Machali

Machalí (from Mapuche: Machili 'town of witches') is a commune and city in central Chile, located in the region of Libertador General Bernardo O'Higgins. It currently presents hints of conurbation with Rancagua and Gultro.

The commune covers an area of 2,597 km² and a population of 52,505 inhabitants (2017 Census), corresponding to 5.7% of the total population of the region and a density of 20.2 inhab/km². 4.9% of the total corresponds to the rural population and 95.1% to the urban population.

Toponymy

According to popular knowledge, it has been called the "land of witches," since it is said that witches used to gather on Cerro San Juan to perform their rites. However, this is a completely Spanish-language denomination and it denotes the conception that was held at the time of the Spanish occupation. The root of Machalí can be found in the expression machi= sorcerers, li= town, "town of sorcerers" or & #34;there are machis". Perhaps the story of the "witches" del Cerro refers to meetings or prayers that machis held in this place before and during the conquest.

Geography

Location

The commune of Machalí is located in the extreme central-east of the Province of Cachapoal, Region of Libertador Bernardo O'Higgins. It limits to the north with the commune of Codegua and the Metropolitan Region; to the south with the communes of Requínoa, Rengo and San Fernando; to the east with the Argentine Republic and, to the west with the commune of Rancagua.

Surface

The commune has 2,597 km², which is equivalent to 15.8% of the regional area, being the largest in the region. A large part of the communal territory corresponds to the Andes Mountains, which is why the highest demographic concentration occurs in the plains of the Cachapoal River valleys and mainly in the urban sector of the center of the commune, adjacent to the regional capital., this is in the sectors of downtown Machalí and Santa Teresa.

The commune has four sectors or urban localities, these are: downtown Machalí; The Guindal; Santa Teresita and Coya. In addition, there are localities or rural hamlets, such as: Chacayes, Nogales, San Joaquín de los Mayos, Termas de Cauquenes, as well as an industrial settlement that corresponds to the Teniente Division of Codelco Chile, within which Sewell and the ski center are located. Green sheet.

Of the communal territory, 0.43% corresponds to urban and industrial areas, 2.17% comprises agricultural areas and the rest, that is, 97.4% of its territory, is part of the foothills and the mountainous area of the Andes mountain range, prodigal in mining, pastures, natural reserves and ecotourism zones.

History

This place was an integral part of the original Estancia that belonged to the Spanish captain Don Alonso de Córdoba in Rancagua, which was bought by Don Francisco Gutiérrez de Cavides de la Torre in 1617; the latter was Administrator in addition to the Indian towns of Rancagua c. 1610 and Aculeo c. 1639; He was the owner of the Leonera and Machalí ranches (according to his will: & # 34; also called Quebrada de Machalí), and he was also part of Machalí town at that time.

During the government of Jorge Montt, the "Autonomous Commune Law" on December 22, 1891, which among others created the commune of Machalí. Until that date, it was part of the Department of Rancagua, which also included the sub-delegations of San Joaquín, Errázuriz, Las Chacras and Machalí.

The territory of the new Municipality of Machalí delimited on the North with the Estero La Cadena; to the south with the Alameda de Rancagua; to the east, the La Compañía ditch; and to the west the railway line. This delimitation left several sectors of the current Rancagua commune as part of Machalí.

On March 9, 1894, the first election of aldermen was held. The chosen ones were Domingo Gacitúa, Eliseo Díaz, Ramón Castro, David Aránguiz, Alberto Correa, Luis Sanfuentes, Lorenzo Campos, Juan Esteban Santelices and Santiago Aránguiz. All of the then Conservatives and the Liberals.

On May 6, 1894, and in compliance with the Municipal Organic Law, the first ordinary session of the Municipality was held, a meeting in which Mr. David Aránguiz Aránguiz was elected as the first Mayor, who was considered one of the patriarchs of the people and a great adviser. Its mayoral functions were carried out between 1894 and 1900. During that time, the municipality devoted itself fundamentally to the organization of administrative functions of the town, such as the reorganization of the Security Police, the delimitation of urban limits and the designation of street names..

At the beginning of 1900, the number of inhabitants of Machalí had increased considerably and the local faithful made constant requests to Archbishop Mariano Casanova to establish a parish in the town, since they could not be comfortably attended by the vice-parish priest, the priest Manuel Gondian.

It was thus that, on November 6, 1901, the Archbishop of Santiago, Mariano Casanova, issued the Order of Erection of the new Machalí Parish under the invocation of San Juan Bautista. With this transcendental step, a new era in spiritual care was ensured for the Machalinos, with frequent masses, confessional services, marriage and death care, putting an end to a system in which the sacraments and rites of the Church were precarious and distanced., leaving only the memory of the masses that, sporadically, the priests who came from Rancagua performed by cart. The construction was located on San Juan street, next to the current Municipal Building.

