Alamo (Veracruz)

Álamo is a Mexican city head of the municipality of Álamo Temapache, in the state of (Veracruz). Elevated to the category of city since 1973, it has 104,499 inhabitants. Its main economic activity is orange production.

History

The Municipality of Álamo Temapache is located in the north of the State of Veracruz, a territory founded by Huastec indigenous people and conquered by the Mexica Empire.

Alamo, belonged to the state of Puebla, segregation was granted, by decree of December 1, 1853 by agreement of C. Antonio López de Santa Ana, meritorious of the country, division general, great teacher of the nation and distinguished order of Guadalupe Knight Grand Cross of the Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Carlos III and President of the Republic.

Alamo was formed around the year 1906, within the boundaries of the Xicuaque hacienda, on the right bank of the Pantepec river, it was the scene of hard battles during the Mexican revolution, especially in the last stage in which General Manuel Peláez transformed the oil companies and completely dominated the Huasteca, both the Pelaecistas and the government soldiers entered and left Álamo, Generals Morán and Palma attacked this population, but approximately 18 men faced off having their way on the land currently occupied by the Colegio Progreso, this fight lasted from six in the morning until five in the afternoon, causing several casualties in the federal ranks.

The municipal seat was constituted in 1926 when Mr. Guillermo Vélez brought the powers, the first constitutional municipal president, its geographical extension is 1,138 square kilometers, eventually families of Arab descent such as the Bisteni, Assad, Faisal, Monroy established the first stores of furniture and clothing in the central region of the current Álamo, as well as the first apothecary owned by Jorge Bisteni.

On February 3, 1956, the Hon. Mr. Luis Cabrera Cruz, second Bishop of Papantla, founded the Progreso school in this city, leaving R.M. Leticia Rosales as director and M.M. Help Contreras and Delfina Vega.

It was elevated to city level on January 1, 1974 by the governor of Veracruz Lic. Rafael Murillo Vidal through Decree No. 193 by virtue of the progress achieved in economic and democratic orders by the people of Álamo, municipal seat Álamo Temapache, see it is granted the title of city.

Elevated to the rank of parish by the eminent Mr. Dr. Ignacio Lehonor Arroyo, first bishop of Tuxpan, on September 3, 1974 and promulgating the decree on September 15 of the same year: with the ordinary authority that corresponds to the bishop declared erected the Parish of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Sorrows according to colonists 1427-1428 and appointed its own pastor who as parish priest would be an apostolic servant of the inhabitants of these populations. This city is one of the main suppliers of citrus in our country.

The name of Álamo is derived from the large number of trees of that species that exist on the banks of the Pantepec River.

The decree of October 10, 1878 ordered it to be called heroic Temapache de Gutiérrez Zamora. In the year 1912, according to reliable sources, the drilling of Pozo Álamo No. 1 began, exactly on March 15. Which by the way sprouts on May 26, 1913. In the year 1926, Álamo was established as a town and in 1927 it was elevated to the status of municipal head thanks to the determined intervention of Don Guillermo Vélez, who led this historic feat and who became the first constitutional municipal president of Álamo-Temapache.. In December 1973 the town of Álamo was elevated to the category of city.

The town of Temapache has the title of Three Times Heroic because it had to face three attacks, the first by the French pirate Lorencillo, the second led by the English pirate Scott and the third because of the Mexican Revolution where the famous General Manuel Pelaez. In those years, General Manuel Peláez supported the oil companies and completely dominated the Huasteca, since he organized a small military group that controlled the region.

Twelve days after having decreed the Oil Expropriation, General Lázaro Cárdenas del Río visits the Álamo oil region, where he is received with great jubilation by the Alamense people.

Currently the approximate population of the municipality is almost 100,000 inhabitants, 28,000 in urban areas and just over 70,000 in rural areas.

This is how the municipality of Álamo-Temapache continues to write its history with the participation of prominent men and women, who have made their commitment to magnify this territory.

Shield

The word Temapache comes from the Huastec “tam-apats”, place of palmas de coyol (tan-place; apatz-palma de coyol) the Aztecs who conquered the place in the middle of the century XIV, turned the word “temapatz” into “temapachic” or “temapachco”, that is, teti-stone; raccoon-raccoon; co-en, which means "in the stone raccoon."

Shield description

In the center there is an ear of corn which is held by two hands, symbolizing the care and cultivation of it, as a background it has an Orange that represents one of the main activities (citriculture), in the upper part of it is the vehicular bridge "Presidente José López Portillo", which is located at the entrance of the municipal seat (Ciudad de Álamo) and represents progress. In the upper right part there is a factory that symbolizes the juice industries of the region, in the upper right part there is a head of bovine cattle that means livestock production, which is another of its economic activities, the lower part of the shield is adorned by two branches of tobacco leaves, which was one of the strong crops in past decades, and below them the name of the municipality: Álamo Temapache, Ver.

Physical Environment

Alamo is located in the north of the state of Veracruz, at an altitude of 40 meters above sea level. It is located about 380 km from the state capital, Xalapa. It is located on a soil of extensive plains. To the north of the city is the Pantepec River. Its climate is hot-extreme, the average annual temperature is 24 °C and its previous annual rainfall is 1,391 mm.

