Sogamoso

Sogamoso is a Colombian municipality located in the center-east of the department of Boyacá in the Alto Chicamocha region. It is the capital of the Province of Sugamuxi, it is located 228.5 km northeast of Bogotá, the capital of the country, and 75.8 km from Tunja, the capital of the department. It has an altitude of 2,569 m, has average temperatures of 17 °C. The economic base of the city is interregional trade between the Eastern Plains and the center of the country; the steel and construction materials industry; and the exploitation of limestone, coal and marble. It is one of the municipalities with the highest quality of life in Colombia and is categorized by the DNP as a municipality with a robust development environment. It is known as the City of Sun and Steel.

History

Foundation

Temple of the Sun at the Eliécer Silva Celis Archaeological Museum.

Sugamuxi Cacique - Sogamoso Archaeological Museum.

Panoramic - Sogamoso Archaeological Museum.

Historical center of Sogamoso.

Sun monument in the square of the Villa.

The mythical origin of Sogamoso goes back in the Chibcha cosmogony to the creation of the Sun: in the valley of Iraca (Suamox). Sogamoso was a religious center of the Muisca community. Vestiges of which are found in the necropolis of the Temple of the Sun, of the Archaeological Museum of Sogamoso.

Primitive human migrations in eastern Colombia continued in the IX century AD. Some of these migrants, belonging to the Chibcha family, mixed with those already settled, leaving as a witness the cave paintings embodied in the rocks of El Pilar and Ceibita.

The Conquest

Spanish conquest

Juan de Sanct Martín conquered the Iraca Valley. As the conquistadors passed, Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada found the sacred city of the Muiscas, whose high priest and ruler was the cacique Sugamuxi, from whom the name of the city derives. Sugamuxi planned a squadron of Indians to oppose the invasion in the event known as the Battle of Iraca. However, they were easily dominated and forced to flee from the Sugamuxi enclosure, with its beautiful ornaments of sheets and gold plates placed on the façade, which were stolen by the Castilians.

As the culminating stage of the Jiménez de Quesada expedition, in August 1537, the Indian Baganique betrayed the riches of Suamox and its sanctuary of the sun. He was just beginning the conquest of what would become the New Kingdom of Granada. Having secured the town, Quesada gave the order to wait for the light of the new day to access the temple and calmly extract the treasures. However, soldiers Miguel Sánchez de Llerena and Juan Rodríguez Parra looted the temple in the middle of the night, causing a fire (Incendio del Templo del Sol ) by placing their torches on the spot.

Failed Spanish refoundation

When the Spanish conquerors arrived in 1537, there was already a settlement with a large population and a civil, political and religious organization mentioned by the Spanish chroniclers, in such a way that, in 1572, when Captain Bernardino de Mojica, Tunja attorney, "asked President Andrés Venero de Leiva for authorization to carry out the "foundation" of Sogamoso, the request was denied given the existence of this town as "an extremely important indigenous settlement since the distant times of prehistory".

Colonial period

Sugamuxi was baptized as a Catholic and given the name Alonso, as well as the treatment of "Don"; however, the cacicazgo declined under peninsular rule.

After the fire of the maximum temple of the Muiscas, and the distribution of land and indigenous people among the Spaniards, several chapels were built. Don Bernardino de Mojica y Guevara proposed turning the town of the Iraca Valley into a villa, but was opposed by the government of Tunja. King Carlos V gave Sogamoso an oil portrait of San Sebastián, a saint to whom the city was dedicated.

In 1584 the first church was built, by order of the Royal Crown, and in 1596 the limits of the Sogamoso Indigenous Reservation were demarcated, modified in 1636 at the request of the Visitor Don Juan de Valcárcel, who left precise instructions for the Corregidor Martín Niño y Rojas distributes the land.

Between 1777 and 1810 the legal process for the erection of the Parish of Sogamoso was advanced, the definitive streets of the town were drawn up, and the construction of premises for public services began. A few years later, the population of Sogamosa joined the Comuneros movement (1781), with Lorenzo Alcantuz standing out.

The process of the erection of the parish implied the extinction of the indigenous reservation constituted by Egas de Guzmán, on August 31, 1596. This process was the result of the deep miscegenation produced in the region, and the emergence of local elites who They struggled to achieve social recognition in the colonial estate society. The indigenous population had been noticeably decimated, which is why the mayor of Tunja, José María Campuzano y Lanz, recommended the transfer of the Indians to Paipa, the demolition of the Indians' huts, and the auction of the liberated lands among the neighbors. local. This concept was endorsed and ratified by the visitor Francisco Moreno y Escandon, in 1778.

