001842 Visit since January 10, 2004
In 1922 my husband moved his pharmacy to Juárez
Street, naming it La Salud (Health) pharmacy. It was located across the street
from the City Hall. Señor Maisterrena was the first
proprietor of the building where City Hall is today. He sold it to Señor
Agustín Flores and Señor Flores donated it to the City before he
died in 1975. The pharmacy became the meeting place. At
night we would get together under the waning light of oil lamps swinging from
the ceiling. Sometimes our gatherings would go on so long that the lamps would
run out of fuel before our friends went home. We talked passionately about politics,
projects, family life and jokes. The gatherings were the life of our town. From
our group of friends I remember Señor, Abraham Ortíz, and his wife,
Elvira Pérez, from Tepic, Nayarit. Parts of the group were employees from
Maisterrena's house who lived on the top story of the pharmacy. There was in particular,
Señor Arturo Matute, a middle aged, bold man who suffered from an ailment
that made his nose turn red. He always started his conversations with polemics.
Young Agustín Flores joined the gatherings too. He was a tall, white complexioned
man, with an outstanding pose and a contagious loud laugh. I also recall the Carranza
brothers, Toño and José. Toño was reserved and introverted,
but a good listener. José was restless. I fondly remember him pacing from
one place to another, with hands inside his pockets jingling a set of keys and
clearing his throat in a peculiar way. The corner piece of an impeccable white
cologne-sprayed handkerchief stuck out of the back pocket of his pants. The Carranza
brothers originated from the city of Cotija in the State of Michoacán and
were kin the famous Mexican movie star Tito Guízar. José had a great
baritone voice that resembled his famous movie star relative. He sang romantic
songs and serenaded beautiful local girls. Many of them fell in love with him.
He loved agriculture, and grew a variety of things on a large expanse of land
in Las Palmas, a town near Vallarta. José possessed great initiative and
luck. In 1938, Carranza joint ventured with Señor Félix Maus from
México City in founding Las Peñas, S.A. Tobacco Company. Las Peñas
Company created many jobs and lauched the economy of Puerto Vallarta skyrocketing.
People from all over the region were hired to clean strings of tobacco plant and
pack them into bundles. At the tobacco factories, there
were heavy wood presses used to pack tobacco. Stevedores were the only strong
men who were able to handle the presses and do this type of heavy work. During
the three months of tobacco harvest, there was plenty of work for everyone in
the community. Extra workers were needed for various activities. Young local men
liked earning extra money. And they were soon hired to work for the Tobacco Company.
Among them were el Gûero (Blond Man) Preciado, Gustavo Ríos, Sebastián
Arreola, Gustavo Estrada, Hermilo Palomera, Andrés Macedo, Alfredo Villarreal,
El Rumy, and Carlos Garduño Mejía, who was not only the manager
administrator but also brother-in-law as well as adopted son of Don Félix
Maus, the head of Las Peñas company. Las Peñas
Company also exported beans and corn. Common land farmers worked at the company.
Plowing of the land was done with yokes of oxen since only a few people owned
tractors. The State Government of Nayarit helped Las Peñas Company to get
agricultural machinery. The administration of Las Peñas
Company built a big warehouse for storing of products. It was a block size and
was located across from the Malecón by the pier. They bought several big
trucks to transport goods. As is customary in Mexico to name things and cars,
every truck had a funny name such as, The Gold Dollar, Tlapacoyan, Orinoco, and
Kentucky. Las Peñas' administrative offices were state- of-the -art and
well ran by executives such as Salvador Macedo Miranda from Vallarta, Salvador
Solórzano Forbes, and Luis Valencia from Guadalajara. I cannot recall the
name of the Controllers. The executives from Las Peñas Company were highly
regarded in the community. Everyone saw them as great contributors to better the
economy of Puerto Vallarta. The tobacco business benefited from the Second World
War. Las Peñas Company supplied tobacco to other major corporations in
Mexico City, such as El Aguila (the Eagle) and La Moderna (The Modern). José
Carranza met his wife, beautiful Señorita María Elena Bolaños,
at a dance celebration for May Holidays when he was only a hard-working farmer,
prior to the time he worked for Las Peñas company. The Carranzas made a
nice couple and had five children. When the children grew older the family moved
to Guadalajara City where José and María Elena died at a young age.
I was saddened with the loss of such great friends. Señor
Maus, the director of Las Peñas Company and wife resided in Mexico City
but spent a great deal of time in Puerto Vallarta. They were highly regarded in
the community. Catalina
Montes de Oca Aguilar
Read Doña
Catalina Montes de Oca Aguilar Autobiography
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