The Antiguo Cuartel Militar Español de Ponce or El Castillo ('Old Spanish Military Headquarters in Ponce' or 'The Castle') is the only structure directly related to the events of the land defense of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

during the 1898 American invasion of the Island.Mariano G. Coronas Castro, Certifying Official; Felix J. del Campo, State Historian; and Hector Santiago, Assistant to State Historian, Puerto Rico Historic Preservation Office. (San Juan, Puerto Rico) 7 April 1987. In ''National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form''. United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. (Washington, D.C.) Page 2. Listing Reference Number 87000772. 14 May 1987. The historic building dates from 1894 and is located on Calle Castillo in

Ponce, Puerto Rico Ponce ( , , ) is a city and a Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the southern coast of Puerto Rico. The most populated city outside the San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Juan metropolitan area, Ponce was founded on August 12, 1692Some publ ...

, in the city's historic district. The structure was listed on the U.S.

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

on 14 May 1987.

History

"''El Castillo''", as this building is commonly known, was built in 1894 by the Spanish Royal Corps of Engineers as general headquarters for the Spanish military garrison stationed in Ponce. Since 1898, when Puerto Rico became a possession of the

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, this structure has served various purposes, first as

courthouse A courthouse or court house is a structure which houses judicial functions for a governmental entity such as a state, region, province, county, prefecture, regency, or similar governmental unit. A courthouse is home to one or more courtrooms, ...

and later as district jailhouse. It was being used as a district jail house in 1987.Mariano G. Coronas Castro, Certifying Official; Felix J. del Campo, State Historian; and Hector Santiago, Assistant to State Historian, Puerto Rico Historic Preservation Office. (San Juan, Puerto Rico) 7 April 1987. In ''National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form''. United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. (Washington, D.C.) Page 3. Listing Reference Number 87000772. 14 May 1987. In the late 1980s, it ceased to be used as a district jail, was reconditioned, and in 1992 it was inaugurated as the headquarters of the Ponce School of Fine Arts, which is its role. The building was designed by the Spanish Royal Corps of Engineers. The architecture consists of 19th Century Civil Architecture. It is one of the largest Neoclassic Isabelino civil architecture structures built in Ponce during the 19th century. Its sober exterior walls help express its intended original use. The building played a significant role in law enforcement during the last years of the

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 countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

colonial rule for southern Puerto Rico and has played a significant role for both law enforcement and judicial purposes since then.

Significance

The Spanish garrison stationed in Ponce at the time of the arrival of the American troops in 1898 played a significant role in the defense of the island. While the Spanish commander in charge of the Ponce garrison had determined it was not possible to defend the city of Ponce from the American advance at the time, the Ponce troops, together with the aid of other smaller garrisons, held the Asomante area preventing the U.S. Army from invading Aibonito in their advance to the conquest of fortified areas of

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

. The Ponce garrison also helped the

Guayama Guayama (, ), officially the Autonomous Municipality of Guayama (), is a Guayama barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the Caribbean Sea, Caribbean coast of Puerto Rico. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 ...

garrison in its attempt to detain American troops from taking that city. "This is the only structure directly related to these andevents that has been identified to date".

Description

The building consists of a two level square structure with an interior

courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary a ...

. It is built in brick and stone masonry; timber beams and brick layers were used for the roof and floors. The interior courtyard is surrounded by open-arched galleries in both levels. During the time when the building was being used as a district jail in 1987, the galleries provided the foundation of the jail barracks. A repetition of windows over the facade's plane without any ornament gives the building an austere appearance, typical of military architecture developed during the Spanish period in Puerto Rico. The building still preserves its original lead gutters in the form of

cannon A cannon is a large-caliber gun classified as a type of artillery, which usually launches a projectile using explosive chemical propellant. Gunpowder ("black powder") was the primary propellant before the invention of smokeless powder during th ...

s. The building has been altered little since its original construction. The most significant alteration has been the replacement of the original wooden

louver A louver (American English) or louvre (Commonwealth English; American and British English spelling differences#-re, -er, see spelling differences) is a window blind or window shutter, shutter with horizontal wikt:slat, slats that are angle ...

s windows with metal louvered windows. Also, iron bars have been added to its interior openings. The building has also been upgraded in two rather minimal ways: the interior

was repaved and modern sanitary facilities were installed.

Notes

References

External links

*
Escuela de Bellas Artes de Ponce

Cuartel Militar Español in 1911, when it served as the Puerto Rico Court for the Ponce district
Accessed 14 July 2020. {{DEFAULTSORT:Antiguo Cuartel Militar Espanol De Ponce Government buildings completed in 1894 National Register of Historic Places in Ponce, Puerto Rico Forts in Puerto Rico Neoclassical architecture in Puerto Rico Spanish Colonial architecture in Puerto Rico 1894 establishments in Puerto Rico Forts on the National Register of Historic Places Government buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico