Iñigo Noriega Laso Papers, 1586-1928 (bulk 1890-1920)

Biographical Note

Born in Spain in 1853, Iñigo Noriega Laso immigrated to Mexico in 1867. Through a series of partnerships over the next thirty years he developed one of the most impressive business and industrial networks in Mexico, with an estimated value of forty million pesos in 1910. His interests included the vast agricultural enterprises of Xico in Mexico State and Colombres/Río Bravo and La Sauteña in Tamaulipas; factories producing turpentine and resin (Río Bravo), textiles (Compañía Industrial La Guadalupe); tobacco (La Mexicana); mining (Compañía Minera Tlalchichilpa); railroads (Ferrocarril Río Frío and Hidalgo); and land development projects such as the draining of the Lago de Chalco. His La Sauteña projects included irrigation, rail, and port development and colonization.

Noriega’s business network in Mexico began when he formed a partnership with his brother, Remigio, in 1881. Through this partnership, Remigio Noriega y Hermano, the Noriega brothers created various companies and acquired extensive property in northern Mexico before the partnership dissolved in 1898. Among these companies were the Compañía Minera y Beneficiadora de Metales de Tlalchichilpa y Anexas, Compañía Agrícola La Sauteña in 1888, and Negociación Agrícola de Xico y Anexas in 1897. La Compañía Agrícola La Sauteña, which comprised the municipality of Matamoros, a large portion of Reynosa, and part of San Fernando and Mendez, split into two entities in 1912: Compañía Agrícola La Sauteña and Compañía Agrícola de Colombres. The split allowed Noriega to complete various irrigation projects. Compañía Agrícola de Colombres was later renamed Compañía Agrícola de Rio Bravo.

Due to his close ties with Porfirio Díaz, Noriega fled Mexico in 1913 during the Mexican Revolution. The Zapatistas took possession of the mine operated by the Compañía Minera Tlalchichilpa where Emiliano Zapata had once worked, as well as Xico, Río Frío, and the Hacienda de Zoquiapam, exploiting the properties and appropriating the revenues and assets for themselves. The Carranzistas also forcibly occupied parts of La Sauteña, Río Bravo, and the textile mill of the Compañía Industrial La Guadalupe. Noriega’s family and associates continued to manage his other businesses while Noriega spent considerable energy seeking to recuperate his confiscated properties after the Revolution ended.

Noriega died December 4, 1920 in Mexico. [The Library of Congress authority file lists Noriega’s date of death as 1923.]

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Scope and Contents Note

The collection is comprised of the personal papers of Mexican landowner and businessmen Iñigo Noriega Laso. Materials date from 1586-1928, with the bulk of materials dating from 1890-1920. The collection measures 6 linear feet and is arranged into nine series: Biographical Information, Correspondence, Financial Documents, Reports and Official Documents, Companies, Photographs, Collected Materials, Various, and Oversize Materials.

The first series,   Biographical Information, consists of memoranda containing personal and business information about Noriega.

Series two,   Correspondence, includes letters between Noriega and family members, friends, and business correspondents, as well as collected correspondence between others. This series also contains letters between Noriega and various business managers at companies Noriega owned or in which he was a significant shareholder. Letters addressed to or from a specific company are located with the documents of that company in series five. Correspondence is arranged alphabetically by correspondent or the entity which he or she represents.

  Financial Documents, the third series, contains account information, receipts, stock certificates, contracts, and other materials personally related to Noriega. Financial documents relating to Noriega’s companies are located in series five.

The fourth series,   Reports and Official Documents, is comprised of inventories and various other reports relating to Noriega. Reports and official documents of Noriega’s companies can be found in series five.

Series five,   Companies, includes correspondence, financial documents, reports and official documents, printed material, and photographs from companies Noriega owned or was a shareholder in. The items in this series are arranged alphabetically by company name. This series also contains documents related to multiple companies, mostly records related to damages inflicted during the Mexican Revolution by the Carranzistas and the Zapatistas. Reports and printed material related to the activities of the companies are also included.

  Photographs comprise the sixth series. These include photographs of persons, railroads, canals, and buildings, among various other photographs. Several of the photographs are housed with oversize materials in series nine.

The   Collected Materials in series seven include reports, official documents, and printed material created by others. The records are arranged alphabetically by last name of the creator or the person to whom they relate.

The eighth series consists of   Various Materials, such as maps, notes, and printed material not specifically related to Noriega or one of his companies.

Finally, the ninth series houses   Oversize Materials. It consists of items that were separated from their original series because of size. These materials include photographs, censuses, and maps.

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Restrictions

Access Restrictions

Unrestricted.

Use Restrictions

Standard copyright restrictions apply.

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Administrative Information

Preferred Citation

Cite as: Iñigo Noriega Laso Papers, Benson Latin American Collection, University of Texas Libraries, the University of Texas at Austin.

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Box and Folder Inventory

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