History of the city of Pereira
The history of the city of Pereira officially begins on August 30th, 1863. The first mass in the new church is regarded as the founding date of the modern city of Pereira , even if the settlement did not yet have this name and a city already existed here in Spanish colonial times.
Pre-Columbian history
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Archaeological finds indicate that the area around Pereira was settled almost 10,000 years ago and that salt was extracted in the Consotá river at least 2000 years ago. The region was later populated by the Quimbaya Indians, who were especially famous for their goldsmithing.
Cartago
The Spanish settlement began with Jorge Robledo , who explored and colonized the region during the Conquista on behalf of the governor of Popayán, Lorenzo de Aldana . At the place where Pereira stands today, Robledo founded a city, which he gave the name Cartago , after the Spanish city of Cartagena , from which many of his soldiers came.
This first official establishment took place on August 9, 1540 in the name of the Captain General of Peru, Francisco Pizarro . Robledo sworn in two mayors and set up six councilors. When Pascual de Andagoya also claimed the title of governor, Robledo met him in Cali in the fall of 1540 . Andagoya promoted him to lieutenant general and instructed him to carry out the founding of the cities again, this time on behalf of Andagoya. Cartago was founded a second time on January 10, 1541. Robledo appointed two new mayors and another councilor.
As early as 1580, some residents moved down into lower terrain, where they found a more pleasant climate and agriculturally more suitable conditions on the Río Cauca and Río La Vieja . In 1621 a chapel was built there, in which baptisms were also held from 1645. Life shifted more and more to the valley, which also offered better transport connections to the cities of Cali and Popayán and on to Quito .
The residents asked permission to move the city completely into the valley. The official reason was constant attacks by the indigenous people of the Pijaos , but this reason seems to be an advance, because the Pijaos were already practically exterminated by this time.
Permission was granted on November 18, 1681, and the city was officially relocated to the valley of the Río Cauca on April 21, 1691 , where it now forms the city of Cartago .
Nevertheless, the area around Old Cartago was not uninhabited, there were some salt mines on the Río Consota and also the Indian village of Pindaná de los Zerrillos , which only dissolved at the end of the 19th century. The new Cartago (Cartago Nueva) developed into a regional center of the slave trade. In 1785, 27 slaves of African origin escaped and hid in Pindaná de los Zerrillos. It is reported that the Indians took them to the Egoyá stream, where they built the palisade village of Palenque de Egoyá , which was later discovered and destroyed by slave traders.
Pereira Martinez
In 1816, José Francisco Pereira Martinez fled to this area with his younger brother Manuel and three friends. Pereira was a lawyer from Cartago and had been involved in the struggle for independence against the Spaniards. Now he sought refuge in the ruins of old Cartago. Allegedly they lived there for three years, during which Pereira Martinez conducted biological studies, which he later processed in his book De la reacción de algunas plantas sobre el organismo ("About the reaction of some plants to the human organism").
After Colombia's independence, Pereira Martinez became a respected lawyer. In October 1826 he acquired the land between Otun and Egoyá (about 6188 hectares) from the state for the low purchase price of 4234 pesos and 6 reales. He had previously had confirmation that the area is impassable and fallow. This correspondence is lost today, but was quoted in 1863.
First steps from village community to parish 1857–1863
From the 1840s onwards there were major shifts in the population distribution of Colombia, which was then called the Republic of New Granada. In particular , settlers from the poorer Antioquia province moved to the south of their province and to the neighboring Cauca to the south in order to set up their own piece of land. This wave, which lasted for several decades, was also triggered by the report by Fermín López, who had traveled to the province of Cauca in 1840 and, on his return, reported on the favorable climate and fertile soil there. The first city to be founded in the border area between Antioquia and Cauca was Santa Rosa de Cabal in 1844, followed by Manizales (1849) and Villamaría (1850).
Also between the rivers Río Otun and Río Consota, farmers settled in the area of the province of Cauca, partly also near the ruins of old Cartago. In terms of local politics, the settlement appeared when a "neighborhood community from Old Cartago" (Junta de Vecinos de Cartago Viejo) sent a letter to the governor of Quindío on December 29, 1857, with the request that a community leader and a judge be appointed and also to add the village to the district of Cartago. The officers requested were deployed on June 29, 1858. When the district of Cartago was founded on November 4, 1859, six villages were assigned to this city, but Old Cartago was not mentioned.
