Elevador de Aguas de Gordejuela
Template:Wikidata Infobox El Elevador de Aguas de Gordejuela, also known as Casa Hamilton, is an industrial ruin near Los Realejos, Tenerife. It was built in 1903 by the Hamilton company to pump water from the Gordejuela springs to banana plantations in the Orotava Valley. The system used the first steam engine on Tenerife.
Creation
It was built on the former location of the Juan de Gordejuela mill, adjacent to the Gordejuela waterfalls. In 1902 the British company Hamilton House (Casa Hamilton) bought all of the shares of the Gordejuela water society,[1] of which it had been the main investor since 1898,[2] and started the construction of the water lift.[1] The system was designed by José Galván Balaguer, a military engineer, along with León de Torres and León Huerta.[1]
The system was designed to raise water from the Gordejuela springs to the top of the cliff, some 200 metres (660 ft) above sea level,[1] so that it could be used in banana plantations in the Orotava Valley. This involved the installation of the first steam engine on Tenerife.[1][3]
Layout
The facility originally had three buildings, as well as a warehouse and a chimney, along with connecting water-carrying structures.[1] The building at the top of the cliff was designed to house workers. It is a one-storey rectangular building, with loadbearing walls supporting a gable roof on metal trusses. The western wall is attached to the ravine slope.[1] A path leads to the rectangular building that held the boilers, of which only the west wall now remains.[1]
Most of the complex is located about 40 metres (130 ft) above sea level. The rectangular building is around 27 metres (89 ft) tall, with five floors. The foundation is built onto the cliff rock, and has a large block of mortared basalt in the lowest floor, with an east-west passageway. The second floor has two machinary rooms along with ventellation. The third floor has four rooms, two of which have now been buried by the collapse of the vaults. The fourth floor is the main entrance level, with lighter walls and arched openings. The fifth floor housed the main machine of the pumping station, with the remains of crane rails on the walls.
Decline
Casa Hamilton started loosing money, and tried to sell water to other parts of the island, but this was not successful. It was sold to the Fyffes company, and later entered the public domain.[1]
It is now a ruin, without roof, doors or windows. Some of the arches and the floors have collapsed. It was added to Lista Roja (Red List) on 31 January 2019 due to its state of abandonment, which could lead to a more substantial collapse of the structure. It is a popular tourist destination.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Elevador de Aguas de Gordejuela". Lista Roja del Patrimonio (in European Spanish). Retrieved 31 August 2019.
- ^ "ELEVADOR DE AGUAS DE LA GORDEJUELA" (in European Spanish). Retrieved 31 August 2019.
- ^ "Casa Hamilton". Reiseführer Teneriffa (in German). Retrieved 31 August 2019.