources:

https://meridaelite.com/blog/paseo-montejo/

https://en-yucatan.com/merida-yucatan/paseo-of-montejo/

https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paseo_de_Montejo