Museo Castillo Serrallés
Museo Castillo Serrallés
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 Museo Castillo Serrallés
Location within Puerto Rico
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| Established | 20 February 1991 |
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| Location | Cerro El Vigia (El Vigia Hill), Ponce, Puerto Rico |
| Coordinates | 18°01′07″N 66°37′09″W / 18.0187°N 66.6193°WCoordinates: 18°01′07″N 66°37′09″W / 18.0187°N 66.6193°W |
| Type | Sugar cane and rum History museum |
| Visitors | 100,000 |
| Director | Patronato del Castillo Serrallés, Inc. (until 24 January 2002) Patronato de Ponce (since 25 January 2002) |
| Curator | Dr. Neysa Rodríguez Deynes |
| Owner | Municipality of Ponce |
| Website | http://www.castilloserralles.org/ |
Museo Castillo Serrallés (English: Serrallés Castle Museum) is a museum in the city of Ponce, Puerto Rico, that showcases the history of sugar cane and rum industries and its impact in the economy of Puerto Rico. The most notorious feature of the museum is the building it sits on. The building is a large four-story structure built in the 1930s for the owner of Ponce's Destileria Serralles, one of Puerto Rico's largest rum destilleries. They also owned one-time home to Puerto Rico's largest sugar-factory called Central Mercedita, producers of the Snow White sugar brand. The building, known as Castillo Serrallés, was designed by Pedro Adolfo de Castro in 1930 in the Spanish Colonial Revival style.
The museum sits on a 2.5-acre lot and opened in February 1991. Visitors can tour the refurbished home, which has been furnished to appear as it did in the 1930s. There is also a temporary exhibit area for local artists. The Serrallés Castle is now part of a large complex that includes the Cruceta El Vigía, and a Japanese Garden. Even a butterfly garden is also within the museum grounds. By September 2010, the museum was receiving around 100,000 visitors per year.
The museum sits on a hilltop overlooking the downtown area (Ponce Pueblo). Built during the 1930s by order of Juan Eugenio Serrallés, son of businessman Juan Serrallés, founder of Destilería Serrallés, the museum structure sits on a 2.5-acre (1.0 ha) exceedingly manicured property. The museum is one of the most iconic structures in Puerto Rico and receives some 100,000 visitors a year.
The house was purchased by the city of Ponce from the Serrallés heirs. While the castle was valued at $17–$25 million, it was purchased for a mere $400,000 and included much of the furniture in the sale. The city's initial intent was to turn it into a museum of Puerto Rican music. The Museum of Puerto Rican Music, however, was eventually established elsewhere in the city.
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