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Museo Hacienda Buena Vista is a historic coffee
plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
farm museum in Barrio Magueyes,
Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce (, , , ) is both a city and a municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government. Ponce, Puerto Rico's most populated city outside the San Juan metropolitan area, was founded on 12 August 1 ...
. The
museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...
opened in 1987, and receives some 40,000 visitors a year.''Con taller de catación: Salda prolífico año Hacienda Buena Vista.''
Gary Gutiérrez. La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. Week of 3–10 November 2010. Obsolete link updated 24 January 2019.
The museum has been described as "Puerto Rico's first living museum of art and science." The original plantation belonged to the Vives family and dates from the 19th century. The structures and land are now owned by the ''Fideicomiso de Conservación'' (Puerto Rico Conservation Trust), who operates the museum. It is located on of fertile land that includes a humid subtropical forest some north of Ponce on Route PR-123,"Gente."
La Perla del Sur. Ponce, Puerto Rico. ''Gente'' section. Story 3. 2 September 2009.
in Corral Viejo, a community in Barrio Magueyes. Museo Hacienda Buena Vista is today a well-known educational destination. The machinery of the original Hacienda has been put in motion again, farm animals roam the grounds, the farmhouse rooms have been furnished, and the scent of freshly roasted coffee fills the surrounding air. Visitors can take tours through the old Vives country home and explore the plantation buildings and grounds. Authentic 19th-century farm machinery is exhibited that shows how a coffee plantation worked in the 1880s.


History

The plantation was started by Don
Salvador de Vives Salvador de Vives Rodó (1784 – 24 November 1845), also known as Salvador Vives, was a Puerto Rican hacendado and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico, from 1 January 1840 to 5 January 1842 and then again from 1 January 1844 to 24 November 1845. Hi ...
in 1833.''Hacienda Buena Vista.''
Fideicomiso de Conservación de Puerto Rico. 2016. Accessed 30 May 2016.
''Hacienda Buena Vista.''
Arlene Pabón. U.S. National Park Service: National Register of Historic Places Registration Form. Page 7. Puerto Rico State Historic Preservation Office. 9 September 1994. Accessed 30 May 2016.
The plantation house (the "Manor House") was built in the Spanish Colonial style, with the surrounding buildings being built in the local ''
criollo Criollo or criolla (Spanish for creole) may refer to: People * Criollo people, a social class in the Spanish race-based colonial caste system (the European descendants) Animals * Criollo duck, a species of duck native to Central and South Ameri ...
'' style. De Vives set up the farm to sell its produce in the Ponce market and in the sugarcane estates along the southern coast. Originally, the Vives estate covered . In 1845, the son of
Don Don, don or DON and variants may refer to: Places *County Donegal, Ireland, Chapman code DON *Don (river), a river in European Russia *Don River (disambiguation), several other rivers with the name *Don, Benin, a town in Benin *Don, Dang, a vill ...
Salvador added a
corn mill A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and middlings. The term can refer to either the grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist is grain that has been separate ...
operation to the profitable fruit and vegetable production. Later, Don Salvador's grandson oversaw the addition of
coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...
growing and processing to the plantains and cornmeal, taking advantage of the great coffee-growing boom of the 1880s and 1890s. Don Salvador's son as well as his grandson introduced some of the most innovative farm machinery on the island, powered by a nearby waterfall. Eventually Hacienda Buena Vista would become one of the most successful plantations in the mountains of Puerto Rico. By 1900, a series of turn-of-the-20th-century hurricanes and the failing coffee market, brought operations at the Hacienda to a standstill and gradually Hacienda Buena Vista fell into disrepair and was partially abandoned. By 1937
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people t ...
had seriously declined in Puerto Rico, and the plantation business was abandoned, becoming mostly a weekend country house for the Vives heirs. Worker barracks, outbuildings and equipment deteriorated rapidly under the humid tropical climate and rainfall. As a result of a new law passed by the Legislature of Puerto Rico in 1956 intended to provide land to local farmers, the government of Puerto Rico expropriated most of the lands of Hacienda Buena Vista. Only 87 acres of land remained with the Vives, including the
manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...
and the water channel system. These remaining 87 acres of lands were acquired by the Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico in 1984, with the intention of restoring the hacienda. Despite the grave deterioration of the coffee-processing machinery and the farm buildings, the Conservation Trust managed to restore the estate so that it could be used to educate the public about the golden era of fine coffee growing in the mountains of Puerto Rico. The original owners donated many of the furnishings, and the Conservation Trust purchased other authentic pieces. In 1986, the Trust had completed the restoration and turned it into a museum. The museum opened in 1987 and has operated uninterrupted since. It is the only such museum in Puerto Rico. In 1988, the Trust also entirely reconstructed the coffee mill to its 1892 look. And, while the Vives family had rebuilt their coffee mill after 1928, the Trust chose to reconstruct an approximation of the earlier coffee mill of 1892.R. Sackett, p. 15.


