Publics services in the district of Culiacan between 1892 and 1909. The work of a two-headed authority

Abstract

Between 1892 and 1909, the local government of the district of Culiacán ope­rated through a City Hall composed of nine councilors, the Municipal Treasu­rer, a City Hall Secretary, the Mayor, and the Vice-Mayor, who primarily had legislative and administrative functions. The Prefecture of the District, headed by the Prefect, who was personally elected by the governor and acted as the executive power in the municipal life of the district, was above them. This article analyzes, based on the minutes of the City Hall and the press, the way in which the Culiacán City Hall and the Prefecture shared the management of public services entrusted by state laws to the municipal government between 1892 and 1909, the difficulties, particularly economic, faced in meeting the dis­trict's needs, as well as the relationship between the two municipal authorities at a time when the governor had a great influence on the municipal government.