Puerto Rico was settled by a succession of peoples beginning 2,000 to 4,000 years ago; these included the Ortoiroid, Saladoid, and Taíno. It was then colonized by Spain in 1493 following the arrival of Christopher Columbus. Puerto Rico was contested by other European powers, but remained a Spanish possession for the next four centuries. An influx of African slaves and settlers primarily from the Canary Islands and Andalusia vastly changed the cultural and demographic landscape of the island. Within the Spanish Empire, Puerto Rico played a secondary but strategic role compared to wealthier colonies like Peru and New Spain. By the late 19th century, a distinct Puerto Rican identity began to emerge, centered around a fusion of indigenous, African, and European elements. In 1898, following the Spanish–American War, Puerto Rico was acquired by the United States.
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Location of Puerto Rico's main island (green) Puerto Rico currently has the fourth-most active players in Major League Baseball (MLB) among Latin American jurisdictions, behind the Dominican Republic, Venezuela and Cuba. More than three hundred players from the archipelago have played in the major leagues since 1926. This includes players who were born in either one of the archipelago's islands and those of Puerto Rican heritage. Only those players who have worked in the major leagues are listed, not those active in the minor leagues, nor negro independent leagues.
For years, it was considered that the first player from Puerto Rico to play in the major leagues was Hiram Bithorn in 1942. But this changed in December 2020, when seven Negro baseball leagues between 1920 and 1948 were recognized as "major leagues." Thus, the first Puerto Rican to play baseball on the major leagues was Jose "Gacho" Torres, who debuted in 1926. (Full article...)
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"Que Alguien Me Diga" (Someone Tell Me) is a song by Puerto Rican singer Gilberto Santa Rosa from his 12th studio album, Expresión (1999). It was written by Omar Alfanno with José Lugo and the artist handling its production. It is a salsa track in which the singer is searching for unconditional love. Santa Rosa would later record a ballad version. An accompanying music video features the singer in a dark room surrounded by female musicians. Both versions of the song received airplay on Latin radio stations.
Martínez grew up in Dorado, Puerto Rico. Not highly regarded as a prospect, he signed with the Mariners as a free agent in 1982, and was given a small signing bonus. He made his major league debut in 1987, but did not establish himself as a full-time player until 1990, at age 27. In the 1995 American League Division Series, he hit "The Double", which won the series and increased public support for Mariners baseball as they attempted to fund a new stadium. He continued to play until 2004, when injuries forced him to retire. (Full article...)
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"Te Conozco Bien" (English: "I Know You Well") is a song by American singer Marc Anthony from his second studio album, Todo a Su Tiempo (1995). The song was written by Omar Alfanno, with production being handled by Marc Anthony and Sergio George. It was released as the first promotional single from the album on May 30, 1995. A salsa song, it sees the singer express certainty that someone is regretful. The song was awarded the Billboard Latin Music Award in 1996 for "Hot Latin Track of the Year" in the Tropical/Salsa field and was nominated for the Tropical Song of the Year award at the 8th Annual Lo Nuestro Awards in the same year. It was a recipient of the ASCAP Latin Award in 1996. Commercially, the song peaked at number seven on the Hot Latin Songs chart and number one on the Tropical Airplay chart in the United States. It was the best-performing song of 1995 on the latter chart. The song was covered by Puerto Rican singer Ángel López as a ballad on his studio album Historias de Amor (2010). (Full article...)
Molina played a handful of games for the Anaheim Angels in 1998 and 1999. He became the Angels' regular catcher in 2000 and remained so through the 2005 season. In 2001, José became his teammate. Molina received his World Series ring in 2002 after the Angels defeated the Giants in the 2002 World Series. He won a Gold Glove in 2002 and 2003, leading American League (AL) catchers in percentage of attempted base stealers thrown out. (Full article...)
Basquiat first achieved notoriety in the late 1970s as part of the graffiti duo SAMO, alongside Al Diaz, writing enigmatic epigrams all over Manhattan, particularly in the cultural hotbed of the Lower East Side where rap, punk, and street art coalesced into early hip-hop culture. By the early 1980s, his paintings were being exhibited in galleries and museums internationally. At 21, Basquiat became the youngest artist to ever take part in Documenta in Kassel, Germany. At 22, he became one of the youngest to exhibit at the Whitney Biennial in New York. The Whitney Museum of American Art held a retrospective of his artwork in 1992. (Full article...)
