This Friday, December 13, Saint Lucia's day, we remember when Santa Lucía de Tirajana emerged and the first steps of the territory as an independent municipality
On September 16, 1814, Bishop Manuel Verdugo issued a decree that marked the beginning of the ecclesiastical and administrative independence of Santa Lucía de Tirajana. This decree responded to the urgent need of the faithful of Lugarejo and other neighboring towns, separating them from the parish of San Bartolomé de Tunte.
The name of the municipality, according to some historians, is due to the discovery of an image of Saint Lucy of Syracuse in territories that today form part of the municipality.
The decision was made following complaints from residents, aggravated by an epidemic in 1813 that left some deceased without religious care, which generated tensions and a feeling of abandonment in the community. Diego Pineda was appointed as the first parish priest, celebrating the inaugural mass on September 25, 1814.
A year later, in 1815, the place was established as an independent municipality, consolidating a process that had begun in 1803. For its formation, inland territories of San Bartolomé de Tirajana and coastal lands of Agüimes were taken, which gave rise to territorial conflicts with both municipalities during the following decades.
Far from the good work and the great coexistence that exists today between the municipalities of the south and the southeast, Santa Lucía had to jostle with its neighbors for different reasons; in 1822 it had to do so with San Bartolomé de Tirajana for the collection of taxes and in 1839 with Agüimes for the territorial limits of the municipality.
The current church, inaugurated in 1916 by Bishop Marquina and a jewel of the historic center of the municipality, is the result of multiple reconstructions and community efforts. Farmers raised funds and brought materials for its construction, while the highest institution of the time on the island also contributed financial resources.
