Sant Antoni, Barcelona
History
Although its origins are tied to the now-disappeared Church of Saint Anthony (in Catalan: Sant Antoni) in the Raval, the development of the neighbourhood dates from the 1880s onwards, as Barcelona expanded beyond its former medieval walls. Very few houses stood around the market when it was built, and most buildings visible today in Sant Antoni date of the 1920s and 1930s, when major urban changes occurred in the city on the occasion of the 1929 International Exposition. A working-class area during most of the 20th century, it has undergone important changes in the last decades. As with many other neighbourhoods in central Barcelona, some gentrification has taken place in Sant Antoni since the 1980s and prostitution has mostly relocated since. Nowadays it is one of the quietest areas in the city centre, with 37,878 inhabitants in the 2005 census. The Mercat de Sant Antoni has been refurbished recently. In the meantime, this Ronda Sant Antoni has become pedestrianised.
Places of worship
Catholic
- Sant Ferran (Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes - Vilamarí)
- Preciossíssima Sang de Nostre Senyor Jesucrist (Viladomat - Floridablanca)
- Maria Auxiliadora i Sant Josep (Sepúlveda - Calàbria)
Evangelist
- Evangelist Church of Sant Antoni (Mistral)
Jehovah's Witnesses
- Sant Antoni Kingdom Hall (Passatge de Sant Antoni)
Transport
- Barcelona Metro stations Sant Antoni (on L2), Urgell (on L1), and Poble Sec (on L3).
Notable residents
- Daniel Sirera (born 1967), chairman of the People's Party