ANCIENT HISTORY
According to the Chilam Balam of Chumayel, the territory of the current Quintana  Roo was the first
settlement of the Itzáes that arrived from the south in the year 435 A.D. and inhabited Syancan Bakhalal
(today Bacalar).  

It is said that the great Señor Kukulkan (who carried the same name of the God of the wind) created the
League of the Mayapán Tribe that lasted during of the years 987 to 1185 A.D.  The Mayan descendants
in today’s state of Quintana Roo were a part of this tribe.  From that time there were a series of internal
fights, and in 1461 nineteen chieftainships in the peninsula of Yucatan were established. These were
written down as in the state of Quintana Roo and  named:  Cochuah, Chactemal (Chetumal), Cuzamil
(Cozumel), Chohuac-Há, Tazes, Kupul and Ekab (in the north region of Quintana Roo).  

The geographical area of the present day Puerto Morelos presents traces of settlements of the Mayan
culture belonging to the Chieftainship of Ekab, whose political influence covered from Cabo Catoche to
Tulum.  
This is demonstrated by structures located in the forest and along the coast, "Coxol" located 1 kilometer
to the north of the city, "The Altar" located in the botanical garden "Alfredo Barrier Marín", the "Mayan
walls" that are found in a portion in the mangrove swamp to the south of the city, and the "Pyramid of
Muchil" near Punta Brava to the south of the city.  

In the coastal zone of the city, two pre-Hispanic Mayan structures existed that were destroyed to utilize
their rocks in the construction of the lighthouse that was inclined by Hurricane Beulah in 1967.  This
leaning lighthouse is the current emblem of Puerto Morelos.

Due to the fights between chieftainships the administrative and political conditions were quite weak. It is
during this period that the Spaniards discovered and later conquered the region.  The conquest was not
easy due to the natural conditions and to the violent resistance on the part of the Maya.  In 1526
Francisco of Montejo (father of "the advanced one") tried continually to conquer the east of the peninsula
of Yucatan, but he was not successful until 1540 when his son, Francisco, and  León "el Mozo" began a
second campaign, against the existing chieftainships in Quintana I Roo,
Ekab was the first one in swearing obedience to the conqueror.  

The governments of Yucatan never achieved the complete control of the natives of the east of the
peninsula, who fought for the restitution of its lands and to establish their own government.  On July 30,
1847 in Tepich, the rebellion of the Maya, Castes War exploded and would last more than 50 years, but
the busy zone of what is now Puerto Morelos was not greatly affected.  

In 1893, Mexico signs with Great Britain the final treaty of the Belize-Quintana Roo border (Mariscal
Spencer Treaty), and as a result Quintana Roo arose as a strategic region for Porfirio Díaz.  The inexact
nature of the border, motivated President Porfirio Díaz to send the commander Othón P.White to that
zone, with the purposes to enforce the dividing line, to impede the traffic of weapons, to reinforce the
military campaign of General Ignacio Bravo against the Mayan Indians and seek the pacification of the
zone. And at the same time achieve a permanent establishment for the Mexican population (that had fled
to Belize by the War of Castes) in the territory of Quintana I Roo.  

MODERN HISTORY
The lighthouse inclined by the hurricane Beulah in 1967, is the symbol of Puerto Morelos, which in spite
of being a small population located between two large tourist developments recognized internationally
(Cancun and Playa del Carmen) has an older history than both.  

Its modern history begins toward ends of the 19th century, in the year 1898 upon being founded the
Colonizing Company of the Oriental Coast of Yucatan. Due to the need to find an exit to the sea to export
their products, the company ordered their workers to open a path from the Hacienda de Santa María
(today Leona Vicario) toward the southwest. Little by little the workers arrived at the Caribbean Sea and
named the settlement “Punta Corcho”, (Cork Point) establishing the first families in a camp of very
rudimentary huts.  
In this path they laid rails of narrow gauge from 40 to 60 cm wide and they employed rail cars and
platforms drawn by mules.  

The company also owned a steamboat that each month anchored in the Caribbean Sea. Since no dock
existed at the time, the timber and other forest products were thrown into the sea and in small launches
the products were rescued and hoisted by ropes made from agave to the ship.  With the passing of time
they built a storage building, a dock and wooden buildings that gave birth to the population center that
with the time would be called Puerto Morelos.  

