History
The Taíno region of Guayaney, which covered a portion of the southeast part of Puerto Rico, included what is now Yabucoa. Cacique Guaraca led the area. After the Spanish colonization, Humacao included the Yabucoa area, mainly used for cattle and farming. Don Manuel Colón de Bonilla and his wife, Doña Catalina Morales Pacheco, founded the town of Yabucoa in October.
Map of Barrios
File: General Archive of Puerto Rico Map Library, Title: Map of the municipality of Yabucoa) Date Original Document: 1901, Scope and Content: (Map of the municipality of Yabucoa,1901. [Procedencia o Archivo:, Archivo General de Puerto Rico Mapoteca, Título: (Mapa del municipio de Yabucoa) Fecha Documento Original: 1901, Alcance y Contenido: (Mapa del municipio de Yabucoa). 1901.] Aguacate
Calabaza, Camino Nuevo, Guayabota, Jácanas, Juan Martín, Limones, Playa, Tejas, Yabucoa barrio-pueblo.
Church Book Observations in 1960
According to the inventory included in the accounts of 1815, the parish archive then had five books of baptisms, two of marriages, one of the burials, one of the confirmations, and two circulars. Of these books, only a book of white marriages (1813-1820_ externally marked with the number 3) exists today. Parish Book of Marriages of pardos, free blacks and enslaved people, which begins on February 8, 1832, being the Parish Priest of this Holy Church of the Holy Angels Custodians and S. Vicente Ferrer of the Town of Yabucoa, the Presbytery Mr. Andres Corcino de Rivera and his lieutenant, the Signed Presitero, Jose Rafael Rodriguez, from 1832-1850.
There is a book in the series of baptisms with items from 1805-1814, another significantly damaged from 1808 to 1812, and fragments of one for free pardos and enslaved people (1813-1820). For white, another one goes from 1817 to 1824; also fragments of another baptismal book (June 12, 1827, to March 1836.)
Additional Observations
A multisided book of burials contains items from December 1797 to 1894. Meanwhile, although the two books of circulars mentioned in the 1815 inventory have disappeared, a third book includes visits to the analysis of records, royal orders, and dispositions of the Ilmos. Messrs. Bishops of this Diocese, which began in February 1825. Furthermore, it ends with Bishop Puig, containing provisions of the Vicar General Lic. Nicolas de Andrade, Ibispo Gutierrez de Cos, and again Andrade in 1839. Additionally, it features Bishop Father Francisco de la Puente and his vicar-general Don Domingo Gonzalez de Mendoza. Subsequently, in 1849, Don Domingo arranged for the Council Seminary and scholarships left by Gutierrez de Cos. Then, during the pastoral visit of 1850, the priest Benigno Luis signed as secretary of Bishop Gil Esteve Carrion.
Moreover, these digitized church records for “Parroquial Santos Angeles Custodios y San Vicente Ferrer del Pueblo de Yabucoa,” known today as Santos Angeles Custodios, cover baptisms, marriages, and deaths from 1790 to 1937. Unfortunately, there are not many early documents, and those that do exist are in deplorable condition. Therefore, reviewing them will be quite challenging. Sadly, this is somewhat disappointing as the citizens of this town have roots in Coamo. Additionally, since Yabucoa was annexed from Humacao, it is a good idea to search the records there.
