The First Sitgetans

Sitges’ name comes from the Pre-Roman word "sitja" that means "deep hole or grain warehouse". Already before the Neolithic period, the first Sitgetans dwelled in the place known as cave point, (past the Terramar Golf Club) and at the La Punta (the Point) headland, where the church and town hall are today. The archaeological remains found recently show that an Iberian settlement already exited there back in the 4^th-3^rd century BC. Present studies confirm that there were two small town centers in Sitges back in the 1st century. One around the La Punta headland and another at the Vinyet chapel. Joined together with Roman Olérdola, Sitges’ port was a point of exchange for products between the Penedés region and other places from the Roman Mediterranean.

Medieval Sitges

The castle, located at the top of the La Punta headland, today the Town Hall, built on the foundations of the ancient castle in 1889, was first owned by the Barcelona Seo, or cathedral, which ceded it by fief to Count Mir Geribert (1041). In the 12^th century, Sitges was under the fief of the Sitges’s, a family that adopted the town’s name as their own last name. The Sitges family has been documented from 1116 up to 1308. The family’s last member, Agnès de Sitges, sold her fief rights to Bernat de Fonollar, who was Lord from 1306 to 1326. After the death of his second wife, Blanca de Abella, by testamentary decision, Sitges was placed in the hands of the Pia Almoina (an almshouse) until 1814. Bernat de Fonollar was a knight who was directly related to King Juame II’s court. The tombs of both this nobleman and his wife are in the Sant Bartomeu & Santa Tecla church, on the left-hand side as you enter. During these centuries, Sitgetans’ lives were organized around the bastion headland, where the parish church, cemetery, hospital, castle and a small group of houses were, all surrounded by a first enclosure and connected to the rest of the town via a bridge over calle Mayor, or Main St. The rest of the village consisted of Nou, Tacó and Carreta streets, that lead down to the sea and all had their respective gates, L’Aigua street with another gate and Devallada street. The presence of these gates shows that the entire village was surrounded by a second rampart. It is also known that there were 3 towers located at the Bastion, behind the old Hospital (today the Maricel Museum) and Bosc street, possibly built in 1303. They are part of the Sitges Coat of Arms.

Economic and trade activity

The town, despite its direct contact with the sea, had more peasants than sailors. The grapevine was their main economic and work-related activity and traditionally, above all, malvasia. They also cultivated wheat and garden produce and Bargallo or palmetto, Garraf’s symbol, used to make brooms and other household utensils. Since ancient times, Sitges has been the departure port for the Penedés region’s products. In 1345, Vilafranca requested the King’s authorization to have a port in Sitges and it continued to have it there until the 19^th century when the Vilafranca-Barcelona railway was built.

Modern Age (16^th-18^th Century)

This period in history was marked by constant attempts by the Universidad de Sitges (Town Council) to free itself from the Pia Almoina’s noble dominion. In 1814, Sitges became free once and for all and joined the Crown. The town suffered the blows of the different wars that were waged, as well as periods of famine and epidemics. Its economic activity was still farming, fishing and port activities. In the 18^th century, Catalonia obtained permission to trade directly with America. The Royal Decree allowed maritime activity to be consolidated and increase noticeably, and from late 18^th (1779) to early 19^th century, constant trade was established with American colonies. The opening-up of trade caused the population to split up into fishermen, proprietors and traders. 

Sitges from 1800 to present-day

Very early on in the 19^th century (1813) the country lived through the French war, and later the civil and Carline wars. The liberally-spirited town walled itself in again and reinforced its militia, which held off the Carlines in one of the most tragic episodes in our history: the attack on May 1^st, 1838, a historic event that was remembered with the street that was named after this date (during Franco’s dictatorship it was renamed 2 de mayo, or May 2^nd, and is nicknamed Calle del Pecado, or Sin St.).  

Economy

Economic prosperity, which began during the late 18th century, lasted until early 19th century. In 1833 more than 27% of the Catalans trading with America were Sitgetans. Trade was based on the exportation of clothes, wine, malmsey wine and eau-de-vie. Sitges, as already mentioned, was the Penedés region’s trade port. It was reduced to 8% halfway through the century and recovered two-thirds through the 19th. Only now the economy was in the hands of those trading with America (period of the Americanos), who would return with their riches and buy homes or fix up the town’s old houses. The town became a summer resort for the Sitgetan Americanos. Its economic activity continued to come from peasantry, garden produce and, above all, the vineyards (today, only the Sant Joan Baptista Hospital’s malvasia is still cultivated). Fishing also went on, although it gradually died down until it was finally reduced to a few boats that still fish and anchor in the Aiguadolç port.

Industry

With American capital, two spinning mills were opened in Sitges in the mid-19th century. In 1874 Sitges opened its first shoe factory (the Tarrida factory), also with American capital. In 1910, there were four big shoe factories, becoming a characteristic Sitges industry. In 1936, Sitges had more than 20 factories where more than 80% of the population used to work. Today, there is only one left. Another industry settled into the outskirts of town in 1903: the Vallcarca cement factory. In 1935 there was a “Sitges” automobile factory, connected to the Catalonian Racetrack, which was dedicated to making war material in 1936.

Tourism

In 1879, we have records showing that baths were already being used as medicinal therapy and spa enthusiasts directly became beach enthusiasts (1888). Sitges, located near Barcelona, although still hard to access, and summer resort for many Sitgetan-Americanos, became a town for taking the waters. The arrival of the railway (1881) favored communications with the Catalan capital. With the arrival of Santiago Rusiñol in 1891 (one of the architects of Modernism) Sitges became the cultural center of the modernists. In 1909, thanks to Ramon Casas and Miquel Utrillo, Sitges was visited by Charles Deering, a North American millionaire who transformed Fonollar street, until then lined with characteristic fishermen’s homes and the old hospital, into a palace. The Palau Maricel and Cau Ferrat (Rusiñol’s house-studio) became two culture-attracting poles and obviously launched Sitges to tourist fame. In 1918 industrialist Francesc Armengol designed the Terramar garden city and the Esplanade. Atracción de Forasteros (Tourist Attraction Company) was created in 1928 and the Tourist Information Office in 1934. Since then, Sitges would be a European tourist reference point. In the late 19^th century, Sitges only had one hotel establishment, the Subur Guest House, which became the first hotel in 1902. The Milanesa Hotel and Sitges Hotel are from the early 20th century (1917) and the Terramar Park Hotel was built in 1920.