Spanish Colonial Cuba Official Document Ordering Maritime Compliance with Havana Health Board Authority, 1860

Cuba Port Health Authority

Manuscript & Autographs

Spanish colonial administration in Havana used port health regulation as a mechanism of commercial and maritime control, with the Captaincy General directing military, customs, and sanitary officials through centralized orders. This December 6, 1860 manuscript concerns the “Junta local de Sanidad,” “víveres averiados,” and Dr. Rafael Cortés, placing damaged provisions, public health authority, and port enforcement within the same bureaucratic chain. The phrase “usando de las facultades que me competen” invokes the vested powers of the colonial government, confirming that the matter was handled through Spanish imperial authority rather than local civic discretion.

Gobierno y Capitanía General de la Isla de Cuba. Secretaría de Gobierno, sección de Gobierno. Manuscript order. Havana, Cuba: December 6, 1860. Single folded manuscript document with printed colonial seal and heading, docketed “Habana y Dic. 6 de 1860,” and addressed to maritime or port authorities. The text instructs compliance with a petition or order involving the local Board of Health, damaged provisions or foodstuffs, and Dr. Rafael Cortés, with official endorsements and large administrative signatures below. The verso bears docketing and filing marks consistent with bureaucratic circulation.

The document belongs directly to Spanish colonial governance in Cuba, where the Governor and Captain General exercised civil, military, and administrative power over the island until the end of Spanish rule in 1898. Its contents connect colonial rule to the management of ports, food safety, and public health, all crucial areas in Havana’s nineteenth-century Atlantic economy. Folded as issued, with toning, scattered foxing, edge wear, and original folds; seal, heading, date, and principal manuscript text remain legible. Overall good condition.

Item #23429

Price: $450.00