Teresa Urrea
Encyclopedia
Teresa Urrea, or Santa Teresa, (October 15, 1873 – January 11, 1906) was a Mexican mystic, folk healer, and revolutionary insurgent.
as the out of wedlock child to a landowning rancher and an indigenous mother who worked as his servant. Teresa lived with maternal relatives until 1885, when her father brought her into his household among his legitimate children and recognized her as a daughter. She apprenticed herself to a local midwife and healer during this time.
Teresa was venerated as a folk saint among the Yaqui people, who are indigenous to Sonoran Desert
near the United States border. A drought in the states of Chihuahua and Sonora
, along with economic and political instability, led the village of Tomochic, Chihuahua to seek her guidance. A violent confrontation occurred there between villagers and government authorities on December 7, 1891. A second villager revolt on December 26 routed forty soldiers and Teresa left the area to avoid being blamed for the incidents. Nonetheless the government held her responsible and exiled Teresa and her father in May 1892. They settled in Nogales, Arizona
. The Tomochicetos continued armed resistance against the government in her name; government troops razed Tomochic in October 1892 and 300 villagers had died in the struggle by the end of 1892. Nonetheless, some modern sources credit her for the religious fervor with which the outnumbered Tomochicetos resisted government forces.
due to Teresa Urrea's influence. Indigenous Mayos invoked her name when they attacked the city of Navojoa
in Sonora in retaliation for the seizure of their lands.
Her arrival in Nogales received a hero's welcome. A crowd greeted her at the train station and local police escorted her to a hotel. Teresa Urrea and her father applied for United States citizenship soon afterward, although no record exists that either of them were granted it. Teresa spent the next three years living in a small community near Nogales where she resumed her folk healing.
, where Lauro Aguirre
and Flores Chapa had recently launched a newspaper El Independiente that was critical of the Porfirio Díaz
regime. Aguirre and Chapa opposed the Díaz government practices of dispossessing indigenous people and silencing criticism. In February 1896 Aguirre and Chapa published a circular called Plan Restaurador de Constitucion y Reformista, which referenced the Tomochic rebellion and accused the Mexican government of having violated the 1857 constitution in a variety of ways. The Plan Restaurador called for the violent overthrow of the Díaz government. Twenty-three people signed the Plan Restaurador, some of whom were close to Teresa Urrea, and she was presumed to have been involved behind the scenes. Afterward the United States government tried and acquitted Aguirre and Chapa; Teresa Urrea's alleged involvement drew attention during the trial.
After the trial Teresa Urrea relocated to El Paso, Texas
, where Aguirre resumed publishing newspapers. The press in El Paso described her as "an apolitical spiritual healer" until popular revolts against the Díaz government erupted along the border in August 1896. On August 12, seventy indigenous Yaquis, Pima
s, and other Mexicans raided the customs house of Nogales, Arizona in the name of "La Santa de Cabora". Three people died during the uprising, which was covered in both the Mexican and American press with implications that the rebellion was inspired by issues of Aguirre's newspaper El Independiente and photographs of Teresa Urrea. Reportedly, insurgents carried her photograph over their hearts in the belief it would protect them during the uprising.
Sources contradict regarding the extent Teresa Urrea's role in the Nogales revolt and in other uprisings that followed. Aguirre's newspaper represented her as an advocate of violent revolution, and published complaints against the Mexican government and clergy with her signature. Yet the El Paso Herald published a statement in which she distanced herself from the uprisings and resented the appropriation of her name for revolutionary purposes. It is uncertain whether the El Paso Herald statement expresses a genuine complaint or an attempt to distance herself from the consequences of actual political activities. The New York Times had attributed 1000 deaths in the border uprisings to her influence. Law enforcement and consular records from the period associate her with revolutionary activities, and the El Paso newspapers reported in January 1897 that the government of Mexico attempted to kill her. Shortly afterward she moved to Arizona.
Shortly afterward Teresa Urrea went to California to treat a boy who had meningitis, and she entered a contract either with a San Francisco publisher or with a pharmaceutical firm to undertake a public tour as a healer. The tour had no lack of audience but encountered internal difficuties related to the language barrier and contractual obligations. Urrea gave a substantial part of her earnings to the poor and before the tour ended Urrea and her translator had become lovers. She bore a daughter in 1902. They settled in Los Angeles, where she openly supported Mexican workers who unionized and went on strike seeking equal pay. In 1904 she relocated to Ventura County, California
, had a second child, and purchased a house. She died of tuberculosis in 1906.
