To learn more…

• Herminia Pernas refers to the Cucurny ceramic factory:

The Gres Burela factory, also known as Gres Burela, was founded by the Catalan Leandro Cucurny in 1908. Cucurny already had another gres production factory in his hometown, specifically in Montmeló, an activity that his grandfather, Pau Cucurny, had started in Barcelona. He established himself in Burela, attracted by the facilities, including a 37-meter chimney, of the then-failed Sociedad Cerámica de Sargadelos. This latter had moved in recent years from the nearby town of Sargadelos to our town, from 1901 to 1908 when it was finally seized. Cucurny’s company acquired 60 mining installations under the name “La Gallega,” which provided his gres plant with excellent raw materials: refractory clays, feldspars, and kaolin, our “clay.” The same materials that Díaz Pardo and Luis Seoane would use years later in 1968 with their Laboratory of Forms to revive the Cerámica de Sargadelos factory in the homonymous town, with a new and avant-garde concept in line with the new times.

Gres Cucurny manufactured construction materials such as tiles, tiles, and gres pavements, such as gres mosaic, of such high quality that they managed to create a brand with a designation of origin: Gres Burela. This generated employment and prosperity, reaching a workforce of 260 workers in 1946 when Burela had a total population of 1,100 inhabitants.

In 1955, Leandro Cucurny passed away, and the bells of the parish churches of Burela and Montmeló rang simultaneously at 8:00 PM.

The chimney of the Sociedad Cerámica de Sargadelos and Gres Cucurny was demolished in 1960 after passing through various owners. In 2013, the Gres Burela company was liquidated.

• Who is Gloria da Corneta?

Gloria González Niñe (1929), known as Gloria da Corneta, is a woman who is now over 90 years old and is very popular and beloved in Burela. She was deeply involved in the community life of Burela and showed a strong interest in both the industrial and social development of the town, as well as in preserving historical memory as an example for younger generations.

She worked at Leandro Cucurny’s factory, with which she still feels a strong connection, forming a part of her identity.

A street in Burela in the port area, where she was born, bears her name, and she was named the godmother of the Boniteiro “Reina del Carmen” Museum Ship on two occasions. The first was in 1968 when it was launched into the sea, and the second when it was transformed into a museum showcasing our way of life, history, and culture as a maritime town.

Sources:

Suárez Mesías, Olga. Memoria do Oficio do Mar de Burela (141 pages), 2011, Concello de Burela.

Salgado, F. (2015, April 10). Gres Cucurny o Gres Burela. La Voz de Galicia. https://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/mercados/2015/04/10/gres-cucurny-gres-burela/00031428698092887324106.htm

Díaz, José (2020, October 4). La primera gran empresa de Burela. La Voz de Galicia. https://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/amarina/burela/2020/10/04/primera-gran-empresa-burela/0003_202010X4C8994.htm

“I am proud that the name of Sargadelos is recognized worldwide” December 10, 2011 https://www.isaacdiazpardo.gal/es/empresas/sargadelos

Villapol, Pablo (2021, November 13) What happened to… Gloria González? El Progreso https://www.elprogreso.es/articulo/a-marina/que-fue-gloria-gonzalez/202111111905251539207.html

L.F.B (2022, March 8) “If I can, I will continue collaborating with Burela” El Progreso https://www.elprogreso.es/articulo/a-marina/podo-seguirei-colaborando-burela/202203081821151563029.html

González Rey, Ramón (2022, March 8) Gloria da Corneta, an example of “love for Burela” at 93, now has her street La Voz de Galicia https://www.lavozdegalicia.es/noticia/amarina/burela/2022/03/08/gloria-da-corneta-ejemplo-vitalidad-altruismo-93-anos-calle-burela/00031646742686350471859.htm