Rivero Méndez, Angel, 1856-1930

Captain Ángel Rivero Méndez[note 1] (October 2, 1856 – February 23, 1930) was a Puerto Rican soldier, writer, journalist and a businessman who is credited with inventing the "Kola Champagne" soft drink. Rivero Méndez was a Captain in the Spanish Army during the Spanish–American War. He is credited with ordering the first shot against the United States in Puerto Rico in said conflict. After his retirement, he wrote Crónica de la guerra hispano-americana en Puerto Rico, a chronicle of the Spanish-American War in Puerto Rico.[1][2] Rivero Méndez was born on October 2, 1856 in Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico to Juan Rivero and Rosa Méndez, who had immigrated to Puerto Rico from the Canary Islands. On October 16, 1882, Rivero Méndez married Manuela Boneta Babel from San Juan. In 1885, he was accepted in the General Military Academy of Toledo in Spain. There he wrote Toledo, a book about the city of Toledo. In 1886, Rivero Méndez was transferred to the Academy of Artillery in Segovia and, on February 28, 1889, he earned a degree in Industrial Engineering.
On January 1, 1890, Rivero Méndez returned to Puerto Rico and was assigned to the 12th Battalion of Plaza. He taught at the Military Preparatory Academy in San Juan and, in 1896, was promoted to the rank of captain. He was active in politics in the ranks of the Unconditional Spanish Party.[3]

As a captain, he was assigned to teach math and chemistry at the Civil Institution of Secondary Education. During this time in his life, he became active in politics as member of the Unconditional Spanish Party. Rivero Méndez also founded a newspaper called La Integridad Nacional (The National Integrity), a political paper which represented the views of the party. Rivero Méndez, along with some others was expelled from the party and together they formed another political party. An article criticizing the government, written by Rivero Méndez, was published and as a consequence, he was arrested and sent to jail. Due to the rumors of war, he was pardoned by Governor Macias and, on March 1, 1898, was assigned the command of the 3rd Company of the 12th Artillery Battalion at Fort San Cristóbal in San Juan.

When the United States declared war against Spain, the U.S. Navy sent USS Yale to form a blockade in San Juan Bay. On May 10, 1898, Captain Rivero Méndez ordered his men to fire upon Yale, thus becoming the first attack against the Americans in Puerto Rico of Spanish–American War. For his actions, he was awarded the "Cruz de la Orden del Mérito Militar 1ra Clase con Distintivo Rojo" (The Cross of the Order of the Military Merit first class). The residents of San Juan were furious with Rivero Méndez and blamed him for the destruction caused to their city by the responding bombardments, however nothing came of those accusations. In 1902, a few years after the end of the Spanish-American War, Rivero Méndez founded El Polo Norte Fábrica de Sodas (The North Pole soda factory) where he created Kola Champagne, which became a popular soft drink in Puerto Rico. While developing the drink he worked on his book, Chronicle of the Spanish-American War in Puerto Rico.[6][7] Now, Kola Champagne is manufactured and sold in the United States and Mexico by Goya Foods. Inc.[8] Other countries that have also produced the drink are Colombia[9] and Jamaica.[10] Rivero Méndez dedicated much of his later years to obtaining records and information for a book he ultimately wrote, on the Spanish–American War in Puerto Rico. He also wrote articles for the newspapers El Imparcial, El Mundo and La Correspondencia de Puerto Rico, where he defended Puerto Rican nationalism and the ideal of Puerto Rican independence. In 1922, Rivero Méndez published his book Crónica de la Guerra Hispano Americana en Puerto Rico (Chronicles of the Spanish–American War in Puerto Rico), which is considered one of the most complete works written in regard to that military action.

Rivero Méndez and his wife were devotees of the Virgin of Lourdes. In 1924, he built a shrine dedicated to the Virgin of Lourdes, on his land in Trujillo Alto. The shrine, which still stands today and is considered an important landmark of the area, was blessed by San Juan's Bishop Jorge Caruana on January 6, 1925.