José María de la Torre says that in 1637 a church and convent was designed that would be dedicated to the Marian advocation of the Merced, redeemer of captives. This one would be built in the Campeche district. The project had to wait 109 years to begin consolidating and it was not until 1792 that the Sacrament could be placed in that temple. In 1862 the Congregation of St. Vincent de Paul went on to occupy the property which was reportedly in terrible condition. They restored it and ended up giving it remarkable splendor.
Since then, Havana has the merced church that we all know and a street of the same name.
Its trace extends from the Alameda de Paula or Avenida del Puerto to Monserrate or Avenida de Belgium, approximately nine blocks. There has been no record of him having a different name at some point. There have been four streets with that name in Havana, but that of the church of Nuestra Señora de la Merced in ancient Havana is the only one that has preserved it. Ω
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