The development of the area played an important role for the inhabitants of the new Cartago. There were also economic and political reasons for settling new populations in their own area. This created a certain community of interests of the established residents of Cartago, including traders and officials, and the farmers who moved from Antioquia. It is significant that in the later years many positions in public life (pastor, judge, teacher etc.) were filled by people who came from Cartago.
The construction of a small church in 1862 was also important for the development of Pereira. In a letter dated January 4, 1863, some villagers asked the responsible bishop of Popayán to have the church consecrated. The initiative of the priest Remigio Antonio Cañarte is mentioned . In this letter, the village is called for the first time Villa de Robledo , a name that refers to the founder of Cartago. In addition, the names Antigua Cartago and Cartago Viejo (both roughly: Old Cartago ) were also in use. The name Pereira does not appear anywhere at this time.
On August 24, 1863, Cañarte moved from Cartago to Villa de Robledo. On August 30, 1863, he held the first mass in the new chapel at the later location of the Plaza de Bolívar . The village was not only politically but also ecclesiastically one level higher. In the collective consciousness of the city, this date is of particular importance: August 30, 1863 is considered the official founding date of Pereira, and the main street is now also called 30 De Agosto .
Pereira Martinez had died in Tocaima a few days earlier . It is not entirely clear what role it previously played in the planned settlement. In official historiography, it is said that he wanted to found a city and that Cañarte was doing his last will.
First land distribution in 1865
National policy sought to aid settlement in the country by selling large quantities of land in plots to immigrants. The President of the State of Cauca had issued an order on June 22, 1859 to open 5,120 hectares for settlement near Old Cartago (Cartago Viejo), but this was not carried out during the turmoil of the civil war.
Guillermo Pereira Gamba , the son of Pereira Martinez, had inherited only the land around Antigua Cartago from his father in addition to a small sum of money. From October 1864 he wanted to sell almost 500 hectares (770 Fanegadas) of it "of his own free will" to settlers from the state of Antioqia who had moved there. This measure is controversial in research today for two reasons. The historian Víctor Zuluaga doubts that Pereira Gamba was the legal owner of the land at all. The land on which the village was located is said to have been handed over to Manuel Gómez de Laspriella by the Spanish viceroy as early as 1810 and Pereira's property is further to the west. In Pereira's time, however, the ownership structure was undisputed, and the historian Emilio Gutiérrez Díaz points out that Pereira Gamba would hardly have carried out a hoax of this magnitude without the authorities or people noticing it. Furthermore, the motive is being questioned today. While Pereira Gamba's philanthropy and altruism were praised up to now, today it is also being considered whether economic interests may not have played a role, because the upswing of the village has also increased its remaining lands in value.
Pereira Gamba did not take over the distribution of the parcels himself. As usual with state distribution, a commission ( Comisión Agraria ) was set up made up of three suitable villagers: José María Gallego, Celedonio Restrepo and Sacramento Montoya. The size of the parcels depended on the number of family members of the buyer. Single persons could receive four fanegadas (2.56 ha), whereas a family with three children could receive nine fanegadas (5.76 ha). A census was carried out in the village on November 22, 1864 to resolve the claims, and between January and November 1865, 98 lots were distributed to 297 people.
Pereira Gamba not only sold small plots to the settlers, but also two larger areas: Nacederos to Jerónimo del Castillo and Matecaña to Félix de la Abadía.
With the expansion of the settlement, the local political status and internal administration were also adjusted. On January 11, 1865, the settlement was given the title Aldea (village). The village council (Junta Auxiliar Legislativa) was set up on September 19, 1867 and was composed of both immigrants from Antioquia and former residents of Cartago. Among other things, he was responsible for finance and personnel administration. In addition, charitable work was organized to build roads to the neighboring villages and bridges over the Otun and Egoyá, which promoted the economic development of the village. Building the church was also a collaborative effort.
From around 1864 the place name Pereira prevailed, in honor of Pereira Martinez. This became official at the latest with the elevation of the village to a separate district within the province, which happened on January 20, 1870. This district also included the now defunct village of Condino and Segovia (now Marsella ). The village council was renamed Corporación Municipal and was elected for the first time by the population on February 2, 1871.
