Since the start of the Modern Era, Chiclana became –and still is- a destination for leisure time, rest and recreation, the residence of the affluent from nearby areas.
Thermal waters formed part of the city’s appeal for this type of visitor. Two spas were built near the springs of sulfurous, curative waters. People travelled far to come to the Fuenteamarga and Brake Spas, created in 1803 and 1826 respectively.
Chiclana was starting to do more than solely produce, or subsist, on agriculture. With the fresh air brought by travelers and visitors, some locals were able to aspire to another kind of life. Illustrious 19th century figures from Chiclana, some of whom also lived in the early 20th century, include: painter Gessa Arias -“the flower painter”- who is well-represented in the room (drawings, watercolors, oils); Francisco Montes “Paquiro” (father of the art of bull-fighting); and Antonio García Gutiérrez (poet, playwright, member of Spain’s Royal Academy of the Language, and director of the National Archeological Museum). These figures showed that Chiclana was full of potential.
Portraits of other illustrious people from Chiclana (Magistral Cabrera) and visitors (Frasquita Larrea) complete this gallery that runs along the rooms devoted to the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Business and leisure are shown in the spaces about Chiclana today. In addition to agriculture, the inhabitants’ way of life and sustenance, industries appeared or grew: those of wine cultivation and production (with the experiment, full of novelties at the time, of Campano), tuna fishing and packing, and salt among them. Chiclana’s industries started with small family businesses. Today, significant components of the city’s economy are several industrial parks, as well as the tourist and leisure industry with its hotels and golf courses.