Significance

The Museum is significant for various reasons. First, it contains the only remaining example of the Barker hydraulic turbine, which was the first reaction type turbine ever made. It was nominated as a Mechanical Engineering landmark by the American Society of Mechanical Engineers in July 1994.R. Sackett, p. 16. The second reason the Museum is significant is that it offers one of the best remaining examples of a Puerto Rican coffee
plantation A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. The ...
. This is important because in the latter part of the nineteenth century the coffee produced in Puerto Rico and exported to Europe and the United States was considered among the finest in the world. It is said to have even been the favorite at the
Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...
at the time. Hacienda Buena Vista is also significant because it shows the evolution of the coffee industry in the region. Various periods can be appreciated. These range from the cultivation of produce such as plantains (1833–1845); to the production of flour (from rice and corn) (1847–1872). These products were staples for the subsistence of the local population.


Description of the museum

Museo Hacienda Buena Vista is both, and
open-air museum An open-air museum (or open air museum) is a museum that exhibits collections of buildings and artifacts out-of-doors. It is also frequently known as a museum of buildings or a folk museum. Definition Open air is “the unconfined atmosphere� ...
and an indoors museum. The Museum is located in Barrio Magueyes, in the municipality of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Located at an altitude of between 160 and 460 meters above sea level, the air is crispy cool at night and moist-to-humid during the day. The hills near the hacienda-museum are excellent for cultivating corn,
coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. Seeds of ...
, and fruits.R. Sackett, p. 6. This open-air museum is made up of an agricultural complex. Its main buildings are grouped together in a central area and the property includes 11 original buildings: the hacienda manor house, the carriage house, the horse stables, the mule stables, the caretaker's house and office, two warehouses, a hurricane shelter, the corn mill, and the slave quarters. There is a water canal system that is still operative, an aqueduct, and a house garden. The coffee bean processing building was rebuilt to look like the original 1892 building.


Manor House and related structures

The
manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were held the lord's manorial courts, communal meals w ...
is a 2-story 60x50ft building built in 1845, the main indoors attraction of the museum and the reference point for all other structures. The ground floor was designed to be used for storage. The second floor contains three bedrooms and a living room. The eastern half of the manor house is made of brick and includes a courtyard, the kitchen, two more bedrooms and a bathroom. The manor house also has garden surrounded by a
wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" ...
-and-brick fence. The garden served two purposes: "Historically, this garden served as the formal entrance to the hacienda complex; however, it was most often used as a private family place."R. Sackett, p. 13. The carriage house, stables, and a small caretaker's house are nearby.R. Sackett, p. 12. In addition mule stables and caretaker's office are also part of the museum patrons can access.R. Sackett, p. 14. Located opposite the manor house, is the
hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depend ...
shelter Shelter is a small building giving temporary protection from bad weather or danger. Shelter may also refer to: Places * Port Shelter, Hong Kong * Shelter Bay (disambiguation), various locations * Shelter Cove (disambiguation), various locatio ...
. It is a solid brick structure measuring . x , and built . above ground. Its walls, floor and ceiling were made to withstand or dissipate the destructive tropical storms that are common in this region.


Canal and aqueduct

A main attraction of the museum is the brick-and-mortar canal which is 18 inches deep by 12 inches wide, and is some long. A water drop height of 360 meters provides the energy needed to run the mills in the hacienda. The canal and aqueduct were finished in 1851. A series of manifolds are used for diverting the water according to the needs of the hacienda agricultural production: one gate diverts water to the water wheel and the corn mill water turbine, another gate diverts water to the fermentation tank, the ornamental washbasin, and the bath, and a third gate diverts water to a race which sends water back to the Canas River.


Coffee de-pulping and husking mill

The coffee de-pulping and husking mill is a 2-story wooden building located to the northwest of the museum's manor house. It originally housed the 1845 corn mill but in 1892, the structure was modified to become the coffee husking mill.R. Sackett, p. 8.


