Throughout the Sant Andreu district, old factories have become public green spaces or factories for art, creativity, and coworking while respecting the industrial heritage that brought and kept generations of locals to the district. On this tour, you will visit the site of 5 old factories that have been converted to creative or natural places for the public as you discover The Future of Factories. In 1897, this once village of Sant Andreu de Palomar was annexed to the city of Barcelona, becoming the district of Sant Andreu. Although still part of the “big city”, the pride, the history and the resilience of this once village still hold strong. From distance stories of Roman winemaking to more recent reminders of civil war and tragedy, Sant Andreu is a significant representation of Catalonia and it’s spirited people. Today in Sant Andreu you’ll find peaceful streets lined with vibrant orange trees, balconies blanketed with the red and yellow stripes of the Catalan flag, the black tinged brick of industrial buildings emerge behind local bakeries and cafes. Over centuries Sant Andreu was a village or a district of the working class and nothing changed in regards to this when the Industrial Revolution swept through Barcelona in the mid-1800s. Barcelona became the lead industrial city in Spain, especially within the textile industry. By 1902 the district of Sant Andreu was home to over 150 factories which employed 1000’s of workers. By the mid-1970’s Barcelona saw an industrial reconversion and factories were destroyed or left abandoned.. but these infrastructures and spaces have emerged from industrial to innovative.