Mazarron

Mazarron History

Mazarron has been linked to the mining wealth of its mountain ranges, which are rich in lead, zinc, silver, iron, alum and red ochre, for thousands of years. There are traces of Phoenician, Carthaginian and Roman workings and the area’s mineral wealth also attracted the Moors. The Romans also founded factories here to produce garum, a salty fish sauce much prized in the Empire’s capital. 

After the Christian Reconquest, the settlement known as Casas de los Alumbres de Almazarrón was developed as the mining continued. Its strategic position proved a bastion of defence for the neighbouring lands of Lorca and Cartagena – and a consequence is the many defence towers still to be seen that were erected against the threat of renewed invasion from Africa . 

Mazarron’s minerals continued to bring wealth to the area into the early 20th century, and when the deposits dwindled, tourism and agriculture took over: this is a big tomato, melon and cucumber growing area. Renewed economic development saw the construction of some of the town’s emblematic modernist buildings including the town hall and the old cultural headquarters.

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