Marbella blast furnaces

The blast furnaces in Marbella were built after the discovery of iron ore deposits in Ojén because of the availability of charcoal in the Sierra Blanca mountain range and the supply of water from the Verde River.

[4] The dismantling of the iron industry based in the forges of El Angel and La Concepción occurred simultaneously, disrupting the local economy, as much of the population had to return to farming or fishing for a livelihood.

This situation was compounded by the widespread crisis of traditional agriculture, and by the epidemic of phylloxera blight in the vineyards,[5] all of which accounted for Marbella's high unemployment, increase in poverty, and the starvation of many day laborers.

The associated infrastructure built for the installation of the foundry of El Angel in 1871 by the British-owned Marbella Iron Ore Company[6] temporarily relieved the situation, and even made the city a destination for immigrants, increasing its population.

However, the company did not survive the worldwide economic crisis of 1893, and closed its doors in that year due to the difficulty of finding a market for the magnetite iron ore removed from its mine.