A Look Back
By Josef Kandoll W

The magical setting of Puerto Vallarta earned the city its international fame during the filming of John Huston's The Night of the Iguana, while the romance of Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor earned it notoriety. But prior to the arrival of the yachts and Lears belonging to the jet set, this quiet town exuded a presence that attracted visitors who were looking for a place with soul.

Long before the stark white sails of Spanish galleons appeared on the horizon against the darkening evening sky one March night in the 16th century, nearby Punta de Mita was a sacred place of annual pilgrimage with an entrance to legendary Mixtlán visible just off the coast. Lightning flashed in the distance as smoke rose into the air to appeal to the gods for the growing of corn.

The Wixarika (commonly known as Huichol) honor the deer in their ancient culture as the origin of life, appearing on all fours from the sea. The spilling of the deer's sacred blood is necessary to continue the cycle of life, even while thanks are chanted to the revered animal. Called "Elder Brother," the deer comes and goes freely between the ages, leading each person to himself. Other special animals include the coyote or wolf, the rattlesnake and the eagle, although every living being holds a special place in the cycle of life.

Other pre-historic peoples have left evidence of their presence in the forms of construction, monuments, petroglyphs, pottery and other household and ceremonial artifacts. Exploration of the area under Dr. Joseph Mountjoy began in 1987. Areas that have been studied in addition to Ixtapa include San Blas and more recently, the valleys and swamps in the highlands near Mascota. As excavations continue, further evidence brings to light more details about the extensive communication, ceremonial life, hunting, agriculture and social network of early periods. (For further information in English and a bibliography, see www.uncg.edu/ant/mountjoy.html.)

It wasn't until the 17th century that East Coast whalers arrived in the bay to hunt the prolific Humpback Whale for its blubber, giving it the name of Bay of the Humpbacks in maps from that period. As silver mining continued in the mountains, including in San Sebastián del Oeste and Guachinango, passage was made along the river by horseback to the coast to fetch the salt needed for the refining process. An early go-between by the name of Guadalupe Sánchez Torres of Cihuatlán decided to move his family in 1851 to Las Peñas, as the settlement at the mouth of the river became known. More families moved into the area, forming an agricultural and cattle-raising community. Within 50 years, more than 1,500 inhabitants populated this area that became the municipality of Puerto Vallarta in 1918, named after an earlier illustrious governor of Jalisco state.

Despite plummeting silver prices on the international market, the area began to grow and flourish during the era of fruit exports. The Montgomery Fruit Company, based in Ixtapa, focused on growing bananas. Strawberries and watermelons were harvested along the Pitillal River. Tobacco, beans and corn grew in the flatter river valleys, while orchards of oranges, limes and coconut palms thrived on the slopes. The fishing industry harvested red snapper and cod, with brief forays into exports of crocodile skins, sharkskin, fins and oil, each of which was successful for a limited period.

With a major port in San Blas, tourism was primarily limited to arrival by ship or boat since no roads connected Puerto Vallarta to the inland. Horseback was the usual method of crossing the Sierra Madre Range whether to Mascota or Guadalajara, involving a trip that took several days, one way. In the late 1940s the local charros (horsemen) founded an equestrian association, celebrating the first Charro Day on September 14, 1948, which continues to be celebrated today.

During the 1950s a number of developments brought further activity to the region. A dirt road was constructed to connect the coast to Mascota in the mountains, and later that same decade, the first highway was completed from Compostela with connections to Guadalajara. The annual fishing tournament was established, parks were built, a tourist office was opened, new water pumps were purchased and electricity lit up the night sky.

When John Huston was invited here by his friend, architect Guillermo Wulff, a simple airport was already in operation, leading us into the early modern era with the subsequent filming of The Night of the Iguana with Richard Burton, Ava Gardner and Deborah Kerr. The paparazzi that followed the filming discovered a paradise with ready-made infrastructure that would soon draw visitors from around the world, all eager to sample its varied charms.

Juan Manuel Gómez Encarnación: City Historian

Born and raised in nearby Ixtapa, location of much of the archaeological activity in the region, Juan Manuel Gómez Encarnación holds archaeologist Dr. Joseph Mountjoy in high esteem. "The doctor has proved that our roots in this region go back to long before the Spanish appeared in the bay." Not discrediting the sources of the Spanish noblemen and fathers who lived on the coast, Gómez Encarnación mentions several he plans to investigate, who visited and wrote about the region.

Gómez Encarnación is an accomplished writer himself, author of six or seven titles primarily focused on the stories, legends and myths of the region. In 2002 his book Uitzitzilin was awarded the National Prize for Children's Literature in Veracruz. His current occupation allows him computer access and office space in the cultural offices at the Isla Río Cuale for his research and notes.

"History is an important element of our identity, because if we know where we're from, maybe we can figure out where we're going. Through knowing a place, we grow to love it. And if we love it, we'll take care of it. In our daily life in Puerto Vallarta, we learn the value of not only our families, but of our regular interaction with others in the community. We live more consciously and are healthier. Even in the solitary condition of man, we feel less lonely with the hands of friends to help and guide us. When we lose our culture, we become distant from one another."

"Even the place where we were born isn't important. It might have been here or maybe elsewhere. We can still be Vallartan if we recognize the spirit of the community and find our place within it. Not only are we accepted, but we learn to empathize and not judge what we see around us. We become Vallartan by conviction."