The founder of the Dominican Republic, Juan Pablo Duarte, whose real ‘day’ is today, lived, wrote and fought in Santo Domingo. The Santo Domingo of Duarte’s time was the colonial walled city. It was not very large by today’s standards, just the river and sea on two sides, Avenida Mella to the north and Palo Hincado to the west. Historian Daniel Balcacer points out that there were about 9,500 people living in Santo Domingo at that time (1844). There were only about 1,200 houses and perhaps two or three carriages. Nonetheless, over a dozen spots survive in present-day Santo Domingo bearing memories of the Founding Father. The house he was born in is near the Alcazar de Colon. He was baptized at the Santa Barbara Church. Duarte’s father had a hardware business on the Atarazana Street in the Colonial Zone. On Las Damas is the theater where the group of conspirators would stage plays on nationalistic themes. It used to be called La Filantropica, but today it is used to store materials for the reconstruction of colonial buildings, and is home to the Oscus San Valero Foundation. The Regina Angelorum Convent is another place that was important to Duarte: Gaspar Hernandez taught him philosophy there. The Santo Domingo Cathedral was his final resting place. On Arzobispo Portes between Sanchez and Santome was where Duarte issued his famous proclamation. On Arzobispo Nouel #255 is the house where the Trinitario secret society was founded in 1838. On one side of Independence Park is the mausoleum that holds the remains of the three National Heroes, Duarte, Sanchez and Mella. Over by the Atarazana Street is the Jose Ginebra warehouse where Duarte hid while being sought by the Haitian authorities. The Ozama Fortress, the old colonial fort, is the site of the Tower of Homage where he was imprisoned before being exiled. Nearby is the Borgella Palace where he was proclaimed Chief of the Republic. Many of these sites are not even marked as important places in the national history, and most local people don’t know what happened there. A young resident, a high school junior, was asked if he knew which national historical figure was baptized in the church of Santa Barbara. His answer? His niece!