San Luis

San Luis is located in the westernmost part of the island of Cuba and belongs to the province of Pinar del Rio.  It is a region with a population of 33,050 inhabitants, with an area of 337 square km.  San Luis is a name that reflects history frequently.

St. Louis IX, King of France (1214-1270)
San Luis Gonzaga (Italy 1568-1591)
St. Louis Marie Grignon (France, 1673-1716)

It is assumed that the saint who gives his name to the town is San Luis Beltran, who was born in Valencia, Spain in1526.  He was a Dominican priest and a great missionary, who conducted meritorious work of evangelization in Colombia and Panama, where he baptized several thousands of Indians. He was a preacher and travelled many tribes, including wild tribes. San Luis Beltran died on 9^th October 1581.

In 1808 the husband of Juana Romero, Don Nicolas Iglesias,  received in Havana the scriptures that accredit him as legal owner of the hacienda “San Luis” and “Lying”. In 1817 something happened that favored the creation of the town, the Hacienda San Luis was torn down and spread its properties.   The area of the estate was demolished and “shot” with several crops sown including snuff, corn, taro, rice and Rio Feo which was tested with the cane in “El Tirado” where they also planted some batches of banana.

But it was not enough just to take the fertility of the land, there was the need to establish an urban population.  So one day in 1827, in a clearing in the pine forest where it was to erect the town, between two streams: “River Ugly” and “Arroyo of the Shepherds” or “grazing” Don Jose Bacallao founded the villa along with Juana Romero and Don Nicholas Church.

Later it increased the number of dwellings giving rise to the village “San Luis”.  The story picks up several names of the original families who settled here and who were founders of what later became a village and then would become a municipal.  These are: Romero; Fossas; the Churches; Padron; Mena; Ramirez; Zayas; De Leon; Gomez and Torres, to name a few.

Juana Romero

Within the biggest names regarding the history of St. Louis in the West, is undoubtedly that of Juana Romero, whose contributions were invaluable to the development of the people. After the death of her husband Don Nicolas Iglesias, Juana Romero served as administrator of the estate with the support of her son Don Joaquin de Zayas.

In 1831, she made a contribution of a cavalry of land for the promotion of the population and in the period from 1835 to 1845 financed the construction of the church of San Joaquin.  For all these contributions, the gratitude that professes the town of San Luis, for having been, without doubt, the most prominent figure in the development and fomentation of the people, has in her honor today, named the main street Juana Romero.   Juana Romero was born about 1782, this date is unconfirmed information, as shown in a document found by Father Joaquin Gaiga, current pastor of St. Louis. It is assumed that she died at the age of 71 in1853.