Second land distribution 1871–1884
Further distribution of land to settlers resulted in even greater growth in the small town. This time it was organized by the state and dragged on for many years. The project was initiated in 1869 by Ramón Elías Paláu , a lawyer from Cartago who was meanwhile a member of the National Congress. The law 58 of the United States of Colombia , which regulated this land distribution, was adopted on 27 May 1871st The law provided for the sale of a further 12,000 hectares of land from the "Villa Pereira" for settlement. A clause stipulated that if the city could not provide enough land, land from the now extinct village of Condina could be used.
This required extensive land surveys, which a state geodesist had to carry out at the community's expense. The land surveyor Ramón María Arana moved to Pereira on November 24, 1871 and began the surveying work, which was probably finished in autumn 1872. The distribution of the land was still delayed because Arana did not create the required maps until his payment was secured. It was not until the beginning of 1874 that Pereira paid the last installment to Arana.
As with the first land distribution, the plots were allocated by three capable villagers. On October 28, 1872, Marcelino Henao, José María Uribe Isaza and Mariano Arias were appointed to the Comisión Agraria . The allotment was officially supposed to begin on January 15, 1873, but due to the slow payment of the surveyor, it was not until July 1873 that large quantities of land could be distributed. The Comisión Agraria proved to be very effective and stable. In the course of 1873, 272 plots averaging 48 hectares were allocated. This high number can probably be explained by the fact that mainly those plots were sold that had already been developed and settled, while fewer plots could be given up each year in the following years. By 1884 a total of 19,372 hectares had been distributed in over 2000 plots.
The purpose of the distribution was to enlarge the town, but property speculation should be avoided, which is why only small plots were sold to individuals and families. The property had to be cleared, built on and inhabited, otherwise the plot could be withdrawn and reallocated. There were embargo periods for resale.
This second land distribution is also an important milestone in Pereira's urban planning. When the land was measured by the Adana geodesist, a street grid was created that still structures the city today. The streets bore both Spanish and Indian names, the current numbering comes from a later time. The main street (today Carrera 8a) was named after the first city founder "Jorge Robledo".
20th and 21st centuries
After the Thousand Day War , Colombia was reorganized and in 1905 the new department of Caldas was founded from parts of Antioquia and Cauca, and Manizales became the capital . The department was divided into three provinces, with Pereira being the capital of the Robledo province.
The city experienced a major boom when it was connected to the railroad in 1921, which made it easier to transport coffee in particular. For several years Pereira was the terminus of the Caldas Railway , until the line was extended to Manizales in 1927. In the same year, the electric tram was inaugurated in Pereira. Matecaña Airport was opened in 1947 . The railways and trams are no longer in operation today.
Pereira broke away from Manizales on both a church and a political level. The Catholic diocese of Pereira was founded on December 17, 1952 , and when the province of Risaralda was carved out of Caldas in 1966 , Pereira became its capital.
Pereira and the surrounding areas, especially Armenia , suffered a setback on January 25, 1999: a severe earthquake with a magnitude of 6.2 shook the region. The city suffered 61 deaths and extensive property damage occurred. The César Gaviria Trujillo viaduct , which runs over the Río Otun and has been connecting Pereira with Dosquebradas since November 1997 , survived the quake without damage.
On the sporting level, Pereira has hosted international competitions. In July 2001, two games for the South American football championship Copa América 2001 took place here. In August 2005 the Bolivarian Games were held in Pereira and Armenia , a sporting competition between Colombia, Venezuela , Ecuador , Peru , Bolivia and Panama . Also in the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup that was Estadio Hernán--Ramirez Villegas stadium venue.
The conurbation around Pereira is now one of the largest in Colombia.
Web links
- Official website of the city of Pereira (Spanish)
- History of Pereira under the name of Cartago (Spanish)
- Sebastián Martínez Botero: Conformatión Política Y Espacial de Pereira: 1857–1877 (PDF, 472 pages, 2.8 MB, Spanish, 2007)
- 189 pictures from the history of Pereira (Spanish)
Individual evidence
- ^ Carlos E. López, Martha C. Cano: Salt, Gold and Copper in the Salado de Consotá (Pereira). (JPG) Universidad Tecnológica de Pereira, 2006, accessed on March 27, 2012 (English).
