Plaza Muñoz Rivera
Encyclopedia
Plaza Muñoz Rivera, formally Plaza Luis Muñoz Rivera, is the smaller of the two plazas (city squares) at Plaza Las Delicias
in the city of Ponce
, Puerto Rico
and is located on the north side of Las Delicias. The square is notable for its fountains and for the statue of Luis Muñoz Rivera
. The historic Parque de Bombas
and Ponce Cathedral
buildings are located immeditely to the south the Plaza Muñoz Rivera. The square is at the center of the Ponce Historic Zone
, and it is next to the Armstrong-Poventud Residence
to the west, and the Teatro Fox Delicias
to the north. The square dates back to the early Spanish settlement in Ponce of 1670. It is the main tourist attraction of the city, receiving about a quarter of a million visitors per year.
planted trees as a renovation project for the plaza. It was first lit in 1864. According to the traditional Spanish colonial custom, a town's main square, or plaza, was the center of the town. In the case of Ponce, a Catholic church was built on the center of the plaza, thus splitting the plaza into two sections: Plaza Muñoz Rivera to the north and Plaza Degetau to the south. The Plaza Las Delicias square is, thus, actually made up of two plazas. The north section of the square is named Plaza Luis Muñoz Rivera
(Luis Muñoz Rivera square), while the south section is called Plaza Federico Degetau
(Federico Degetau square). Plaza Las Delicias measures a little less than half of 8,800 square meters.
is made in bronze
and was unveiled in 1923. Luis Yordán Dávila
, mayor of Ponce at the time, was one of the main proponents of the monument. In addition to the statue of Munoz Rivera, this section of Plaza Las Delicias also has two fountains.
, and on the south by the Ponce Cathedral
and Parque de Bombas
. Two hotels, various banks, several boutiques, and the old 3-story Forenza building (now home to the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Architecture
) sorrouund this plaza. It is surrounded by hotels, banks, the Casa Armstrong-Poventud, the Teatro Fox Delicias
, and various boutiques and cafes.
trees, late 1800s lamposts, and numerous marble benches. The fountain is made of marble and bronze.
It is surrounded by a multitude of other historic sites such as Paseo Atocha
and the Subira Residence (now Ponce Ramada Hotel), among others. During the day, the plaza hustles with schoolchildren, shoppers, and tourists. After the sun sets, there are oftentimes live bands giving concerts to "multigenerational families."
Plaza Las Delicias
Plaza Las Delicias is the main plaza in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. The square is notable for its fountains and for the various monuments it contains. The historic Parque de Bombas and Ponce Cathedral buildings are located within Plaza Las Delicias. Plaza Las Delicias is actually composed of...
in the city of Ponce
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...
, Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
and is located on the north side of Las Delicias. The square is notable for its fountains and for the statue of Luis Muñoz Rivera
Luis Muñoz Rivera
Luis Muñoz Rivera was a Puerto Rican poet, journalist and politician. He was a major figure in the struggle for political autonomy of Puerto Rico....
. The historic Parque de Bombas
Parque de Bombas
Parque de Bombas is a historic firehouse building in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island". It is located at the Plaza Las Delicias town square, directly behind the Ponce Cathedral...
and Ponce Cathedral
Ponce Cathedral
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or simply, Ponce Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ponce located in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico. The cathedral lies in the middle of Ponce's town square, known as Plaza Las Delicias, located at the center of the Ponce Historic...
buildings are located immeditely to the south the Plaza Muñoz Rivera. The square is at the center of the Ponce Historic Zone
Ponce Historic Zone
The Ponce Historic Zone is a historic district in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico with construction that dates to the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The zone was originally designated in 1962, and then it only included the center core of the city, but it has since been expanded to...
, and it is next to the Armstrong-Poventud Residence
Armstrong-Poventud Residence
Residencia Armstrong-Poventud is a historic building located in the Ponce Historic Zone in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The construction of this home set the stage for the construction of other homes of similar architectural elements, character and opulence in turn-of-the-twentieth-century Ponce...
to the west, and the Teatro Fox Delicias
Teatro Fox Delicias
Teatro Fox Delicias is a historic building in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Inaugurated in 1931, it originally housed a movie house until 1980, then a shopping mall until 1998, and today it is reconfigured to be used as a hotel. Its architecture is Art Deco....
to the north. The square dates back to the early Spanish settlement in Ponce of 1670. It is the main tourist attraction of the city, receiving about a quarter of a million visitors per year.
History
The history of the plaza dates back to as far as the creation of the first Catholic chapel in Ponce in 1670. It is also known that around 1840 Mayor Salvador de VivesSalvador de Vives
Salvador de Vives Rodó was a Puerto Rican politician and Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1840 to 1842 and then again from 1844 to 1845. He was the son of Quirse Vives and Ana Maria Rodo. He was a wealthy coffee plantation owner who established the now historic Hacienda Buena Vista. Under de...
planted trees as a renovation project for the plaza. It was first lit in 1864. According to the traditional Spanish colonial custom, a town's main square, or plaza, was the center of the town. In the case of Ponce, a Catholic church was built on the center of the plaza, thus splitting the plaza into two sections: Plaza Muñoz Rivera to the north and Plaza Degetau to the south. The Plaza Las Delicias square is, thus, actually made up of two plazas. The north section of the square is named Plaza Luis Muñoz Rivera
Luis Muñoz Rivera
Luis Muñoz Rivera was a Puerto Rican poet, journalist and politician. He was a major figure in the struggle for political autonomy of Puerto Rico....
