Queer Places:
Av. P.º de la Reforma 1, Tabacalera, Cuauhtémoc, 06600 Ciudad de México, CDMX, Mexico
Woodlawn Cemetery, Bronx, Bronx County, New York, USA
José Ignacio Mariano Santiago Joaquín Francisco de la Torre y Mier (July 25, 1866 - April 1, 1918), born on July 25, 1866, in Mexico City and passing
away on April 1, 1918, in New York City, was a prominent Mexican businessman, politician, and landowner of the Porfirian era. He is historically
recognized for his marriage to Amada Díaz, the eldest daughter of President Porfirio Díaz, a union that earned him the moniker "His father-in-law's
son-in-law." Coming from a wealthy background, he was the youngest of seven children born to Isidoro Fernando José Máximo de la Torre Carsí, a Spanish
sugar businessman and founder of the company Jecker-Torre, and María Luisa de los Ángeles Mier Celis. Following his father's death in 1881, Ignacio
inherited the massive and highly productive Santiago Tenextepango hacienda in Ayala, Morelos, which spanned 16,000 hectares and specialized in sugar cane
production. He modernized his agricultural and export operations to compete internationally, drawing favorable attention from President Porfirio
Díaz.
Educated in elite schools in Mexico and the United States, Ignacio entered political and high-society circles rapidly. On January 16, 1888, he married
Amada Díaz after a brief courtship, with the ceremony officiated by Archbishop Pelagio Antonio de Labastida y Dávalos. With the backing of the president,
Ignacio was elected as a deputy to the XVI Legislature of the Congress of the Union and later ran as a gubernatorial candidate for the State of Mexico in
1892. Beyond agriculture and politics, he was a successful entrepreneur, co-owning the Banco de Londres y México alongside Porfirio Díaz and
Juan Llamedo, and building a magnificent Second Empire-style mansion on the corner of Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida República, a site later occupied by
the National Lottery building. He was also the maternal uncle of Pierre de Polignac, the Prince Consort of Monaco.
Despite his wealth and political proximity to power, his personal life became a source of intense public and private scandal. The marriage between
Ignacio and Amada was reportedly strained and unhappy, complicated by his lifestyle and rumors regarding his sexuality. His life became inextricably
linked to the infamous "Dance of the Forty-One" (El baile de los cuarenta y uno), an illegal police raid on November 17, 1901, targeting a private home
in Mexico City's Colonia Tabacalera where forty-one men were arrested, nearly half of whom were dressed in women's clothing. Although government censors
attempted to suppress coverage and official arrest lists omitted names, persistent contemporary rumors and popular lore placed Ignacio at the event,
suggesting he escaped prosecution due to his familial ties to the president. This association led to him being colloquially dubbed the "42nd" participant
in public memory.
The scandal became a watershed moment in Mexican cultural history, described by writer Carlos Monsiváis as the foundational moment when homosexuality
was openly discussed in Mexican media. The fallout, combined with his turbulent marriage and unconventional lifestyle, heavily damaged his standing
within the presidential family. In his later years, Ignacio's fortunes shifted amidst the political upheaval of the Mexican Revolution, which dismantled
the Porfirian elite and impacted his properties. He eventually relocated to New York, where he died at the age of 51 on April 1, 1918. He was interred at
Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx. In contemporary times, his complex life and the societal pressures of his era have been reexamined in popular culture,
most notably inspiring cinematic depictions such as the 2020 Mexican film Dance of the 41, in which he was portrayed by actor Alfonso Herrera.
References:
Other references:
- Civil Registry and Vital Records: Birth, marriage, and death documentation from the Mexico City Civil Registry (México, Distrito Federal, Registro Civil) recording his birth on July 25, 1866, his January 16, 1888 marriage to Amada Díaz, and his death certificate/records in New York City on April 1, 1918.
- Find a Grave Records: Archival burial records documenting his interment at Woodlawn Cemetery in the Bronx, New York.
- Grandes casas de México ("La Casa De la Torre y Mier"): Architectural and historical references detailing his Second Empire-style mansion that once stood at the corner of Paseo de la Reforma and Avenida República in Mexico City.
- Alfonso Diez (La verdadera fortuna de Porfirio Díaz): Research and historical commentary outlining the wealth, elite business ventures, and economic standing of the Porfirian inner circle, including co-ownership of the Banco de Londres y México.
- Mílada Bazant (Crónica de un baile clandestino): Academic analysis and historical chronicle examining the events surrounding clandestine social gatherings and elite policing during the early 20th century in Mexico City.
- Clemente Villagómez Arriaga (La disputa por la gubernatura en el Estado de México en 1892, entre José Vicente Villada e Ignacio de la Torre y Mier): Historical study regarding his political ambitions and his candidacy for the governorship of the State of Mexico.
- Contemporary Journalism and Media Archives: Periodicals from late 1901 covering the fallout of the police raid on Calle de la Paz, alongside modern cultural analyses such as features in México Desconocido regarding cinematic adaptations of his life.
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