Old Urban Cemetery

Historic cemetery in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

United States historic place

Old Urban Cemetery

U.S. National Register of Historic Places

Puerto Rico Historic Sites and Zones

Location of Aguadilla and the Old Urban Cemetery in Puerto Rico

Location| At the foot of Cuesta Vieja
Aguadilla, Puerto Rico
Coordinates| 18°26′16″N 67°09′22″W﻿ / ﻿18.437842°N 67.156199°W﻿ / 18.437842; -67.156199
Built| 1813
Architect| Spanish Corps of Engineers
NRHP reference No.| 85000042[1]
RNSZH No.| 2000-(RO)-19-JP-SH
Significant dates
Added to NRHP| January 2, 1985
Designated RNSZH| December 21, 2000

Old Urban Cemetery, also known as Cementerio Municipal, in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico, is a cemetery with burials dating back to 1813 or 1814. Near the town of Aguadilla's north entrance, it spreads between the beach and the foot of the mountain and is enclosed by mortar and stone walls. It is located at the foot of Cuesta Vieja, a sector of Aguadilla barrio-pueblo. Many of its older tombs, made of brick, stone and mortar, were damaged in a 1918 earthquake (presumably the 1918 San Fermín earthquake).[2]

Use of the cemetery began when burials were no longer allowed in the churchyard. Graves include that of poet-laureat José de Jesús Esteves, painter Rafael Arroyo Gely, and Luis R. Esteves (the first Puerto Rican graduate of West Point).[2]

The cemetery was originally divided into sections for Catholics and non-Catholics.[3] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1985,[1] and on the Puerto Rico Register of Historic Sites and Zones in 2000.[4]

## See also

[edit]

* National Register of Historic Places listings in western Puerto Rico

## References

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1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
2. ^ a b Jose Rafael Bourdony (1984). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Old Urban Cemetery / Cemeterio Municipal". National Park Service. Retrieved December 24, 2016. with eight photos from 1984
3. ^ "Los Cascos Urbanos Hablan: Aguadilla 2/3". florida.pbslearningmedia.org/ (in Spanish). Puerto Rico National Endowment for the Humanities. Archived from the original on February 12, 2021. Retrieved February 9, 2021.
4. ^ GOBIERNO DE PUERTO RICO, JUNTA DE PLANIFICACIÓN DE PUERTO RICO (December 7, 2022). "REGISTRO DE PROPIEDADES DESIGNADAS POR LA JUNTA DE PLANIFICACIÓN DE PUERTO RICO" (PDF). jp.pr.gov.

## External links

[edit]

* Old Urban Cemetery at Find a Grave

* v
* t
* e

National Register of Historic Places in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico

Historic properties|

* Cardona Residence
* Casa de Piedra
* Church San Carlos Borromeo of Aguadilla
* District Courthouse
* El Parterre – Ojo De Agua
* Faro de Punta Borinquen
* Fuerte de la Concepción
* Residence Lopez
* Old Urban Cemetery

Former listing|

* Silva-Benejan House

See also: National Register of Historic Places listings in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico and List of National Historic Landmarks in Puerto Rico
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