Early life
She was born near Ocoroni in the state of SinaloaSinaloa
Sinaloa officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sinaloa is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided in 18 municipalities and its capital city is Culiacán Rosales....
as the out of wedlock child to a landowning rancher and an indigenous mother who worked as his servant. Teresa lived with maternal relatives until 1885, when her father brought her into his household among his legitimate children and recognized her as a daughter. She apprenticed herself to a local midwife and healer during this time.
Folk icon
In the fall of 1889 Teresa had a serious illness and began to experience religious visions. When she recovered she believed she had been given healing powers by the Virgin Mary, and she soon gained a following when 1200 people camped nearby to seek healing and observe miracles. Indigenous people began to call her "The Saint of Cabora". She drew criticism from church officials for giving informal sermons in which she drew attention to clerical abuses. The Mexican press began to cover her activities in December 1889, notably the newspaper El Monitor Republicano of Mexico City.Teresa was venerated as a folk saint among the Yaqui people, who are indigenous to Sonoran Desert
Sonoran Desert
The Sonoran Desert is a North American desert which straddles part of the United States-Mexico border and covers large parts of the U.S. states of Arizona and California and the northwest Mexican states of Sonora, Baja California, and Baja California Sur. It is one of the largest and hottest...
near the United States border. A drought in the states of Chihuahua and Sonora
Sonora
Sonora officially Estado Libre y Soberano de Sonora is one of the 31 states which, with the Federal District, comprise the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. It is divided into 72 municipalities; the capital city is Hermosillo....
, along with economic and political instability, led the village of Tomochic, Chihuahua to seek her guidance. A violent confrontation occurred there between villagers and government authorities on December 7, 1891. A second villager revolt on December 26 routed forty soldiers and Teresa left the area to avoid being blamed for the incidents. Nonetheless the government held her responsible and exiled Teresa and her father in May 1892. They settled in Nogales, Arizona
Nogales, Arizona
Nogales is a city in Santa Cruz County, Arizona, United States. The population was 21,017 at the 2010 census. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 20,833. The city is the county seat of Santa Cruz County....
. The Tomochicetos continued armed resistance against the government in her name; government troops razed Tomochic in October 1892 and 300 villagers had died in the struggle by the end of 1892. Nonetheless, some modern sources credit her for the religious fervor with which the outnumbered Tomochicetos resisted government forces.
Expulsion from Mexico
Although the resistance fighters invoked Teresa Urrea's popular nickname "Santa de Cabora" and sought her help, there is no direct evidence that she took part in their activities. Her popularity among insurgents appears to have been due to amateur sermons she had made about equality, justice, and brotherly love. Some sources assert that "she also made speeches inciting the people to fight for their land". Her extradition was undertaken as a military action by the Eleventh Regiment and the Twelfth Battalion of the Mexican army under General Abraham Bandala. The Urrea family departed without incident, but General Bandala reported to the Secretary of War that there was a risk of uprisings among the Mayo peopleMayo people
The Mayo are a Mexican indigenous people living in the states of Sonora and Sinaloa, originally living near the Mayo River in Sonora. In their own language they call themselves Yoreme....
due to Teresa Urrea's influence. Indigenous Mayos invoked her name when they attacked the city of Navojoa
Navojoa
Navojoa is the fifth-largest city in the northern Mexican state of Sonora and is situated in the southern part of Sonora, south of the state's border with the U.S. state of Arizona. It is the administrative seat of a large municipality, located in the Mayo River Valley.-History:The city name...
in Sonora in retaliation for the seizure of their lands.
Her arrival in Nogales received a hero's welcome. A crowd greeted her at the train station and local police escorted her to a hotel. Teresa Urrea and her father applied for United States citizenship soon afterward, although no record exists that either of them were granted it. Teresa spent the next three years living in a small community near Nogales where she resumed her folk healing.
Border uprisings
By November 1895 she had relocated to Solomonville, ArizonaSolomonville, Arizona
Solomonville is a small unincorporated community in Graham County, Arizona, United States. It is part of the Safford Micropolitan Statistical Area.- History :...