Yabucoa Baptisms
| Book | Year | Race | Image | Index | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1790-1832 | Pardos, Other Races | 1450 | This book consists of fragments of baptisms and deaths in poor condition, out of sequence and filmed upside down, but you can decipher a few records. | ||
| 1805-1812 | Whites | 485 | The book is watermarked and in poor to fair condition. | ||
| 5 | 1812-1817 | Whites | 782 | 770 | The book is in poor condition. |
| 1817-1821 | Whites | 1729 | The book is in poor condition. | ||
| 1813-1814 | 1628 | A damaged book. Includes one dated 1813, and images 85-170 are 1814. | |||
| 6 | 1818-1824 | Pardos, Enslaved | 1013 | ||
| 7 | 1825-1837 | Pardos, Enslaved | 1391 | Documents are out of sequence. | |
| 7 | 1827-1830 | Whites | 856 | ||
| 8 | 1830-1837 | Whites | 913 | ||
| 1838-1842 | Whites | 135 | |||
| 1836-1840 | Whites | 1133 | |||
| 1846-1859 | 1211 | Fragments of documents. |
Baptisms for Pardos (All Classes, Free Blacks, and Enslaved people)
| Book | Year | Race | Image | Index | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1844-1847 | Pardos, Free Blacks, Enslaved | 1389 | |||
| 1848 – 1856 | Pardos, Free Blacks, Enslaved | 339 | |||
| 1854 | All Classes | 1272 | 1383 to 1390 | Index A to H | |
| Sep 1856- | 1211 | ||||
| 11 | 1860 – 1863 | 4 | |||
| 12 | 1863 – 1866 | 301 | |||
| 13 | 1866 – 1872 | 623 | 918 | ||
| 14 | 1872 – 1877 | 962 | |||
| 15 | 1877 – 1878 | 1219 | |||
| 16 | 1889 | 747 | There is no book for this index. | ||
| 18 | 1878 – 1881 | 1533 | |||
| 19 | 1881 – 1882 | 1839 | |||
| 20 | 1883 | 2123 | Poor Condition. | ||
| 21-A | 1883-1884 | 2300 | |||
| 21-B | 1884-1886 | 4 | |||
| 22 | 1886-1887 | 243 | |||
| 23 | 1887-1889 | 556 | 821 | ||
| 24 | 1889-1893 | 852 | |||
| 25 | 1894-1896 | 1144 | |||
| 26 | 1896-1899 | 1442 | |||
| 27 | 1899-1903 | 1742 | |||
| 28 | 1903-1905 | 2057 | 2337 | ||
| 29 | 1905-1908 | 2406 | |||
| 30-A | 1908-1910 | 4 | 272 | ||
| 30-B | 1910-1911 | 293 | 378 | ||
| 31-A | 1910-1912 | 396 | |||
| 31-B | 1912-1915 | 599 | |||
| 32 | 1915-1918 | 984 | |||
| 33 | 1918-1920 | 1386 | |||
| 35 | 1920-1923 | 1762 | |||
| 35-A | 1923-1924 | 2162 | |||
| 36 | 1923-1924 | 2444 | 2667 | ||
| 36-A | 1924 | 2688 | |||
| 37 | 1924-1926 | 2721 | |||
| 37-A | 1924-1926 | 4 | 238 | ||
| 37-B | 1926 | 257 | |||
| 38 | 1926-1927 | 284 | |||
| 39 | 1927-1928 | 527 | |||
| 40 | 1928-1930 | 768 |
Yabucoa Marriage Books
| Book | Year | Race | Image | IndexNotes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1813-1820 | 442 | |||
| 3 | 1820-1825 | 533 | It is in poor condition and does not contain many records. | |
| 3 | Same film | 1889 – 1877 These are fragments of records in this film. | ||
| 3 | 1850-1870 | 568 | This section is in the same film as the previous one, but it starts with the year 1850 and ends in 1870. | |
| 1822-1850 | 2701 | This series of records is not filmed well. It is very light. | ||
| 1832-1854 | 2521 | 2505-(I believe this to be an index for a baptism book. Most of the folio numbers are cut off.) | ||
| 7 | 1846-1850 | 4 | Not a complete book. | |
| 1857-1868 | 2314 | |||
| 1869-1877 | 163 | |||
| 1877-1883 | 4 | |||
| 13-A | 1910-1912 | 1588 | Indexed | |
| 13-B | 1910-1911 | 1643 | ||
| 13 | 1914-1928 | 1688 | Indexed | |
| 14 | 1928-1937 | 2080 | Indexed |
Inscriptions of Burials for Yabucoa
| Book | Year | Race | Image | Index | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1797-1805 | 2566 | Mixed fragments of documents | |||
| 9 | 1850-1826 | Pardos & Whites | 667 | ||
| 1835-1869 | 1194 | ||||
| 1837 | 2008 | ||||
| 1843-1853 | 2476 | ||||
| 1846-1850 | 1865 | ||||
| 1869-1899 | 2154 | Mixed fragments of documents | |||
| 1877-1880 | 2660 | ||||
| 14 | 1872-1889 | 217 | 509 | ||
| 16 | 1881-1884 | 1516 | |||
| 17 | 1884-1885 | 4 | |||
| 1885-1889 | 541 | 858 | |||
| 1884-1894 | 1171 | 1485 | |||
| 1894-1899 | 878 | ||||
| 27 | 1899-1904 | 1533 | 1834 |
Yabucoa Transcription for Marriages Book 1
The Sociedad Puertorriqueño de Genealogia (SPG), Inc., has a transcription available in one of its magazines. Rosana Medina Perza (Vice President) transcribed Marriages covering the years 1820 to 1850. You can visit its website to see if any of its magazines are left.
- Hereditas, Volume 1, Number 1, the Year 2020. You can visit their website at genealogiapr.com and click on the Kiosk tab. You will find others for sale. And while you are there, look up their membership benefits. They are the only Genealogical Society for Puerto Rico and an excellent resource for research.