Can Panxeta

Can Panxeta is a historic masia, a traditional Catalan rural farmhouse, located in the town of el Masnou, in the Maresme region of Barcelona province, Catalonia. The building sits roughly 746 meters from Camí Ral, the town's old main road, at coordinates 41.48452, 2.33351.

Why is the house called Can Panxeta?

The name traces back to a nickname rather than an owner's surname. In the mid-19th century, the farm was worked by a tenant farmer named Benet Bover Coll, born in el Masnou in 1826 and known locally as "Panxeta." His wife was Margarida Sabatés. Catalan farmhouses were commonly named after the families who actually worked the land, not after their legal owners, which explains why this property carries a tenant's nickname instead of a landlord's name.

Who actually owned the property?

At that time, the formal owner was Miquel Amat Lluch, heir to the neighboring farm Can Fontanills. Like many rural estates in the area, Can Panxeta changed hands repeatedly over the following decades through inheritance and sale, with ownership and tenancy following separate paths.

Did the building always serve as a farmhouse?

No. Later in the 19th century, the estate belonged to Salvador Grané Carbí, nicknamed "Mondiu," who was born in Alella in 1812 and died in el Masnou in 1895. Grané worked as a tile and brick maker, and during his tenure the building operated as a bòvila, a traditional kiln for firing ceramic construction materials. In 1896, his son Jaume Grané Valls sold the property to Jaume Boatella Tubau, who came from the nearby town of Premià.

Who managed the farm toward the end of the century?

By the late 19th century, the tenant farmer running the property was Jaume Cot Andinyach, born in Montornès del Vallès in 1826, married to Maria Catafal Fontcoberta. Their son, Llorenç Cot Catafau, bought the estate outright in 1914, shifting it from tenancy to full family ownership.

Why does Can Panxeta matter to visitors today?

The farmhouse is one of several surviving masies woven into the historical fabric of el Masnou, a coastal town in Maresme known for its 19th-century seafaring and wine-trading past. For anyone curious about local history, the building offers a tangible link to an era when the countryside around the town was dotted with working farms and brick kilns, long before the area took on its present-day layout.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is Can Panxeta? It is a former masia, a traditional Catalan farmhouse, located in el Masnou in the Maresme region of Barcelona province.

Where does the building's name come from? From the nickname "Panxeta," used for Benet Bover Coll, the tenant farmer who ran the property in the mid-19th century.

Did the building ever serve a non-agricultural purpose? Yes. In the late 19th century it operated as a bòvila, a kiln for firing bricks and roof tiles, under Salvador Grané Carbí.

How far is Can Panxeta from the center of el Masnou? The building lies about 746 meters from Camí Ral, the town's historic main road.