CULTURAL TOURISM IN SITES OF MINING HERITAGE
This is one of the most emblematic buildings of the city, it was built in 1776 to collect the “King’s fifth” tax and control the sale of mercury. It was built according to parameters established for this kind of buildings: with a central patio, two back patios and two floors. The second story housed rooms for Royal employees and their families. The central patio was used for offices, mercury (indispensable in amalgamation processing system) storages, carriage depots, a house with a living room and a bedroom, and two rooms for servants. Stables, straw rooms, corrals and bathrooms were located at the back patios.
This place was built during the 1830’s to house the office of the Company of Adventurers in the Mines of Real del Monte, business founded in 1824 at London, England to exploit the silver mines property of the third Count of Regla, in Real del Monte and Pachuca. Throughout its history this building has been School of Arts and Crafts, barracks, Industrial Technical School and since the mid-20th Century Justo Sierra elementary school is located there. Only the facade is original, its interior was completely remodeled.
It was built by Francisco Rule in 1896 with a double purpose: to be used as administrative offices on the ground floor, and as house for his family on the first floor. In 1944, the government of the state acquired the building to install the Executive Power, afterwards, in 1970 the site became the headquarters office of the Superior Court of Justice and since 1985 Pachuca City Hall is located there. This house is at the corner of Morelos and Leandro Valle streets, two blocks from the Monumental Clock.
This is a beautiful neoclassical building from the end of the 19th century built in 1874, its facade includes the mining symbols which give testimony of its origin. It initially served as offices –ground floor- of the company known as Negociación Minera de San Rafael y Anexas and house of the business directors. After the dissolution of this company, in the second half of the 20th century, this building was used as night school for workers, elementary school, and school for teachers and since 1987 this place is the headquarters office of the Historical Archive and Museum of Mining, Civil Association.
This church was financed mostly by Pedro Romero de Terreros, first Count of Regla and his daughter María Micaela. There are several versions affirming that Mr. Pedro is buried in one of the altars; the holy water basins are big natural shells donated by Ms. María Micaela.
At the end of the 16th century, a permit was granted to the religious order known as juaninos to build the San Juan de Dios Hospital; currently this place belongs to the Autonomous University of the State of Hidalgo, in the city of Pachuca. Due to several reasons its construction, together with the Guadalupe Chapel, started 123 years after in 1725, since then until the 1860’s, this place was supported by charity, the aid of the Count of Regla and Real del Monte and Pachuca Company, as well as from the government of the state.
Is the oldest temple of the city. The first church was built with adobe and wooden roof in 1553 and it became a parish in 1569 invocating “The Holy Virgin Ascending to the Skies”; there is a book from 1568 kept in the church’s archives that says with gothic letters “Book to record baptisms and marriages both of Spaniards and Indians residing in this Real de Tlahualipan, mining district of Pachuca”. The importance that this place had reflects in the fact that the first bridge over the river was built in front La Asunción Church (1782).
These buildings were mainly erected in order to serve those immigrants who did not take communion with catholic religion. Between 1824 and 1947 the region of Pachuca and Real del Monte received, more than once, British immigrants who arrived to our country looking for better life conditions. The group of English that arrived by the end of the 19th century, together with American immigrants, inherited us one of the most important architectonic complexes of the city of Pachuca: the Methodist School built in 1877 and the Methodist Episcopal Temple which was constructed between 1882 and 1900.
The Clock was inaugurated in 1910, and throughout the years it has become the symbol of the city. The Project was the work of Architect Tomás Cordero y Osio, who graduated in 1895 from the National School of Fine Arts. The carillon of the clock was purchased in England, the stone was brought from the banks of Tezoantla, Real del Monte municipality, and the sculptures representing Mexican historical periods Independence (1810), Freedom (1821), Constitution (1857) and Reform (1859), were elaborated using Carrara marble. The cost of the monument was covered by mining companies.
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Archive photos AHMMAC, contemporary photos Marco Antonio Hernández, © Copyright All rights reserved.