Ramón Serrano Montaner
Ramón Serrano Montaner (1848 – 5 June 1936) was a Chilean politician, naval officer and hydrographer affiliated with the Radical Party.
He served as Deputy of the Republic for Concepción, Talcahuano, Lautaro and Coelemu between 1900 and 1903.
Biography
Serrano was born in Melipilla in 1848, the son of Ramón Serrano y Toro Mazzote and María Mercedes Montaner y Cáceres. He married Magdalena Polloni Guzmán, with whom he had children.
He entered the Naval Academy as a cadet in 1866 and served in the Chilean Navy for 27 years. He became a midshipman in 1871 and carried out hydrographic surveys in the channels of southern Chile. After travelling to England in 1877, he returned to Chile the following year.
During the War of the Pacific, he served aboard the gunboat Magallanes and later aboard the ironclad Cochrane, participating in the Battle of Angamos in 1879. He became a corvette captain in 1881 and later served as deputy director of the Naval Academy and second-in-command of the Hydrographic Office.
Serrano also served as first assistant to the Boundary Commission with Argentina and as professor of cosmography at the Instituto Nacional. As an explorer and hydrographer, he surveyed the southern seas, the western channels of Patagonia and Tierra del Fuego, as well as the Guaitecas and Chonos archipelagos. His publications included works on the exploration of the Palena River and a navigational guide to the channels of Chiloé. He retired from the Navy in 1893 with the rank of frigate captain.
Political career
A member of the Radical Party, Serrano was elected Deputy for Concepción, Talcahuano, Lautaro and Coelemu for the 1900–1903 legislative period. During his parliamentary service, he was a member of the War and Navy Committee and the Government Committee.
He died in Santiago on 5 June 1936.