Edificio de la Aduana de Valparaíso, Historic customs building in Plaza Wheelwright, Valparaíso, Chile.
The Customs Building is a two-story brick structure located at the corner of Bustamante and Lord Cochran streets with balanced proportions and thick walls. Its facades are arranged symmetrically with regular window patterns typical of 19th-century administrative architecture.
Construction started in 1844 under engineer Augusto Charms on reclaimed land, establishing what became the city's oldest surviving administrative structure. The building endured through Valparaíso's growth and maintained its original governmental purpose across many decades.
This building represents Valparaíso's importance as a working port and shows how administrative spaces were designed to manage maritime commerce. The layout reflects the daily routines of customs officers and merchants who passed through to conduct business.
The building continues to serve as the Regional Customs Directorate headquarters and is generally closed to the public except during Chile's Cultural Heritage Day celebrations. Visitors should keep in mind it remains an active administrative building with limited access times.
Inside, the building preserves the original director's desk and an 1864 security vault that speak to its long operational history. The ceiling structures are made from Chilean larch wood, a building material rarely seen in contemporary construction.
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