Career
He is best remembered because the construction of Hospital Tricoche occurred under his administration. Cartagena was mayor of Ponce from April 1876 to 4 July 1879. On 11 December 1878 Cartagena gave an inaugural speech for the opening of Hospital Tricoche.
Cartagena was mayor of Ponce again from February through October 1888.
Others accompanying Mayor Cartagena included Doctor Rafael del Valle, Doctor Manuel Pasarell, the journalist Mario Braschi, and Eduardo Neumann Gandía. There is a street in Urbanizacion Las Delicias of Barrio Magueyes in Ponce named after him.