Lyrically, the song follows the protagonist talking to her lover, assuring him that she is going to be with him. Queen performed the song for the first time on Don Francisco Presenta. Furthermore, the video for the song reached the top of the music video countdown hosted by Terra Networks. (Full article...)
Hurricane Betsy, known as Hurricane Santa Clara in Puerto Rico, was the first North Atlantic hurricane to make landfall in Puerto Rico in 24 years. The third tropical cyclone of the 1956 Atlantic hurricane season, Betsy developed from a tropical wave on August 9 to the east of the Lesser Antilles. It rapidly developed into a 120 mph (190 km/h) major hurricane before striking Guadeloupe. There, Betsy heavily damaged 1000 houses and left severe crop destruction, and there were 18 deaths in the territory. As Betsy continued into the northeastern Caribbean, it capsized a ship, killing its crew of two.
On August 12, Betsy struck southeastern Puerto Rico and quickly crossed the island. Damage was heaviest where it moved ashore and in the territory's central portion, and throughout Puerto Rico there were 15,023 houses that were destroyed by Betsy. Multiple locations reported heavy crop damage, including Camuy which reported a complete loss of the corn crop. Hurricane Betsy was the first hurricane to be observed from the San Juan radar, and also resulted in the first hurricane warning on the island to be released on television. The hurricane left $40 million in damage and 16 deaths, which prompted a federally declared disaster area. Locally the hurricane was known as the Santa Clara Hurricane. After exiting Puerto Rico, Betsy brushed the Bahamas before turning northeastward, becoming extratropical on August 18. The remnants dissipated two days later to the south of Newfoundland. (Full article...)
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"Quiero Bailar" ('I Want To Dance') is a song by Puerto Ricanreggaetónrecording artistIvy Queen, from the platinum edition of her third studio album, Diva (2003). It was composed by Queen alongside her then-husband Gran Omar, produced by Iván Joy and released as the lead single from the album in 2004. Lyrically, "the song talks about a guy expecting sex after a dance like it was a bad thing." Addressing the topic of female autonomy of the body, the song has become recognized as a female empowerment anthem.
The song became the first Spanish-language song to reach the top position on Miami's WPOW Rhythmic Top 40, the first Spanish song to do so, while reaching the Top 10 of the Billboard Latin Rhythm Airplay chart. The song has become known as the first female reggaeton feminist anthem among songs that lyrically degraded women. An accompanying music video was filmed for the song which featured cameos from her ex-husband Omar Navarro, known artistically as Gran Omar. (Full article...)
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"Acércate" (English: "Come Closer") is a song recorded by Puerto Rican reggaetón recording artist Ivy Queen and duo Wisin & Yandel for Queen's seventh studio album Drama Queen (2010). It was composed by Queen and Marcos Masis alongside the duo, while being produced by Luny Tunes and Tainy. Originally entitled "No Te Equivoques", the song was leaked onto the Internet prior to the album's release, which prompted Ivy Queen and Wisin & Yandel to re-record the song.
While failing to chart on main Latin songs charts in Billboard magazine, it did manage to debut and peak at number sixteen on the Billboard Latin Rhythm Digital Songs chart, charting simultaneously with the lead single off the album "La Vida Es Así" which obtained the number two position. The song brings together the first studio album released by Ivy Queen in three years and first for Machete Music, after being with Univision Records since 2005. (Full article...)
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"Mi Mayor Venganza" (transl. "My Greatest Revenge") is a song by Puerto Rican singer La India from her fifth studio album, Sobre el Fuego (1997). The song was written by Rodolfo Barreras and produced by Isidro Infante, and released as the album's second single in 1997 by RMM Records. It is a salsa song, in which La India tells the woman to keep the man who cheated on the artist out of revenge.
La India's vocals on "Mi Mayor Venganza" were praised by two music critics while another reviewer noted it has become an anthem with the salsa audience. It was a recipient of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) Latin Award in 2000 in the salsa category. Commercially, the song peaked at numbers four and one on the BillboardHot Latin Songs and Tropical Airplay charts in the United States, respectively. An accompanying music video features La India performing at an empty theater. (Full article...)
Daniel Santos (June 6, 1916 – November 27, 1992) was a Puerto Rican singer and composer of boleros, and an overall performer of multiple Caribbean music genres, including guaracha, plena and rumba. Over the course of his career he adopted several names created by the public and became known as "El Jefe" and "El Inquieto Anacobero". (Full article...)
