Dates

• Existence: 1899 - 2003

Biography

Basilisa Torres Herrera was born in Leon, Guanajuato, Mexico in 1899. In her early teens, the Torres family emigrated by train to North Dakota and from there to Bettendorf, Iowa. She married Primitivo Herrera when she was eighteen and the couple had five children: Aurora, Juan, Marcelino, Angelita, and Enedina. The Herreras moved to the Cook's Point community in Davenport, Iowa shortly after the birth of Marcelino. Basilisa Herrera was widowed in 1936 when Primitivo was killed in an accident at the foundry where he worked. In order to support her young family she found employment outside the home, first at the Black Hawk Hotel and later at the Oscar Mayer packinghouse, where she worked until her retirement. In 1984, Basilisa Herrera became a naturalized United States citizen. She lived in close proximity to her family in Davenport until her death at age 104.

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