Federico Gargonio Padilla was born in Linares, Nuevo León, Mexico, on the 9th September 1880, the son of Telesforo and Mariana Padilla (née Guiterrez). He was a successful merchant, who between 1903 and 1910, regularly communicated with the Mexican Ministry of Inland Revenue, advising them to increase foreign trade with Europe, and seeking permission to establish commercial offices in European cities, especially Paris and London. It would appear that his advice was acted upon, and in March 1912, the Mexican government appointed him as the Mexican Consul General to Liverpool.
Having made his way from Mexico to New York City, he boarded the Lusitania on the 26th March 1912, and sailed to Liverpool. On his arrival, he took up residence at the Mexican Consulate in the city, which was situated at 23. South John Street. His home address, prior to travelling to Liverpool, was at Campo No.8, Monterrey, Mexico.
On the 26th April 1913, he resigned as Consul General, perhaps as a result of the execution of Francisco I. Madero in February 1913. Madero had been the President of Mexico prior to his arrest and execution, and had appointed Federico Padilla as Consul General. Señor Padilla left Liverpool following his resignation and returned to Mexico, boarding the Booth Line vessel, Anselm, at Liverpool on the 21st June.
Federico Padilla attended the Revolutionary Convention which commenced in Mexico City in October 1914, the objective of which was to form the next Mexican government. During the early stages of the convention, Federico Padilla was again appointed the Consul General at the Mexican Consulate in Liverpool. He must have expected to return to Liverpool when he left the city following his resignation in 1913 as he was still in possession of a return saloon class ticket that he had purchased before departing for Mexico.
He sailed to Havana, Cuba, where in April 1915; he boarded the S.S. Havana bound for New York, arriving there on the 28th of the month. He then stayed at The Imperial Hotel in New York, before arriving at the Cunard berth at Pier 54 in the harbour on the morning of 1st May 1915, for the Lusitania’s scheduled 10.00 a.m. departure. Having boarded - with ticket number 46135 - he was escorted to his accommodation in room A3, which was the personal responsibility of First Class Bedroom Steward Edward Bond, who came from Anfield, a suburb of Liverpool. Also on board, travelling as a third class passenger was his vice-consul in Liverpool, Diego Olivar.
The liner’s departure was delayed until just after mid-day, as she had to take on board passengers, cargo and crew from the Anchor Liner Cameronia which the British Admiralty had requisitioned for use as a troop ship at the end of April. Then, just six days later, the Lusitania was torpedoed and sunk off the southern coast of Ireland by the German submarine U-20 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walter Schwieger. At that time, she was only about 250 miles away from the safety of her
home port. One of the victims of this action was Federico Padilla who was aged 34 years at the time.
Sometime later, his body was recovered from the sea; however, by a Royal Navy patrol vessel and having been landed at Queenstown, it was taken to one of the temporary mortuaries set up there and given the reference number 175, until it had been positively identified. Once this had ensued, it was buried on 11th May 1915, in a private grave in The Old Church Cemetery just north of the town, in Row 18, Grave 12.
His body lies there still and if there ever was a headstone erected on the grave, it no longer exists today. The grave reference has now been altered to Number 587 in Section B. Property recovered from his body, which probably helped with its identification, was claimed by the new Mexican Consul in Liverpool on l4th June 1915, and handed over to him on 3rd July at the Consulate in South John Street.
It consisted of one gold $20 piece, one gold $20 Mexican piece, £0-7s-6d., (£0.37½p.), in British silver coinage, some Mexican silver coinage, a 100 French France note, three $5 bills, one $1 bill, a gold Hunter watch made by Kayston, with an enamelled face, a gold guard, a lifebuoy pendant with a gold sovereign purse attached to it, containing £2-10-0d., (£2.50p.), in British gold and a Cuban gold coin, two small keys, a gold gypsy ring set with diamonds, two gold sleeve links, a gold collar stud, a gold cravat pin, a gold collar stud, a set of gold pince nez in a case, a Kodak camera, a number of photographs, an Alien Restriction Order, made out in the name of Federico Padilla and a Russian leather pocket book containing a passport also in the name of Don Federico G. Padilla.
Bedroom Steward Edward Bond, who had looked after Señor Padilla in room A3, did survive the sinking, however and eventually got back to his Anfield home. His fellow countryman, and vice consul, Diego Olivar was also lost in the tragedy and his remains were never recovered or identified.
Federico Padilla’s brother, Fernando L. Padilla, was also a career diplomat and held a similar position to that of his brother, in San Antonio, Texas. Before making his journey to New York, Federico Padilla had probably made a visit to him, as his saloon passage on the Lusitania was booked from there!
Cunard records state that Federico Padilla’s forename was Frederico, but this is an error.
Nuevo Leon Mexico Civil Registration Births 1857 – 1947, UK Incoming Passenger Lists 1878 – 1960, UK Outward Passenger Lists 1890 – 1960, New York Passenger Lists 1820 – 1957, Cunard Records, Liverpool Street Directory 1913, Cork Examiner, Liverpool Daily Post, London Gazette, New York Times, White Star Journal, PRO 22/71, PRO BT 100/345, UniLiv.D92/1/6, Graham Maddocks, Julio I. Godinez Hernández, Geoff Whitfield, Michael Poirier, Jim Kalafus, Cliff Barry, Paul Latimer, Norman Gray.
Copyright © Peter Kelly.