Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
wheel and water-powered
turbine. The former slave
quarters, storage sheds, and the
owner's house are all furnished
with original 19th-century pieces.
The gift shop sells coffee and
preserves from fruit still grown
here.
d
Map F5 • Carretera 123 Km
16.8 • 787 722 5882 (Mon-Fri); 787
284 7020 (Sat-Sun) • Open Wed-Sun;
guided tours by appointment • Adm
• www.fideicomiso.org
Ponce Massacre
Nationalist sentiment against
US occupation boiled over on
March 21, 1937 during a pro-
independence rally in Ponce's
Plaza Las Delicias. When the
nationalists began singing the
Puerto Rican national anthem,
armed police opened fire, killing
17 civilians. Two policemen were
also killed in the melee, now
known as the Ponce Massacre.
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Museo Antiguo Parque
&
Museo Castillo Serallé
de Bombas
This photogenic Arabesque
structure, on the east side of
Plaza Las Delicias, served as
the city's fire station for over a
century. Now a museum, it hosts
an antique fire truck and 19th-
century hand-pulled water tanks.
Other exhibits poignantly recall
a fire in the US Army's artillery
store in 1899 that threatened to
destroy Ponce; the fire-fighters
disobeyed orders to retreat and
saved the city.
d
Map F6 • Av Marina
and Av Cristina, Plaza Las Delicias, Ponce
• 787 284 3338 • Open 9:30am-6pm
This majestic Spanish
Renaissance-style mansion
stands atop El Vigía Hill, high
above Ponce. It was built in the
1930s by the Serralles family,
owners of the Don Q rum dis-
tillery. Guided tours lead through
rooms filled with hand-carved
period furnishings and paintings,
and a permanent exhibit explores
Puerto Rico's sugarcane and rum
industries. The lush, landscaped
gardens and courtyards offer
panoramic vistas over Ponce.
d
Map F5 • Calle Vigía 17 • 787 259 1774
• Open 9:30am-6:30pm Tue-Sun • Adm
^
Hacienda Buena Vista
*
The Wall
This coffee plantation in the
hills north of Ponce dates from
1833 and features an original
hydraulically operated processing
mill, complete with giant water
The continental shelf along
Puerto Rico's south coast plunges
into an abyss that is like an under-
water Grand Canyon. This drop-
off - “The Wall” - extends along
The striking Museo Antiguo Parque de Bombas, Ponce
84
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