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The debate sparked by a statement from official journalist Arleen Rodríguez Derivet, who claimed that "José Martí never knew electric light," has helped bring back a rarely discussed topic: When did electricity really arrive in Cuba?
The response is documented by Cuban engineers and historians in the studies Milestones of Electricity and Its Applications in Cuba and in the book A Light That Came to Stay, by José Altshuler and Miguel González. This information can be found on the website of the Cuban Electric Union and even on Ecured.
On March 3, 1889, public lighting was inaugurated in Havana using arc lamps powered by the Tallapiedra plant, marking the beginning of regular electric service in the city.
However, other sources indicate that Cárdenas, in Matanzas, was the first city in Cuba with public lighting, in September 1889. It was managed by the Electric Company of Cárdenas, established by businessman Don Antonio Prieto, who began setting up his factory in the last months of 1888.
By 1890, there were already electrical networks in Havana, Matanzas, and Camagüey. In 1893, the city of Pinar del Río also had electric lighting.
Cuba had one of the most advanced thermoelectric plants in Latin America, the famous "Tallapiedra", founded by the Spanish American Light and Power Company in 1889.
This power plant began generating electricity in 1913 with American technology and Westinghouse single-phase generators. A year later, its iconic Neoclassical building was inaugurated, which now stands almost in ruins in Old Havana.
Electricity was not a late phenomenon in Cuba
In 1858, a public exhibition of electric light was held in Havana to illuminate the docks, and by 1886, several private lighting and power companies were operating in the capital.
The development of the telegraph, the telephone, and later, the cinematograph, accompanied this process of technological modernization during the height of the colonial era.
José Martí fully experienced that transformation. In the introduction of The Golden Age (1889), he mentioned “electric light” as a symbol of scientific progress, and in his chronicles from New York he exclaimed: “Beautiful electric light! … the soft air illuminated, as if by reflections from angels' wings.” His own words contradict the notion that he was unaware of the existence or the impact of this innovation.
Rodríguez Derivet's mistake, made during an interview with former Ecuadorian President Rafael Correa and responded to with the phrase “but Arleen, we are in the 21st century,” sparked a wave of criticism on social media.
The journalist acknowledged her mistake on Tuesday and publicly apologized, stating that her remark was "made lightly."
Beyond the media stumble, historical data confirms that Cuba experienced electricity since the late 19th century.
In 1889, while Martí was writing about the light that transformed the world, Havana inaugurated its first electric public lighting. Yet, more than 130 years later, millions of Cubans are facing prolonged blackouts, in an irony that even the Apostle could not have imagined.
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