Sociodemographics

In the entire municipality there are about 10,000 speakers of indigenous languages, the main language is Nahuatl. The population of the municipality is about 103,000 inhabitants, while Álamo has 34,000 inhabitants. The main religions are Catholic, Protestant, and Seventh-day Adventist.

Education and Communication

The Colotero, in Alamo.

Throughout the municipality there are 149 preschool schools, 179 primary schools, and 47 secondary schools. It has 15 high school institutions. It has a technological ITSAT located in the town of Xoyotitla, which has an excellent teaching degree. As for health, the municipality has 21 medical units from the Ministry of Health, 7 from the IMSS, 7 from ISSTE, and one from the Red Cross. It is not true As far as supply is concerned, the city has a Sunday market, a public market, a flea market, a receiving center for basic products and 5 shopping centers. The main sport, both in the city and in the municipality, is Baseball. The city has 2 multipurpose fields for the promotion of sports. In the 2000 census, 22,011 homes were counted in the municipality, with an average of 4.6 occupants per home. The municipality has approximately 75% of public lighting and security. Regarding drainage, garbage collection, paving, markets, flea markets, parks, monuments and drinking water, it accounts for approximately 25%. The city receives journalistic publications, signals from radio stations, both AM and FM. The municipality receives a signal from television channels, and the city has the Veracruz Multimedios television service, which transmits its simultaneous signal (by cable on channel 12 and by Internet), as well as a news portal at www.veracruzmultimedios. com. It has telephone service, both the city and 60 other towns, 37 post offices and 2 telegraphs. Likewise, it has a First Class passenger bus service. Throughout the municipality there are 201 km of roads.

Productive and Service Sectors

The main agricultural products in the municipality are: corn, beans, citrus fruits, watermelon, papaya and pipián. The municipality has 431,131 heads of dual-purpose cattle, as well as 7,155 pigs, 7,200 sheep, and 5,675 horses. Also in beekeeping, there are 5,979 bee hives. In the city there are approximately 10 hotel services.

Attractive

In the town of Temapache, there is one of the best churches in the Huasteca of Veracruz, the Church of Santiago Apóstol, dating from the 16th century, the Church of Potrero del Llano de Nuestra Señora del Carmen, and in Álamo there are numerous monuments to Miguel Hidalgo, Benito Juárez, Venustiano Carranza, Salvador Díaz Mirón, Lázaro Cárdenas and Monument to the Mother, Emiliano Zapata. It also has tourist attractions such as the Hacienda de la Noria, Las Cascadas del Salto, 5 Towns, The Hanging Bridge of the Congregation of Limonar, Beaches that congregate on the banks of the Pantepec River.

Gastronomy

Its regional dish is "Zacahuil" which is typical of the Huasteca, made of dough, chili, pork or chicken wrapped in a bed of banana leaves and cooked in a clay oven.

The also well-known "Platillo Huasteco" which is made up of sausage, cecina, ham, bacon and fried plantain accompanied by beans and green or red sauce.

Great diversity of tamales made in banana leaves, as well as "piques" made of dough with butter, beans, salt and ground spices are part of the traditional festivities.

"Caldo de acamaya#34;, the n#34;huatape", the "enchiladas de baile" as well as the exquisite "barbacoa de res" They are a sample of the rich gastronomy of the municipality.

Church of Temapache.

Traditions

Carnival

The carnival festivities in the city of Álamo Temapache, Veracruz; They have been celebrated for more than fifty years, without being able to specify their start date, it begins as is traditional forty days before Lent and ends before Ash Wednesday. Formerly only invited to dress up during the carnival season.

The dancers usually group 20 or more people, and many did not have a coordination of steps or choreography, others however carefully prepared the details, both in costumes and in choreography; these receive the name of malinches by the inhabitants of the city.

Currently, they seek to recover the ancestral roots of this festivity, inviting the “old lady” to participate with their traditional wooden masks, as well as the exhibition of these, the banda music.

Colotero Race

Without a doubt, the Colotero race is the most authentic tradition of Álamo Temapache, Veracruz; It is generally scheduled for the penultimate day of the Orange Fair, which takes place in April; Therefore, traditionally this resistance test is given on Saturday, in the evening, usually after 5:00 p.m. The race consists of carrying a basket loaded with oranges on the back that is supported by a tumpline on the front of the head; the tenate is grabbed by both hands from the upper edges, which makes the race even more strenuous in itself, since there is no way to compensate the pressure produced by the weight of the colote, with the speed of the body as generally occurs in a race athletic or on a walk, where due to the movements of the hands and hips, they allow the athlete to manage the rhythm, save energy and balance the body. In this race you do not have that opportunity, because dropping the basket would cause it to fall, throwing the oranges, which would cause an automatic disqualification. Thus, the race is rigid, strenuous and, in addition to resistance, because you have to carry an average of 70 kilograms on your back, in a route that varies according to the call. Originally, this test began by passing the Nuevo Jardín Bridge and ran along the old Álamo-Tihuatlán highway, to the land where the orange fair was located, which meant carrying a colote with 100 kilos of oranges for 4 kilometres. Currently the race starts from the Monument to the Colotero, so the distance has been shortened, and the weight of the colote as well, but the section is more than a kilometer and a half, which is quite a challenge and requires a special condition, which only orange cutting workers have.

