LA CARRETERA CENTRAL DE CUBA , 1931 | Una obra que unió la República de extremo a extremo
CUBA RENACE
188 views
THE CENTRAL HIGHWAY OF CUBA
A project that united the Republic from end to end
In 1925, the Congress of the Republic of Cuba approved the construction of a project intended to transform the nation's land transportation.
Two years later, work began on the Central Highway.
Built between 1927 and 1931, the highway stretched approximately 1,139 kilometers from Pinar del Río to Santiago de Cuba, crossing the six historical provinces of the Republic:
Pinar del Río
Havana
Matanzas
Santa Clara
Camagüey
Oriente
To manage a project of this magnitude, its construction was divided into 32 sections of approximately 30 to 40 kilometers each.
Technical direction was overseen by engineer Manuel A. Coroalles, head of the Roads and Bridges Bureau of the Ministry of Public Works.
The Warren Brothers Company and the Cuban Contractors Company participated in its construction.
Where possible, the old routes of the Royal Roads were used, but vast stretches of land had to be surveyed, leveled, and prepared to build a modern highway.
Excavators, rollers, tractors, trucks, graders, and mixers worked alongside thousands of laborers, technicians, foremen, and engineers.
The Ministry of Public Works also established laboratory controls to study the strength and quality of stones, sand, cement, and other materials used in the project.
The construction required massive earthworks, paving, culverts, railway crossings, and hundreds of bridges.
Among them was the large steel bridge over the Cauto River, identified in photographs taken by the Ministry of Public Works itself.
The Central Highway was gradually opened to traffic.
The Havana–Guanajay section was completed in 1928.
The Havana–Matanzas section was officially inaugurated in 1929.
The Matanzas–Santa Clara section was officially opened in 1930.
Finally, on February 24, 1931, at the National Capitol Building in Havana, the official acceptance and inauguration document for the Central Highway was signed.
And there, one of the most symbolic elements of the entire project was established.
At the intersection of the Capitol's dome axis with the floor of the rotunda in the Hall of Lost Steps stood the marker indicating kilometer zero for the Central Highway and all other roads in the Republic.
The Capitol Building represented the institutional Republic.
The Central Highway physically united the national territory.
And at Kilometer Zero, both symbols met.
This documentary from the Digital Library recovers photographs, documents, and historical testimonies to reconstruct the history of one of the largest infrastructure projects undertaken during the Republic of Cuba.
Preserving our history, our culture, and our values is also preserving the memory of Cuba.
Subscribe and join me in continuing to discover our land.
CUBA REBORN.
SOURCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
— Ministry of Public Works / Department of Roads and Bridges.
Administrative and Descriptive Report on the Central Highway Works.
4 volumes, 1930.
Especially Vol. IV, Chapter XX:
“Work Acceptances and Inaugurations,” pp. 156–168.
— Bulletin of the Ministry of Public Works.
Years 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, and 1931.
— Diario de la Marina. Publications and news related to the construction and inauguration of the Central Highway, 1928–1931.
— Juan de las Cuevas Toraya.
500 Years of Construction in Cuba.
2001.
— Guillermo Jiménez Soler.
Cuban Companies 1958.
Editorial de Ciencias Sociales, 2008.
— José Antonio Quintana García.
“Cuba’s Central Highway, ‘one of the most beautiful and solid in the world’”.
OnCuba, February 9, 2025.
— CubaMemorias.
“Cuba’s Central Highway and the Inauguration of the First Section”.
Research that reproduces documentation from the period and the official inauguration document.
— Cosmópiles Magazine.
Special issue dedicated to Cuba, 1929.
Historical photographic material:
Archive of the Ministry of Public Works and documentary reproductions of consulted historical publications.
HISTORICAL NOTE
The 1,139 kilometers mentioned in this documentary correspond to the historic Central Highway built between Pinar del Río and Santiago de Cuba.
Subsequent extensions of the road network to other parts of the country should not be confused with the length of the original highway inaugurated in 1931.
