Concessions, Conflict, and the Rebirth of the Honduran Mahogany Trade

Abstract

In the 1830s Central America underwent a period of rapid transformation, and an array of ambitious individuals capitalized on the uncertainty to aggressively seize and exploit new economic opportunities. At the same time, the world trade in big-leaf mahogany (Swietenia macrophylla) entered a boom period, largely in response to the English furniture trade. Combined, these events helped stimulate a resumption of mahogany cutting in the lowland forests of northern Honduras. Central to this process was the commercial partnership of Francisco Moraz�n and Marshall Bennett, in particular the enormous concession Moraz�n received from the Honduran government in 1835. Administration of the concession shifted the core of mahogany operations to the heart of the north coast, stimulating commercial exploitation as well as a range of territorial disputes over land and access to the forest in both western and eastern Honduras. This article examines that concession in the light of its foundational role for the mahogany trade, which ultimately established a template for large-scale landscape transformation through the nineteenth century and beyond. En la d�cada de 1830s Am�rica Central experiment� un per�odo de transformaci�n r�pida, donde individuos oportunistas se aprovecharon de la incertidumbre del momento para explotar agresivamente nuevas oportunidades econ�micas. Al mismo tiempo, el comercio mundial de la caoba (Swietenia macrophylla) present� un per�odo del auge, en gran parte en respuesta al comercio ingl�s de muebles. Estos acontecimientos combinados, estimularon la reaparici�n de la tala de caoba en los bosques del norte de Honduras. Central a este proceso fu� la asociaci�n comercial de Francisco Moraz�n y Marshall Bennett, en particular la inmensa concesi�n que Moraz�n recibi� del gobierno hondure�o en 1835. La administraci�n de esta concesi�n cambi� el n�cleo de las operaciones de caoba al centro de la costa del norte, estimulando la explotaci�n comercial as� como muchos conflictos sobre tierras y acceso al bosque en Honduras occidental y oriental. Este art�culo examina tal concesi�n en la luz de su papel fundamental en el comercio de caoba, que estableci� un modelo para la transformaci�n del paisaje en el siglo diecinueve y m�s all�.

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