This examines the development of the saltpeter industry in Chile after the War of the Pacific (1879–1883), a conflict between Chile and a Bolivian–Peruvian alliance. Chile’s victory meant the annexation of the territories of Antofagasta and Tarapacá, effectively controlling the production of sodium nitrate and the global saltpeter monopoly. Industrial development was reflected through changes in foreign and Chilean capitals, technologies, and work practices. In Tarapacá, the most important investments in the 19th century were British and German. In Antofagasta, Chilean, English, German, and Croatian investments were prominent in the 19th and 20th centuries. And since 1926, American capitals have occupied the spotlight. The dominant technologies were the Shanks system between 1880–1926, the Guggenheim from 1926–1954, and the introduction of Solar Evaporation in the 1950s. Work evolved from manual artisanal labor without legal protection to mechanization under social laws. Saltpeter represented, in the social and economic history of Chile, the rise of the proletariat, communal social movements, a strong labor press, and a series of strikes and massacres. From the saltpeter era sprouted powerful literature, poetry, and music throughout the 20th century until today. The nitrate industry reached its peak between 1881 and 1917. During this period, it had to confront competition from synthetic nitrate and ceased to be the main source of revenue for the national treasury of Chile. This was followed by a period of decline and crisis from 1918 to 1931, the latter intertwined with the global financial crisis. Various state and business measures made it possible for a small number of nitrate oficinas (processing plants and settlements) in Tarapacá and Antofagasta to continue operating until the nationalization of the nitrate industry in 1971. The nitrate industry took place during the first globalization of liberalism, one that brought flows of capital, migration from Europe to the American Continent, changes to marine navigation, and the opening of various markets in Asia, Europe, and Africa. Nitrate became the most effective fertilizer for agriculture and replaced guano in crop production. In order to analyze this topic, we will utilize the results of the main monographic studies, texts used for historical and political context, and works with interpretative theses about specific periods of nitrate production.
In Chile, the term caliche is used to refer to nitrate ore; that is, the mineral from which a metal of economic value is extracted. It is the raw material of sodium nitrate, known since ancient times by the Indigenous peoples of the Tarapacá ravines [
1,
2]. The study of sodium nitrate in modern Europe was introduced by French botanist Joseph Dombey, who described caliche from the Atacama Desert in 1776. Years later, it would be Mariano Eduardo de Rivero, a Peruvian scientist, who made it known in Spain in 1821.
Once its mining and commercialization began in Tarapacá, research into the origins of nitrate progressed. Nowadays, authors such as George Edward Ericksen [
3], Guillermo Chong [
4], and Juan J. Pueyo [
5] have proposed the most accepted theories within the scientific community, in which multiple factors are considered: from marine elements, storms, and rock weathering to intrusive volcanic activity. These phenomena took place millions of years ago. However, the persistence of reasonable doubts has been noted, since “there is a clear disconnection between the knowledge of these deposits in the field and some results and observations gathered in laboratories” [
6] (p. 38).
In the lands where the caliche deposits are found, it is possible to identify nitrate strata of varying thickness. These correspond to:
The
chuca is a mixture of loose soil, sand, and clay; the
costra is a harder mixture containing some calcium and magnesium sulfate; the
tapa is a conglomerate of sand and clay, alongside gypsum and common lime; the
caliche, which constitutes the valuable and exploitable part of the deposit, is what is scientifically known as sodium nitrate, and its thickness has extraordinarily reached up to two meters; the
congelo is formed by sulfated and chlorinated salts bound together by clays; and finally, the
coba consists of alluvial terrain where gypsum has often been found, resting upon the Andean bedrock characteristic of the region” [
7] (p. 4).
The territorial demarcation of nitrate mining was initially known as
nitrate districts. The German engineers Semper and Michels [
8] discuss nitrate districts, identifying one general district for the entire region of Tarapacá and four for the region of Antofagasta: Toco, Antofagasta, Aguas Blancas, and Taltal. The terminology that ultimately prevailed was
cantón (“canton”). Neither of them was adopted by Aníbal Echeverría y Reyes, who compiled the first text of
Vocablos Salitreros in 1934. Oscar Bermúdez [
2] (p. 152) used
cantón and district when referring to the nitrate works of La Noria in 1860. Mario Bahamonde [
9] (p. 83) defined
cantón as a “territorial division made geographically over the nitrate lands, always in relation to their maritime transport routes for shipments”, and comprised several nitrate oficinas.
At times, a cantón could be comprised of several nitrate oficinas belonging to the same company, for example the Toco canton in the region of Antofagasta. In other cases, it included numerous nitrate oficinas that were not established at the same time and belonged to different owners, such as the Bolivian or Central canton in the Antofagasta region.
The cantons of Zapiga, Sal de Obispo, Del Rincón, Pampa Negra, Negreiros, La Peña y de Soledad, San Francisco, San Antonio, Yungay, La Noria, and Cocina were established in Tarapacá, where the railway network connected them with the ports [
10]. In the case of Antofagasta, the cantons of Central or Bolivian or Antofagasta, Taltal, Toco, and Aguas Blancas were established. They were all connected to their respective ports, except for the Aguas Blancas canton, which was connected to the port of Coloso [
11].
The establishment of nitrate activity was carried out through a
nitrate oficina (
oficina salitrera). A nitrate oficina constituted a “set of land, buildings, machinery, etc., forming a unit for the extraction of caliche and the production of nitrate” [
12] (p. 24). However, this installation also implied the conjunction of workers’ and employees’ camps, the industrial plant, and the
caliche yard. It was a place designed to isolate the labor force away from the cities. At the same time, it reflected a social division of labor, based on a class system. This was evident throughout the evolution of the principal technological-labor systems, such as Shanks and Guggenheim.
From an architectural perspective, it has been emphasized that the nitrate oficinas located in the Antofagasta region were conceived to combine a primary productive function, bringing together the maximum concentration of capital and labor. These were necessary factors for the extraction and processing of resources, organized autonomously and equipped with industrial facilities, infrastructure, housing, and a functional division of space [
13]. The isolation made it possible to discipline the workforce, which has led to comparisons between the nitrate oficinas and company towns. Nevertheless, workers moved between cantons, and the railway network connected them to the nitrate ports [
9,
10].
This entry is adapted from the peer-reviewed paper 10.3390/encyclopedia6080179
