Abolition Park
Encyclopedia
Parque de la Abolicion is a city park in Ponce, Puerto Rico
. The park is the only park in the Caribbean
dedicated to commemorating the abolition of slavery
.
depicting a black male slave with broken chains depicting he is now a free man
. A 100-foot high obelisk
raises just behind the black iron sculpture
of the freed slave that accentuates and gives instance to the occasion. The monument and obelisk are surrounded by graceful gardens. Immediately north of the obelisk is the outdoors acoustic
amphitheater known as La Concha Acustica (English: The Acoustic Shell) which completes the park as a complete triangular city block. La Concha Acustica is an open-air auditorium used as a music venue, including presentations by the Ponce Municipal Band
. La Concha Acustica can seat up to 2,000 people. It was remodeled in 1956 by Francisco Porrata Doria
, and architect from Ponce.
, sugar cane, and gold mining
industries in Puerto Rico. During the 18th century, as gold mining ceased to be one of the major industries in Puerto Rico, slaves worked mostly in coffee plantations and sugar cane fields. By royal proclamation slavery was abolished on March 22, 1873.
, Juan Mayoral Barnés, and Román Baldorioty de Castro
were instrumental in creating the concept for a park dedicated to the commemorating the abolition of slavery, the only such memorial in the Caribbean
. Juan Mayoral Barnés brought the idea for the creation of the park to the Ponce Municipal Assembly on March 14, 1880. It was unanimously approved by the Assembly, and ratified by the Central Government, and confirmed by Royal Decree on March 1, 1881. The park was built and, in 1956, under the administration of Ponce mayor Andrés Grillasca Salas
, the statue of the freed slave was placed at the base of the obelisk. The sculpture of the freed slave is a work of Victor Colt.
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
. The park is the only park in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
dedicated to commemorating the abolition of slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
.
Location and features
The park is located on Avenida Hostos at the fork of Salud Street and Marina Street. The centerpiece of the park is a monumentMonument
A monument is a type of structure either explicitly created to commemorate a person or important event or which has become important to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, or simply as an example of historic architecture...
depicting a black male slave with broken chains depicting he is now a free man
Free Man
Free Man is a studio album by Jamaican reggae singer Burning Spear, released in 2003.It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album at the 46th Grammy Awards in 2004.-Track listing:#"Trust"#"We Feel It"#"Ha Ha"#"Not Guilty"...
. A 100-foot high obelisk
Obelisk
An obelisk is a tall, four-sided, narrow tapering monument which ends in a pyramid-like shape at the top, and is said to resemble a petrified ray of the sun-disk. A pair of obelisks usually stood in front of a pylon...
raises just behind the black iron sculpture
Sculpture
Sculpture is three-dimensional artwork created by shaping or combining hard materials—typically stone such as marble—or metal, glass, or wood. Softer materials can also be used, such as clay, textiles, plastics, polymers and softer metals...
of the freed slave that accentuates and gives instance to the occasion. The monument and obelisk are surrounded by graceful gardens. Immediately north of the obelisk is the outdoors acoustic
Musical acoustics
Musical acoustics or music acoustics is the branch of acoustics concerned with researching and describing the physics of music – how sounds employed as music work...
amphitheater known as La Concha Acustica (English: The Acoustic Shell) which completes the park as a complete triangular city block. La Concha Acustica is an open-air auditorium used as a music venue, including presentations by the Ponce Municipal Band
Ponce Municipal Band
The Ponce Municipal Band is the municipal band of the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The band is the oldest continuously-performing band in the Caribbean. It has performed its open-air concerts for over 125 years. The current director is Rubén Colón Tarrats...
. La Concha Acustica can seat up to 2,000 people. It was remodeled in 1956 by Francisco Porrata Doria
Francisco Porrata Doria
Francisco Porrata-Doria was a twentieth-century Puerto Rican architect from Ponce, Puerto Rico. Porrata-Doria was a pioneer in the development of the local modern architecture and one of the architects responsible for what has been called "Ponce Monumental Architecture", of which the Banco Crédito...
, and architect from Ponce.
History
Slaves were brought to Puerto Rico from Africa during th 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. They were brought to the Island to replace the local Indian slaves who had been desumated. The new slaves worked the coffeeCoffee
Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...
, sugar cane, and gold mining
Gold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
industries in Puerto Rico. During the 18th century, as gold mining ceased to be one of the major industries in Puerto Rico, slaves worked mostly in coffee plantations and sugar cane fields. By royal proclamation slavery was abolished on March 22, 1873.
Park creation
In 1874, a year after the abolition of slavery, a group of citizens built a small park in memory of the historic event. In 1880 Olimpio OteroOlimpio Otero
Olimpio Otero Vergés was a merchart, attorney, composer, musical editor, and a political leader in Ponce, Puerto Rico.-Merchant:As a merchant, Otero Vergés led the Agricultural and Industrial Tabacco Exposition held in Ponce in 1883, just a year after the successful 1882 Exposition Fair that was...
, Juan Mayoral Barnés, and Román Baldorioty de Castro
Román Baldorioty de Castro
Román Baldorioty de Castro distinguished himself as one of Puerto Rico's foremost abolitionists and spokesman for the island's right to self-determination...
were instrumental in creating the concept for a park dedicated to the commemorating the abolition of slavery, the only such memorial in the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
. Juan Mayoral Barnés brought the idea for the creation of the park to the Ponce Municipal Assembly on March 14, 1880. It was unanimously approved by the Assembly, and ratified by the Central Government, and confirmed by Royal Decree on March 1, 1881. The park was built and, in 1956, under the administration of Ponce mayor Andrés Grillasca Salas
Andrés Grillasca Salas
Andrés Grillasca Salas was a Puerto Rican politician and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1941 to 1956. He was born in the neighboring town of Adjuntas in 1888...
, the statue of the freed slave was placed at the base of the obelisk. The sculpture of the freed slave is a work of Victor Colt.