Although the Indians returned a year later because Francisco de Piñeres opposed the decisions of Moreno and Escandón, their land and huts had already been occupied by their mestizo and white neighbors; For this reason, they had no alternative but to locate themselves in the Monquirá area, where they suffered innumerable calamities. Meanwhile, the new parish of Sogamoso underwent a great urban transformation, in accordance with the characteristics of Spanish towns, and its economic situation was strengthened thanks to the livestock that came from the Casanare plains, and the intensification of the cultivation of cereals such as: wheat, corn and barley.

First travelers from Sogamosa around the world

The oldest historical records of the first Sogamoso travelers around the world date back to the mid-1610s, when the Muisca Indians José Sogamoso and Cristóbal Guayacundo arrived in the province of Guayana accompanying officials of the Royal Crown. A few years later they were taken to North America, where they had to participate in the conquest of Florida. In 1618 the English pirate Sir Walter Raleigh embarked them, threatening them “so that they would discover where the mines of Guiana were, because he planned to rework them as he had left him treated with the Caribs of the Orinoco River. Having reached the port, he did not allow the governor of Virginia to disembark; he made many requests and nothing was enough; Before resisting the governor disembarked from him, Raleig (sic) returned to England, and reached Plemua, dying on the way José the Indian; and Cristóbal saw Gualtero beheaded four years later in the Plaza de Londres».

In this regard, the chronicler Fray Pedro Simón narrates that «...Gualtero (sic) set sail around Florida, where he reached Virginia on good roads, not stopping along the way, thus in the sea as in the ports he came across, of issuing great death warrants to the Indian Cristóbal Guayacundo, who we said was imprisoned in Santo Thome, who was in the service of Governor Palomeque, and a native of the town of Sogamoso in this New Kingdom, and to another named Josef who also came to blows in Santo Thomé, and died before reaching England, trying to get some news from them by this way about mines in the province of Guyana...".

Guayacundo accompanied Raleigh during his prison and a year after seeing him beheaded on the scaffold, he went to Spain, where he asked the royal authorities for permission to authorize his return to the New Kingdom, as Fray Pedro Simón narrates: «.. This was done in the year of one thousand six hundred and nineteen, and that of one thousand and six hundred and twenty was treated with much demonstration, and as a result of it the prison of the said Gualtero resulted, and they put him on a very important message in the Castle of Plemua, and kidnap his assets, where by legal terms he was convinced and publicly beheaded. It is said that Gualtero was a great corsair, and that in ancient times sailing along the coasts of the mainland and the Windward Islands, he found a rich gold mine on the banks of the Orinoco River, from which he took some earthen pipes to London (as we have mentioned above)., from where he obtained some gold, and he kept it hidden for more than thirty years, and at this time he gave notice of it, offering to go to settle it and for this purpose the army was made, with which he contravened, doing what has been said, the Indian Cristóbal Guayacundo, who arrived with the corsair to England, and was found near him when they beheaded him, who apparently took him from Guayana, just to witness this, after various events he had, he went to Madrid, and from there he returned to Cartagena, from where he arrived in his land, the Sogamoso Valley, in the year one thousand six hundred and twenty-two, where he is today", and it is documented on March 24, 1620, in the Informaciones and passenger licenses to the Indies, from the General Archive of the Indies

Independence

Sogamoso became rich as a herd trade center surpassing the capital in population at that time; the surrounding floodplains are used to feed cattle imported from the Llanos de Casanare. According to Francisco J. Vergara V Vergara, the city becomes the first commercial center of Boyacá, and of valuable and abundant crops.

Erection of the Republican Villa

On September 6, 1810, the town of Sogamoso received the title of Villa Republicana, in recognition of its patriotism. This date does not represent the founding of the city, which already had several centuries of existence. In this sense, there is a historical error in the Law that bears in its title the phrase "Celebration of the Sogamoso Boyacá Foundation", through which the Nation is linked and honors the municipality of Sogamoso in the department of Boyacá, on the occasion of the commemoration of the two hundred years of having been erected as Villa Republicana, the virtues of those who adhered to the cause of independence are exalted and other budgetary provisions are issued."

Geography

Panoramic view of the city.