Corn mill and bean drying station

A second corn mill at the Hacienda Buena Vista Museum was built in 1854. It is a two-story wood-frame structure measuring . wide by long. The actual corn-milling work took place on the floor of this mill. Dried corn making it thru a hopper in this building was processed here. Grinding of the corn into corn meal occurred here. It was also packed into bags here. One of the canals of the aqueduct system ran underneath this building to power the corn mill above.R. Sackett, p. 9. A bean drying station is also part of the exhibits; this building dates from 1847. Thi building had previously served as slave quarters, but after the
abolition of slavery Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...
in Puerto Rico in 1873, it was converted into a bean drying building. The pans used for drying the coffee beans were kept in this building as well.


Legacy

On 16 July 1994, Robert B. Gaither of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers presented a plaque to the Puerto Rico Conservation Trust designating the Hacienda Buena Vista's hydraulic turbine as a National Historic Monument of Mechanical Engineering. The award was given in recognition not only of the value of the turbine but also of the extraordinary work the Conservation Trust carried in its restoration. R. Sackett, p. 23. A copy of the award is available for viewing at the museum's gift shop.


Gallery

Hacienda Buena Vista entrance sign, Barrio Magueyes, Ponce, Puerto Rico (IMG 3023).jpg, Sign on
PR-123 Puerto Rico Highway 123 (PR-123) is a secondary highway that connects the city Arecibo to the city of Ponce. It runs through the towns of Utuado and Adjuntas, before reaching Ponce. A parallel road is being built, PR-10, that is expected to tak ...
marking the entrance to the Museum Hacienda Buena Vista.JPG, The Manor House at Museo Hacienda Buena Vista


See also

* List of museums in Ponce, Puerto Rico * Casa Vives * Hacienda Lealtad


References


Further reading

* Baralt, Guillermo A. 1988. ''Hacienda Buena Vista.'' Puerto Rico Conservation Trust (Fideicomiso de Conservación). * Baralt, Guillermo A. 1989 ''Esclavos rebeldes: conspiraciones y sublevaciones de esclavos in Puerto Rico (1795–1873).'' Ediciones Huracán, Inc., Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico. * Boyer, William W. 1983. ''America's Virgin Islands. A History of Human Rights and Wrongs.'' Carolina Academic Press. Durham, North Carolina. * Buitrago, Carlos. 1892. ''Haciendas cafetaleras y clases terratenientes en el Puerto Rico decimononico.'' Editorial de la Universidad de Puerto Rico, Rio Piedras. * * Landers, Jane. 1990. "African Presence in Early Spanish Colonization." In ''Columbian Consequence. Volume 2. Archaeological and Historical Perspectives on the Spanish Borderlands East'', pp. 315–327, edited by D. H. Thomas. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington, D.C. * Vidal Armstrong, Mariano. 1988. ''Ponce, Notas para su Historia.'' Oficina de Preservación Histórica. San Juan, Puerto Rico. * Robert Sackett, Preservationist, PRSHPO (Original 1990 draft). Arleen Pabon, Certifying Official and State Historic Preservation Officer, State Historic Preservation Office, San Juan, Puerto Rico. 9 September 1994. In National Register of Historic Places Registration Form—Hacienda Buena Vista. United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. (Washington, D.C.)


External links

*
''Hacienda Buena Vista: Barker's Hydraulic Turbine (1851) - A National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark, Ponce, Puerto Rico; 16 July 1994; American Society of Mechanical Engineers & The Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico.'' 17 pages. Brochure prepared for the Site's Designation Ceremony as National Historic Engineering Landmark.

''American Society of Mechanical Engineers—Barker Turbine at Hacienda Buena Vista: A National Historic Mechanical Engineering Landmark.''


* ttp://community.iexplore.com/planning/journalEntryActivity.asp?JournalID=7966&EntryID=14427&n=Hacienda+Buena+Vista Hacienda Buena Vista at iExplore Now archived a
''WayBack Machine.''30 Sept 2007.


Now archived a




''Buena Vista: life and work on a Puerto Rican hacienda, 1833–1904
',
Guillermo A. Baralt Guillermo A. Baralt is a Puerto Rican historian. He obtained his bachelor's degree from Duquesne University in 1970. Later he continued his studies in the University of Chicago where he earned his Master's and Doctor's degrees. He is currently ...
. University of North Carolina Press, 1999. 183 pages. {{Authority control Museums in Ponce, Puerto Rico Spanish Colonial architecture in Puerto Rico Museums established in 1987 Historic house museums in Puerto Rico National Register of Historic Places in Ponce, Puerto Rico 1987 establishments in Puerto Rico
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 ...
Farm museums in Puerto Rico Mill museums in Puerto Rico Barrio Magueyes Farms on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico Coffee production Haciendas in Puerto Rico Farm museums 1833 establishments in Puerto Rico