Complete History of the Sunken Ship in Sisal Yucatán, Discovery of "The Wreck of the Steamer La Unión (1861)" Research by INAH

History of the sunken ship "La Unión" from the colonial era located in the sea of Sisal Yucatán. GO TO THE INTERACTIVE 360° VIRTUAL TOUR "The Wreck of the Steamer La Unión (1861) Signs of Mayan slavery in the Yucatán Peninsula" 2021. The wreck of the Steamer La Unión (1861) signs of Mayan slavery in the Yucatán Peninsula. Glyphs. 27 (Apr. 2021), 36–45. Gabriel Quetz León, Abiud Pizá Chávez, Helena Barba-Meinecke. With photos by @kevliving.tv. The identification and registration of the remains of a 19th-century steam-powered ship, wrecked off the coast of Sisal, Yucatán (Gulf of Mexico), reveals to the world a grim episode in Mexico’s history related to the illicit trafficking of indigenous Mayans, which occurred during the Caste War (1847-1901) in the Yucatán Peninsula. The origins of the port of Sisal date back to 1585, when it was established as an anchorage to connect the city of Mérida with the port of Campeche by sea. In 1811 it was declared a "Minor Port" and consolidated through the export of products such as: henequen fiber, also called "green gold," chicle, and dye wood. Its strong commercial activity lasted until 1871, the year when the Maritime Customs of Yucatán was relocated to the port of Progreso. (Urrea, 2012: 42). In this port, around 2017, fieldwork was carried out as part of the Comprehensive Project for the Protection, Conservation, Research and Dissemination of the Underwater Cultural Heritage of the Yucatán Peninsula, led by the Subdirectorate of Underwater Archaeology (SAS, INAH), directed by MC. Helena Barba Meinecke. The identification and registration of the remains of a 19th-century steam-powered ship, wrecked off the coast of Sisal, Yucatán (Gulf of Mexico), reveals to the world a grim episode in Mexico’s history related to the illicit trafficking of indigenous Mayans, which occurred during the Caste War (1847-1901) in the Yucatán Peninsula. During INAH’s stay in Sisal, part of the oral tradition of the community was collected, mainly from groups of scale and snail fishermen, knowledgeable about the coastal waters and sometimes even their underwater archaeological remains. Óscar Ucán Ravel and Juan Diego Esquivel Cob stood out for reporting the existence of a wreck 1.08 nautical miles (2 km) northeast of the Sisal harbor, known in the community as: “Vapor Adalio,” in honor of the grandfather of fisherman Esquivel. After conducting a surface survey (1 km2) with towing boards, and the subsequent implementation of sensing devices (portable magnetometer for the identification of ferrous artifacts), various cultural elements were located on the seabed, in an area of 50 square meters, at a minimum depth of 3.0 and a maximum of 6.0 meters. During six dives, the mapping was created, producing a scaled sketch, which was based on baseline techniques, bearings, and distances. This was complemented with underwater digital photography and video, of plants, profiles, and diagnostic elements in situ. The term wreck comes from the Latin pecium "fragment or broken piece" referring to the remains of an artifact or vessel made by humans, sunk either totally or partially in a body of water. A wreck can result from a maritime accident, shipwreck, or natural disaster, but it can also occur due to abandonment, intentional sinking, carelessness, or negligence (RAE). The context is composed of a main concentration of elements typical of ships equipped with technology corresponding to the "first stage" of steam navigation (1837-1860). This is distinguished by carrying a machine with a boiler for combustion, crank, rocker arm, and two lateral shafts on the sides, the latter with three inner rings; immediately next to them are the spokes of the paddle wheels that served to propel the ship. In addition to the previous components, mechanisms aiding identification included a firebox and chimney, both fragmented, along with residues of mineral coal and burnt coral in the first layer of sand (0-20 centimeters in depth). Rectangular elements corresponding to the ship's bilge were also detected, as well as tubular pieces made of copper and iron, typical of the system. As for the piping, it is possible that it is copper, and it only showed concretions in areas where it was in contact with iron, which is very common since copper, being a heavy metal, is toxic to marine organisms, preventing biofouling that generally occurs over the years on submerged archaeological materials. Among other artifacts, in this case related to fastening elements associated with the ship’s structure, 40 copper nails and 20 copper bolts were identified, as well as cut stone blocks shaped like rectangles that functioned as ballast (Barba, 2017). In order to understand the stratigraphy of the seabed immediate to the wreck, as well as to ensure the distribution of the woodwork, a one square