Parque de Bombas
Encyclopedia
Parque de Bombas is a historic firehouse building in Ponce, Puerto Rico
. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island". It is located at the Plaza Las Delicias
town square, directly behind the Ponce Cathedral
. The building housed the city's main fire station
for many years, and it is now a museum
. Its name comes from the mobile hand-pumped fire fighting units the building once housed. It has been heralded both for its historical and architectural roles in Puerto Rican society. It was Puerto Rico's first ever fire station. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 12, 1984.
soldier, Lt. Colonel Maximo de Meana y Guridi
who happened to be a professional architect
, was commissioned in Puerto Rico at the time. The Madrid-based central government gave Meana the assignment of designing and constructing the building. The building was unveiled during the 1883 Ponce World Fair
. The festival's participants used the building as its main pavilion. The first brigade of firemen
to work in the building were stationed soon after.
became mayor of Ponce in 1882, and in 1885, the station went on to become Ponce's official fire station. Thus every firefighting operation in Ponce and adjacent towns was dispatched from the Parque de Bombas.
to their memory. Later on, the building was painted in Ponce's traditional city colors, red and black. A series of homes built a few years later for the firefighters and their families on 25 de Enero Street
were also painted in these colors.
is still known generally as Parque de Bombas and, according to some estimates, it is one of Ponce's most visited tourist attractions.
During the month of July 1882, Ponce was the center of attention in Puerto Rico, as an important Exhibition Trade Fair was being celebrated. The main exhibit pavilion, dedicated to agricultural and industrial exhibits, was commissioned to Maximo Meana
, Lietenant Coronel of the Spanish Militia, and later, Mayor of the city. The Moorish influence is manifested immediately for its basic rectangular plan with towers at its front corners: the active facade ornamentation, its long and narrow windows with fans at its top, its bright colorful paint application, among others, typifies a strong Moorish influence. In 1885, the building was dedicated as Ponce's official firehouse. In 1920, it was used briefly as the Mayor's office as a result of the earthquake
that affected the city during that year.
Since 1885, Parque de Bombas has been, and it is, an important cultural institution in Ponce. Its colors represent the city, its unique style represents a progressive and dynamic cultural center. The Fireman's Band plays every Sunday evening a "Retreta" (retreat) as part of a cultural program and tradition of the city of Ponce. The structure’s extremely unique and different form represents the brave firemen of Ponce, and its history. An inscription at Parque de Bombas reads,
"This building is a symbol and commemoration of the importance vested by the residents of Ponce in the service, self-denial and courage of the Ponce Firefighters Corps. It is for this reason that the Ponce Firefighters Corps remains symbolically on this Plaza, in the heart of the city of Ponce."
In 1943, the Firemen Services of Puerto Rico was created by legislation. Its main commitment is to extinguish fires, prevent fires, rescue services in natural disasters or emergencies, and to service the community.
The basic plan of the Parque de Bombas is a typical rectangular Moorish structure with influence of the Gothic
Victorian
style, measuring 65'-8" in width by 26'-3" in length. It is two stories high with a tower at each corner of the front facade (Marina Street).
The building is located in the city's central "Las Delicias Plaza
" and it is attached to the Cathedral of Ponce
at its rear boundary. Structurally, it is a wooden frame building with a pitched roof covered with galvanized zinc sheets. Exterior cladding is horizontal 1" by 6" wooden siding. Doors and windows are wooden. The windows are of the fixed louvered type, long, narrow, and crowned by an oversized fixed fan light.
The Moorish and Gothic Victorian influence is manifested immediately for its rectangular plan with towers at its front corners; its decorative composite curved moldings which follows the contour of the roof overhang throughout the entire structure; its colorful paint application (the building is painted in horizontal bands following the exterior cladding alternating Ponce's official colors, red and black; the interior is also painted very colorful, alternating vertical bands of red and orange that decorates the walls and a painted frieze with fireman's motif culminates the interior wall decoration); and the use of long and narrow windows with fans at its top; among other details typifies a Moorish style.
