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Ponce Attractions & ActivitiesHistoric Sites
Ready to look into the past and learn about the heritage of this fascinating city? We list historic homes, plantations, battlegrounds, and churches that are rich in history and provide for an educational travel diversion.
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
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Ponce is an architecture lover's city. Approximately 600 of the city's 1000 historic buildings have been restored. Calle Reina Isabel is the best area to get a taste of the local styles. Neoclassical overtones are visible – in Ponce this means balconies and facades of pink marble. "Ponce Creole" is another name for the Spanish colonial style of...
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Plaza las Delicias, Ponce
Ponce's City Hall was originally built in the 1840's and served first as a monastery, then as the meeting place for the general assembly and later as the city jail. In 1905 the building was converted to the city hall and note worthies such as Herbert Hoover, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt and George Bush have visited here. Several plaques...
Cathedral of Our Lady of Guadalupe
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Calle Concordia and Calle Union, Ponce
A place of worship has been located in this spot on the western edge of the Plaza Las Delicias since 1660 when the first simple chapel was constructed here. Fires and earthquakes destroyed each of these buildings. The gothic/Doric cathedral that stands today was built in 1931. The cathedral is still an active house of worship and mass is said...
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Rte 10, Km 16.8, Barrio Magüeyes
A short 30-minute drive north of Ponce is this fascinating 150-year-old plantation. Built in 1833, the farm produced coffee, corn and citrus until the 1950s. Today 86 acres of the estate have been renovated and act as a "working farm" and museum. The original water wheels and hydraulic turbines turn the mills. The main house is furnished with...
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: 17 El Vigia, Ponce
This impressive manor is located high on Vigia Hill overlooking the city of Ponce. The family that owned the Don Q rum distillery built the house in the 1930s. The Spanish Revival-style home features Moorish and Andalusian accents. The terraced gardens and courtyard are key features of the property. There is a café and souvenir shop on the...
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: 51 Calle Isabel, Ponce
Ten rooms of photographs and exhibits highlight Ponce's history during the "golden years" in the 19th century. The museum is located in a gorgeous house called Casa Salazar. Built in 1911 it boasts neoclassical and Moorish details including pressed tin ceilings, mosaics, stained glass windows, interior courtyards and porch balconies.
Parque de Bombas (Ponce Firehouse)
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Plaza Las Delicias, Ponce
Ponce's most photographed landmark was originally built in 1882 to house an agricultural exposition. From 1883 until 1989 it was the headquarters of the volunteer fire-fighting brigade, and today it is a museum. The building is impossible to miss thanks to its unique facade – the exterior is painted red with black stripes. A free concert is...
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Calle Mayor and Calle Christina, Ponce
This neoclassical theater is the largest in the Spanish speaking Caribbean and hosts everything from plays and concerts to beauty pageants. Originally built in 1864 it was destroyed by an earthquake in 1918 but renovated and reopened in 1941. The theater is famous for its acoustics – sound from the stage is so clear that microphones are...
Tibes Indian Ceremonial Center
Category: Historic Sites - Ponce Attractions & Activities
Address: Rte 503, Km 2.2, Tibes
This fascinating site was discovered in 1975 when heavy rains uncovered shards of pottery. Tibes is the oldest cemetery in the Antilles with skeletons dating from 300 A.D. and plazas dating from 700 A.D. In addition to the graves, you can view a Taino village complete with huts, dance and sporting fields, as well as an area similar to Stonehenge....
