El Parterre is a landscaped park in
Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Aguadilla (, ), founded in 1775 by Luis de Córdova, is a city and municipality located in the northwestern tip of Puerto Rico, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, north of Aguada, and Moca and west of Isabela. Aguadilla is s ...
, that was built in 1851. The park encloses the Ojo de Agua (,
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
for '
spring
Spring(s) may refer to:
Common uses
* Spring (season)
Spring, also known as springtime, is one of the four temperate seasons, succeeding winter and preceding summer. There are various technical definitions of spring, but local usage of ...
' or 'water source'), also referred to as Manantial Ojo de Agua,
a natural spring which was a source of water for Spanish soldiers, and the source of a small
''rivulet'' locally called Chico River ('little river') which empties into the Aguadilla Bay.
[ With .]
The park is located in
downtown Aguadilla and, in addition to the Ojo de Agua, it commemorates historic figures from the history of Aguadilla such as poet José de Diego.
History
Before the establishment of El Parterre, the Ojo de Agua served as a water source for the first European settlers of modern-day Aguadilla. Before the founding of Aguadilla, the site around the water source was used by
Sir Francis Drake
Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 ( ...
as a resupplying base in 1595. The spring kept being used as a primary water source for Spanish soldiers and later on by the first European settlers of the region between the 16th and 18th centuries, who named the new town ''San Carlos de La Aguadilla'' partially after the Ojo de Agua (Aguadilla is also the diminutive of
Aguada, the name of the older town located directly to the south). The site was also visited and mentioned by the
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
monk and historian
Fray Inigo Abad y La Sierra, who described it as a site of great beauty.
The first foundations of El Parterre were established by
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
** Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
engineer Enrique Hau (Heinrich Hau) who built a mortar and stone enclosure around the spring and a shallow brick pool and stone channel along the stream in 1852. The ''Puente de la Reina'' ('the Queen's Bridge') was added to the plaza by orders of Spanish magistrate Adolfo Ruiz in 1865, and the rest of the park was completed in 1882, by then mayor Don Ramón Méndez de Arcay.
The park and spring were listed on the U.S.
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...
in 1986.
[.]
Gallery
File:El Parterre gate - Aguadilla Puerto Rico.jpg, Entrance gate (2017)
File:El Parterre and stream - Aguadilla Puerto Rico.jpg, Bridge over the Río Chico (2017)
File:Ojo de Agua 4 - Aguadilla Puerto Rico.jpg, ''Puente de la Reina'' (2017)
File:Ojo de Agua 1 - Aguadilla Puerto Rico.jpg, El Ojo de Agua (2017)
File:El Parterre in Aguadilla IMG 0831.jpg, El Parterre stream (2022)
File:Aguadilla - The Public Spring.jpg, Spring circa 1907
See also
* National Register of Historic Places listings in western Puerto Rico
References
External links
*
1851 establishments in Puerto Rico
National Register of Historic Places in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Springs of Puerto Rico
Parks on the National Register of Historic Places
Buildings and structures completed in 1851
Buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico
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