The building's layout is a large, central space, flanked by two lateral towers, two stories in height, which opens to the main central area. The main central area is used as garage facilities for the fire trucks, and the two lateral towers are used as living quarters and exhibition areas. An elegant central two-sided stairway with elaborated cast iron
railing leads to a mezzanine
area used as administrative offices.
Some interior partitions were removed from the first floor when the structure was altered for its new use as a firehouse in order to accommodate the machinery. The building has been kept in good condition throughout the years.
, and most of Latin America
as a town plaza. A town plaza's layout usually includes water
fountain
s, trees, benches, and walkways flanking a catholic church
. The Parque de Bombas itself is adjacent to Ponce's Roman Catholic cathedral
.
The station-turned-museum reflects the architectural style of 1880s Spain. It is mostly made of wood
, and it resembles a Gothic
castle
or a Spaniard mansion of that era. The station is painted with red
and black
stripes. Two stairs that are located on opposite sides highlight the entrance to the museum. Tourists can observe firefighting technology on the building's second floor.
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island". It is located at the Plaza Las Delicias
Plaza Las Delicias
Plaza Las Delicias is the main plaza in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The square is notable for its fountains and for the various monuments it contains. The historic Parque de Bombas and Ponce Cathedral buildings are located within Plaza Las Delicias. Plaza Las Delicias is actually composed of...
town square, directly behind the Ponce Cathedral
Ponce Cathedral
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or simply, Ponce Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ponce located in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico. The cathedral lies in the middle of Ponce's town square, known as Plaza Las Delicias, located at the center of the Ponce Historic...
. The building housed the city's main fire station
Fire station
A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...
for many years, and it is now a museum
Museum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
. Its name comes from the mobile hand-pumped fire fighting units the building once housed. It has been heralded both for its historical and architectural roles in Puerto Rican society. It was Puerto Rico's first ever fire station. It was listed in the National Register of Historic Places on July 12, 1984.
Original purpose
The structure was built as the main exhibit pavilion for the 1882 Exhibition Trade Fair. A Spanish ArmyArmy
An army An army An army (from Latin arma "arms, weapons" via Old French armée, "armed" (feminine), in the broadest sense, is the land-based military of a nation or state. It may also include other branches of the military such as the air force via means of aviation corps...
soldier, Lt. Colonel Maximo de Meana y Guridi
Maximo de Meana y Guridi
Maximo de Meana y Guridi was a Spanish soldier and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1882 to 1884.As a Spanish Army soldier, Maximo de Meana y Guridi held the rank of Lt. Colonel...
who happened to be a professional architect
Architecture
Architecture is both the process and product of planning, designing and construction. Architectural works, in the material form of buildings, are often perceived as cultural and political symbols and as works of art...
, was commissioned in Puerto Rico at the time. The Madrid-based central government gave Meana the assignment of designing and constructing the building. The building was unveiled during the 1883 Ponce World Fair
World fair
World Fair can refer to:* Expo , a large public exhibition* This World Fair, an American rock band...
. The festival's participants used the building as its main pavilion. The first brigade of firemen
Firefighter
Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
to work in the building were stationed soon after.
Fire history
Major fires took place in the city on February 27, 1820, and again in March, 1845. MeanaMaximo de Meana y Guridi
Maximo de Meana y Guridi was a Spanish soldier and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1882 to 1884.As a Spanish Army soldier, Maximo de Meana y Guridi held the rank of Lt. Colonel...
became mayor of Ponce in 1882, and in 1885, the station went on to become Ponce's official fire station. Thus every firefighting operation in Ponce and adjacent towns was dispatched from the Parque de Bombas.
The "El Polvorin" fire
On January 25, 1899, a large fire (later dubbed "El Polvorin") threatened the lives of Ponceños, as well as the economy of Puerto Rico as a whole, given Ponce's de facto role as Puerto Rico's banking and agricultural capital. A painting inside Parque de Bombas commemorates the heroic acts of seven valiant "bomberos" and a civilian who fought bravely against the voracious fire that threatened the region. Disobeying orders from the American troops that had recently taken control of Puerto Rico, the group was able to appease flames that had started inside the U.S. Army’s gunpowder reserves. Due to their courageous efforts, disaster was narrowly averted. For their success, the group was honored many times both in Ponce and the rest of Puerto Rico. A few yards from Parque de Bombas sits an obeliskObelisk
An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...
to their memory. Later on, the building was painted in Ponce's traditional city colors, red and black. A series of homes built a few years later for the firefighters and their families on 25 de Enero Street
25 de Enero Street
Calle 25 de Enero, 25 de Enero Street, is a historic Victorian village bounded by the street by that name in Ponce, Puerto Rico, and built to honor Ponce's volunteer firemen....
were also painted in these colors.
