Piñero, Jesús T. (Jesús Toribio), 1897-1952

PIÑERO, Jesús T., a Resident Commissioner from Puerto Rico; born in Carolina, P.R., April 16, 1897; attended the grade schools, Colegio Janer (a private school), Baltimore, Md., and the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania at Philadelphia; was graduated from the College of Liberal Arts, University of Puerto Rico at Rio Piedras, in 1914; engaged in agricultural pursuits and in the sugarcane and dairy industries 1920-1944; member and president of the municipal assembly at Carolina, P.R., 1928-1932; member of the Puerto Rico House of Representatives 1940-1944; delegate to the Popular Democratic Convention at San Juan, P.R., in 1940; elected as a Popular Democrat a Resident Commissioner to the United States and served from January 3, 1945, until his resignation on September 2, 1946, having been appointed Governor of Puerto Rico, serving until December 1948; died in Loiza, P.R., November 19, 1952; interment in Carolina Cemetery, Carolina, P.R.

<p>A prominent landowner-turned-politician, Jesús Piñero parlayed his concern for the poor and his desire to perpetuate his family vocation into a political career. After an apprenticeship in local politics, Piñero allied himself with Luis Muñoz Marín at a pivotal time in Puerto Rican politics. Piñero’s fortuitous associations and hard work enabled him to serve in Puerto Rico’s senate and ultimately in the U.S. Congress. During his short tenure as Resident Commissioner, Piñero sought economic aid for Puerto Rico. His congressional career ended when President Harry S. Truman tapped him to serve as the first native-born governor of Puerto Rico in the island’s 500-year history. On the eve of his winning the Resident Commissioner’s seat, Piñero said, “By representing you in Washington, I will fulfill the mission that the people assigned me.… I did not ask for the assignment … but I accept it because it is my duty … and because I love the opportunity to serve the people.”</p>

<p>One of six siblings, Jesús Toribio Piñero was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, on April 16, 1897, to Emilio and Josefa Jiménez Sicardo Piñero. The Piñeros were wealthy and owned a sugar plantation. After Piñero’s mother died in 1905, the family moved to Rio Piedras, a suburb of San Juan, Puerto Rico’s capital. Piñero studied at Xavier Preparatory School in Baltimore, Maryland, and graduated from Central High School in San Juan in 1914. He attended the University of Puerto Rico for two years and the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Engineering until 1918. After returning to Puerto Rico, Piñero prepared to serve in the U.S. Army, but World War I ended before he arrived at the front. From 1918 to 1926, Piñero devoted himself to the family business, sugar cultivation. In 1931 Piñero married Aurelia Bou Ledesma. The couple raised two children, Haydee, and José Emilio.</p>

<p>In 1926 Piñero began participating in various political groups. He was elected chair of Carolina’s municipal assembly in 1928, where he served until 1933. While serving as chair, Piñero took a particular interest in improving educational opportunities for the poor and for peasant laborers. Piñero’s accomplishments included opening a vocational school and teaching the poor about improving their lives, using motion picture technology. Piñero’s political activities took a significant turn when he became president of the Puerto Rico Sugar Cane Farmers Association. It was in this capacity that he traveled to Washington, D.C., to contest the Jones–Costigan Act (48 Stat. 670; 1928–1934), which established limits on the amount of sugar the United States could import from its territories. During this trip, Piñero worked with Luis Muñoz Marín, a member of the Puerto Rican senate and the son of former Resident Commissioner Luis Muñoz Rivera. The two men participated in a mission to obtain financial aid for Puerto Rico from the U.S. government to mitigate the destruction inflicted by a pair of hurricanes in 1928 and 1932 and the economic crisis resulting from the Great Depression. Their efforts helped obtain for the island a relief package worth more than $70 million and led to the eventual creation of the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration. Piñero became a member of its board in 1935. In 1936 he ran, unsuccessfully, for a Puerto Rican senate seat from the district of Humacao on the Partido Liberal (Liberal Party) ticket. After his defeat, Piñero joined Muñoz Marín’s newly formed Partido Popular Democrático (Popular Democratic Party, or PPD) in 1938.</p>

<p>Jesús T. Piñero Jiménez (April 16, 1897 – November 19, 1952) was the first and only native Puerto Rican to be appointed governor of Puerto Rico by the Government of the United States.</p>

<p>Jesús Toribio Piñero Jiménez was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico to Emilio Piñero Estrella (son of Basilio Piñero) and Josefa Jiménez Sicardó into a wealthy family with roots in the Canary Islands. His direct ancestor was Domingo Antonio José Piñero Pineda from Hermigua, La Gomera arriving in Puerto Rico around 1816. He obtained his primary and secondary education in his hometown. In 1914, he attended the College of Liberal Arts of the University of Puerto Rico. He also attended the School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia.</p>

<p>Between 1920 and 1944, Piñero's interest in agriculture kept him engaged in the dairy business and in the cultivation of sugar cane. His interest in the agricultural development of Puerto Rico led him to participate in politics, particularly those concerning the issues of the cultivation of sugar cane and development of the industry.</p>