Isla de Cabras (

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, Cana ...

for ''

goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...

island'') is an islet located at the entrance of the

San Juan Bay San Juan Bay ( es, Bahía de San Juan) is the bay and main inlet adjacent to Old San Juan in northeastern Puerto Rico. It is about in length, the largest body of water in an estuary of about of channels, inlets and eight interconnected lagoons ...

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

. It is part of the Palo Seco barrio of the municipality of

Toa Baja Toa Baja (, ) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the northern coast, north of Toa Alta and Bayamón; east of Dorado; and west of Cataño. Toa Baja is spread over five barrios, including Toa Baja Pueblo (the downtown area and ...

. Isla de Cabras is the current location of: * Fortín San Juan de la Cruz, also known as

El Cañuelo EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

. * A recently opened recreational park. * A local police firing range. Island has been a place of many uses during its history.

History

Spanish Fortification

Due to its strategic location at the entrance of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John, may refer to: Places Argentina * San Juan Province, Argentina * San Juan, Argentina, the capital of that province * San Juan, Salta, a village in Iruya, Salta Province * San Juan (Buenos Aires Underground), ...

Bay, Isla de Cabras provided a strategic point for an effective crossfire with

Fort San Felipe del Morro Castillo San Felipe del Morro, also known as El Morro, is a citadel built between 16th and 18th centuries in San Juan, Puerto Rico.ww ...

to prevent incoming ships from entering. It also provided defenses for the entrance of the

Bayamón River The Bayamón River ( es, Río de Bayamón) is a river of Puerto Rico beginning at an elevation of approximately 1,476 ft in barrio Beatriz in Cidra, Puerto Rico. It is slightly over 30 miles long and travels through several municipalities: Ci ...

on the other side of the islet.

Leper Colony

Ruinas del antiguo leprocomio, Islote de Cabras, Palo Seco, Toa Baja, Puerto Rico

At the end of the 19th century, a

leper Leprosy, also known as Hansen's disease (HD), is a long-term infection by the bacteria ''Mycobacterium leprae'' or ''Mycobacterium lepromatosis''. Infection can lead to damage of the nerves, respiratory tract, skin, and eyes. This nerve damage ...

colony was established on the island. On December 17, 1876, the governor of

, Segundo de la Portilla, set the first stone of the official building to house lepers, which was completed in 1883. However, it is believed that the colony was established prior to construction of the building. Upon the occupation of

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

troops in 1898, management of the building was handed over to the government of the island. According to the 1910 US Census, there were 35 people living on the island at that time. In 1926, a leper asylum was built on the main island (

Trujillo Alto Trujillo Alto (, ) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Northern Coastal Plain, on the boundary between the karst zone and Sierra de Luquillo, north of Caguas, and Gurabo; southeast of San Juan, and west of Carolina. Trujil ...

) next to a church, and the residents of the colony were moved there. However, the original building still stands on Isla de Cabras.

American Fortification

In the 1940s, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

built Fort Amezquita (named for

Juan de Amézqueta Juan de Amézqueta (born c. 1595), was a captain in the Puerto Rican Militia who defended Puerto Rico from an invasion by the Dutch in 1625. He fought and wounded Captain Balduino Enrico (Boudewijn Hendricksz) who was ordered by the Dutch Governm ...

), a few hundred feet from

. The fort was initially called the "Cabras Island Military Reservation". During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

this fort served as a "concrete gun battery" for the US Army Coast Artillery Corps. In November 1940 the US Army transferred the barrels of three 12-inch coastal guns from

Fort Delaware Fort Delaware is a former harbor defense facility, designed by chief engineer Joseph Gilbert Totten and located on Pea Patch Island in the Delaware River.Dobbs, Kelli W., et al. During the American Civil War, the Union used Fort Delaware as a ...

Delaware Delaware ( ) is a state in the Mid-Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Maryland to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and New Jersey and the Atlantic Ocean to its east. The state takes its name from the adjacent Del ...

; two of these guns were mounted in the fort as Battery Reed with the third as a spare. They were on long-range M1917

barbette Barbettes are several types of gun emplacement in terrestrial fortifications or on naval ships. In recent naval usage, a barbette is a protective circular armour support for a heavy gun turret. This evolved from earlier forms of gun protection ...

carriages and protected by concrete

casemate A casemate is a fortified gun emplacement or armored structure from which artillery, guns are fired, in a fortification, warship, or armoured fighting vehicle.Webster's New Collegiate Dictionary When referring to Ancient history, antiquity, th ...

Shooting Range & Recreational Park

In recent years, the grounds that belonged to Fort Amezquita were converted into a shooting range and training area by the P.R.P.D. Ownership of the remaining acres of land were under legal dispute, until they were finally transferred to the Department of Sports and Recreation and opened to the public as the Isla de Cabras Recreational Park, which is equipped with several gazebos and includes a beach for swimming and fishing.

Gallery

Places and views of Isla de Cabras: Isla de Cabras, Barrio Palo Seco, Toa Baja, Puerto Rico.jpg, Isla de Cabras with El Morro in the background Rocks on Isla de Cabras, Puerto Rico.jpg Isla de Cabras, at the entrance of the San Juan Bay in Puerto Rico.jpg Isla-cabra-5.jpg, One of the main

gazebo A gazebo is a pavilion structure, sometimes octagonal or turret-shaped, often built in a park, garden or spacious public area. Some are used on occasions as bandstands. Etymology The etymology given by Oxford Dictionaries (website), Oxford D ...

s at Isla de Cabras Recreational Park (2005) Isla de Cabras en Puerto Rico.jpg, Isla de Cabras Isla de Cabras, Puerto Rico.jpg, Aerial view of Isla de Cabras

References

External links

Bio-political History of Isla de Cabras Leper Colony and the Problematics of the Memorialization of Suffering''
by Adriana María Garriga López, Columbia University {{DEFAULTSORT:Isla De Cabras Leper colonies Cabras, Isla de Toa Baja, Puerto Rico Tourist attractions in Puerto Rico Medical and health organizations based in Puerto Rico