José María Caro Martínez

José María Caro Martínez (; 1830 – 11 November 1916) was a Chilean politician and civil servant. In May 1894, he was unanimously elected as the first mayor of the commune of Pichilemu, with Pedro Nolasco de Mira and Francisco Reyes made second and third magistrate respectively. Caro Martínez had previously served for several years as administrator or llavero of the San Antonio de Petrel hacienda and, between 1891 and 1892, was the Subdelegate of the 13th Subdelegation of San Fernando Department which comprised the district of Cáhuil.

The eleven-year mayorship of Caro Martínez, which lasted from 1894 and 1905, was described by journalist and local historian José Arraño Acevedo as "the most fruitful" in the history of the commune. In his four terms, Caro Martínez built roads connecting Pichilemu and San Fernando, capital of the department of the same name, and founded several schools in Pichilemu and parts of current Marchigüe.

He resigned in May 1905 and completed his fourth mayoral term as a segundo alcalde. As a mayor, he was succeeded by Francisco Javier Asalgado who held the office for two non-consecutive terms. Caro Martínez was the father of the following progeny: José María Caro Rodríguez, who became the first Chilean Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church; Francisco Adriano Caro Rodríguez, who became first the regidor for multiple terms intermittently since 1906 and then the eighth mayor of Pichilemu on the resignation of Luis Barahona Fornés in December 1925; as well as Pedro Pablo Caro Rodríguez, a lawyer from the University of Chile who became an active judge in several Chilean cities.

Early life Caro Martínez was the llavero (administrator) of the hacienda San Antonio de Petrel. José María Caro Martínez was born in San Antonio de Petrel, in current Pichilemu, Region of O'Higgins, to Pedro Pascual Caro Gaete and Cayetana Martínez Ríos, in 1830. The exact birth date is unknown, since all the books of the parish of Ciruelos with baptism records between 1830 and 1834 were burnt in a fire. The Caro Martínez family, of "devout Catholics", is described as having a "profound Christian faith," with their members "complying with unblemished devotion their Christian duties." Since he was a child, Caro shaped his personality on the "fulfillment of his duties"; according to a 1944 article from the Pichilemu newspaper, "his personality became even more robust in his youth as he faced an accident whose consequences stood by him until his death."

Like his father, he dedicated his life to agricultural activities, and "managed to raise a small fortune." property of José Vicente Ortúzar Formas. During his administration of San Antonio de Petrel, the hacienda was "rich", as it "possessed 1,500 cows, [...] and produced yearly 15 thousand sacks of wheat, each of 100 kilograms." he lived there until his death. —an organisation that would be in charge of the elections. Caro Martínez was elected president of the in the meeting. Pedro Nolasco de Mira, and Francisco Reyes were elected as segundo, and tercer alcalde, respectively, and Francisco Cerón, José Leonardo Lizana, Ceferino Rosales, Benjamín Calderón, and Francisco León as regidores.

Caro Martínez founded a school in central Pichilemu, currently known as the Escuela Digna Camilo Aguilar.

Immediately after his election, Caro Martínez created the local police force (Cuerpo de Policía Local). He also constructed roads all over the commune of Pichilemu, with special attention to those that would connect Pichilemu with the central area of the department of San Fernando, specifically the commune of San Fernando, and Santiago, the capital of Chile. As part of this project, he constructed a bridge over the Petrel Lake, known as the (Black Bridge), and another in Cáhuil, connecting that town with its saltworks. He also founded several schools in the Pichilemu area, which only had one, located in Ciruelos. Those include the schools of Yerbas Buenas, Las Garzas, Trinidad, Molineros, Peñablanca, all in the current territory of the commune of Marchigüe, and one in central Pichilemu.

Caro Martínez was re-elected mayor (primer alcalde) of Pichilemu in 1897, 1900, and 1903. On 7 May 1905, just one year before his fourth term expired, he decided to resign to the primer alcalde office, and took a position as segundo alcalde of Pichilemu until 1906. Following his resignation, Francisco Javier Asalgado became the mayor, and held the office between that year and 1909, and again in 1912, but only for less than a month.

In late September–early October 1916, he became ill with an unspecified disease, which forty days later, in the night of that 11 November, "won against his strong physique" and provoked his death at age 86.

Family Caro family. In front: Caro Martínez and his wife Rita; in the back, their children José María, Rita, and Pedro Pablo. Caro Martínez married Rita Rodríguez Cornejo (1833–1931) on 20 February 1860 at the chapel of San Antonio de Petrel. (The 15 March 1944 edition of Pichilemu contests this statement, by saying Caro married Rodríguez in 1858.) Original Spanish quote: "En 1858 contrajo matrimonio con doña Rita Rodríguez Cornejo su hogar se vió alumbrado con la alegría de nueve hijos." Translation: "In 1858 [he] contracted marriage with Rita Rodríguez Cornejo[;] his home was brightened with the happiness of nine children." The couple had nine children, all born in San Antonio de Petrel: Rita, Cristina, Petronila, José María, Pedro Pascual, Francisco Adriano, Pedro Pablo, Cayetana, and Rosa.

José María (1866–1958) became a Catholic priest; he served as Archbishop of Santiago from 1939 until his death, and in 1946 he became the first Chilean Cardinal of the Church. Francisco Adriano became, like his father, involved in politics, serving for several terms as regidor of the commune of Pichilemu between 1906 and 24 December 1925, when he became the 8th Mayor of Pichilemu, following the resignation of Luis Antonio Barahona Fornés to run for a deputy seat. Francisco held the office until 22 May 1927, when President Carlos Ibáñez del Campo appointed Evaristo Merino as mayor of Pichilemu. Pedro Pablo (1875–1959) was a University of Chile lawyer, who served as acting judge in Castro, Cachapoal (Peumo), amid others; Pedro Pablo also served as secretary and treasurer of the commune of Buin.