Puneet Varma (Editor)

Del Junco

Updated on
Edit
Like
Comment
Share on FacebookTweet on TwitterShare on LinkedInShare on Reddit

del Junco is a Spanish surname meaning “from the reeds”. The most notable family with this name is the Rodrigo del Junco family which originally came from Asturias, Spain. In the 16th century they immigrated to St. Augustine, Florida and then in the mid 17th century to Matanzas, Cuba. Their home in Matanzas was the Palacio de Junco and is now a museum. They also owned the Palmar de Junco where in 1874, the first game of baseball was played in Cuba. The Matanzas del Junco family have a large crypt in the Necropolis de San Carlos Borromeo.

Some notable descendants of Rodrigo del Junco are

  • Carlos del Junco, is a renowned Cuban-Canadian harmonica musician.
  • Mauricio J. Tamargo, lawyer and 14th Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission
  • Pedro Junco was a famous Cuban composer.
  • Alonso del Portillo-del Junco, (January 30, 1868 in Jovellanos, Matanzas, Cuba - June 13, 1935 in Havana, Cuba) was the founder of Vinagre Portillo, the largest vinegar producer in Havana and second largest in Cuba.He was the son of Alonso del Portillo-Martin de Medina and Leonor Rodriguez del Junco-Reuda. He married Mercedes Cristina Marcano-Ayala (1875–1952), the niece of General Luis Marcano-Alvarez, who fought in the Cuban War of Independence, and they had six children, Maria Teresa, Estella, Mercedes, Maria Antonia, Graciella and Alonso del Portillo-Marcano.
  • Alonso del Portillo-Marcano, (born April 17, 1903 in Havana, Cuba - November 15, 1992 in Miami, Florida) was a prominent businessman and attorney in Cuba. He was co-owner of Vinagre Portillo and an Abogado-Notario (Attorney- Notary) in Havana. Mr. del Portillo Marcano came from two prominent families from the city of Matanzas and from a long line of attorneys. His father was Alonso del Portillo-del Junco (1868–1934) a well known attorney and his mother was Mercedes Cristina Marcano-Ayala (1875–1952), the niece of General Luis Marcano-Alvarez who fought in the Cuban War of Independence. In 1932, he married Maria de la Concepcion Tamargo-Vidal (div 1950) (1900–1984). They had three children, Martha M. (mother of Mauricio J. Tamargo, 14th Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission), Miguel Luis and Alonso J. del Portillo-Tamargo. Later he married Olga Gonzalez (1929- ) and had two more children, Olga and Raul del Portillo-Gonzalez. He had twenty-three grandchildren. His legal career spanned almost forty years and was ended by his exile by the communist regime of Cuba. He is buried at Our Lady of Mercy Catholic Cemetery in Miami, Florida.
  • Alonso J. del Portillo-Tamargo (born October 20, 1934 in Havana, Cuba) is a prominent General Contractor in Coral Gables, Florida. He is the son of Alonso del Portillo Marcano and Maria de la Concepcion Tamargo-Vidal. He was a student Colegio de La Salle, run by La Salle Brothers in Vedado. Mr. del Portillo-Tamargo married Zonia Leyva-Rodriguez (b. November 1, 1938 in Miraflores Viejo, Havana, Cuba) on August 15, 1959 and they have six children, Alonso R., Armando R., Zonia Maria, Alfredo R., Cristina Lucia, and Isabel S. del Portillo (whose father-in-law is Raul L. Martinez, the former Mayor of Hialeah, Florida). They presently have eight grandchildren. He left Cuba with his family in 1961, and for a time, cut sugar cane in Pahokee, Florida. It was at this time that he briefly joined Alpha 66. Then his family along with his siblings’ families moved to Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Finally, in 1967, he moved to Coral Gables, Florida. It was at this time he began his career as builder of luxury homes.
