The Museum of Popular and Indigenous Cultures of Sonora

Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico

The Museum of Popular and Indigenous Cultures of Sonora is a center of education and displays related to the indigenous cultures not only of Sonora, but of Mexico and the world. The museum, which is located on one side of Plaza Bicentenario in downtown Hermosillo, features information and exhibits related to the eight established Sonoran indigenous groups.

Seven of the groups were original inhabitants of Sonora:

Cucapá
Tohono O’odham, or Papago
Makurawe, or Guarijío
Yoreme, or Mayo
Comcáac, or Seri
Yoeme, or Yaqui, and
O’ob, or Pima.

The eighth indigenous group, the Kikapú, are of migrant origin but have had a presence of more than 100 years in Sonora.

The building that houses the museum was originally a home designed by renowned local architect Plutarco Diaz for German immigrant Herr Grürinig, who along with his partners Dr. Alberto Hoeffer and James Schusley established the Cervecería de Sonora brewery in Hermosillo in 1898. The house was completed in 1904, and after Grürinig’s death the house was passed on to his partner Dr. Hoeffer, who later sold it to the state of Sonora. It is still known as the Casa de Hoeffer, or Hoeffer House.

On October 15, 1997, the Hoeffer House was officially opened as the Museum of Popular and Indigenous Cultures of Sonora. The museum has five exhibition rooms, organized according to the geographic locations of the various native peoples. The rooms contain information about the history and cultures of the various ethnic groups, along with photos, paintings and displays of items that tell a unique story for every cultural group.

The building’s courtyard features a mural by the extraordinary artist Ethel Cooke and murals by Arte Facto del Sol and Enrique G.

The upstairs area is office space for the Sonoran Institute of Culture’s Regional Unit of Popular Cultures, the Information and Documentation Center, and research areas. The second-floor hallway also features more fabulous murals and messages by Ethel Cooke providing amazing visual depictions of the indigenous peoples of Sonora.

In addition to serving as a museum, the Museum of Popular and Indigenous Cultures of Sonora is also a center for research and provides educational programs for all ages of learners, from preschool students to post-graduate researchers. It has been a source of information for many television programs such as the Discovery Channel and Televisa, and has provided information for master’s and doctoral theses prepared by academics from Mexico, the United States, Germany, France and Peru.

The Museum of Popular and Indigenous Cultures of Sonora is a must-see cultural learning experience for your exploration of Hermosillo, to better understand the richly diverse and fascinating history and cultural landscape of the state of Sonora.

Museo de Culturas Populares - Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico

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The Metal Monuments of Navojoa

Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico

When driving around the city of Navojoa, you may see some interesting pieces of big, metal artwork that has been placed in the island between lanes on boulevards and other thoroughfares.

The imposing and beautiful iron figures are from four to 10 meters in height, and their shapes represent patterns from nature, prehistoric Latin culture, African influences, Sonoran cultural symbols, and curved and geometric modernist combinations of shapes from the creator’s fertile imagination.

There are hundreds of these marvelous works on the property of a church, in a quiet neighborhood on the north side of Navojoa. The gigantic pieces whose surface oxidation only contributes a hue to their imposing beauty sit quietly on display, some in a garden environment and others in a second storage area that is a field of dirt punctuated by brown-orange creations.

The monuments are not for sale – the artist from Guadalajara who created them will only donate them to worthy recipients. He hires people who have had setbacks in life, like addictions, to assist him in creating the art, teaching them valuable work skills like welding and metal fabrication.

In the meantime, these beautiful pieces stand in collections that make their resting place a garden of iron, a truly fascinating place to walk among them and enjoy the variety of shapes and admire the creativity of the person who created them.

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Hermosillo Cathedral of the Assumption

Catedral de la Asunción - Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico

The Cathedral of the Assumption stands as the primary church of the Diocese of Hermosillo and its neoclassical design with neogothic elements is a symbol commonly used to represent the Sonoran capital of Hermosillo.

A smaller church built on the site in the 1700’s was torn down to make room for a church that would accommodate larger congregations. Construction of the Hermosillo Cathedral, as it is commonly known, began in 1887. The cathedral was inaugurated in 1908, although the domed cupola was not completed until 1963.

The Diocese of Hermosillo is presided over by Archbishop Monseñor Ruy Rendón Leal, who was installed by Pope Francis on April 26, 2016. Cathedral pastors are Parish Priest Pbro. Martín Gerardo Hernández Moreno, Vicar Pbro. Marco Vinicio Félix Del Castillo and Deacon Isidoro Rodríguez Arroyo.

Mass is celebrated at the cathedral on Monday through Saturday at 7am, 8am and 7pm. Sunday mass is held at 7am, 8am, 10:30am. noon, 1pm, 5pm, 7pm and 8pm. For more information, visit the Hermosillo Cathedral’s website.

Hermosillo Cathedral
Avenida Centenario Norte
Colonia El Centenario 83260
Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico
+52 (662) 212-0501

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Sonora State Government Palace

Palacio de Gobierno de Sonora

Palacio del Gobierno Sonora - Hermosillo, Mexico

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The Sonora state government palace, the Palacio de Gobierno, is located on one side of Plaza Zaragoza in the heart of the state capital of Hermosillo. This bright white neoclassical building with its Ionic columns is a well-known symbol of the city and the state of Sonora.

