What happened in Puerto Rico in 1898?

Puerto Rico. On October 18, 1898, American troops fighting in the Spanish-American War raised the United States flag in Puerto Rico formalizing U.S. control of the former Spanish colony. General Nelson A. Miles had landed approximately 3,500 U.S. troops on the island on July 25.

Who were the first to live in Puerto Rico?

the Taínos
Puerto Rico’s first inhabitants were the Taínos, a group of indigenous people who lived on the island for hundreds of years before the Spanish arrival. Organized in small clans and villages led by caciques (chiefs), they survived by fishing, hunting, and basic agriculture.

Who was living in Puerto Rico when it was discovered?

The first inhabitants of Puerto Rico were hunter-gatherers who reached the island more than 1,000 years before the arrival of the Spanish. Arawak Indians, who developed the Taino culture, had also settled there by 1000 ce.

What was Puerto Ricans called before?

Puerto Rico’s native Taíno population—whose hunter-gatherer ancestors settled the island more than 1,000 years before the Spanish arrived—called it Borinquén, and referred to themselves as boricua (a term that is still used today).

Why did the U.S. invade Puerto Rico in 1898?

On July 25, 1898, 16,000 U.S. troops invaded Puerto Rico at Guánica, asserting that they were liberating the inhabitants from Spanish colonial rule, which had recently granted the island’s government limited autonomy.

When did slavery start in Puerto Rico?

African slavery was made legal in the Spanish Caribbean in 1501. Ten years later, the first black slaves were brought to Puerto Rico in order to work at the foundry established in Caparra (the island’s first European settlement).

How did the U.S. treat Puerto Rico?

In 1917, the U.S. Congress passed the Jones Act, which brought Puerto Rico the first significant political changes under U.S. colonial rule. With this law, Congress established a popularly elected legislative branch (a Senate and a House of Representatives) and extended American citizenship to Puerto Rican citizens.