meter pit was excavated in the eastern corner of the context. In this small space, six fragments of orange ceramic were found, as well as brass cutlery: one spoon, one fork, and seven handles. This find was truly significant, as few artifacts associated with daily life have been recovered from underwater archaeological contexts in the region; due to their size, generally small and lightweight, they suffer from decontextualization due to wave movement, tides, and hydrometeorological phenomena (north winds, storms, and hurricanes). To define the material of the cutlery, this was analyzed using X-ray fluorescence elemental analysis, work coordinated by Dr. Javier Reyes Trujeque of the Autonomous University of Campeche. The Spanish steamer La Unión and the trafficking of Mayan slaves in Yucatán Following the registration of the shipwreck, an investigation was launched in historical archives to determine its identity, cultural affiliation, and the reason for the nautical accident. The first clue was obtained from the appearance of a letter written by the military commander of Mérida, Joaquín Castillo Peraza, addressed to the governor of Yucatán, Don Agustín Acereto; in which he reports about the sinking of the Spanish steamer La Unión, of Spanish flag, on September 19, 1861, the ship commanded by Captain José Guerrero. The event, according to Castillo, occurred at 2 PM, after the vessel set sail for Havana, Cuba, less than two nautical miles from the port of Sisal. The accident was caused by a fire that triggered an explosion in the boiler area, causing the ship to capsize. Two-thirds of the crew and some passengers perished in the disaster1. The steamer La Unión belonged to the Spanish commercial and shipping company Zangroniz Hermanos y Compañía, founded in Havana, Cuba, in 1815. According to a file found (AHBCS), in 1855, the company obtained permission from the Mexican government, then headed by President Antonio López de Santa Anna, to establish a transport line for mail, passengers, and goods that would connect the main ports of the Gulf of Mexico: Sisal, Campeche, Veracruz, and Tampico, with Havana2. The journeys were made twice a month, with a route of 20 days. The vessels chosen by the shipping company to carry out the itinerary were the steamships: México and La Unión, both approximately 400 tons of tonnage and with lateral paddle wheels3. By 1847, social inequality in the Yucatán Peninsula was evidenced by the ostentation of economic and political power by a small elite of "white" Creoles, at the expense of the majority of the population of Mayan origin. These groups were destined for hard labor in agricultural lands and the payment of excessive taxes, to mention only a few aspects, which ignited armed conflict between the two factions. As soon as the Creoles took control of the situation, they opted to dispose of their enemies, calling this the "Whitening" plan, which was based on the sale of rebels as prisoners of war (Álvarez, 2002: 131). Fig. 3. Wreck of the Steamer La Unión. Part of the chimney and other structural elements of the ship. © Archivo INAH-SAS, 2017. Photo: Helena Barba-Meinecke. On November 6, 1848, the governor of Yucatán, Don Miguel Barbachano y Tarrazo, issued a decree that allowed for the expulsion of “rebellious” Mayans captured during assaults or uprisings against the Creoles. To spare them from the death penalty, they were sentenced to forced labor on sugar plantations in Cuba, under a manipulated contract that the indigenous people were obligated to sign. Records have found evidence of the transfer of at least 135 Mayans aboard the steamer Cetro (750 tons), commanded by Captain Guillermo Villaverde, owned by Agustín Sánchez y Compañía, a ship that operated through its commercial agent Carlos Tolmé around 1849 (Pedrera, 1849: 436), and as many as 20,000 enslaved individuals between 1855-1861, on the vessels of the Zangroniz shipping company (Garrido, 2015: 977). One of the documented cases occurred in late October 1860. This involved the steamer La Unión, commanded by Captain Gerardo Tizón, caught with 30 Mayan individuals who were being transferred in a smaller vessel to the steamer. The successful rescue operation was carried out by Francisco de la O. Martínez, commander of the national canoe Cristina, in the harbor of Sisal, during the coastal patrol aimed at pursuing smuggling on orders from the government of Campeche. A document from that time recounts his effective mobilization and the interrogations conducted with the captives (SGGEC, 1860: 1-40), among whom were children aged between seven and ten years. The accounts extracted from these files consistently stated that they were captured illegally, in their homes or fields, without cause, came from different towns such as: Kanxoc, Valladolid and Yxil, and were transferred to Mérida, specifically to the house of merchant Miguel Pou, and from there, clandestinely at night, to the port of