A municipal office building was previously on the site of this magnificent structure, but it was razed to make room for the Palacio de Gobierno. The building was inaugurated in 1859, although the clock tower was not completed until 1906. The palacio’s original wood tower was burned in a 1948 fire and was replaced by a smaller, concrete clock tower. The wooden materials of the building’s upper deck were also replaced with more fire-resistant materials.

The building is in a rectangular shape with offices around the exterior walls, and the interior of first floor is a courtyard that is connected to the second floor by a wide, sweeping central set of stairs. The courtyard features a garden setting with bronze statues of General Ignacio Pesqueira and General García Morales.

But perhaps the building is best known for the interior walls of the first and second floor, and the main stairwell, which are adorned with fabulous murals painted in the 1980’s and 1990’s by renowned Sonoran artists Héctor Martínez Arteche, Teresa Moran and Enrique Estrada.

If you are in Hermosillo, visit Plaza Zaragoza and do not just stop to see the outside of this building – walk inside the main door of the Palacio de Gobierno to see the incredible artwork that beautifully tells stories of Mexican and Sonoran history and culture.

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Government Palace of the State of Sonora, Mexico - Hermosillo, Sonora

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Plaza Zaragoza in Hermosillo

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Plaza Zaragoza is the central plaza for the Sonoran capital of Hermosillo. The plaza was inaugurated in 1865 and named in honor of Mexican General Ignacio Zaragoza (1829-1862),

Plaza Zaragoza has four criss-crossing walkways lined with trees, bushes and other plants and vegetation. At the center of this famous plaza is an ornate Moorish-style kiosk that was brought from Florence, Italy in the early 1900s. If the kiosk looks familiar, it may be because some other cities in Sonora also use a similar-looking kiosk in their town plaza.

The plaza also has a small area dedicated as a monument for the 49 pre-school children who died in a fire at the Guarderia ABC preschool in Hermosillo in June of 2009. The quiet section of the plaza has 49 white painted crosses, each bearing the name of a child and a teddy bear or other stuffed animal.

The Hermosillo Cathedral dominates one side of Plaza Zaragoza, and on the opposite side are the Hermosillo municipal building and the Sonora government building, the Palacio del Gobierno de Sonora.

Plaza Zaragoza is a quiet, relaxing place to sit and relax while you are exploring the downtown area of Hermosillo.

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The General Obregon House Museum in Huatabampo

The General Obregon House Museum

Huatabampo, Sonora

Museo Casa General Álvaro Obregón

Avenida Francisco I. Madero 17
Huatabampo, Sonora
+52 (647) 426-1069

The museum opens at 9:00 a.m. Wednesday through Sunday, it is closed on Monday and Tuesday

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This unique museum in Huatabampo, Sonora offers a glimpse into the life of one of Sonora’s most accomplished sons, Mexican General and President Alvaro Obregon Sacido, in a location where Obregon had lived.

The house was built in 1895, and General Obregon bought it in 1904, adding a second floor to make it the only two-story building in Huatabampo at that time. In 1907 his wife Refugio died from complications of childbirth, and Obregon’s sisters moved into the house to help take care of his two children.

Obregon left Huatabampo in 1912 to serve during the Mexican Revolution, leaving his sisters and children at the home. He married Maria Tapia in 1916 and after the revolution he began his political campaign in Nogales for the office of president of the Republic of Mexico.

General Obregon served as president of Mexico from 1920 – 1924, after which he returned to Sonora. He won re-election in 1928, but was assassinated in July 1928 at the age of 48, before he could take office. Read more about the life of Alvaro Obregon.

The Obregon House was sold to the bank in 1958 and was purchased by a bank employee, Teófilo Villegas, who rented the house to various families until it eventually deteriorated and was abandoned.

Mr. Villegas was going to demolish the structure, but Dr. Rodolfo Moreno Gamez, the municipal president of Huatabampo, convinced him to sell it to the state of Sonora. Then-governor Samuel Ocaña Garcia authorized the purchase of the house for one million pesos, and the state began to renovate the property in 1987.

The building was opened the following year as a local cultural center where workshops were held in music, theater and visual arts. But not long after that it was decided that the house should become a museum in honor of General Obregon.

Maestro Emilio López Robles was put in charge of the project, and Ana Silvia Laborin Abascal from the state museum, along with Professor Salvador Mendoza Moroyoqui, initiated the investigation and collection of objects for the museum.

The museum opened in 1989 with Director Manuel de Jesus Reyes in charge. In July of that year the family of General Obregon donated his 1927 Cadillac, in which he had survived a bombing attempt on his life on September 13, 1927. The Cadillac is on permanent display in the back courtyard of the home.

The Obregon House Museum is an interesting place to visit, especially for those who are interested in the life of this great man. The museum is in six display areas in the two stories of the house, each one with a theme related to the life and history of General Obregon that encompass his family life, role in the Mexican Revolution, his campaign for president and his assassination.

Even if you do not speak Spanish, the photos and displays are interesting beyond words, making this a must-see when you are in Huatabampo, Sonora.