  • Alonso R. del Portillo (born Alonso Rafael del Portillo-Leyva in June 1960 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban-American genealogist and former aide to Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. Mr. del Portillo left Cuba when he was 13 months old during the Operation Peter Pan transport in July 1961 and did not return to Cuba until exactly 33 years later in July 1994. Since then he has traveled to Cuba on numerous occasions and has met with dissidents and members of the Cuban regime. In 1988, he started to work with then Florida State Senator Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and when she was elected in 1989 to fill the US congressional seat of Claude Pepper he became her Assistant District Director. Later he became her immigration and State Department specialist. From 1989-1996, he assisted more than 15,000 persons with problems with the US government among them, assisting the parents of singer Rey Ruiz emigrate from Cuba and assisted with the human interest paroles of the family members of Pedro Zamora, the AIDS activist and The Real World: San Francisco cast member who died one week after they arrived in 1994. He would later speak at his memorial service held on Miami Beach. He is the eldest child of Alonso J. del Portillo-Tamargo and Zonia S. Leyva-Rodriguez. He attended St. Theresa School in Coral Gables, Florida and later graduated from Belen Jesuit Preparatory School in 1978. He later studied history and international relations at Florida State University. At one time he was the president of the Dade-County Young Republicans. He has been interested in genealogy since his early teens and only since 1994 has he been dedicating most of his spare time to it. He is a member of the Cuban Genealogical Society and the Cuban Genealogy Club. He was married briefly to Ana Paula Collings, a Brazilian model. He comes from a long line of lawyers, his grandfather, Alonso del Portillo Marcano, was a prominent Attorney-Notary in Cuba, as were his great-grandfathers, Miguel Luis Tamargo-Bautista and Alonso del Portillo-del Junco. His cousin, Mauricio J. Tamargo, is a lawyer and he is the 14th Chairman of the Foreign Claims Settlement Commission, as well as his youngest sister, Isabel S. del Portillo, and his uncle, Raul del Portillo-Gonzalez are also lawyers. His 11th great grandfather was Rodrigo del Junco the Spanish Governor of Florida in 1592 and he is 2nd great grand nephew of General Luis Marcano-Alvarez who fought in the Cuban War of Independence. He is also 3rd cousins to the Cuban-American politicians, Alex Diaz de la Portilla, Miguel Angel Diaz de la Portilla, and Renier Diaz de la Portilla.
  • Tirso del Junco-Mesa surgeon and U.S. Republican leader in California.
  • Tirso del Junco-Bobadilla, is a renowned Cuban-American surgeon.
  • Robert del Junco renowned ENT surgeon in Orange County.
  • Manuel Rodriguez del Junco-Sardina, former mayor of Matanzas
  • Bernardo Rodriguez del Junco-Rodriguez Morejon, former mayor of Matanzas
  • Martin del Junco-Folch, Cuban lawyer
  • Martin del Junco-Gallardo, Cuban lawyer and former prosecutor of the province of Havana
  • Emilio del Junco-Remirez de Estenoz, architect
  • Alberto del Junco-Andre, Cuban lawyer and former professor of the University of Havana
  • Bernardo del Junco-Interian, architect
  • Bernardo Federico del Junco-Cil, Cuban lawyer
  • Adolfo Fernandez-del Junco, Cuban lawyer and judge
  • Emilio Bernardo del Junco-Pujadas, Cuban lawyer and former Secretary of Justice for Cuba
  • Enrique del Junco-de la Cruz Munoz, general in the Cuban War of Independence
  • Bernardo Rodriguez del Junco-Bermudez, Cuban lawyer
  • Raul del Portillo-Gonzalez, lawyer and businessman
  • Alberto del Junco-Mesa, lawyer
  • Max Borges-del Junco, architect
  • Enrique Borges-Recio, architect
  • Max Borges-Recio, architect
  • Gerard W. del Junco, Jr., pathologist
  • HRH Holly M. del Junco, Reina de Azucar

    • References

    Del Junco Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA