José Ramon Fernández, 1st Marquis of La Esperanza (1808–1883), was the wealthiest sugar baron in Puerto Rico in the 19th century.

[1] He owned an immense plantation of nearly 2300 acres on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, and a sugar mill with an advanced steam engine.

Today the entire property is owned by the Puerto Rico Conservation Trust, which preserves and protects it, including some of the only coastal forest left in the region.

Fernández's father was a Spanish naval captain from Castile who fought against pirates and English merchant ships.

In 1797, the Spanish Crown granted him large plots of land in the towns of Bayamon and Manati in recognition of his service to Spain.

[1][3] Fernández returned to Puerto Rico in 1826 and helped his father to administer La Esperanza sugar plantation.

The company, which was located in San Juan, was a distributor of sugar, molasses and rum, and also dealt with other commodities such as food and textiles.

In 1850, used his political influence to lobby for the establishment of a railroad line between San Juan and Arecibo, with the financial backing of Augusto de Cottes and Cornelio Kortwright.

[1][3] An 1868 uprising against the monarchs of Spain forced Queen Isabella II to go into exile in September of that year.

On February 5, 1869, the Spanish government bestowed the title of "Marqués de La Esperanza" (Marquis of Hope, related to the name of his plantation) upon Fernández.

[1][3] When his father died, Fernández inherited La Esperanza, which at the time was one of the largest and the most technically advanced sugar plantations in Puerto Rico.

"La Esperanza" was situated on 2,265 acres of land rich in alluvial deposits, an important element for the cultivation of sugar cane.

[1] In the 1840s, he and his father had installed an advanced steam engine with two-flue boiler, purchased from the West Point Foundry of New York.

"[1] The system includes an elaboration (Jamaican) train, conveyor belt, and four evaporators for processing of sugar cane.

Based on a son's education in France and learning about cognac aged in oak barrels, the family made changes to their rum-making process.

In 1915, they started producing Ron del Barrilito (literally, rum from the little barrel) for commercial sales.