This study, conducted in the year 2000, provides a detailed analysis of the Municipal Archive of Chulilla, highlighting the documentary wealth it contains and its importance for reconstructing local history. The archive preserves documents spanning from the 15th to the 20th century, offering a comprehensive and detailed view of the political, administrative, and social evolution of the municipality.
At the time of the study, the documentary collections were distributed in two depositories within municipal facilities, showing varying states of preservation and lacking proper organization. Through a process of organization and inventory, the documentation was successfully structured and cataloged, enabling better understanding of its content and facilitating consultation.
The analysis of these collections has identified highly relevant documents, including administrative records, census documents, municipal correspondence, and fiscal documentation, among others. Additionally, the study incorporates documents related to the administration of the Fuencaliente Baths, as well as ecclesiastical and judicial archives.
The Study
The collections of the Municipal Archive of Chulilla were located in two separate depositories within the Town Hall facilities. The first was situated on the ground floor, containing the oldest documentation in poor condition, while the second depository was located on the second floor of the municipal building with better preservation conditions, though neither had minimal organization.
The result of the organization and inventory process is a fairly complete and interesting archive, although there are significant gaps and some documentary series are missing. However, the existing series show few chronological gaps. In total, the documentation occupies 517 boxes and covers a timeline from the 15th to the 20th century.
The oldest document dates from 1431 and corresponds to a will in favor of the church, including an inventory of private assets. It preserves some municipal council books from 1601, though we only find continuity in the 20th century. Similarly, we find municipal correspondence from 1692. Population censuses begin rather late, in 1888, and continue to the present, with corrections from 1929. Notable for their continuity and antiquity are the general military draft records from 1771 to 1987, and personal records from 1880. It preserves a general inventory of assets from 1958 and numerous relations and inventories of municipal properties from the 19th and 20th centuries, transfer records from the 18th to 20th centuries, and boundary demarcation records from the 19th and 20th centuries.
In the municipal archive, we find documentation related to the administration of the Fuencaliente Baths, which has been included as a new entry and contains documents issued by the Administrative Board from the 19th and 20th centuries: correspondence, leases, appointments of medical directors of the center, accounts, and property administration, etc.
Regarding the administration of municipal accounts, a 15th-century census record and a book of village censuses from 1683-1696 are preserved, as well as two documents from 1399 and 1405. The first was issued by the rector of the Ontinyent church, proxy of the Bishop of Valencia, in favor of the jurors of Chulilla, for the payment of 21 gold florins for the Royal Coronation subsidy, on parchment. The second was issued by Bartolomé Gonbau, from l’Alcora, in favor of Juan García, juror of Chulilla, for the payment of an “oficier” for the village, also on parchment. Account statements have been preserved since 1690.
We also find considerable fiscal documentation from the 16th century, such as Tacha taxes, salt rights, payment for the service of the Cortes de Monzón, wheat finance books, pechas, tithes, war distributions, weights and measures, equivalents, and municipal revenues. A cabreo (property register) with rural and urban properties from the 15th century and a wealth census of landowners from Gestalgar from 1834 are preserved.
Among the incorporated archive collections, we find books belonging to the Justicia (Justice), in the old regime a function exercised by the highest municipal authority, the Justicia, covering a timeline from 1557 to 1706, totaling 69 volumes. Without doubt, this is the most important series preserved in the archive.
Finally, some ecclesiastical documents from 1431 are preserved, including wills and inventories of private assets, donations to the church, records of acts performed by the priest, etc.
Bibliography
https://ceice.gva.es/estatico/Archivos/SOCPDV/Chulilla.%20Gu%EDa%20del%20Archivo%20Municipal.pdf