Panoramic city center 2022

In the tropical strip, with a moderate climate due to its height above sea level, Sogamoso is located in the eastern part of the old Sogamoso Valley, located in the Alto Chicamocha region, in the foothills of the eastern branch of the Cordillera of the Andes, it is irrigated by the Chicamocha River.

The most prominent points in the urban area are Cerro de Chacón, to the south, and Cerro de Santa Bárbara, to the east.

Limits

The Sogamoso Valley is bordered by a mountain range that is part of the Eastern Cordillera of the Andes.

Northwest: Tibasosa (Chiquito River)	North: Nobsa (Río Chicamocha)	Northeast: Topaga
West: Firavitoba		This: Monguí and Mongua
Southwest: Iza	South: Cuitiva and Aquitaine	Sureste: Aquitaine (Siscunzi Paramour)

Orography

Main heights

• Cerro de Chacón
• Loma de Santa Barbara
• Cerros de Río Chiquito

It is a formation of the Cretaceous. There are sandstone rocks and fossil deposits, mainly ammonites.

Geology and soils

Sogamoso is part of the so-called Bogotá basin, with sedimentary rocks whose ages range between the Cretaceous and recent Quaternary.

The following geological formations are found in the Sogamoso area:

• Ermitaño training. It is located in the upper parts of the west of the Sogamoso Valley, with a thickness that reaches 500 meters. It consists of a succession of hard quartzed sandstones, something glauconíticas, intercaladas with gray clays, fisibles, something calcareous, layers of chert of different colors and sporadic levels of phosphoite.

• Guaduas Training. The base of the formation consists of 250m of gray clays with occasional intercalations of reliable sandstones, on which there are 270 meters of grey arcillilililite, friable sandstone and exploitable charcoal blankets. The roof reaches 50 meters, composed of verduscas and violet arcilliolitas, with reliable sandstone banks. Its thickness exceeds 550 meters, is located mainly in the surroundings of the vereda of Morca.

• Socha-inferior training. Constituted mainly by green and yellow sandstones at the bottom, while the average part is mainly of grey claylets with small intercalations of sandstones and gray lemonades to greenish. Towards the roof is composed of varicoloreated sandstones of medium to fine grain. In Las Torres' brittle, its thickness reaches 174 meters.

• Socha-Superior training. It is predominantly clay, it consists of three members, of which the middle is essentially of green, yellow and grey sandstones; the other two members are composed of green grey arcilliolilite with oxide stains. Some sandstone banks have brands of waves. The average thickness in the Las Torres ravine reaches 375 meters.

• Picacho Training. Primordially sandy constituted by large white and yellow sandstone banks of medium to thick grain, sometimes conglometic and with asphalt stains. Towards the roof, this formation is made up of 60% of arcilliolites of gray to cream and bent. Its thickness exceeds 180 meters. It is populated in the cave of the Torres in its lower part, near to contact with the Quaternary Valley.

• Concentration training. Constituted mainly by habane and gray arcilliolitas with sporadic intercalations of areniscas browns of medium to thick grain, sometimes conglometic and feldspathic. The base of this unit has an iron handle of variable thickness. The thickness of the formation reaches 1400 meters in Paz de Río, where the iron ore is currently exploited.

• Quaternary deposits. In this region the deposits of glacial transport, vertientes derubs, alluvial deposits, fluviolacustres deposits and lacustres deposits are mainly evident. The alluvial deposits like the one that blooms in the hill of Chacón (west of Sogamoso), It consists of rolling fields of sandstone of various sizes, embedded in a yellow and bean sandy matrix.

Hydrography

Chiquito River at your pass through Sogamoso.

The Sogamoso valley has considerable water wealth, with tributaries of the Chicamocha River, which rises south of Tunja and takes the names of Chulo and Jordán, entering Sogamoso with the name of Río Grande; It continues through Paz de Río and the valley narrows, giving rise to the Chicamocha canyon.

"The Chicamocha river runs through the industrial zone of Boyacá and receives the pollution produced by Acerías Paz del Río, Termo Paipa, leftovers from the thermal waters of the Paipa pools, the Mainz industrial complex, Metalúrgica Boyacá, Industrial zone of Sogamoso and tanneries".

Tributaries of the Chicamocha River in Sogamoso:

• Rio Monquirá.
• Chiquito River.

The Mongui, Ombachita and Las Torres ravines descend from the Andean heights.

