El Gabinete Instructivo

Santa Cruz de Tenerife · Category: Memory · Subcategory: Sites of memory · Year: 1869

El Gabinete Instructivo of Santa Cruz de Tenerife was one of the associations that most influenced the culture of the last third of the 19th century in the city. This entity established the necessary foundations to promote the debate of ideas, the interest in knowledge and the encouragement of education. This was reflected in the first article of the society's constitution, where its primary objective is defined: " the mutual communication of ideas expressed through written or oral speeches, which contribute to the development of the intellectual faculties of its members ". It counted among its members prominent bourgeois from different political views (conservatives, liberals, republicans, progressives, etc.) who joined efforts to incorporate Santa Cruz, through debates and lectures, into what they understood as "progress".

El Gabinete Instructivo was founded on the night of 9 May 1869, with its first president being Ireneo González, succeeded by Juan de la Puerta Canseco. Its premises were installed in the ground floors of houses number 60 and 62 on Calle del Castillo, until in 1883 they moved to Calle del Norte, corner with Calle del Adelantado opposite Plaza del Príncipe.

It was a place for discussion, literary festivals, scientific-practical exhibitions, historical and philosophical lectures, and heated debates about the political current affairs of the moment. Its associates were the first to worry, offering solutions, about the lack of education in the city, actively participating in the creation of the Centro de Segunda Enseñanza. They were also pioneers in opening a public library.

Philanthropy, so characteristic of bourgeois societies, was another topic that occupied the Gabinete. Its members were interested in the less fortunate classes, seeking solutions to the housing shortage and promoting, economically, popular savings banks. Culturally, the Gabinete was responsible for publishing one of the best publications of its time, La Revista de Canarias , covering both cultural and scientific aspects in its pages.

Men of the calibre of Ireneo González, Villalba Hervás, Puerta Canseco, José Manuel Pulido, Suárez Guerra and Manuel de Cámara, among others, carried out a huge work from this institution for the benefit of the whole society. Despite this, the Gabinete never enjoyed good standing among the state representatives of governmental authority, as they saw in the association a focus of "too free" ideas.

El Gabinete Instructivo was dissolved in 1901, although its legacy was not lost. Its library, the series of portraits of illustrious people from Tenerife it held, as well as all its spiritual heritage, passed to a new entity: El Ateneo Tinerfeño, which proceeded to follow the same path for a few more years.

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