, where Lauro Aguirre
Lauro Aguirre
Lauro Aguirre was an engineer and journalist who was active during events that foreshadowed the Mexican Revolution.-Early life:...
and Flores Chapa had recently launched a newspaper El Independiente that was critical of the Porfirio Díaz
Porfirio Díaz
José de la Cruz Porfirio Díaz Mori was a Mexican-American War volunteer and French intervention hero, an accomplished general and the President of Mexico continuously from 1876 to 1911, with the exception of a brief term in 1876 when he left Juan N...
regime. Aguirre and Chapa opposed the Díaz government practices of dispossessing indigenous people and silencing criticism. In February 1896 Aguirre and Chapa published a circular called Plan Restaurador de Constitucion y Reformista, which referenced the Tomochic rebellion and accused the Mexican government of having violated the 1857 constitution in a variety of ways. The Plan Restaurador called for the violent overthrow of the Díaz government. Twenty-three people signed the Plan Restaurador, some of whom were close to Teresa Urrea, and she was presumed to have been involved behind the scenes. Afterward the United States government tried and acquitted Aguirre and Chapa; Teresa Urrea's alleged involvement drew attention during the trial.
After the trial Teresa Urrea relocated to El Paso, Texas
El Paso, Texas
El Paso, is a city in and the county seat of El Paso County, Texas, United States, and lies in far West Texas. In the 2010 census, the city had a population of 649,121. It is the sixth largest city in Texas and the 19th largest city in the United States...
, where Aguirre resumed publishing newspapers. The press in El Paso described her as "an apolitical spiritual healer" until popular revolts against the Díaz government erupted along the border in August 1896. On August 12, seventy indigenous Yaquis, Pima
Pima
The Pima are a group of American Indians living in an area consisting of what is now central and southern Arizona. The long name, "Akimel O'odham", means "river people". They are closely related to the Tohono O'odham and the Hia C-ed O'odham...
s, and other Mexicans raided the customs house of Nogales, Arizona in the name of "La Santa de Cabora". Three people died during the uprising, which was covered in both the Mexican and American press with implications that the rebellion was inspired by issues of Aguirre's newspaper El Independiente and photographs of Teresa Urrea. Reportedly, insurgents carried her photograph over their hearts in the belief it would protect them during the uprising.
Sources contradict regarding the extent Teresa Urrea's role in the Nogales revolt and in other uprisings that followed. Aguirre's newspaper represented her as an advocate of violent revolution, and published complaints against the Mexican government and clergy with her signature. Yet the El Paso Herald published a statement in which she distanced herself from the uprisings and resented the appropriation of her name for revolutionary purposes. It is uncertain whether the El Paso Herald statement expresses a genuine complaint or an attempt to distance herself from the consequences of actual political activities. The New York Times had attributed 1000 deaths in the border uprisings to her influence. Law enforcement and consular records from the period associate her with revolutionary activities, and the El Paso newspapers reported in January 1897 that the government of Mexico attempted to kill her. Shortly afterward she moved to Arizona.
Later years
Teresa Urrea married in 1900, but the bridegroom acted strangely on the wedding day and may have been involved with the Mexican government in another assassination plot against her. She married a Yaqui miner named Lupe Rodríguez who "brandished a rifle and tried to force Urrea onto a southbound train headed for Mexico". Local press portrayed Rodriguez as mentally unbalanced; the couple separated less than a day after the wedding ceremony.Shortly afterward Teresa Urrea went to California to treat a boy who had meningitis, and she entered a contract either with a San Francisco publisher or with a pharmaceutical firm to undertake a public tour as a healer. The tour had no lack of audience but encountered internal difficuties related to the language barrier and contractual obligations. Urrea gave a substantial part of her earnings to the poor and before the tour ended Urrea and her translator had become lovers. She bore a daughter in 1902. They settled in Los Angeles, where she openly supported Mexican workers who unionized and went on strike seeking equal pay. In 1904 she relocated to Ventura County, California
Ventura County, California
Ventura County is a county in the southern part of the U.S. state of California. It is located on California's Pacific coast. It is often referred to as the Gold Coast, and has a reputation of being one of the safest populated places and one of the most affluent places in the country...
, had a second child, and purchased a house. She died of tuberculosis in 1906.