Chetumal Celebrates 128 Years Since Founding as Payo Obispo

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — Officials and residents gathered Tuesday to mark the 128th anniversary of the founding of Payo Obispo, the settlement that later became Chetumal, the capital of Quintana Roo.

Governor Mara Lezama Espinosa joined state and municipal authorities at a ceremony held at the mausoleum of Admiral Othon Pompeyo Blanco, the city’s founder, located next to the Government Palace. The event paid tribute to those who established, rebuilt, and developed the city into the political heart of the state.

Payo Obispo was founded on May 5, 1898, under orders from President Porfirio Díaz. Admiral Blanco led the effort to establish a Mexican presence at the mouth of the Rio Hondo river, aiming to curb illegal arms and timber trafficking and reinforce national sovereignty along the border with British Honduras, now Belize.

The settlement initially operated from the pontoon Chetumal, a vessel that served as barracks, customs house, and temporary housing. Over time, it grew into a key outpost during the Caste War and helped pacify the region.

The original name, Payo Obispo, honored Fray Payo Enriquez de Rivera, a former archbishop and viceroy of New Spain who had landed in the area centuries earlier. In 1936, under President Lazaro Cardenas, the city was officially renamed Chetumal, reclaiming the Maya name Chactemal.