Alicante’s historical records are housed in the Municipal Archives, a repository on Labradores street that preserves city documents and materials from surrounding municipalities in the province. Within the extensive INFORMACIÓN newspaper collection, the archives also hold a complete archive of the newspaper itself and a notable photographic collection that provides a vivid visual record of the city’s past.
Municipal Archive reveals century-old spas and beaches in Alicante
Most of the photographs in the Alicante Municipal Archive originate from activities or functions involving the municipality, or from donations and purchases by public and private sources. Additional funds and special collections, including administrative ones, are also part of the holdings.
One of the archivist’s ongoing priorities is the careful management of preserved material, including its cataloging, reproduction, and public access. The foremost task is always the preservation of items. The repository uses compact storage furniture, planners, and metal filing systems to safeguard materials, and it maintains controlled environmental conditions such as temperature, humidity, and ventilation, along with robust safety and fire protection. Materials are organized in envelopes, folders, boxes, and albums by specialists, categorized by support type (glass, film, paper) and by format.
The municipal archives staff member explains that the door is open to all: researchers, university faculty, students, former press workers, genealogists, and anyone seeking information on a wide range of topics. The archive also supports inquiries into civil registry records for genealogical research.
Alicante Municipal Archive opens the Baron Finestrat VIII library to the public
What makes Alicante’s archive valuable is its centralized access to information about the city, attracting a broad audience of researchers worldwide who rely on the resource for holidays planning, historical context, and for preparing guides like Hogueras booklets. The archive operates two research rooms: a first-floor historical documentation service and a ground-floor space for the newspaper archive, library, and bulletins. The rooms are equipped with seventeen workstations, each ready for computer connection. Eight storage rooms across five floors hold municipal documents, protected by advanced climate control, security systems, and fire safeguards.
To promote public use and distribution, an online collection offers searchable access to documentary material. The database categorizes items by source collection, year, title keywords, subject, and geographical scope, enabling straightforward discovery. Access is available via the municipal cultural portal.
Susana Llorens, who earned a PhD in History from the University of Alicante in 1999 and has led the archive since 2010, notes that photography increasingly serves as a vital document in a visual society. The archive has expanded through donations and municipal purchases, enriching the photographic fund and supporting researchers who explore family histories as well as broader historical themes .
historical pieces
Within the photographic trove, items date back to the mid-1800s. The oldest image in the collection records a port view from 1862, showing merchant ships and steamers arriving at Levante Wharf as goods were loaded and unloaded. This piece is part of the municipal collection fund.
The second oldest image is a montage from 1881, offering a panoramic view of the port assembled from multiple photos by a photographer of the era, a luxury hobby in a time when cameras were rare and costly.
Among the most important unduly rare images is a 1919 photograph donated by Francisco Sánchez, showing Alicante Central Market under construction. The foreground highlights the growing use of mule trams in the city during the period, when such conveyances were among the few options for urban transport.
Donations provide a notable set of historical artifacts, including an aviation accident photograph from June 26, 1925, in the city center. A seaplane collided with a city landmark, resulting in fatalities. This photograph is part of a broader donation collection by a local contributor .
Observing these photographic fragments reveals how the city has evolved. A 1925 image by Francisco Sánchez shows Plaza de Joaquín Dicenta, then known as Plaza de la Puerta del Mar, near the Esplanade entrance.
Other striking items include a 1946 image of a large tuna caught offshore near Tabarca, and a 1963 Bonfire parade in front of the old Madrid Station. These pieces come from Francisco Sánchez’s private collection and highlight the variety within the archive.
provincial prism
Although the collection remains urban in focus, the archive also holds provincial documents from Elche, Benidorm, Santa Pola, Calpe, Alcoy, and more. The photographer Francisco Sánchez’s works provide a wider regional lens, including views of Benidorm’s Levante beach in 1953, Elche in 1950, and the Calpe salt flats. Other subjects feature the Canalejas viaduct in Alcoy and Santa Pola’s beach life in the 1930s.
It is striking to see such time-spanning images by a single photographer. A collective effort to preserve Alicante’s photographic heritage funded these materials, with the Sánchez collection playing a central role. Archivists emphasize that this collection, dating from the turn of the century through the 1970s, reflects a family tradition of photographic stewardship and a broader habit of inheriting works from earlier photographers to keep a city’s memory alive .