Eddie Estrada - El Maestro
ODE TO MY FATHER
My father was the visionary of our family and the keeper of our struggles and triumphs. He chronicled the great Puerto Rican migration of the 1950s through the eyes of both sides of his family. He took hundreds of photos, labeled everything, and filmed our lives on 8mm, Super 8mm, and later on VHS. Birthdays, church steps, first winters, long summers, graduations, and the everyday work of making a home for our family. However, we would never relinquish our Puerto Rican Culture, even as we integrated ourselves into an American society that hated us. The early years felt beautiful and harmonic to me as a young boy, once upon a time in a magical kingdom called New York City. It wasn’t until I came of age that I realized we were not wanted here, but we couldn't go back... not yet.
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Nonetheless, we came to the United States as migrant citizens, as many others from our Island have done since 1917. People sometimes confuse migrants with immigrants, but our status, although clear, was a ruse so our people could fight in World War I. My father taught me to stand tall, to take pride in my work, and to be the best at anything worth pursuing. Without his footage, this film project would not be possible.
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This page honors him. He captured our lives on film, and his archive lets you see what we lived, not just hear me tell it. Every frame is a witness. Every label is a promise that our story will not be lost. I thank God for Dad’s patience and for his belief that our Puerto Rican family mattered. I carry his work forward so that the next generation can see where we came from and why we wave our Puerto Rican flag with such pride to this day. He would have been one hundred years old in 2025. His Tombstone says El Maestro 1925 -1998. There were over 110 cars in his funeral procession to St. Raymond's Cemetery, where he is buried with my beloved Grandmother Juana and my aunt Primitiva. He was loved by all who knew him. RIP Dad! Until we meet again!
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Eduardo (El Maestro) Estrada May 3, 1925 - July 6, 1998
We Have The Receipts To Go With The Stories
My Father's Film Collection
My father was born in Santurce, Puerto Rico, the son of Master Carpenter Epifanio Estrada and his mother, Eduvijes Estrada. He dropped out of school in the Fourth Grade to follow in his father’s footsteps and become a Master Carpenter like his father before him. A Puerto Rican Magazine once interviewed his father, Epifanio, who was also a political figure, and the interviewer described him as a “Walking, talking Encyclopedia of knowledge. He taught my father everything he needed to know to navigate the world with a good head on his shoulders, and by the time he was a teenager, he was considered a Master Carpenter alongside his father and six brothers. Later in life, he was affectionately known as "El Maestro" by all who knew him for his outstanding work in carpentry and numerous related fields.
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He taught me the same things his father taught him at an early age, but I had my own calling and wanted to pursue a career in several other professions until I found my true calling. I'm following in my dad's footsteps with history keeping, and now I am working on a film based on my book, The Dancing Gangsters of the South Bronx. I am drawing on my father’s body of work and combining it with my own to create this film, which will also pay tribute to him and many other Puerto Ricans who have been part of our journey over the years.
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My father also started a band with my uncles during the early 1960s, and he was the main singer, who had the voice of an Angel. So, if I had to describe him, I would say he was a Carpenter by day and a Crooner by night. I also loved it when he sang in the shower, and we would all listen, as if he were performing just for us. We would clap when he got out, much to his delight! Our combined body of work will pay tribute to our extended Puerto Rican Family.
My Father's Original Film Cameras and Projector
Contact
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Office: 347-431-7440