(Luis Muñoz Rivera square), while the south section is called Plaza Federico Degetau
Federico Degetau
Federico Degetau y González, born in Ponce was a Puerto Rican politician, lawyer, writer, author, and the first Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico to the United States House of Representatives.-Early years:...
(Federico Degetau square). Plaza Las Delicias measures a little less than half of 8,800 square meters.
Name
Plaza Luis Muñoz Rivera is situated to the north of the Ponce Cathedral and was originally known as Paseo de La Alameda, but today it is named after the famed Puerto Rican statesman Luis Muñoz Rivera. It is so named to honor the prominent poet, journalist, and politician by that name born in Barranquitas and whose statue stands prominently in the center of this plaza. The statue is the product of the foundry of Italian sculptor Luiggi Tomassi. in Pietrasanta, Italy. The Muñoz Rivera statueStatue
A statue is a sculpture in the round representing a person or persons, an animal, an idea or an event, normally full-length, as opposed to a bust, and at least close to life-size, or larger...
is made in bronze
Bronze
Bronze is a metal alloy consisting primarily of copper, usually with tin as the main additive. It is hard and brittle, and it was particularly significant in antiquity, so much so that the Bronze Age was named after the metal...
and was unveiled in 1923. Luis Yordán Dávila
Luis Yordán Dávila
Luis Leoncio Yordán Dávila was Mayor of Ponce, Puerto Rico from 1917 to 1918.-Origin:Yordan Davila was born on September 12, 1869, in Guayanilla, Puerto Rico, the son of Ramon Yordan Gonzalez and Cruz Davila Torres. His children were Luis Angel Yordan Pasarell, Rafael A. Yordan Pasarell, Oriol...
, mayor of Ponce at the time, was one of the main proponents of the monument. In addition to the statue of Munoz Rivera, this section of Plaza Las Delicias also has two fountains.
Location
Plaza Muñoz Rivera is bounded on the north by Plaza Muñoz Rivera street (also called Reina street and Isabel street), on the west by Union street, on the east by Atocha streetPaseo Atocha
Paseo Atocha is a pedestrian mall in the Ponce Historic Zone, a historic district in Ponce, Puerto Rico. For over a century Paseo Atocha was a commercial street opened to motor vehicle traffic. The street, which is now pedestrian-only, stretches over four blocks from Isabel Street to Vives Street...
, and on the south by the Ponce Cathedral
Ponce Cathedral
The Catedral de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe or simply, Ponce Cathedral, is the cathedral for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ponce located in downtown Ponce, Puerto Rico. The cathedral lies in the middle of Ponce's town square, known as Plaza Las Delicias, located at the center of the Ponce Historic...
and Parque de Bombas
Parque de Bombas
Parque de Bombas is a historic firehouse building in Ponce, Puerto Rico. It is one of Puerto Rico's most notable buildings, with some considering it "by far the most easily recognized landmark in the Island". It is located at the Plaza Las Delicias town square, directly behind the Ponce Cathedral...
. Two hotels, various banks, several boutiques, and the old 3-story Forenza building (now home to the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Architecture
Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Architecture
The Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico School of Architecture is located in the Ponce Historic Zone, across from Plaza Las Delicias. Together with the School of Law, it is one of two semi-autonomous professional colleges of the Pontifical Catholic University of Puerto Rico in the city...
) sorrouund this plaza. It is surrounded by hotels, banks, the Casa Armstrong-Poventud, the Teatro Fox Delicias
Teatro Fox Delicias
Teatro Fox Delicias is a historic building in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico. Inaugurated in 1931, it originally housed a movie house until 1980, then a shopping mall until 1998, and today it is reconfigured to be used as a hotel. Its architecture is Art Deco....
, and various boutiques and cafes.
Setting
The Plaza has wide mosaic-tile sidewalks, well-manicured flower gardens, well-trimmed bushes and Indian laurelIndian laurel
Indian laurel can refer to certain species of fig trees or banyans:* Ficus microcarpa * Ficus retusaThough the though leaves look somewhat similar, they are not at all related to Bay Laurel ....
trees, late 1800s lamposts, and numerous marble benches. The fountain is made of marble and bronze.
It is surrounded by a multitude of other historic sites such as Paseo Atocha
Paseo Atocha
Paseo Atocha is a pedestrian mall in the Ponce Historic Zone, a historic district in Ponce, Puerto Rico. For over a century Paseo Atocha was a commercial street opened to motor vehicle traffic. The street, which is now pedestrian-only, stretches over four blocks from Isabel Street to Vives Street...
and the Subira Residence (now Ponce Ramada Hotel), among others. During the day, the plaza hustles with schoolchildren, shoppers, and tourists. After the sun sets, there are oftentimes live bands giving concerts to "multigenerational families."
External links
- Plaza Las Delicias video - featuring the Lions Fountain
- Information about Ponce's touristic places
- West end of Plaza Muñoz Rivera c. early 1900s The famed Armstrong-Poventud ResidenceArmstrong-Poventud ResidenceResidencia Armstrong-Poventud is a historic building located in the Ponce Historic Zone in Ponce, Puerto Rico. The construction of this home set the stage for the construction of other homes of similar architectural elements, character and opulence in turn-of-the-twentieth-century Ponce...
is visible on the right. Accessed January 5, 2011. - Plaza Muñoz Rivera circa early 1900s looking southeast. Ponce Cathedral is on the left, and Parque de Bombas, barely visible is further in the background also on the left. Accessed January 5, 2011.
- Plaza Muñoz Rivera before 1917. The location of the statue of Luis Munoz Rivera, erected on this plaza in 1923, was still being occupied by lamp posts when this photo was taken. Accessed January 5, 2011.