The municipality of La Riera formerly included Montoliu, La Riera, Virgili and Ardenya. In the 14th century, the population went down in Montoliu and so did in Ardenya and Virgili in the 18th century. In 1769 La Riera and Virgili became a single municipality. In those years, every time the river rose the people from La Riera were not able to go to church in Tamarit, so cardinal Cervantes de Gaeta conceded La Riera, in 1573, the right to have its own priest, a cemetery and a baptismal font.

During the Francés War, the village was under the administrative dominion of Altafulla. In the first Carline War, La Riera ws the biggest supporter of the Carlists in the region.

The parish church worships Santa Margarida. According to a pastoral visit by archbishop Juan de Echanove in 1827, the construction of the temple started in 1788 and finished in 1790. The building has late Baroque features such as exhuberant decorations on the façade (this even draws it near to Rococo style), persistence of Medieval building solutions (the rose window facing the cupola or the use of Catalan vaults in the interior of the building).

During the first half of the 19th century, the population was stable, around 1000 people, but at the beginning of the 20th century this figure started to go down ( specially in the 70's).

A very important event in town is the festivity of the Santa Creu (september, 14). In 1809 the town suffered severe epidemics that caused many casualties . For that reason the authorities decided to invoke a saint for help. After three votations Santa Creu was chosen to free the village from the epidemics. After the invocation, there were not any more sick people and from that moment on every year there is a procession in gratitude for the saint's help.

Also the 'Gaianades' (river risings caused by the late summer rainfalls) are remembered in town. Along the 19th century there were three 'gaianades':

-Sant Bartomeu's Day (August 24, 1842)
-Sant Mateu's Day (September 21, 1850)
-Santa Tecla's Day (September 23, 1874)

The most devastating 'gaianada' was the one on August 17, 1921, when the pressure of the water broke the bridge over the Gaià and was later found in the Arrabassada beach, in tarragona.

Santa Margarida's Day (July 20th)

It is said that an image of Santa Margarida was found in the Castellot Mountain by two shepherds (one from La Riera and one from Altafulla) both wanted to keep it and finally the shepherd from La Riera took the image because it had been found within his town bounders but, the shepherd from Altafulla stole it and hid it in his bag. Like a miracle, the image of the saint returned to the first shepherd's bag, showing the saint's will to stay in La Riera.

Sant Jordi's Day (April 23rd)

Other Festivities

Santa Creu's Day (September 14th)

In La Riera it is a tradition to burn lavender so the Three Wise Men find their way to the village. For that reason the, a few days before this event, the 'Grup de Joves' the the children on a hiking trip to pick up lavender. They also take care of the 'tió' ( a piece of wood with amazing powers that produces presents) and feed it for Sant Esteve's Day.

Also on Sant Esteve's Day there is a special mass said in the 'Castellot' , in front of Santa Margarida's fountain.

The village also celebrates festivities such as Carnival, the National day of Catalunya, the day of the Tree...

Fair

La Riera takes part in the fair of Torredembarra (around May, 1st).

Gastronomy

Visitors can not miss trying the typical porc products sold in Can Pistraques and the 'botifarra de mandongo' (kind of sausage made of liver, lamb blood and pepper) made in Cal Pastó. Also the typical 'coca en ceba' (onion flat cake) sold in all the bakeries in town (Ca la Felisa, Cal Gils and Cal Marcel).

All the restaurants in town cook typical peasant dishes ( 'escudella', rice with cod, rabitt with 'sanfaina', 'escarola amb romesco' with sardines or sausage, escalibada...)

RESTAURANTS

Restaurant Masia de l'Era (Sant Joan Street)

INN-RESTAURANT

Fonda Riera (Sant Antoni Street)

BARS

Bar Bodega Jordi. Breakfast, dinner and 'tapas' (Sant Antoni Street)
Frankfurt els 4 cantons. 'Tapas', sandwiches and barbacue
Bar Casal. Breakfasts,'tapas' and drinks. Sant Pau Street

LEISURE CENTRES

YOUTH

The youth centre is located in a former nun school. It organises activities for the children (summer and winter 'casals'). It is also a meeting centre for all the cultural associations in town.