Patronal Festival in Honor of the Virgin of Our Lady of Dolores

On September 13, 14 and 15, the patronal festival in honor of the Virgin of Our Lady of Sorrows is commemorated, where typical dances of the region, religious and cultural events are performed, enlivened by traditional jaranas and violins, musical instruments typical of Huasteca music. It is worth mentioning that the parish of the city of Alamo bears this same name.

Day of the Dead

The Day of the Dead is one of the most important traditions of Álamo, it is a date that is kept with respect by the majority of its inhabitants, its celebration is a true festival of color, where homes prepare for the celebration; the altars with the modesty in the economy of the majority of the families of alamenses, continue being elaborated with love and joy, and the gastronomy is immensely rich; tamales and chocolate are the most popular dish on that date, but in addition, customs such as the tamalote remain in force, which is a tamale with a whole chicken that the godson generally offers to his godparents and where the ritual of turning on is also followed the candle and the smudge before the altar, the godfather returns the gift with another blessing in cash to his son of faith, with that mysticism of living together and sharing our bread, in memory of the dead.

Even the food is distributed and shared generously, regardless of the modesty of the home and depending on the Day of the Dead, those without chili and sweet when the little angels visit us, those with red chili when the adults are here. Atole, homemade bread, coconut and papaya sweets; cassava and pumpkin with piloncillo. The prayers of the grandparents are remembered and the genealogy is reviewed again, of those who are here and of those who have already left. In many homes, pigs are slaughtered and rich and poor live equally, as a compliment, since there are no distinctions in death.

Day of the Lost Child

On December 7, the day of the lost child is celebrated in the city of Álamo, an evidently religious tradition whose origins go back to the presence of the first evangelizers of the New Indies, which has lasted to this day and that, according to some scholars, it is eminently Huasteca, despite the fact that in some other places it is customary to put candles on that day. It has been indicated that this tradition was born in Tuxpan, but as indicated by the book by Don Ernesto Franco Cobos, (Tuxpan Illuminates the World) the tradition occurred simultaneously in several places:

“Apparently, the lighting of the candles occurred simultaneously in this region, thanks to the guidance provided by the clergymen of the town of Tuxpan, Temapache, Álamo, Papantla, Tamiahua, Amatlán and other neighboring places”.

The tradition is based on a biblical passage taken from the gospel of Luke chapter 2 verse 41 to 42, which indicates that when Jesus was 12 years old they traveled to Jerusalem for the Easter holidays and that at the end of the party he was left without They knew it, and thinking that he was in the company, they walked a day's journey, and looked for him among the relatives and since they did not find him, they returned to Jerusalem, where they found him three days later in the temple; he sat among the doctors of the law, where he spoke to them and asked questions and they marveled at his intelligence and his answers.

This passage from the Catholic tradition is the support of this custom of lighting candles, which in Álamo is practiced year after year, in a very special way; It is an activity where the inhabitants participate very enthusiastically and which has been consolidated as a true tradition due to its religious meaning and the symbolism of light, which will keep it valid for future generations.

Sunday Market

Alamo is a town rich in traditions; in addition to those already presented; In this city there are a series of customs, such as our traditional market, known as "el Tianguis"; whose start date is unknown, but given the enormous ancestral wealth and the form of commerce of this popular market, its roots are authentically indigenous; Well, it is enough to remember that precisely in Tziuhcoac, the tianguis took up to twenty days and that due to the great quantity of products that were commercialized in that place, the Aztecs conquered it and submitted it to the payment of tributes, in the time of King Moctezuma Ilhuicamina.

Hence, the very Huastecan custom of this type of market, where in Álamo, due to the dimensions of the square, it takes on special importance, since it is the largest in northern Veracruz. The tianguis is a cultural heritage and has become a custom very typical of the town, where the population is supplied with a large number of manufactured goods, but also offers a variety of typical products such as zacahuil, pemoles, alfajores, cassava in piloncillo, homemade bread, meat enchilada, etc., in short; a whole range of merchandise that was already commercialized before the arrival of the Spaniards. As part of this trade, a custom of the Alamenses is to eat zacahuil every Sunday in the purchase of "comisaria", to which we can add other uses such as our gastronomy, as a stew, tamales, bread and chocolate in all saints and the bagel on January 6.

Government

After Álamo, which has 104,499 inhabitants, the most important towns are: Potrero del Llano, with 4,800 inhabitants, El Ídolo with 3,800 inhabitants, Chapopote with 2,500 inhabitants, and La Camelia with 2,000 inhabitants. The city council is made up of a municipal president, a single trustee, ten aldermen. The municipality has regulations for industry and commerce, for slaughterhouses, transit and roads, for parks and gardens, for civil registration, for health and assistance, for the police and good government.

Municipal Presidents

Universities

Alamo Temapache Higher Technological Institute Interamerican University of Veracruz