Villa Mercedes
| Basic data | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| location | 33 ° 41 ′ S , 65 ° 28 ′ W | ||
| Height above d. M .: | 512 m | ||
| Population (2010): | 111.391 | ||
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| administration | |||
| Province : |
 San Luis
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| Department : | General Pedernera | ||
| Mayor: | Blanca Renée Pereyra, PJ | ||
| Others | |||
| Postal code : | D5730 | ||
| Telephone code: | 02657 | ||
| Villa Mercedes website | |||
Villa Mercedes is the capital of the General Pedernera Department in the east of the San Luis Province in western Argentina . It has 111,391 inhabitants (2010), making it the second largest city in the province.
location
The city is located on the Río Quinto ( Spanish for "Fifth River"), which was so named by the Spaniards who came from the north when they met a river for the fifth time. The Sierra de los Comechingones mountain range begins just a few kilometers north of the city . South of the Río Quinto, the topography of the country is flat and has a pampan character.
history
In 1856 a fortress called Fortín Constitucional was founded in the area of the present city to stand up to the Ranqueles Indians advancing from the south . In 1861 the place was called Villa Mercedes. After the destruction of the indigenous population by Julio Argentino Roca , the place began a slow growth from 1880. It was not until the 1970s that the population exploded thanks to a law that encouraged the settlement of industries in structurally weak areas - like San Luis at the time.
Attractions
Two monumental buildings from the turn of the century around 1900 are worth seeing: the Escuela Normal Mixta and the Colegio Nacional . The town hall is designed in the Art Deco style. The city park is located directly on the Río Quinto .
economy
Villa Mercedes was originally characterized by agriculture and agro-industrial. Since the 1970s, however, it has become a center of various industries that settled here as part of the special economic regulation for structurally weak regions and rapidly accelerated the development of the city's economy.
Web links
- Portal of Villa Mercedes (Spanish)
- IFAM population data (Spanish)
- LiveArgentina.com - City information (Spanish)