Puerto Rico By baileys Oct 10, 1493 Christopher Columbus claims Puerto Rico for Spain Oct 10, 1513 African slaves first introduced to Puerto Rico by the Spanish Oct 10, 1868 Puerto Ricans takes over Lares and demands independence from spain Oct 10, 1873 Slavery is abolished by the Spainish crown Oct 10, 1898 The U.S. invades Puerto Rico during the Spanish-American war Oct 10, 1917 All Puerto Ricans are granted U.S. Citizenship Oct 10, 1945 Thousands of Puerto Ricans go to the U.S. for better jobs and economic stability Oct 10, 1952 Puerto Rico becomes a self-governingCommonwealth Oct 11, 1959 fleeing Castro's revolution, 155,000 Cubans leave their homeland Oct 11, 1993 Spanish and English are declared the official languages of Puerto Rico