Bella Vista (Tucumán)

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Bella Vista is the head city of the Leales department, in the province of Tucumán, Argentina. Located in the flat area of that province, about 30 km from the Aconquija mountain range and close to the Colorado River, in a fertile plain suitable for numerous crops, although sugar cane predominates. It is 25 km southeast of San Miguel de Tucumán, on Provincial Route 301 (all current maps place it on national route 157, former Provincial Route 301).

Population

It has 14,791 inhabitants (Indec, 2010), which represents an increase of 14% compared to the 12,996 inhabitants (Indec, 2001) in the previous census.

Graphic of demographic evolution of Bella Vista between 1991 and 2010

Source of National Censuses of INDEC

History

Formerly the place was known as "Los Tres Bajos". Like many other towns, Bella Vista does not have a founding date. It was generated first around the cultivation of sugar cane, then the railway arrived and finally the sugar mill that for many years gave the town its name: Ingenio Bella Vista.

The mill's founder and owner was Manuel García Fernández together with his older brother José García Fernández, whose family continued with the establishment until 1965. The García Fernández brothers were from Luarca (Asturias). In Luarca there is a square called "Pachorros" in honor of Don José and Don Manuel and their ancestors García Cepeda, who bravely fought against the hosts of Napoleon Bonaparte. Don Manuel García Fernández (Jr.) was an atypical businessman about whom one day a biography must be written. Knowing that sugar couldn't last forever, he tried to diversify his activities. At some point ethyl alcohol and cellulose pulp were manufactured. He even got to try silkworm breeding, for which he planted numerous specimens of mulberry trees.

Until not long ago, an avenue that surrounded the Bella Vista sugar mill was called, precisely, Avenida de las Moreras (that avenue still exists, and is located on the east side of the Bella Vista main hospital. Originally in the beginning, in In the 1940s this avenue had 20 houses owned by the Mill and the first inhabitants of these houses were the families: Gramajo, Parra, Rodríguez, Prina, Ávila, Córdoba, Moya, Contreras, Yance, Sánchez among others) They also worked in Bella Vista, Compañía Tucumana de Fósforos, Winco's northern subsidiary (Norwinco) and Talleres Tubio.

During the 1960s there was a great movement of young people wishing to unite to work for general culture, from there the germ of the creation of the Cento Juvenil Cultural was born, which was the creator of the Teatro Vocacional De Bella Vista, which was presented with the premieres of some "Entremeces" of Cervantes. Then came the initial performance, with the presentation of "The trees die standing up" by Alejandro Casona. This was the first performance of what might be called a complete stage play. This premiere was in the halls of the Bella Vista Social Club, a building with a high historical content that the people of Bellavista did not know how to preserve, and today only the ruins remain. This theater still exists and depends on the direction of culture of the Municipality.

An emblematic and forgotten figure of the cultural sphere of Bella Vista was Don Roque Malerba, who from a remote uncertain date until his death, settled in the premises of "la Gota de leche" where he lived and was in charge of the water tank pump. What is remarkable about this humble character is that throughout his solitary existence, commissioned by the Bella Vista Commune and later by the Municipality, every morning at 7:00 a.m. and evenings at 7:00 p.m. of the national flag. He also tried with little success to form the local music band, but despite not being able to sustain it due to lack of resources, many young people with what they learned managed to join the police and army bands, thus being able to avoid mediocrity and the lack of opportunities of rural life. No non-commissioned officer was ever heard to remember it -perhaps today retired with a generous salary- if only to thank him for the tools of the future (the pentagram) that he put within his reach, not even a flower. For Don Roque, the memory of a man who, with his modest contribution, left an example of humility and service to the community.

It is fair to note that this story of Don Malerba is true, but it is also fair to remember that the Bella Vista commune, before Don Malerba landed in these parts, had already formed the Town Music Band and whose manager to form it was the Tucuman musician from San Miguel de Tucumán with the surname Guerra, who also taught the staff to many boys from this town. This music band was present at every important event in the town. The blue suits and the great musical instruments that thrilled in those years with their marches in the national holidays of the 50s are still remembered. After the band dissolved, the young boy named Silva in charge of playing the trumpet every day, to raise and lower the Flag of the Homeland for pure pleasure and completely Ad Honorem.

In 1935, Atilio Santillán was born in Bella Vista (it is necessary to note that Atilio Santillán and family were also among the first 20 families that were the inhabitants of the 20 original houses on the aforementioned Avenida de las Moras) who in the In the 1960s he was general secretary of the Federación Obrera Obrera Tucumana de la Industria Azucarera (FOTIA), a trade union organization that in its heydays managed to unite 70,000 sugar workers and maintained a strong combative character, not only during the military dictatorships, but even during the Peronist government of 1973-1976. Atilio Santillán's speech at that time was notorious, since it had a high Marxist content, and that was very frowned upon at that time. Atilio Santillán was assassinated in Buenos Aires on March 22, 1976, 48 hours before the military coup led by Videla. It is said that the perpetrators were members of a command of the People's Revolutionary Army (ERP), although the ease and impunity with which they moved is more characteristic of paramilitary and parapolice groups supported by State terrorism.

