La Estrella, the beautiful town of Teruel that its last two inhabitants have abandoned

@ElentirENG ES 1·26·2024 · 23:08 0

Teruel is the second Spanish province with the least population: about 133,000 inhabitants, only surpassed by Soria, which does not reach 90,000.

A spectacular abandoned town in Soria in which only one inhabitant remains
A town in ruins in a remote part of León where only two inhabitants remain

Located in the south of the Aragon region, Teruel is one of the clearest examples of the so-called emptied Spain, which is becoming increasingly depopulated. This province has a total of 236 municipalities and in them there are 73 ghost towns, which no longer have inhabitants.

One of the most recent deserted towns of Teruel is La Estrella, located in the municipality of Mosqueruela.

It should be noted that this town is not completely abandoned: there are still houses that are second homes, which their owners occasionally pass through. That is why the town is preserved in good condition, compared to other unpopulated areas.

Located next to the border with the province of Castellón, La Estrella is a town of medieval origin. Its original name was Villar de las Vinyas and its current name is documented as early as the 15th century.

The town of La Estrella had about 300 inhabitants in the 1940s and was famous for its church, erected in the 18th century and dedicated to the Virgin of La Estrella, to whom a miracle occurred in 1638, when water began to flow from the so-called Fountain of the Virgin at a time of drought.

The last inhabitants of this town were Sinforosa (89 years old) and Martín (88), a couple of octogenarians who became famous for their appearances in some media and YouTube channels, because they spent three decades being the last residents of the town. A year ago they left La Estrella, due to their health problems.

In October 2022, photographer Marc Prades did a report on Martin and Sinforosawhich he published a few months later, after the elderly couple left the town:

A few days ago, the channel Monxileros published a video visiting the town already abandoned, in which there is only a group of cats that Martín fed when he lived there:

---

Main image: Monxileros. Source of the other photos: Ayuntamiento de Mosqueruela.