Indigenous history Before the arrival of the Europeans to Puerto Rico, Puerta de Tierra (along with Old San Juan) formed part of a smaller islet which was populated by the
Taíno. Remains of a small indigenous fishing village have been found where the
Puerto Rico National Guard Museum stands today, however most archaeological sites in the area have been destroyed and lost during the construction of the Muñoz Rivera Avenue and surrounding buildings.
Spanish colonization The Spanish began the colonization of Puerto Rico in 1508 when Juan Ponce de León founded
Caparra, the first permanent settlement in the island, located in the southern part of the
Bay of San Juan (today part of
Guaynabo). This Spanish village was abandoned in 1519 when the Spanish founded the settlement of
Puerto Rico de San Juan Bautista (modern-day Old San Juan) across the bay. The area where Puerta de Tierra is located became critical for the settlement and the defense of the Islet of San Juan as it represented the closest part of the islet to the main island of Puerto Rico. This area, later referred to as
El Boquerón, was separated from the main island by the San Antonio strait (today known as the San Antonio Channel). The first bridge across the San Antonio Channel was built by enslaved Taínos between 1520 and 1521 as entrusted by the
Order of Saint Jerome (or Hieronymites).
1867 earthquake and wall demolitions Although the military installations in San Juan were modernized in 1865, the eastern portion of the walls were no longer deemed necessary due to the eastward expansion of the city and were consequently partially demolished. The
1867 Virgin Islands earthquake destroyed the remaining eastern military installations in the area, and a new road and railway station were built with the name of
Paseo Virgen de Nuestra de Señora de Covadonga and the Covadonga Terminal, respectively. The Paseo Covadonga exists today under the name of Covadonga Avenue.
20th century Puerta de Tierra went through large changes during the beginning of the 20th century.
Barriada Miranda was the first formally established public residential area in the zone in 1903 along the
Camino Real, now called the
Carretera Central. Politician Luis Muñoz Rivera suggested in 1907 that the
territorial capitol of Puerto Rico should be built in the largest of the empty parcels of land where the eastern city walls used to be, next to the
Tapia Theater. The first public elementary school, José Julián Acosta School, was also built here in 1907. The portion of this road that passed through Puerta de Tierra was popularly known as the
Broadway of Puerto Rico by the media due to the large number of theaters and cultural performing institutions being built at the time. Tres Banderas Theater, for example, was the first cinema to be established in the area in 1910. Some of the first non-Catholic Christian institutions were also established here in the 1910s such as the first
Methodist church and the first
Lutheran church in San Juan. == Cityscape ==