#CentralHighway
#HistoryOfCuba
#Cuba
#RepublicOfCuba
#NationalCapitol
#KilometerZero
#CubanEngineering
#CubanArchitecture
#HistoricalMemory
#DigitalLibrary
#CubaReborn
LA CARRETERA CENTRAL DE CUBA , 1931 | Una obra que unió la República de extremo a extremo
CUBA RENACE
188 views
THE CENTRAL HIGHWAY OF CUBA
A project that united the Republic from end to end
In 1925, the Congress of the Republic of Cuba approved the construction of a project intended to transform the nation's land transportation.
Two years later, work began on the Central Highway.
Built between 1927 and 1931, the highway stretched approximately 1,139 kilometers from Pinar del Río to Santiago de Cuba, crossing the six historical provinces of the Republic:
Pinar del Río
Havana
Matanzas
Santa Clara
Camagüey
Oriente
To manage a project of this magnitude, its construction was divided into 32 sections of approximately 30 to 40 kilometers each.
Technical direction was overseen by engineer Manuel A. Coroalles, head of the Roads and Bridges Bureau of the Ministry of Public Works.
The Warren Brothers Company and the Cuban Contractors Company participated in its construction.
Where possible, the old routes of the Royal Roads were used, but vast stretches of land had to be surveyed, leveled, and prepared to build a modern highway.
Excavators, rollers, tractors, trucks, graders, and mixers worked alongside thousands of laborers, technicians, foremen, and engineers.
The Ministry of Public Works also established laboratory controls to study the strength and quality of stones, sand, cement, and other materials used in the project.
The construction required massive earthworks, paving, culverts, railway crossings, and hundreds of bridges.
Among them was the large steel bridge over the Cauto River, identified in photographs taken by the Ministry of Public Works itself.
The Central Highway was gradually opened to traffic.
The Havana–Guanajay section was completed in 1928.
The Havana–Matanzas section was officially inaugurated in 1929.
The Matanzas–Santa Clara section was officially opened in 1930.
Finally, on February 24, 1931, at the National Capitol Building in Havana, the official acceptance and inauguration document for the Central Highway was signed.
And there, one of the most symbolic elements of the entire project was established.
At the intersection of the Capitol's dome axis with the floor of the rotunda in the Hall of Lost Steps stood the marker indicating kilometer zero for the Central Highway and all other roads in the Republic.
The Capitol Building represented the institutional Republic.
The Central Highway physically united the national territory.
And at Kilometer Zero, both symbols met.
This documentary from the Digital Library recovers photographs, documents, and historical testimonies to reconstruct the history of one of the largest infrastructure projects undertaken during the Republic of Cuba.
Preserving our history, our culture, and our values is also preserving the memory of Cuba.
Subscribe and join me in continuing to discover our land.
CUBA REBORN.
SOURCES AND BIBLIOGRAPHY
— Ministry of Public Works / Department of Roads and Bridges.
Administrative and Descriptive Report on the Central Highway Works.
4 volumes, 1930.
Especially Vol. IV, Chapter XX:
“Work Acceptances and Inaugurations,” pp. 156–168.
— Bulletin of the Ministry of Public Works.
Years 1927, 1928, 1929, 1930, and 1931.
— Diario de la Marina. Publications and news related to the construction and inauguration of the Central Highway, 1928–1931.
— Juan de las Cuevas Toraya.
500 Years of Construction in Cuba.
2001.
— Guillermo Jiménez Soler.
Cuban Companies 1958.
Editorial de Ciencias Sociales, 2008.
— José Antonio Quintana García.
“Cuba’s Central Highway, ‘one of the most beautiful and solid in the world’”.
OnCuba, February 9, 2025.
— CubaMemorias.
“Cuba’s Central Highway and the Inauguration of the First Section”.
Research that reproduces documentation from the period and the official inauguration document.
— Cosmópiles Magazine.
Special issue dedicated to Cuba, 1929.
Historical photographic material:
Archive of the Ministry of Public Works and documentary reproductions of consulted historical publications.
HISTORICAL NOTE
The 1,139 kilometers mentioned in this documentary correspond to the historic Central Highway built between Pinar del Río and Santiago de Cuba.
Subsequent extensions of the road network to other parts of the country should not be confused with the length of the original highway inaugurated in 1931.
#CentralHighway
#HistoryOfCuba
#Cuba
#RepublicOfCuba
#NationalCapitol
#KilometerZero
#CubanEngineering
#CubanArchitecture
#HistoricalMemory
#DigitalLibrary
#CubaReborn