Old Butchery

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Sites of memory · Year: 1736

Since its foundation, in Santa Cruz animals were slaughtered in various places (orchards and courtyards of large houses) to then sell their meat in different parts of the town. From the outset, the authorities tried to locate a fixed place for this type of practice, indicating that the best site was the left bank of the mouth of the Santos ravine, trusting that the waters flowing down or the tides would carry away the filth. It was for this reason that the coastline of that area began to be known as Playa de la Carnicería (Butchery Beach).

The first butchery (place for slaughter and sale of meat) that the city had was established in 1736 in a house owned by the parish church, located by the sea, at the edge of the small square that existed facing the coast. The initiative was carried out by the beneficiary of the Church of the Concepción, Ignacio Logman, in line with the new enlightened ideas of sanitary improvements and community service. Furthermore, the income collected helped to support the parish. 

Over the years, the building deteriorated due to use and lack of maintenance. In 1793, important conditioning and expansion works were carried out, which led to the disappearance of the small chapel of the Santo Sudario, located very close by. After the 1810 epidemic, the condition of the butchery worsened due to neglect, as there was almost no livestock to slaughter nor meat to sell, so shortly afterwards the establishment was closed.

In 1847, the ruined building was taken up again by the Town Hall. It was completely refurbished by the municipal architect Orá, becoming a rather spacious establishment [that] meets all the necessary hygienic conditions . It consisted of a large well-ventilated hall by the sea, with a sloping slab floor and water for cleaning. The slaughter capacity was two cattle at a time. It had a pen and a meat office with five marble tables. A doctor was present at the slaughter, obliged to inspect the meat whenever there was reason for doubt .

By this time, the establishment functioned more as a slaughterhouse than as a meat shop, a transaction that began to be carried out at the stalls of the recova (market).

In 1909, when the building had long become too small, the town hall ceded it along with the adjacent land for the expansion of the Compañía Eléctrica (Electric Company) factory. Then a new slaughterhouse was installed in the Los Llanos area, south of the city, very close to the Ermita de Regla (Regla Hermitage).

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