On Friday, June 10, 2005, Machalí came to light with a dramatic event. Around nine in the morning, a group of armed men violently entered the Machalí House of Culture, where a payment plaza for the Social Security Standardization Institute was operating, with a burst of M-16 rifle shots into the air. A securities truck had arrived moments before with about 80 million pesos destined to pay pensioners in the area. The prison guard, Jaime Labraña Horta, 24, responded to the attack with his weapon, causing a brief but intense shootout that would cost him his life. Before falling mortally wounded, Labraña manages to kill one of the assailants. In addition, the assailants shoot Evaristo Moreno Carrasco, a car attendant with mental disabilities, three bullets that cause his death. Later the municipality erected a monument to Evaristo Moreno.

Places of interest

Monument to the Mining Familylocated on the outskirts of Machalí.

Cauquenes Hot Springs

A Gothic-inspired hotel, built in wood in 1885, is the center of Termas de Cauquenes (31 kilometers from Rancagua and 760 m.a.s.l.), famous for its gastronomy as well as for historical episodes that occurred within it. The hotel maintains a large bathroom with a European marble bathtub and modern hydromassage bathtubs. The thermal waters are appropriate for the treatment of musculoskeletal diseases, tensions, stress, mental and respiratory fatigue. It also has modern equipment for conventions and meetings and a gastronomy that enjoys international prestige.

Los Cipreses Reserve

49 km from Rancagua, inland from Coya and Termas de Cauquenes is the “Río Cipreses” National Reserve, where 36,882 hectares of autochthonous forest, native flora and fauna are preserved. There are sectors enabled for camping, which have barbecues, sinks and bathrooms. The height at which it is located fluctuates between 900 to 4,900 m s. no. m.. This reserve is divided into 7 sectors: Ranchillo, Maitenes, Urriola, Agua de la Vida, Glacial Río los Cipreses, Laguna Los Piuquenes and Estero El Baúl. At the entrance to the park you have to register at the offices of the Local Conaf and after paying the entrance fee you can visit the museum, a place where you can find everything from a model of the entire park to important archaeological remains.

Coya Country Club

One of the best golf courses in Chile is the Club de Campo Coya, located 24 km from Rancagua and 1200 m a.s.l. no. m., in a beautiful mountain setting. Its courts have a surface area of 20 ha and a total of 18 holes. Likewise, there are tennis courts, swimming pool, sauna, mini gym, game rooms, dining rooms, bar and cabins for lodging.

Chapa Verde Ski Resort

Beautiful winter resort located 53 km from Rancagua, which was created by the workers of the El Teniente Division and is currently open to the public. Chapa Verde has a refuge and restaurant, as well as 22 ski slopes, 5 lifts and a triple chairlift –for both novices and experts–, a specialty school and equipment rental.

Cerro San Juan Park

Cerrito "San Juan" Machalí.

It is one of the most traditional country meeting places in the region. There are typical competitions such as taming, rodeos and taming. In National Holidays the inns and ramadas are installed. Those who go to this hill to enjoy a day of picnic can complement it with walks and horseback riding. In the lagoon of the hill they can also recreate taking a boat ride. All this municipal area is equipped with drinking water and hygienic services, picnic tables and grills while nature endows this place with lush vegetation that makes you forget the hot summer days

El Teniente Mine

In the commune is "El Teniente", the largest underground copper mine in the world, which in 2005 celebrated 100 years of uninterrupted exploitation. On the route to the mineral there are other facilities of this deposit, such as La Fundición, in Caletones; the Grinding and Concentrator Plants, in Colón and the unloading points for the ore that is brought in by train from inside the mine. At the entrance to the site is the Sewell Camp, declared a Typical Zone and Tourist and Cultural Heritage and World Heritage Site. Its name is due to its first owner, the important landowner Francisco de Caviedes, "Lieutenant" of the Spanish Army.

Sewell Mining Town

Camp Sewell.

Singular city built on the slopes of Cerro Negro, it has no streets, all its accesses are stairs. Its construction began in 1905 by the Braden Copper Company. Its architecture is unique and in itself reveals a whole period of splendor when 15,000 inhabitants lived. One hundred years of human history are contained in this camp, which due to its location and structure is unique in the world. On July 13, 2006, the town of Sewell, owned by Codelco, is named by the Unesco World Heritage Committee, meeting in Vilnius (Lithuania), as a World Heritage Site, standing out as a "clear example of industrial cities at the beginning of the 20th century".

Museum of the Great Copper Mining in Sewell

Located 56 km from Rancagua and 142 from Santiago. In its 10 rooms that cover 785 m², it contains a room for administration and sale of souvenirs; room 1 with "The World of Copper"; room 2: “Copper and Geology”; room 3: “Mineralogy”; room 4: “Mining in Chile and Williams Braden”; room 5: “Life in Sewell”; room 6 “Effort and Mining Ingenuity”; room 7: “Security and Mining”; Room 8: “Copper in ancient civilizations; room 9: in preparation and room 10: Conference room.