Turned into a museum
The station continued to serve the city of Ponce until 1990, lasting a total of 108 years as a fire station. On that year, the station's fire-fighting duties were fully transferred to another nearby station, and the building was officially converted into a fire-fighting museum. The architect in charge of its restoration was Pablo Ojeda O'Neill. Nowadays, a photo of the 1883 firefighters hangs on the walls of the Parque de Bombas building. In 1983, the 100th anniversary of the brigade's victory over the infamous fire was commemorated at the station. Various artifacts used by the 1882 fire brigade are on display at the current museum. Among these are some artifacts used to combat the 1883 fire. There are also artifacts of historical significance. Even before its 1990 closure, the station had already become a major tourist attraction, and some of the firemen would give visitors free station tours voluntarily when they were not attending emergencies. The Ponce firefighters' museumMuseum
A museum is an institution that cares for a collection of artifacts and other objects of scientific, artistic, cultural, or historical importance and makes them available for public viewing through exhibits that may be permanent or temporary. Most large museums are located in major cities...
is still known generally as Parque de Bombas and, according to some estimates, it is one of Ponce's most visited tourist attractions.
Significance
In 1820, two great fires affected the city of Ponce. One destroyed great part of the center of the city; and the other gutted 80% of Ponce's port zone, paralyzing all commercial trade to the southern section of Puerto Rico. Because of this problem and public concern, in 1853, a voluntary but official firemen service was created for the urban area of Ponce. It was named the Municipal Firemen Service Force. Its mission was to fight and prevent fires.During the month of July 1882, Ponce was the center of attention in Puerto Rico, as an important Exhibition Trade Fair was being celebrated. The main exhibit pavilion, dedicated to agricultural and industrial exhibits, was commissioned to Maximo Meana
Maximo de Meana y Guridi
Maximo de Meana y Guridi was a Spanish soldier and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1882 to 1884.As a Spanish Army soldier, Maximo de Meana y Guridi held the rank of Lt. Colonel...
, Lietenant Coronel of the Spanish Militia, and later, Mayor of the city. The Moorish influence is manifested immediately for its basic rectangular plan with towers at its front corners: the active facade ornamentation, its long and narrow windows with fans at its top, its bright colorful paint application, among others, typifies a strong Moorish influence. In 1885, the building was dedicated as Ponce's official firehouse. In 1920, it was used briefly as the Mayor's office as a result of the earthquake
1918 Puerto Rico earthquake
The San Fermín earthquake, also known as the Puerto Rico earthquake of 1918, was a major earthquake that struck the island of Puerto Rico at 10:14am on October 11, 1918. The magnitude for the earthquake has been reported at around 7.5 ; however, that might not be an exact number...
that affected the city during that year.
Since 1885, Parque de Bombas has been, and it is, an important cultural institution in Ponce. Its colors represent the city, its unique style represents a progressive and dynamic cultural center. The Fireman's Band plays every Sunday evening a "Retreta" (retreat) as part of a cultural program and tradition of the city of Ponce. The structure’s extremely unique and different form represents the brave firemen of Ponce, and its history. An inscription at Parque de Bombas reads,
"This building is a symbol and commemoration of the importance vested by the residents of Ponce in the service, self-denial and courage of the Ponce Firefighters Corps. It is for this reason that the Ponce Firefighters Corps remains symbolically on this Plaza, in the heart of the city of Ponce."
In 1943, the Firemen Services of Puerto Rico was created by legislation. Its main commitment is to extinguish fires, prevent fires, rescue services in natural disasters or emergencies, and to service the community.
