Between the sea, the port and the city. Urban maritime communities in transition: the case of Barceloneta in the 19th century

The formation process of the district of Barceloneta explains, to a large extent, the maritime character of a neighborhood located immediately behind the port and separated from the walled city. In this article we address the study of Barceloneta in the 19th century in light of the theoretical and conceptual proposals that historiography has developed for the study of those societies that live from their relationship with the sea, especially in the urban sphere. Thereupon, we define the situation of Barceloneta in the mid-19th century as that of a consolidated urban maritime community, a place of residence for maritime and port workers and the favored area for the economic activities related to shipbuilding and shipping supplies. We also draw a socio-demographic profile of Barceloneta in the second half of the century, which allows us to define it as a precarious urban space, with high and increasing mortality rates and a very young social structure, slightly masculinized in relation to the city. Finally, we study the gaze that urban elites and authorities developed towards the neighborhood, which was closely associated with hygienic and moral concerns about this social space as it was perceived as disruptive.