A family-run workshop keeps legacy of Mexican fireworks alive

People dance and dodge a giant paper-mache bull stuffed with fireworks as roman candles and bottle rockets shower them with sparks, during the annual festival honoring Saint John of God, in Tultepec, Mexico, Friday, March 8, 2024. The celebration, now its 35th year, pays homage to the patron saint of the poor and sick, St. John of God, who the fireworks’ producers view as a protective figure.

Residents push a giant paper-mache “torito” or bull stuffed with fireworks during a nighttime lighting of bull-shaped figures as part of the annual festival honoring Saint John of God, in Tultepec, Mexico, Friday, March 8, 2024. Residents attend the nighttime lighting of giant paper-mache "toritos" or bulls stuffed with fireworks during the annual festival honoring Saint John of God, in Tultepec, Mexico, Friday, March 8, 2024.

But the big, standing bulls of Tultepec mark the high point of the year. Tultepec was one of the first places that began to produce gunpowder in Mexico during the colonial period, because of the town’s abundant supply of saltpeter, a key ingredient. Today, the town is affectionally known as “the capital of pyrotechnics.”

Rafael Martinez works with gunpowder to make fireworks at his family's workshop in preparation for the annual festival in honor of Saint John of God.

United States Latest News, United States Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

A family-run workshop keeps the legacy of the Mexican fireworks alive despite the dangerHundreds of giant paper-mache bulls stuffed with fireworks are erected in the front yards of the Mexican town of Tultepec every year in the first week of March.
Source: KPRC2 - 🏆 80. / 68 Read more »

A family-run workshop keeps the legacy of the Mexican fireworks alive despite the dangerHundreds of giant paper-mache bulls stuffed with fireworks are erected in the front yards of the Mexican town of Tultepec every year in the first week of March.
Source: ksatnews - 🏆 442. / 53 Read more »

Mexican man illegally in US is deported to face murder, robbery charges in home countryA Mexican man living illegally in the United States was deported to Mexico to face a murder charges, immigration authorities said Friday.
Source: FoxNews - 🏆 9. / 87 Read more »

Mexican cartel members laugh after National Guard helicopter crashes, kills 3Cartel members were heard laughing after a National Guard helicopter carrying three soldiers and a Border Patrol agent crashed near the southern border in La Grulla, Texas.
Source: FoxNews - 🏆 9. / 87 Read more »

Irene Diaz's 5 favorite Latino-owned businesses in L.A.Mexican American singer-songwriter and Highland Park native Irene Diaz shares her favorite Latino-owned businesses.
Source: latimes - 🏆 11. / 82 Read more »

Mexican Regional Connects Me With Family Despite Physical & Cultural Borderswith the revival of regional Mexican music — especially the rise of corridors tumbados, which is heavily influenced by U.S. hip-hop — I’ve found a new way to tap into my Mexican roots.
Source: Refinery29 - 🏆 26. / 68 Read more »