Floods of Philanthropy: The Persistence or Evaporation of Flood Relief Associations in Guanajuato, Mexico, 1888–1910

The floods of 1888 and 1905 that inundated principle towns in the state of Guanajuato, Mexico triggered an outpouring of relief aid from across the Republic and beyond.  These donations, large and small, represented the philanthropic sentiments of a broad swath of Mexican society, foreign governments, and individuals from abroad.  Porfirio Díaz’s government worked quickly to form relief committees to collect donations and administer the funds to those in need.  However, much of the work of fundraising and organizing was taken up by formal and informal networks of donantes united by a common desire to help.  These associations cut across traditional divisions of class and gender to address the exigencies of the time, but were based upon social precedents like mutual aid societies and Catholic charities.  After the period of crisis passed, however, the cohesiveness of these groups was insufficient to hold them together as lasting institutions.  Instead, they evaporated into their constituent parts, only to be re-formed in response to new challenges.  By examining official reports, local histories, commemorative posters, and newspaper accounts created around the disaster, it becomes apparent that state patronage and patriarchy had to be uneasily reconciled with broad-based, participatory relief campaigns.  As communities cleaned up, rebuilt, and related memories after the disasters, contests over the role of the Porfirian state, the Catholic Church, local elites, common citizens, and flood victims continued.