This museum, which has been put into operation with its first stage, covers a large part of what was the colossal work of William Braden and his team, part of which -of course- was the peasant worker who became a miner and created generations of workers with the highest specialization in their field. It is well worth visiting its dependencies where in part the experience of an era that will not be repeated is transmitted.

Cajon de Machalí

The Machalí drawer or also known as white lands, is located southeast of the center of the commune. Its main access -from Machalí- is “el cajón” street. The type of settlement is mainly rural, but progresses progressively towards residential occupation. Regarding its viability, the area does not have mostly paved roads, however in terms of connectivity, it is covered by telephone and Internet networks. In productive terms, its inhabitants are dedicated to livestock and forestry activities. Highlighting the work of animal herders, the extraction of firewood and leaf soil, etc. In addition, the youngest sector of the population is dedicated to mining activities, because it is close to the "El Teniente" mine. Regarding the presence of social organizations, there are sports clubs, neighborhood associations, mothers' centers, and other types of informal organizations. In the sector, we can find a great variety of camping that allow tourist activity. These activities range from horseback riding, adventure tourism, tours of typical areas, among others. Also noteworthy as a tourist attraction are the Machalí caves, historically famous, due to popular stories, since these would have been occupied by "witches", rustlers and alcohol dealers.

Administration

Municipality of Machalí

Machalí belongs to Electoral District No. 15 and to the 8th Senatorial District (O'Higgins).

It is represented in the Chamber of Deputies of the National Congress by the Deputies:

• Javier Macaya (UDI)
• Issa Kort (UDI)
• Diego Schalper (Ind/RN)
• Raúl Soto (DC)
• Juan Luis Castro (PS)

It is represented in the Chilean Senate of the National Congress by the Senators:

• Alejandro García-Huidobro Sanfuentes de la (UDI)
• Juan Pablo Letelier Morel del (PS)

The Illustrious Municipality of Machalí is directed until June 28, 2021 by the acting mayor Gonzalo López López (PS), and from June 28, 2021 by the elected mayor Juan Carlos Abud Parra (Ind), who have the advice of the Municipal Council, made up of:

• Héctor Labbé Valenzuela (UDI), succeeded by Francisco Salinas Yarra (UDI) on 28 June 2021,
• Gilda Quintana Silva (RN), succeeded by Adriana Alarcón Cea (PS) on 28 June 2021,
• Doris Valdivia Monsalve (PDC), succeeded by Daniela Soto Cerpa (PDC) on 28 June 2021,
• Katherine Ruiz Moreno (PR),
• Marco Moreno Gómez (PCCh),
• Felipe Núñez Reyes (Ind-PR) counted on June 28, 2021.

Mayors

Activities

I'm on my way to Coya.

• Machalina Week: For a week, Machalí dresses as a party to celebrate his “Semana Machalina” with various cultural, artistic, social and sporting activities that are carried out massively culminating in an event where the queen of the Week is chosen.

• Festival de la canción In the Machalina Week, the Festival de la Canción is inserted, a musical competition that concites the interest of fans from different points of Chile and attracts many singers.

• Cueca Championship: regional competition that is traditionally held in Machalí, where you choose the best couple that will represent the commune.

• Coyina Week: like the Machalina Week, Coya also celebrates a week of artistic activities, with show by great national artists and a Festival de La Canción, with the special participation of the inhabitants of that town, where there are great artists who show their quality on stage. Coyine queen of these holidays is also chosen.

• Feast of Cuasimodo: traditional religious feast that concites a lot of huasos of the commune, of various ages, that accompany the parish priest of the commune, who goes out to visit and give communion to the sick unable to attend the church.

• Patrias holidays in Cerro San Juan: one of the most traditional places of the Commune of Machalí; great vegetation, a very well-rounded slope for a picnic day with family and friends. Special for those who wish to take walks, ride, boat in the lagoon of the Flaco Zúñiga. Also, for which you want, there are restaurants to the taste of the visitor. There are also corralary competencies and handles. Very quiet place full of natural greenery. In Fiestas Patrias, there are traditional dance fonds and those that express meals, chacolí and chicha of the best origins of the center and its of the country.

Characters who were born in Machalí

• Pedro Pavlovic, journalist.
• Santiago Pavlovic, journalist.
• Eduardo Soto, politician, mayor of Rancagua
• Federico Sánchez, architect, academic and television driver and Chilean radio.

Sports

Football

The municipality of Machalí has a club participating in the National Soccer Championships in Chile.

• Machalí Academy (Third Division B 2012 and 2023).

Media

Radio stations

• 107.7 - Vivo Promaucaes
• 107.9 - Coya Heights