Mario Eduardo Muro was born in Simoca, but his family moved to Bella Vista when he was very young. After trying his luck in Buenos Aires, Muro returned to Bella Vista where he worked at the Compañía Tucumana de Fósforos, located on the outskirts of town. In 1975 he was kidnapped by a task force for ten days. He was accused of supplying chemical elements to the guerrillas for the manufacture of explosives.

He was released and years later, in 1979, he denounced his case before the Inter-American Commission for Human Rights and later before CONADEP. His testimony was very valuable because despite having been transferred blindfolded, his deep knowledge of the province allowed him to recognize the place of his kidnapping and redo the path that led there, despite the fact that the military had tried to erase traces when they should have retreated. His photo is in the book Nunca Más, where he is seen flanked by Professor Aragón, blindfolded and going down a staircase that led to the dungeon where he was imprisoned. As well as the aforementioned Wall, there were many other children of this town, who during that disastrous time of the Argentine Republic, were tortured and even murdered, such as the children of the Zapata, Baer, etc. families, who could not survive to tell this sad story.. There are also several others who were kidnapped and released and remain anonymous to this day.

In addition to the aforementioned Compañía Tucumana de Fósforos, Winco's northern subsidiary (Norwinco) and Talleres Tubio also worked in Bella Vista.

Currently, Bella Vista has an estimated population of 15,000 inhabitants, the mill is still working but the railway was built in the 90s. As a curiosity we can mention that until the 70s it did not have a fire station: there was never a fire in its history.

After the sugar crisis, the mill was nationalized through the now-defunct National Sugar Commission (CONASA) which lasted from 1973 to 1976. In 1977 it was privatized.

Neighborhoods

Matienzo neighborhood

Jorge Flores Neighborhood

Hope Neighborhood

25 de Mayo neighborhood

Sáenz Peña neighborhood

San Jose neighborhood

Alvear neighborhood

Santa Rita neighborhood

Belgrano neighborhood

Peñarol neighborhood

Neighborhood 240 homes

Neighborhood 250 homes

Tropezon neighborhood

Villa Maria neighborhood

San Luis neighborhood

Barrio 80 houses Int. Carlos Corbalán

Independencia Avenue neighborhood

Los Pinos neighborhood

Seismicity

The seismicity of the Tucumán area (central north of Argentina) is frequent and of low intensity, and a seismic silence of medium to severe earthquakes every 30 years.

  • Sismo de 1861: although such catastrophic geological activity occurs since prehistoric times, the earthquake of March 20, 1861 (162 years) with 12,000 deaths, noted an important milestone in the history of Argentine seismic events as it was the strongest recorded and documented in the country. The policy of successive governments in the north and Cuyo have been extreme care and restricting building codes. And with the earthquake of San Juan of 1944 of January 15, 1944 (79 years) the governments took state of the enormous chronic gravity of the earthquake of the region.
  • Sismo of 1931: of 6.3 intensity, which destroyed part of its buildings and opened numerous cracks in the area

Personalities

  • Commander Cnel. Martín Blanco Paliza (1815-1880), commander of the federal party, at the orders of the governors Alejandro Heredia and Celedonio Gutiérrez. Propulsor of Public Instruction in the area. Neighbor of Las Talas, donates land in Cuatro Sauces for the construction of the first school, to that end, in 1876, it forms a commission with Angel Paliza and the Preceptor Manuel Ibáñez. Martin Blanco was the grandfather of Mancopa's first teacher, Dalmira Blanco de Alvarado, and relative of Lastenia Blanco, Lules' first teacher. Martin Blanco was protector of Bella Vista, Las Talas and the Mollar of the Llanos, in times of the militia sieges. Descendía de la familia Blanco Ferro de Galicia y de las más viejas familias españolas del lugar: Los Paliza, los Ladrón de Guevara y López Calderón de la Barca y los de Villavieja y González de Abreu (encomenderos).
  • Nestor Antonio Fuentes, "the Bagual", folk dancer.
  • Miguel Benancio Sánchez, athlete and political disappeared.
  • Atilio Santillán, trade unionist.
  • Roque Aníbal Villarreal "El Flaco", musician.
  • Luis "Lucho" Díaz, poet, who earned his life as a justice of peace and wrote an extensive work in almost lost verse, barely conserved by friends. Poet in the old style, with themes of strong social content, Lucho wrote a lot but published a few looses in "La Gaceta". In the 1960s, a small pocket booklet was published by a provincial cultural entity, (20 Poetas Cantan a Tucuman) with the collaboration of several Tucuman poets, including the well-known "Changuito Cañero" by Luis "Lucho" Díaz. In addition, several folklorists put music to their songs and in that decade, these creations were premiered. I mean Lucho Díaz is not completely forgotten.
  • Manuel Ramón Felipe García Fernández and Boucau, engineer, philanthropist and founder of the Bella Vista modern.
  • Fernando Pedro Riera, three times elected Governor of Tucumán Province
  • Beloved Juri, governor of Tucumán.
  • Guillermina Bassi de Zurita, teacher, one of the first educators.
  • Carlos Chaile, soccer player.
  • Juan José Morales, soccer player.
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