A solitary guardian meticulously maintains a unique collection of 46 historic horse-drawn carriages, from elegant leisure vehicles to city sanitation workhorses, in immaculate condition. This remarkable chapter of Barcelona’s history waits for its next journey, tucked away in a nondescript Vall d’Hebron building.
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For a decade, the private museum, managed by infrastructure company Fomento de Construcciones y Contratas (FCC) in Plaça de Josep Pallach, has remained closed to the public due to safety regulations. Its only constant visitor is Jaume Pérez, who has served as the sole caretaker for the past 10 years. He inherited the role from his father and grandfather before him. Pérez estimates this painstaking task of meticulously cleaning and maintaining every single vehicle takes him an entire year.
A Guardian’s Solitary Task
“I started to become familiar with these vehicles accompanying my grandfather,” Pérez explained during a recent special visit. Passed down through generations, his intimate knowledge brings the silent collection to life. The 46 carriages vividly tell the story of Barcelona’s mobility before the automobile reigned supreme. Specifically, ten were used for municipal services like street cleaning and rubbish collection, nine for heavy construction, and the remaining vehicles were designed for private transport and leisure.
The Associació Coordinadora Pro Museu del Transport, an association campaigning for a dedicated transport museum in Barcelona, enabled this glimpse into the city’s past. They organised the tour for media and city councillors from Junts, ERC, PP, and Vox. The tour aimed to highlight the historical value of these assets, currently sitting in storage, and advocate for their permanent, public home.
Campaign for a Permanent Home
The collection’s future is central to a long-running debate about the proposed transport museum. The association, represented at the visit by Ferran Armengol, Manuel Marina, Joaquim Borràs, and Roser Nogués, insists the ideal location is the Palau de Comunicacions (now Fira Palace 1) at the Fira de Barcelona, near the iconic Plaça d’Espanya. They argue this site is fitting as it hosted a vehicle exhibition during the 1929 Barcelona International Exposition.
However, after years of silence on the project, the Barcelona City Council has now earmarked a potential site on the ‘losa’ of Vall d’Hebron, just 1.5 kilometres from the carriages’ current storage. Museum promoters oppose this proposal, believing the Fira location offers greater historical significance and public accessibility.
“It is up to the city council to reach a potential agreement with FCC to take charge of all the material here,” the association’s representatives noted, stressing their role is to mediate and raise awareness. The need for a permanent home is pressing, as some heritage enthusiasts fear that without a public plan, a private collector could eventually acquire and remove this irreplaceable piece of Barcelona’s history.
A Glimpse into Barcelona’s Past
During the tour, Pérez offered detailed accounts of the collection, which has been in its current location in the Horta-Guinardó district since 1998 after stints in Magòria and Fabra i Puig. He pointed out an “American Car,” also known as a spider, a sporty model for its time that was prone to tipping over. Another highlight was a Mallorcan Cabriolet, a French design modified for use in the Balearics, featuring a splash guard and a small handbrake wheel.
The collection also showcases the city’s working past. There is a small cart for hauling water barrels to construction sites and a compact rubbish cart designed for the narrow streets of the Ciutat Vella. “My grandfather told me they used to say the horse knew the route so well it could practically do it alone,” Pérez recounted. Another impressive vehicle is a huge wagon that, pulled by up to 12 mules, could transport 20 tonnes and once carried a steamroller to the Moll d’Espanya. Perhaps the most imposing is a water-sprinkling truck with an almost military appearance, used to keep the city’s dusty streets clean.
The preservation of such unique historical assets is a recurring theme in the city, echoing efforts to save other landmarks. For instance, an ongoing project will restore Clot Park’s historic facades after a decade of neglect.
An Uncertain Road Ahead
Until a decade ago, school groups and other locals could visit this carriage museum. Now, only Pérez walks among them. The debate over the transport museum’s location continues, with no definitive site or opening date in sight. While new cultural venues like the Catalan Video Game Museum have recently opened in Barcelona, the fate of these older, industrial artefacts remains unclear.
As city officials and advocates weigh their options, the 46 carriages-and their dedicated guardian-wait patiently, holding a mirror to a bygone era of Barcelona’s public life, hoping to one day see the light again.
