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OFELIA SALAZAR ROGÉS STORY (1891 to
1987)
The de Salazar family originated in the southern regions of Spain
during the 18th century, mainly in the Grenada area. Ofelia's great
grandfather, Jose Diego de Salazar, who had joined the military, was
sent to Pensacola where Spain maintained a major military force and
headquarters for the North Florida garrisons. In 1817 Diego married
Josefa Hernandez and in 1818 their son Jose de Salazar was born in
Pensacola.
With Napoleon wreaking havoc in
Europe, and Spain, facing opposition from the French, British and
the ever increasing power of the United States, decided not to go to
war to protect its territories in North America. In 1821, title to
the land it controlled in Florida to the newly formed government in
Washington for what was then a considerable sum of five million
dollars. During the end of 1821 and early 1822 all Spanish forces
and families headed either back to Spain or to a neighboring island,
many of them ending up in Cuba, an island stronghold Spain would
control for another 75 years. Jose Diego de Salazar left the
military, and with his wife and child, Jose de Salazar, settled in
the city of Pinar del Rio in Cuba. Soon they dropped the 'de' from
their name and became just Salazar. In short time they integrated
into the community and established themselves financially. Their son
Jose was sent to medical school in Havana from where he graduated in
1843.
Dr. Jose Salazar settled in
Consolación del Sur, a town on the central highway about half way
between Havana and the capital of Pinar del Rio, and became a
'country doctor'. His shiny black horse-drawn buggy drawn by a
stately roan mare called "Bonita", took him on his daily rounds of
the adjoining countryside. On a typical day he would deliver a baby
or two, tend to the ailing aged, set a broken arm and attend to any
unforeseen emergency. He loved his work and all in the area he
served, mostly impoverished farmers, loved him. He was compassionate
and kind to all. With many patients unable to pay in cash, Dr.
Salazar most days would arrive home loaded with several chickens, a
pig and all sort of vegetables.
In 1854 he married Irene Hidalgo Gato
and soon she gave birth to a son, Emilio Salazar, who grew up in
Consolación del Sur. At the age of 18 Emilio was sent to medical
school in Havana from where he graduated in 1878. He returned to
Consolación del Sur and also became a country doctor. In his rounds,
a young girl, Juana Rogés, daughter of German Rogés y Estrada, owner
of a large estate called "Santa Juana de las Ovas" caught the eye of
Doctor Salazar with the result that his visits to Ovas became more
frequent. Don German's estate was almost a city upon itself. The
main crop was tobacco which required an enormous amount of hand
labor. Slaves numbered over 350 including women and children. All
were housed and well fed.
Dr. Salazar courted Juana until she
reached the age of 18, he was now 33, when he asked for her hand in
marriage. Married soon after, they settled at a home within the
estate and began producing babies, all delivered by their father.
Five were born starting in 1889. One died but the other four, two
boys and two girls, grew up in a beautiful country environment..
These are Ofelia's words:
We had a
wonderful childhood. Our nanny, Maria la China, a slave, took
impeccable care of us. She made sure we had the food we liked,
we were clean as were our clothes, and watched over us
continuously. On Saturdays and sometimes on Sunday we would
dress up and go to town. Florencio, a farm employee would hitch
up the nicer of our carts to a pair of oxen and off we would go,
just the three of us and Maria la China, since Emilio was too
young. The solid hard wood wheels would make for a rough trip
down the narrow lane into town. The oxen were steady but slow.
Florencio would snap his whip and call out, "Mariposa!!
Pajarito!! Hay Hay!! and the oxen would pick up a bit on their
gate. Every ox had a name and all were castrated to make them
docile thus their names of "Butterfly' and "Birdie".
Ovas was but
a small village with but a couple of stores, but it was nice to go
out and see people. The nearest large town was Consolación del Sur
which was about 20 kilometers away but to get there we had to get
papa to take us in his buggy. As we grew up, Jose, Encarnita and I
would go there about once a year. We had a tutor who came daily and
taught us how to read and write in Spanish and English, mathematics
and history.
My father wanted all of us, girls and boys to have a good education
so in 1901, when I was 10, he decided it was time for his eldest
son, Jose, to begin his serious studies. Uncle Taboada took Jose up
to New York on a ship then on a ferry across the Hudson river to
Hoboken, New Jersey. There they rode the Lakawana Railroad to
Convent Station where he was left at a boy's school owned and
operated by the sisters of Charity of St. Elizabeth College. In the
following year, papa took Encarnita, Emilio and I to Havana and with
Uncle Taboada, put us on a huge steam boat. Poor Emilio. He cried
and cried, he missed his mother so much. Poor thing, he was only
seven. The ship took us to New York Harbor, where we moved into a
small hotel near Times Square. We rested for two days then went to
the train station and got on the Lakawana Railroad for the short
trip to Convent Station. Emilio went to the boy's school with Jose
while Encarnita and I went to St. Elizabeth.
Sister Maria Dolores, a native of Nicaragua, was the guardian of all
Latin pupils that went to St. Elizabeth as she spoke both English
and Spanish. During the year that my brother Jose was there, she
watched over him and communicated with his father in Cuba. Jose
became an altar boy, learned the Latin answers and rang a small bell
at the right moments in the mass.
When I arrived at St. Elizabeth with my older sister Encarnación we
were both very lonesome. We could not speak English and everything
around us was strange and different. After time we joined the other
girls, learned English, and played with them, slowly integrating. We
stayed at St. Elizabeth for eight years during which time we became
fluent in English and American customs. My father decided we should
return which we did. The boys went on to high school and college.
Jose at the age of 14 was sent to Manhattan College in New York City
where to complete his High School studies then went on to Holy Cross
College in Worcester, Mass where he graduated as a Civil engineer.
My brother Emilio graduated from High School and went on to study
Engineering at Notre Dame. Both returned to Cuba and lived a long
productive life both business and family wise.
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Mother returned to Cuba with Encarnita in 1910 and moved in with her
father who had moved to Havana and had rented an apartment at # 59
Consulado Street, a very central downtown location. Both young
ladies found jobs as bilingual secretaries, and so began their
lives. Mother worked as a Secretary to Carlos Pesant, President of
Pesant Steel and Iron company with whom she remained during six
years. Here is my mother again:
Encarnita had a parrot which she fed with her hands in the late
afternoon. A Spaniard, Benito Loygorri, lived in the same apartment
house in an upper story and watched the parrot being fed, Encarnita
flirting in a way and looking at Benito. Finally, Benito requested a
friend of his named Damborenea to introduce him to my father while
at the same time meeting Encarnita. It took not long for a romance
to build and on October 18, 1918, she married Benito Loygorri in a
civil ceremony in a town called Calvario in Havana Province.
My mother lived with her father until his death in 1925 then moved
to a small rented apartment in the Vedado with her brother Emilio
and his wife, Enriqueta. When that did not work out she moved to the
Hotel Vedado on M and 19th street in the Vedado neighborhood of
Havana. Harold Butler, an engineer working for the electric utility
company moved in about the same time. It took almost a year for him
to make contact with Ofelia Salazar, and a few months to take them
to friendship, then love, and on to marriage.
The story is continued in the
Harold and Ofelia Butler Story. |
