Humberstone is a
ghost town
A ghost town, deserted city, extinct town, or abandoned city is an abandoned settlement, usually one that contains substantial visible remaining buildings and infrastructure such as roads. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economi ...
in the
Atacama desert
The Atacama Desert () is a desert plateau located on the Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast of South America, in the north of Chile. Stretching over a strip of land west of the Andes Mountains, it covers an area of , which increases to if the barre ...
of
Chile
Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in western South America. It is the southernmost country in the world and the closest to Antarctica, stretching along a narrow strip of land between the Andes, Andes Mountains and the Paci ...
.
History
The town was founded as "La Palma" in 1872 for workers at the adjacent
potassium nitrate
Potassium nitrate is a chemical compound with a sharp, salty, bitter taste and the chemical formula . It is a potassium salt of nitric acid. This salt consists of potassium cations and nitrate anions , and is therefore an alkali metal nit ...
extraction plant of the Peruvian Nitrate Company.
later became the
CEO
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization.
CEOs find roles in variou ...
of the Peruvian Nitrate Company.
See also
*
War of the Pacific
The War of the Pacific (), also known by War of the Pacific#Etymology, multiple other names, was a war between Chile and a Treaty of Defensive Alliance (Bolivia–Peru), Bolivian–Peruvian alliance from 1879 to 1884. Fought over Atacama Desert ...
*
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works are two former saltpeter refineries located in northern Chile. They were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005, as a testament to the historical importance of saltpeter mining in Chile and the cul ...
*
List of Saltpeter works in Tarapacá and Antofagasta
The use of Nitratine or Chilean Saltpeter once an important source of nitrates for fertilizer and other chemical uses including gunpowder and fireworks.
The commencement of the export of nitrates to the Europe and the US in the 1830s marked the mo ...
Notes and references
External links
An image of Humberstone
Mines in Chile
Atacama Desert
Ghost towns in South America
Populated places in Tarapacá Region
Protected areas of Tarapacá Region
National Monuments of Chile
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