- ↑ a b Mildreth Osorio Posso, Marcelo Andrés Torres Marin: Cartago. Historia. (No longer available online.) June 9, 2010, archived from the original on May 2, 2012 ; Retrieved March 27, 2012 (Spanish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Cartago. Gobernación del Valle del Cauca, April 24, 2006, accessed on March 18, 2012 (Spanish): "Porque casi todos los compañeros de Jorge Robledo eran oriundos de Cartagena (España)"
- ↑ Mildreth Osorio Posso, Marcelo Andres Torres Marín Cartago. Historia. (No longer available online.) June 9, 2010, archived from the original on May 2, 2012 ; Retrieved on March 27, 2012 (Spanish, other dates are also mentioned; Osorio and Torres discuss the various traditions and their reliability). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Antonio Vélez Ocampo: Translado de Cartago. Retrieved March 27, 2012 (Spanish).
- ↑ Álvaro Acevedo Tarazona: Pereira al reencuentro de su historia. In: Revista Credencial Historia. Edición 236 August 2009, accessed 21 March 2012 (Spanish).
- ↑ Álvaro Acevedo Tarazona: Representationes y símbolos para un debate en cuestión sobre los orígenes de Pereira (Antigua Cartago). (PDF) (No longer available online.) In: Revista del Departamento de Historia de la Facultad de Humanidades No 26. Universidad del Valle, 2006, p. 21 , formerly in the original ; accessed on March 21, 2011 (Spanish): "lo cierto era que los indios Pijaos habían sido prácticamente exterminados de tiempo atrás"
- ↑ a b c d e f Sebastián Martínez Botero: Conformatión Política Y Espacial de Pereira: 1857-1877. (PDF; 2.9 MB) (No longer available online.) October 2007, formerly in the original ; Retrieved March 21, 2012 (Spanish). ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Sebastián Martínez Botero: Conformatión Política Y Espacial de Pereira: 1857-1877. (PDF) (No longer available online.) October 2007, p. 143 , formerly in the original ; Retrieved on March 21, 2012 (Spanish, 9669.5 Fanegadas correspond to 6188.48 hectares, but fanegadas of different sizes were used. Date of purchase and size vary depending on the source): "El 6 de octubre de 1,826, el contador de la Comisión de Crédito Público señor Rafael Caro, certificó el pago a la Nación de $ 4,234 y 6 reales a razón de 9,669.5 fanegadas de tierras ubicadas entre los márgenes de los ríos Otún y Consota a nombre del señor José Francisco Pereira Martínez. Este documento solo se conoce por las referencias que hizo el Notario y secretario de la Corporación Municipal Elías Recio y el heredero de las tierras Guillermo Pereira Gamba. "
- ↑ Reseña. (No longer available online.) Alcaldía de Pereira, 2009, archived from the original on January 16, 2016 ; Retrieved October 3, 2012 (Spanish). Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Sebastián Martínez Botero: Conformatión Política Y Espacial de Pereira: 1857-1877. (PDF) (No longer available online.) October 2007, p. 103 , formerly in the original ; retrieved on March 21, 2012 (Spanish): "Gracias a ella el 20 de enero de 1870 Pereira se convirtió en Distrito y pudo constituir un cabildo."
- ^ Gilberto Cardona López: Recuperacio del tendido ferreo. (PDF 7 MB) August 3, 2006, pp. 8–9 , accessed on March 27, 2012 (Spanish, contemporary pictures of the train station): "20 de Julio de 1921: 21 cañonazos recibieron el tren en Pereira"
- ↑ Allen Morrison: Electric Transport Inaugurations in Latin America. In: Electric Transport in Latin America. January 6, 2012, accessed on March 27, 2012 (English): “1927/2/26. COLOMBIA: Pereira "
- ↑ El terremoto de enero de 1999 in Colombia. Impacto socioeconómico del desastre en la zona del Eje Cafetero. (PDF; 1.2 MB) (No longer available online.) CEPAL , April 27, 1999, pp. 11, 35, 36 , formerly in the original ; Retrieved March 18, 2012 (Spanish). ( Page no longer available , search in web archives ) Info: The link was automatically marked as defective. Please check the link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ^ Colombia: metropolitan areas. World Gazetteer, accessed March 21, 2012 (metropolitan area not specified).
