Luis Suárez Galván

Born in the city of Guía in 1851, precisely in the street that today bears his name, formerly known as Calle del Agua. He died in the city of Havana in 1917.

When he was only 15 years old, in 1866, he emigrated to Cuba to work in a family business run by his uncle José Antonio, which he took over after his uncle's return to the island. After eight years in Cuba, and a brief trip that brought him back to his native Guía, he returned to the Caribbean island to set up a trading company in Oficios Street in Havana, expanding the business to other parts of America. With several partners, he founded "Galbán Co, Inc", of which he was president, exporting sugar to the United States. Subsequently, following the success of this company, he created his own steamship company for the export of the precious Caribbean product. From this point onwards, his achievements continue to add up, including his membership as a partner in the Lariga y Cia shipping company in Liverpool or in the German insurance company Aachen & Munich, his appointment as president in 1904 of the Cuban Chamber of Commerce, and the foundation in 1901 of the Banco Nacional de Cuba, an institution that he presided over for many years.

From Cuba he sends money to repair the floor of the parish church of Guía. The current marble floor is a consequence of this donation, in which other indianos and people from the town and Gran Canaria also took part. In 1910 he returned to Guía and commissioned his brother Eugenio, the Port Works engineer who built the Sardina lighthouse, to design a project for the water supply for Guía.