The Old Piedras River Aqueduct (Spanish: ''Antiguo acueducto del Río Piedras''), also known as the San Juan Waterworks (''Acueductos de San Juan''), is an aqueduct in the ''

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...

'' (district) of El Cinco of

San Juan, Puerto Rico San Juan (, , ; Spanish for "Saint John") is the capital city and most populous municipality in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2020 census, it is the 57th-largest city under the jur ...

. It is by the Piedras River, next to the University of Puerto Rico Botanical Garden. This aqueduct dates to the mid 19th century and it was important for the urban development of

Río Piedras Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

History

The development of an aqueduct at the site by the Piedras River dates to 1825 and it was important to the urban development of

, then known as El Roble. The waterworks were critical for their supply of clean water which was fundamental to the city's growth along a main corridor that still exists as Ponce de León Avenue. The original design of the existing aqueduct structure dates to 1847 and was designed by engineer Juan Manuel Lomber. The waterworks went through many upgrades since then done by American British engineers that were completed by the time of the Spanish-American War of 1898, with some main components installed some years later, between 1917 and 1918. The Puerto Rico Conservation Trust (''Para la Naturaleza'') currently manages 9 out of the 23 acres of the historic site, and since 2007 has been working with the

National Trust for Historic Preservation The National Trust for Historic Preservation is a privately funded, nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., that works in the field of historic preservation in the United States. The member-supported organization was founded in 1949 by ...

to preserve the site. The nonprofit organization proclaimed the historic district a National Treasure in 2014. Current plans for the district include the restoration the site's facilities for use as a visitor center dedicated to research, recreation, and education about the benefits of water resource conservation.

Historic district

The aqueduct and its surrounding buildings were added as the Acueducto de San Juan

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

to the

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 v ...

on June 21, 2007. The historic district is composed of a small weir that supplied water from the Piedras River; a valve room; six sedimentation and filtration tanks; an engine room with its carbon deposit; and an employee house.

References

External links

Official website (Para la Naturaleza)

Official website (National Trust for Historic Preservation)
{{NRHP in San Juan, Puerto Rico, collapse_state=collapsed Protected areas of Puerto Rico National Register of Historic Places in San Juan, Puerto Rico Tourist attractions in San Juan, Puerto Rico Aqueducts on the National Register of Historic Places 1840s establishments in Puerto Rico Infrastructure on the National Register of Historic Places in Puerto Rico Infrastructure completed in 1847 Infrastructure in Puerto Rico Aqueducts in Puerto Rico 1847 establishments in the Spanish Empire

History

Historic district

See also

References

External links