The village does not count with any night clubs and that makes the youth go out in Torredembarra or Tarragona.

OLD PEOPLE

There is a centre for the old people in town where they can play cards, take some exercise, saw or just chat.

Castle of Montoliu (or Santa Margarida)

This castle, also known as ' El Castellot', is located right in the eastern sector of the plana de Tarragona, near the mouth of the Gaià River. The building was badly damaged during the Francés War.

On of the most remarkable characteristics is the extraordinary amplitude of its boundaries. The castle is a good example of the new military layout in the southern limits of Barcelona County in the 11th century. It covered the area between The Gaià and Francolí rivers (from east to west) and from Valls and Alcover to Tamarit and Tarragona (north to south)

The castle belonged to the Claramunt family, who appear as lords of the fortress in many documents from the 12-13th centuries. In 1134, Ramon Pere, son of Pere Mir de Banyeres, was declared 'fidelis homo et solidus' of Deodat de Claramunt (respectively vassal and commodore of the castles of Montoliu and Tamarit)

In 1229, Guillem de Claramunt, heir of Deodat, was named lord of the castle.

During the 13-15th centuries, the family that inherited the castle gave many celebrities like Vice-admiral Berenguer de Montoliu, who served Pere 'El Gran' and Alfons 'El Liberal' and fought with Roger de Lluria in 1289.

In 1430, Joan de Boixadors, lord of La Riera, Montoliu and Virgili was one of the sluggishes that owed money to Manuel Icart and pawned the castle for 12.000 'sous'.

The oldest element in the castle is the ruined round tower. This tower had an interior diameter of 3.5 metres and originally was 10 meter high, with an elevate door of about 5-6 metres.

Nowadays a housing estate takes up the foothills of the hillock of Santa Margarida.

Tower of l'Abella (or de la Vetlla)

This tower is located on the right side of the road to El Catllar, before reaching Ardenya.

Historians think that the tower had a function of control over the village of Ardenya and its growing lands more than a defensive one.

Its interior diameter measures 210 metres and the wall is 125 centimetres thick and 8 metres high. The lowest floor was covered by a false dome made with small stones and a hole in the middle to communicate with the main floor.

What makes this tower special is, first, its watching function over the rivers and the cultivated lands and, second, that it was built half with stones, half with adobe. Its structure and layout make experts think that the tower was built around the year 1000.

Mills

Mills within the municipality.

Mill of La Torre

This mill is located at the entrance of the village. It is thought that the mill owes its name to its location on the road to Torredembarra.

The best kept element in this mill is the millstone room with an underpinning vault of 4.2 metres high.

Behind the northern wall there was a millrace (in the present walled by a car workshop) and a pool covered with brambles . It is said that the waterfall of this mill was 8 metre high. This mill, like many other mills along the Gaià River, took the water from a channel farther north. This mill most likely dates from the 12-13th centuries.

Fortuny's mill

This mill is located on the left bank of the river, right after Ardenya coming from La Riera.

The Molinet (Small mill)

Flour mill that later grinded white stone.

Mill 'del Mig'

This mill belongs to the Town Council and is located on Major Square. It used to grind wheat, corn and barley.

This one is the only mill that is a public property.

Other important buildings

The Casa Borràs, locatedin the town centre (Major Street) has a noble shield and artistic windows on the façade.

The economy and the population of La Riera grew along the 18th century. That fact is reflected in the great number of houses from this century still conserved in the old town centre.

If you take a walk along the outskirts of town, through the growing lands, you will come across cisterns, huts and stone walls that are typical examples of the architecture in the growing fields. The 'barraques' are square plan constructions with a single opening usually facing south-east.

Within the township there have been accounted around 30 'barraques'

The ten bridges , in the old railway, were built in 1884.

The 'sínies' (waterwheels) are also another architectonic element. Thanks to the sínies the peasantry got water from the river. The most important sínies are the 'sínia boja' (approximately from the year 1000) and another one located near the ten bridges. The fact that this water wheels are located in private properties makes it difficult to visit them.