Physical appearance
Gothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
Victorian
Victorian architecture
The term Victorian architecture refers collectively to several architectural styles employed predominantly during the middle and late 19th century. The period that it indicates may slightly overlap the actual reign, 20 June 1837 – 22 January 1901, of Queen Victoria. This represents the British and...
style, measuring 65'-8" in width by 26'-3" in length. It is two stories high with a tower at each corner of the front facade (Marina Street).
The building is located in the city's central "Las Delicias Plaza
Plaza Las Delicias
Plaza Las Delicias is the main plaza in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The square is notable for its fountains and for the various monuments it contains. The historic Parque de Bombas and Ponce Cathedral buildings are located within Plaza Las Delicias. Plaza Las Delicias is actually composed of...
" and it is attached to the Cathedral of Ponce
Ponce Cathedral
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or simply, Ponce Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ponce located in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico. The cathedral lies in the middle of Ponce's town square, known as Plaza Las Delicias, located at the center of the Ponce Historic...
at its rear boundary. Structurally, it is a wooden frame building with a pitched roof covered with galvanized zinc sheets. Exterior cladding is horizontal 1" by 6" wooden siding. Doors and windows are wooden. The windows are of the fixed louvered type, long, narrow, and crowned by an oversized fixed fan light.
The Moorish and Gothic Victorian influence is manifested immediately for its rectangular plan with towers at its front corners; its decorative composite curved moldings which follows the contour of the roof overhang throughout the entire structure; its colorful paint application (the building is painted in horizontal bands following the exterior cladding alternating Ponce's official colors, red and black; the interior is also painted very colorful, alternating vertical bands of red and orange that decorates the walls and a painted frieze with fireman's motif culminates the interior wall decoration); and the use of long and narrow windows with fans at its top; among other details typifies a Moorish style.
The building's layout is a large, central space, flanked by two lateral towers, two stories in height, which opens to the main central area. The main central area is used as garage facilities for the fire trucks, and the two lateral towers are used as living quarters and exhibition areas. An elegant central two-sided stairway with elaborated cast iron
Cast iron
Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...
railing leads to a mezzanine
Mezzanine
Mezzanine may refer to:* Mezzanine , an intermediate floor between main floors of a building* Mezzanine, in technology, can refer to a thin sheet of plastic insulating different parts of circuitry from each other in cramped environments, such as laptop interiors* Mezzanine board, or daughterboard,...
area used as administrative offices.
Some interior partitions were removed from the first floor when the structure was altered for its new use as a firehouse in order to accommodate the machinery. The building has been kept in good condition throughout the years.
Architecture
The Parque de Bombas building is located in what is known in Puerto Rico, SpainSpain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
, and most of Latin America
Latin America
Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages – particularly Spanish and Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,500 km² , almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area...
as a town plaza. A town plaza's layout usually includes water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
fountain
Fountain
A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air either to supply drinking water or for decorative or dramatic effect....
s, trees, benches, and walkways flanking a catholic church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
. The Parque de Bombas itself is adjacent to Ponce's Roman Catholic cathedral
Ponce Cathedral
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or simply, Ponce Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ponce located in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico. The cathedral lies in the middle of Ponce's town square, known as Plaza Las Delicias, located at the center of the Ponce Historic...
.
The station-turned-museum reflects the architectural style of 1880s Spain. It is mostly made of wood
Wood
Wood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
, and it resembles a Gothic
International Gothic
International Gothic is a phase of Gothic art which developed in Burgundy, Bohemia, France and northern Italy in the late 14th century and early 15th century...
castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
or a Spaniard mansion of that era. The station is painted with red
Red
Red is any of a number of similar colors evoked by light consisting predominantly of the longest wavelengths of light discernible by the human eye, in the wavelength range of roughly 630–740 nm. Longer wavelengths than this are called infrared , and cannot be seen by the naked eye...
and black
Black
Black is the color of objects that do not emit or reflect light in any part of the visible spectrum; they absorb all such frequencies of light...
stripes. Two stairs that are located on opposite sides highlight the entrance to the museum. Tourists can observe firefighting technology on the building's second floor.