Francisco García de la Rosa Figueroa

Francisco García de la Rosa Figueroa (b. in the latter part of the eighteenth century in Toluca, Mexico; date of death unknown) was a Franciscan who supervised the compilation of a significant catalogue of historical documents relating to the Spanish colonial period of Latin America.

He was "lector emeritus" of his order, prefect of studies of the college of Tlatelolco, superior of general convents, definitor, custodian, twice provincial of the province of Santo Evangelio, and visitor to the other provinces of New Spain. On 21 Feb 1790, a royal order was received directing that all documents shedding light on the history of New Spain should be copied and sent to Spain, the order designating in some instances special documents which were wanted. The Count of Revillagigedo, viceroy from 1789 to 1794, entrusted to Father Figueroa the work of selecting, arranging, and copying these manuscripts.

Figueroa managed in under three years to turn over to the Government thirty-two folio volumes relating to the political and ecclesiastical history of the provinces. One copy, which was sent to Spain and examined by the chronicler Muñoz, is preserved in the "Academia de Historia"; the other was kept in Mexico in the "Secretaría del Virreinado", and from there was transferred to the general archives of the Palacio Nacional. The first volume of this was missing, but about 1872 a copy of it was made from that preserved in Madrid. To the original thirty-two volumes another was added, compiled years afterwards by some Franciscans, which contains a minute index of the contents of the work. Two other copies of the thirty-two volumes were found; one remained in Mexico, and the other was taken to the United States to the H.H. Bancroft collection.

Contents of the volumes

I. Thirty fragments from the "Museo de Boturini", among them four letters from Juan María de Salvatierra.

II. Treatise on political virtues by Carlos de Sigüenza y Góngora; life and matyrdom of the children of Tlaxcala; narrative of Mexico by Father Geronimo Salmeron, Father Velez, and others.

III. Report of Father Posadas on Texas; three fragments on ancient history, Canticles of Nezahualcoyotl, etc.

IV. Narrative of Ixtlixochitl.

V-VI. Conquest of the Kingdom of Nueva Galicia by Matías de la Mota Padilla.

VII-VIII. Introduction to the history of Michoacán.

IX-X-XI. Chronicle of Michoacán by Fray Pablo Beaumont.

XII. Mexican Chronicle by Fernando Alvarado Tezozómoc.

XIII. History of the Chichimecas by Ixtlilxochitl.

XIV. Reminiscences of Mexico City. Reminiscences for the history of Sinaloa.

XVI-XVII. Notes for the history of Sonora.

XVIII. Letters to elucidate the history of Sonora and Sinaloa.

XIX-XX. Documents for the history of Nueva Vizcaya (Durango).

XXI. Establishment and progress of the Missions of Old California.

XXII-XXIII. Notes on New California.

XXIV. Log-book kept by the Fathers Garcés, Barbastro, Font, and Capellio; voyage of the frigate "Santiago"; "Diario" of Urrea and of D.J.B. Anza, etc.

XXV-XXVI. Documents for the ecclesiastical and civil history of New Mexico.

XXVII-XXVIII. Documents for the civil and ecclesiastical history of Spanish Texas.

XXIX. Documents for the history of Coahuila and Central Mexico (Seno Mexicano).

XXX. Tampico, Río Verde, and Nuevo León.

XXXI. Notes on the cities of Veracruz, Cordova, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tepotzotlán, Querétaro, Guanajuato, Guadalajara, Zacatecas, Nootka.

XXXII. Reminiscences of Mexican Native Americans.

References