Minor Cooper Keith: The Man Who Became a De Facto Owner of a Considerable Portion of Costa Rica

Minor Cooper Keith was an American entrepreneur who was greatly involved in the development of commercial agriculture, railroads and shipping in most economies in Central America and in Colombia. Keith pioneered the efforts in establishing and administering a multinational company that imports and exports goods to and fro the US and countries around the Caribbean Sea.

Keith was born on January 19, 1848 in Brooklyn, New York. He was educated in a private school. At sixteen, Keith worked in a Broadway store as sales clerk but had to quit the job months later in favor of a new job as lumber surveyor. In one year’s work, Keith was able to save $3,000, which he used to purchase a cattle ranch in a rover island near the Rio Grande opening in southern Texas.  He managed his ranch until 1871 when he received an invitation to join to join his uncle Henry Meiggs in the construction of a railroad in Costa Rica.

President Tomás Guardia Gutierrez of Costa Rica awarded Meiggs with a contract to construct to build a railroad from San José to what eventually became the port to the Caribbean in Limón. Keith got involved in the project and had to take over following the death of Meiggs in 1877.

Costa Rica’s economy at that time was focused on exportation of coffee. The coffee products were transported from the central valley to the Puntarenas port by oxcart. There is not a canal that connects the Atlantic and the Pacific Oceans so that in order to transport the products to Europe which was the main market at that time, the Costa Rican government should prioritize creating a route to the Caribbean.

Soon, the railroad project was financially challenged, aside from the difficult terrains, torrential rains, thick jungle and the malaria, dysentery and yellow fever epidemic that hit Keith’s team. In the first 25 miles of track, Keith lost three of his brothers and a number of workers due to various diseases. When he had difficulty recruiting Costa Ricans, Keith has to bring in Jamaican, Chinese and Italian workers to finish the project.

Financially hard up, the Costa Rican government defaulted in paying its obligations to Keith and the London banks where Keith borrowed funds to spend on the railroad. On his own, Keith raised funds of £1.2 million from investors and banks. He also negotiated to reduce the interest on the prior borrowings made by the Costa Rican government.

In exchange for his efforts, Costa Rican President Próspero Fernández Oreamuno awarded an 800,000 acre land located along the railroad, tax free. He was also awarded a 99-year lease to operate the train route. Instantly, Keith became a de facto owner of 5% of the territory of Costa Rica.

Keith also became involved in banana trading, gold mining, general trade retailing and poultry raising.