16th–18th centuries
| History of Puerto Rico |
|---|
 |
 Puerto Ricoportal |
- 1511 – August 8: First Catholic Diocese in the Americas established in San Juan. [2]
- 1513
- Construction of a wooden cathedral in the Islet of San Juan begins. [3]
- Escuela de gramática established by bishop Alonso Manso. [4]
- 1521
- August 15: Ciudad de San Juan Bautista de Puerto Rico officially founded by Spanish colonists after abandoning nearby Caparra. [5] [6]
- Construction of Casa Blanca for the Ponce de León family begins.
- Platting and construction of several streets in Old San Juan including Plaza de Armas and Plaza de la Catedral.
- 1523 – Convento de Santo Tomas de Aquino founded. [7]
- 1524 – Nuestra Señora de la Concepción Hospital built. [7]
- 1526 – October 4: St. Francis Hurricane occurs. [5]
- 1528 – San José Church construction begins. [8] [9]
- 1529 – October 18: Harbor attack by Caribs. [7]
- 1530
- August 5: Hurricane occurs. [5]
- Casa Blanca built. [7]
- 1533 – Construction of La Fortaleza begins by orders from King Charles I of Spain. [10]
- 1540 – La Fortaleza built. [7]
- 1542 – Cathedral of San Juan Bautista construction begins. [11]
- 1560 – City wall construction begins. [5]
- 1560s – San Antonio Bridge built across Condado Lagoon. [7]
- 1568
- September 7: Hurricane occurs. [5]
- Fortín San Antonio is built to protect the eastern entrance to the San Juan Islet.
- 1580 – San Juan becomes the capital of the Captaincy General of Puerto Rico.
- 1582 – Population: 850 (approximate estimate). [7]
- 1591 – Castillo San Felipe del Morro construction begins. [8]
- 1594 – Witch-hunt, the first of its kind in the Americas, occurs in what is now Puerta de Tierra by orders of bishop and inquisitor Don Nicolás Ramos. [12]
- 1595 – November 22: Battle of San Juan begins. [7] [6]
- 1598 – June: San Juan taken by British forces; Boquerón battery sacked. [5] [6]
- 1605 – Cabildo constructed in Plaza de San Juan. [8]
- 1615 – September 12: Hurricane occurs. [5]
- 1625 – September 24: Town besieged by Dutch forces. [7]
- 1651 – Monasterio del Señor San José de la Orden de nuestra Señora del Carmen founded by Doña Ana Lanzós.
- 1733 – Palacio Episcopal construction begins (approximate date). [11]
- 1750 – establishment of the first advance defense line on the eastern end of the San Juan Islet.
- 1756 – Church of Saint Francis of Assisi established by the Third Order of Franciscans.
- 1760 – Santurce founded as San Mateo de Cangrejos. [13]
- 1769 – San Gerónimo Powderhouse built.
- 1770 – Miraflores Powderhouse built.
- 1780 – Capilla del Santo Cristo de la Salud built. [11]
- 1783 – Castillo de San Cristóbal built. [6]
- 1787
- May 2: 1787 Boricua earthquake causes considerable damage to the city fortifications. [14] [15]
- May 3: Fiesta de Cruz begins. [16]
- 1791 – Fortín de San Gerónimo is built.
- 1797 – April: San Juan besieged by British forces. [17] [6]
- 1800 – construction of the Arsenal de San Juan begins.
