The Water Museum

Water has traditionally played an important role in Lleida, owing to its geographic lo­ca­tion beside the River Segre. An ex­ten­si­ve net­work of canals and waterways has been de­ve­lo­ped since the city was foun­ded, ma­king Lleida the centre of one of the largest irrigated areas in Spain.

In fact, the Seròs Canal, a major source of hydroelectric power, passes through the city, which re­cei­ves its drinking-water supply from the Pinyana Canal, the oldest canal still in use in Ca­ta­lonia. This is a territory museum with different points of interest around the region.

Main Building: La Canadiense Camp

Barcelona Traction, Light & Power Co. Ltd., informally known as “La Canadiense”, built this camp in 1914 to house the la­bourers who came to the area to construct the Seròs Ca­nal. La Canadiense set up in different parts of Catalonia to lay out the power grid in the region.

Since 2004, the newly restored building has been used as the Lleida Water Mu­seum hea­d­quar­ters.

On display here is the permanent exhibition “The Force of Water. Dr. Pearson and the Cons­truc­tion Work on La Canadiense in Lleida”, which reflects the basic role played by Lleida in the pro­duction of hydroelectric power, thanks to the work done by en­gi­neer Dr. Pearson and the hydro­electric power company known as La Canadiense.

Contact

52 Miquel Batllori Avenue
Phone: 973 211 992
Web Museu de l'Aigua

Pla de l'Aigua Underground Reservoir

Lleida’s drinking-water mu­seum. It is a large underground re­ser­voir in the heart of Lleida that was built in 1784 to supply the city with drinking water as a way of overcoming the de­fi­cien­cies of Medieval ins­ta­lla­tio­ns and fig­hting epidemics. The large re­ser­voir has 25 sto­ne pillars and a capacity of 9 million litres.

Contact

Dipòsit Square -10 Múrcia St.
Phone: 973 211 992
Web Museu de l'Aigua

Ice Wells

Located in the northen and col­dest part of the Seu Vella’s hill, ideal for ice conservation. Built in the 17th century, the biggest has a capacity of 842 m3 and 500 m3 the small one. They were restored in 1994.

Mill of Sant Anastasi

This mill is located on Avinguda de les Garrigues, 128 (Bordeta district) and has its origins in the 13th century. The Fontanet canal provided him with the strength to move the wheels used to grind grain.

The monumental fountains

Walking through the Old Quarter, we go back to the 18th century, when the monumental fountains that distributed the water from the Pla de l’Aigua reservoir were built. The visit takes us to the fountains of Sant Llorenç, Ensenyança, Roser, Hospital, Costa del Jan and we remember those that were in the squares of the Cathedral, Sant Francesc and Sant Joan, to end at the Governor's fountain.

The Pinyana and Seròs Canals

The two main canals that help irrigate the rich Lleida vegetable garden have become the common thread of routes full of history.

The route through the Pinyana canal lasts about three hours and has a route of 70 kilometers. This is an extension of the first Almenar canal, built in 1147, although it was not until the end of the 12th century when Pere Raimon Sallola was in charge of extending it to the plain of Lleida. It is, therefore, the oldest irrigated canal in Catalonia and provides water to 13,500 hectares of fertile land corresponding to 13 municipalities in Lleida.

Precisely this last event makes the route of the Seròs canal especially interesting, which ended up bringing a certain economic and social revolution to Lleida at the beginning of the 20th century. The works were directed by American engineer Frank Pearson. From 1912, one hundred and forty employees were working in construction for 28 months.

As a legacy, we are left with two magnificent natural places at both ends of the aqueduct, the Mitjana Natural Park -in the Pardinyes district- and the Utxesa reservoir, in the municipality of Torres de Segre.

Opening Hours

Entrance Fee

Free entry