The products they extracted and exported from the forest were mahogany, chicle, vanilla, tobacco, cedar
and cork.  

Puerto Morelos continued its progress and became not only in the oldest natural port of Quintana Roo,
but the most important one in all the state.  

It is around the year 1923 when mahogany loses demand in the international markets, but they
established the company, "Cologne Holy Maria" dedicated to the collection and exportation of chicle, and
influencing the local economy by establishing its collection warehouses in the port.  Puerto Morelos in
1929 was a town with wooden houses, a dock, and a single street to the coast with one store.  

In 1936 by presidential resolution the Cooperative of Puerto Morelos is founded .The demarcation and
physical boundaries are delineated in 1944.  In the census of 1950 a population of 80 inhabitants was
reported.  

With the maritime terminal of Puerto Morelos, during the 1970’s, hardwoods were extracted like chechén
(Metopium browne), to be sold to the federal government and to be destined to the construction and
maintenance of railroad tracks.  The production of chicle declined drastically in 1980 due to the
introduction of synthetic replacements, the low prices of the world market, and to natural disasters as
fires and hurricanes.  

In the 70’s the National Fund of the Tourism (FONATUR) gave march to the creation of Cancun, and to
the promotion of the tourism.  Puerto Morelos began a phase of economic and population growth
characterized by the immigration of people from diverse parts of the country and foreigners, creating a
cosmopolitan environment.  The forest areas were colonized also with the legal boundaries of Port
Morelos being located from two kilometers of the coast, to both sides of the federal highway 307
Chetumal-Port Juárez

On October 2, 1975 there was published in the Diario Oficial de la Federación (Official Newspaper of the
Federation), the approval of an addition of 3.337 hectares for the town of Puerto Morelos, municipality of
Cozumel, for the establishment of public utilities, parks, markets, buildings,  jails and other services.  

Subsequently, on October 30, 1998, a new development plan for Puerto Morelos was approved by the
municipality of Benito Juárez (Quintana  Roo) which enlarged the territorial extension to 5.440 hectares of
the zone located to the east and west of the federal highway 307, Chetumal-Puerto Juárez.  

Until the year of 2002 Puerto Morelos was the most important point of collection and provision of the
Island of Cozumel, with ferries that covered the route in a time of three hours. This service was
discontinues with the opening of the artificial port of Calica (closer to Cozumel) as that route is covered in
much less time.

On October 7, 2007 the entire city council of the municipality of Benito Juárez approved in an
extraordinary session to elevate Puerto Morelos to the category of Municipal Delegation to City Hall.  
(Delegación Municipal a Alcaldía)

DEMOGRAPHICS
Population of Puerto Morelos  
Year         Population
1980           672
1990           740
1995           829
2000           892
2005         1.097
2010         2,500

Due to the environment geography of Puerto Morelos (mangrove swamps and coral reef), the human
settlements have remained divided along Federal Highway 307.  The settlement located on the coast and
to the east of the federal highway is known as the "Puerto" or "Old Puerto Morelos".  The settlement
immediately to the east of the Federal Highway is known as "Colonia Pescadores". The settlement to the
west of the Federal Highway is known as " Colonia Joaquín Zetina Gazca ",

According to the results of the Census of the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and data
processing (INEGI) of 2005; Port Morelos reported 1,097 inhabitants, while the Colonia Zetina Gasca,
reported 6,629 inhabitants plus 108 more located in the Zona Suburbana, for a total of 7.726
inhabitants.  

Nevertheless new housing zones to the north and west of the Col0nia Zetina Gazca are in full population
growth:  The zona urbana "Luis Donaldo Colosio", the division "Villas Morelos I, the division "Villas
Morelos  II", and the residential area "Buccaneers".  Due to these developments the population in
October of 2007 was estimated to be more than 10.000 inhabitants, the motivation by which the city
council of the municipality of Benito Juárez decided to elevate Port Morelos to Municipal Delegation to
City Hall status.

Historically the first settlers of Puerto Morelos were mostly, natives of Tuxpan, state of Veracruz.  At the
beginning of the 70’s there was a strong immigration of inhabitants of Chemax, state of Yucatan.  Due to
the tourist influx in the middle of the 70’s and the early 80’s, the immigration was from all parts of the
country and of the world.
Puerto Morelos History
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