Sisal to be boarded onto the vessels of the Zangroniz company (Bosch, 2009: 620). Human traffickers, in collusion with Yucatecan authorities, received up to 160 pesos for men and 120 pesos for women. (Álvarez, 2002: 137). The discovery of this dreadful trafficking, stemming from the capture of the steamer La Unión in 1860, prompted President Benito Juárez García to request an investigation of the events that took place, which was entrusted to Licenciado Juan Suárez Navarro. In his report titled: Report on the frequent revolutions occurring in Yucatán and means to prevent them and to cease the trafficking of indigenous people sent as slaves to the island of Cuba (1861), he details the origin of this trafficking, communicating about the governors who had made and still made corrupt deals with the Zangroniz company, many of them related to the sale of indigenous people and obtaining illegal weaponry. Among the names that came to light after the investigation are: Miguel Barbachano y Tarrazo (governorship period, 1848-1853), Pantaleón Barrera (1857) and Martín Francisco Peraza (1857). (Suárez, 1861: 111-112). As a result of what occurred, as well as the reports received, on May 6, 1861, President Juárez issued a Decree prohibiting the extraction of any Mayan individuals, as well as all related contracts. Six months later, the last journey of the steamer La Unión took place, which waited 160 years on the seabed. Based on the analysis of archaeological and historical information, it was determined that the wreck initially referred to as Vapor Adalio (Sisal, Yucatán), belongs to the wreck of the Spanish steamer La Unión that occurred in September 1861. This was defined by several factors: 1) the location of the underwater archaeological context, just 1.8 nautical miles from the port, 2) the presence of parts of the machinery such as the firebox and boiler with significant damage and fragmentation, 3) the wood plan of the vessel, in the areas where it was still preserved, and where shellfish were also observed, showed evidence of having been exposed to an intense heat source, and 4) the elements that make up the wreck correspond to the first stage of steam navigation (1837-1860). These main elements corroborate the type of accident and place it temporally and spatially. Finally, it is worth noting that its importance lies in the fact that it is the first identified shipwreck in Mexico linked to the sale and transport of Mayan slaves to the island of Cuba, evidencing a practice little known in the annals of our history. References Álvarez, Izaskun. 2002. "Indios mayas en Cuba. Algunas reflexiones sobre su comercio". En: Revista Baluarte 03, pp. 121-141. Estudios gaditano-cubanos. Cádiz, España. Barba-Meinecke, Helena. 2017. Informe de actividades del Proyecto Integral para la Protección, Conservación, Investigación y Difusión del Patrimonio Cultural Sumergido de la Península de Yucatán, pp.123:135. Archivo Técnico del INAH. CDMX, México. Bosch, Juan. 2009. De Cristóbal Colón a Fidel Castro. Miguel Ángel Porrúa. CDMX, México. Carmona, Doralicia. 2020. Memoria política de México de 1861. Decreto del gobierno. Prohíbe la extracción para el extranjero de los indígenas de Yucatán. Disponible en: https://www.memoriapoliticademexico.org/Textos/3Reforma/1861PEY.html. Consultado: 11 de julio, 2020. Garrido, Santiago. 2015. "Los otros esclavos". RDUNED. Revista de derecho UNED, 16, pp. 963-987. Madrid, España. Pedrera Rafael. 1849. Miscelánea instructiva y amena: Colección escogida de escritos sobre todas materias, en prosa y en verso, originales, copiados y traducidos. Vol. I. Oficina Tipográfica de Rafael Pedrera. Mérida, Yucatán, México. Suárez Navarro, Juan. 1861. Informe sobre las frecuentes revoluciones ocurridas en Yucatán y medios para evitarlas y para la cesación del tráfico de indígenas enviados como esclavos a la isla de Cuba. Imprenta de Ignacio Cumplido. CDMX, México. Secretaría General de Gobierno del Estado de Campeche (SGGEC). (1860). A Collection of Pamphlets, chiefly political, relating to Mexican affairs from 1843 to 1865. Biblioteca Británica. Londres, Reino Unido. Urrea M. 2012. Análisis de las prácticas de vida asociadas a la basura, los residuos y los desechos en la población costera de Sisal, Yucatán: propuesta de modelo de manejo. Facultad de Ciencias, UNAM. Sisal, Yucatán, México. Document References Archivo General del Estado de Yucatán (AGEY) AGEY. 1861. Fondo: Ejecutivo, Sección: Jefatura Política de Mérida. Serie: Correspondencia Oficial. Caja 97. Vol. 47. Exp. 49. "Comunicado de Joaquín Castillo Peraza al Gobernador sobre el incendio de un barco español", 1 folio. Archivo Histórico de Baja California Sur (AHBCS) AHBCS. 1855. Fondo: México Independiente. Serie: República Centralista. D/257/II/V-57Bis/L-2/4FF. "Decreto del presidente Antonio López de Santa Anna en el que se le concede a los señores Zangroniz hermanos y compañía el establecimiento de una línea de vapores".