Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works
- UNESCO World Heritage
Interesting facts
- La Palma, the original name of Humberstone, commemorated the 1858 Battle of La Palma fought near Lima, a reminder that the works began on Peruvian soil.
- Santa Laura began with a Peruvian government concession of 100 stakes granted to its founder, the Lima-born Abraham Guillermo Wendell.
- Santa Laura's processing plant was not built on site: it was brought from the idle Lilita works at Taltal, far to the south, during the 1918 to 1920 modernisation.
- At its peak Santa Laura housed only 426 people, while neighbouring Humberstone grew to more than 3,700.
- Humberstone had its own school, hospital, hotel, market and a swimming pool built of steel sheets, with stands for spectators.
- Even the workers' homes in Humberstone were connected to drinking water, electricity and sewerage.
- Both works were declared national monuments in 1970, yet looters and scrap dealers kept stripping the empty buildings for years.
- In 2001 Humberstone served as the film set for the Chilean telenovela Pampa Ilusión, which spurred former nitrate workers to campaign for its protection.
- The town's later name honours James Thomas Humberstone, an English engineer regarded as one of the fathers of the nitrate industry, who applied the Shanks process here.
Why it is worth it
In the bone-dry pampa of the Atacama Desert east of Iquique, two abandoned company towns preserve the world of the nitrate boom that made northern Chile one of the richest mining regions on earth. From the late 19th century saltpetre from here was shipped worldwide as fertiliser, and the pampinos, the workers of the nitrate fields, created a distinctive culture around it. Humberstone and Santa Laura were inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2005, and placed at the same time on the List in Danger because of the fragility of their buildings; restoration allowed their removal from that list in 2019.
Both works were founded in 1872, when the territory still belonged to Peru. Santa Laura struggled and was modernised only around 1918 to 1920 with the Shanks leaching process; La Palma, run by James Thomas Humberstone, grew into one of the largest works in Tarapacá. The industry collapsed after German chemists developed synthetic ammonia, and the Great Depression finished the job. In 1934 both were taken over by a new company, which renamed La Palma after Humberstone and briefly made it the most successful works in the region. Both were abandoned in 1960.
What visitors find is a complete town frozen at its last shift. At Humberstone, which once had more than 3,700 residents, the large theatre, the church and the company store (pulpería) still stand, many built of Oregon pine imported by sea. The contrast between the managers' houses and the small workers' dwellings, allocated by rank and marital status, says a great deal about how the towns were run. Santa Laura keeps its processing plant, a tall timber-and-iron structure with its leaching vats, and a chimney visible from far across the desert.
The sun and wind are fierce, and there is little shade, so bring water and a hat.
Getting there
The two works lie in the commune of Pozo Almonte, about 50 km from Iquique along Route A-16. Many visitors come on a day tour from Iquique; by car it is a straightforward desert drive. Diego Aracena International Airport (IQQ), serving Iquique, is about 54 km away.
On these lists
From the encyclopaedia
Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works are two former saltpeter refineries located in northern Chile. They were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2005, as a testament to the historical importance of saltpeter mining in Chile and the culture and social agenda that developed around it in the late 19th century. The works were placed on the World Heritage List in Danger that same year, due to the fragility of the derelict buildings, but were removed in 2019 following significant restoration and conservation work.
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