Promoting Modernity in Oaxaca: Porfirio Díaz and His Patria Chica

On March 5, 1859, as jefe político of Tehuantepec, Captain Porfirio Díaz inaugurated the construction of a railroad that would connect the Gulf of Mexico with the Pacific Ocean, stating that it would “powerfully develop the resources of Mexico and produce commercial prosperity.”  Nevertheless, it would take another 48 years for then president Díaz to actually inaugurate this railroad, and by then, economic modernization was in full swing. Díaz and many Porfirians had great hopes that the Tehuantepec National Railroad would become an international bridge of commerce that would benefit not only his patria chica but also the entire nation. This paper will explore the variety of means by which Díaz promoted the modernization of his home state. Díaz maintained very close relations with political and economic allies in Oaxaca and they frequently sought his advice. Of course, when he served as governor from 1881 to 1883, he personally guided the state’s development (there is no individual study of his governorship). He actively supported, and sometimes sponsored, entrepreneurial endeavors to exploit the state’s much-touted natural resources. He also had considerable personal investments ranging from coal mining in the Mixteca to ownership of one of the most modern coffee estates in the Cañada region (while his son, Porfirio Díaz Jr., speculated in petroleum on the isthmus). Díaz was instrumental in advancing the construction of vitally needed infrastructure, banking institutions, agricultural technology, and education. Nevertheless, despite a mining boom, Oaxaca failed to fulfill Porfirian expectations. Consequently, this paper will take a broad look at Díaz’s direct involvement in the transformations that took place in his home state during his presidency as well as evaluate their successes and failures.