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Román Baldorioty de Castro (23 February 1822 – 30 September 1889) was Puerto Rican abolitionist and spokesman for the island's right to self-determination. In 1870, he was elected as a deputy in the Cortes Generales, the Spanish parliament, where he promoted abolition of slavery. In 1887, Baldorioty de Castro was the founder of the Partido Autonomista (Autonomist Party), also known as "Partido Autonomista Puro" (Pure Autonomous Party), "Partido Histórico" (Historic Party), and "Partido Ortodoxo" (Orthodox Party). (Full article...)
July 25, 1952 - The Constitution of Puerto Rico went into effect, and the islands were renamed as the Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico (Commonwealth of Puerto Rico).
... that Sergeants José and Francisco Díaz, members of the Toa Alta Militia who helped defeat Sir Ralph Abercromby and defend Puerto Rico from a British invasion in 1797, were cousins?[1]
... that Captain Félix Arenas Gaspar was a Puerto Rican Captain in the Spanish Army who was posthumously awarded the Cruz Laureada de San Fernando (Spain's version of the Medal of Honor) for his actions in the Rif War?[3]
... that CWO2 Joseph B. Áviles, Sr. was the first Hispanic promoted Chief Petty Officer and later the first Hispanic Chief Warrant Officer in the United States Coast Guard?[5]
... that Private First Class Fernando Luis García was the first Puerto Rican, from a total of nine, to be awarded the Medal of Honorposthumously and that his remains were never recovered? There is a headstone with García's name in the Puerto Rico National Cemetery in the city of Bayamón, Puerto Rico.
... that On January 6, 1914, First Lieutenant Bernard L. Smith established the Marine Section of the Navy Flying School in the island municipality of Culebra?[6] As the number of Marine Aviators grew so did the avid desire to separate from Naval Aviation.[7] By doing so, the Marine Aviation was designated as separate from the United States Naval Aviation. The creation of a "Marine Corps Aviation Company" in Puerto Rico consisted of ten officers and forty enlisted men.[8]
... that when the United States entered World War II, the military was in need of nurses and that Puerto Rican nurses wanted to volunteer for service, however they were not accepted into the Army or Navy Nurse Corps?[9] In 1944, the Army Nurse Corps (ANC) decided to accept Puerto Rican nurses.
... that in World War II, Private First Class Joseph (José) R. Martínez , born in San Germán, Puerto Rico, became the first Puerto Rican to be awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the Medal of Honor, when he destroyed a German Infantry unit and tank by providing heavy artillery fire, saving his platoon from being attacked in the process?[10][11]
Image 5The first Supreme Court of Puerto Rico, established in 1900. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 6An 1899, caricature by Louis Dalrymple (1866–1905), showing Uncle Sam harshly lecturing four black children labelled Philippines, Hawaii, Puerto Rico and Cuba (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 7'La escuelo del Maestro Cordero' by Puerto Rican artist Francisco Oller. (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 9Raising the US Flag over San Juan, October 18, 1898. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 10Sugar cane workers resting at the noon hour, Rio Piedras. Photograph by Jack Delano, a photographer for the Farm Security Administration. Ca. 1941. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 11Royal Cédula of Graces, 1815, which granted legal entry of some foreigners to Puerto Rico. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 12Los Reyes Magos painted by Hipolito Marte Martinez, "In Puerto Rico, Melchior is always represented with dark skin" (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 15The 45-star flag, used by the United States during the invasion of Puerto Rico, was also the official flag of Puerto Rico from 1899 to 1908. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 16El Imparcial headline: "Aviation (US) bombs Utuado" during Nationalist revolts. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 17Flag flown by Fidel Vélez and his men during the "Intentona de Yauco" revolt. (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 18Hurricanes Irma and Maria sharply reduced the availability of electricity throughout the island (from History of Puerto Rico)
Image 19"El desastre es la colonia" (the disaster is the colony), words seen on light meter six months after Hurricane Maria (from Culture of Puerto Rico)
Image 24The original Lares revolutionary flag. The first "Puerto Rican Flag" used in the unsuccessful Grito de Lares (Lares Uprising). (from History of Puerto Rico)
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^Condon, John Pomeroy (1993). "U.S. Marine Corps Aviation". 75th Year of Naval Aviation – Volume Five of a Commemorative Collection. History and Museums Division, Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps. p. 3. Retrieved August 24, 2009.[dead link]