How many times do locals or tourists inquire to find out the origin of the name of a street, public space or building? How many people know why the artery of the historic center of the city that begins in Santa Rita and ends in Ignacio Agramonte, bears the name of Lope Recio y Loynaz?
The answers may be different, but in activities with my students or acquaintances, the truth is that nowadays few know about the patriots and martyrs of Camagüey who identify their main routes. Fragments of Agramontine toponymy are forgotten in local history, which, in Guillén’s words, “the old city is so ancient, so intimate and so serene.”
Leading the way
The compasses to guide us can be multiple; more information in the press in the style of old sections that since the 1940s had a great reception among readers, greater dissemination in other media, including social networks for the youngest or other initiatives.
The challenge lays there; the suggestion concerns the researchers who can unveil the gesture of the City Council to honor some streets with names of distinguished patriots, as is the case of the name Lope Recio, which in 1899 replaced the old designation of La Merced.
I, for my part, share notes about Lope Recio and Loynaz, who was a descendant of families that magnified the region, was born on August 23rd, 1860. He studied at the Escuelas Pías, graduating with a Bachelor of Science and Letters in 1876.
He belonged to the Autonomist party; he was Vice President of the Liceo Society, one of the most prestigious institutions in Puerto Príncipe. With the resumption of the Necessary War on February 24th, 1895, he was one of the young men who joined the independence struggle together with Salvador Cisneros Betancourt on June 5th, 1895.
About his actions and story
When the group joined the forces of Máximo Gómez, he received instructions from the Generalissimo to organize the “Agramonte” regiment. His courage, and his military capabilities earned him continuous promotions until he reached major general. A curious fact about his military life is that he was never wounded in the war.
He fought in important battles such as: Altagracia, Congreso, San Jerónimo, Los Dolores, El Torreón, Maraguán, Las Purísima, among others. He was under the orders of great strategists, Máximo Gómez, Antonio Maceo and Calixto García. He participated as a representative in the Assembly of Jimaguayú, was next to Calixto García in the occupation of Guáimaro, a strategic victory for the region
He became the highest authority between 1898-1899, of the Third Corps of the Cuban Liberation Army, whose jurisdiction extended from the Jobabo River to the Júcaro to Morón path.
On November 30th, 1898, he entered Puerto Príncipe at the head of the Third Corps of the Cuban Liberation Army, two distinguished patriots Salvador Cisneros Betancourt and Captain Rosa Castellanos, La Bayamesa, would lead him. In December he was appointed Chief of Communications in Camagüey.
On March 24th, 1899, he was appointed by the interventor government as civil governor, a position he held during the 1901 elections.
He died on July 24th, 1927, his remains rest in the family crypt of the General Cemetery of Camagüey.
His widow, Ángela Malvina Silva, donated personal items used by the patriot in the campaign to the Patronage of the Provincial Museum in the 1940s: the priest’s portfolio, cornet, cufflinks, insignia, spurs, among other pieces, which can be seen in the exhibitions of the museum center as exponents of great heritage value.
Translated by: Aileen Álvarez García