• Lagunas

The Siscunsí lagoon. Located southeast of Sogamoso, in the moor of the same name.

Climate

Due to its tropical and altitudinal location, Sogamoso has a temperate climate whose average temperature of 15 °C has been altered in recent years by the phenomenon of global warming^{[citation required]}.

However, the Sogamoso Valley enjoys the daily cycle of the seasons, as can be seen in the table of Sogamoso's average climatic parameters. Over the course of 24 hours, the climatic conditions of the four annual seasons occur. Thus, between six in the morning and noon the climatic characteristics resemble spring; from noon to five in the afternoon in summer, from that hour until ten or eleven, the temperature is autumnal. The winter temperature reaches its lowest point around three in the morning, even reaching zero degrees Celsius or less. This is explained by the fact that Sogamoso's altitude above sea level compensates for the difference in latitude and the inclination of the earth's axis is not so marked in relation to the rest of the northern hemisphere.

"Daylight". Due to its astronomical position, the inclination of the earth's axis is not so marked in Sogamoso with respect to the rest of the northern hemisphere, so sunlight varies very little. Sogamoso has practically 12 hours of sunlight a day: throughout the year, the sun appears on the horizon with a maximum difference of 15 minutes before or after six in the morning.

Average Sogamoso climate parameters
Month	Ene.	Feb.	Mar.	Open up.	May.	Jun.	Jul.	Ago.	Sep.	Oct.	Nov.	Dec.	Annual
Temp. max. abs. (°C)	24	23	22	21	21	21	20	21	21	22	23	22	21
Average temperature (°C)	19	19	19	18	18	17	16	18	18	19	19	19	18
Temp. medium (°C)	2	2	3	3	3	2	1	0	1	2	2	2	2
Temp. min. abs. (°C)	-4	-6	-1	0	0	-1	-3	-1	-2	-1	-3	1	-1
Total precipitation (mm)	80	78	89	92	75	55	40	38	42	90	110	82	871
Source: [chuckles]required]

Ethnography

The most recent general census of the nation, carried out by the National Administrative Department of Statistics of Colombia (DANE), presents the following results regarding the ethnic distribution of the population registered in the city of Sogamoso:

• Whites and Mestizos: 99.44 %
• Afro-Colombians: 0.34 %
• Indigenous: 0.22%

Ecology

The Eastern Cordillera of the Andes, in Sogamoso, presents three clearly defined levels: the valley, the slope and the páramo.

1. Valle. Corresponds to the flat area of the municipality and is occupied by two districts of the rural area and the urban area. It concentrates 85% of the total population of the municipality in just 4,259 hectares, that is, 21% of the territorial extension.

• Siatame (veredas de Siatame, Angarita, San Antonio, School, Alcaparral, Altamizal and Cerrito)
• Urban area. Delimited by the current urban perimeter.
• Vanegas(veredas de Vanegas, Manitas, Venice, Limits, Pedregal Bajo and Sector Callejuelas).

2. Slope. The Sogamoso Valley is surrounded by three slope sectors that occupy 7,707 hectares, equivalent to 38% of the municipal territory:

• Morcá. It incorporates the paths of Morcá, Ramada, Chiquita, Ramada Grande, San José of the future, Bata and Alto de Peñitas.
• Ombachita. It is the path Ombachita, Sector Alto Jiménez, Pantanitos, Pilar and Ceibita and Mortiñal.
• Chorreras: Miracle and playita, El Papayo, San Martín, Independencia, Corrales, Pedregal Alto, Estevita and El Crucero.

The corregimiento of slope.

3. Páramo. It is the area that is furthest from the urban sector, with very few facilities and services, made up of the villages: El Altillo, El Mortiñal, Las Cintas and Las Cañas. With 8,316 hectares, the Sogamous páramos occupy 41% of the municipal area, the largest territorial extension.

The Sogamous páramos are between 3,000 and 4,000 meters above sea level.

• Siscunsi Paramour is the natural habitat of the Andes condor. Since 2003 the páramo has been repopulated with the Andean condor species, with the support of the San Diego Wild Animal Park of the United States of America, and the Regional Autonomous Corporation of Boyacá (Corpoboyacá)

• Natural park on the streets Las Cintas, Las Cañas and Mortiñal.

Administrative division

Panoramic Barrio Recreo.

Neighborhoods

According to the political-administrative map of the Sogamoso Administrative Planning Department, the municipality is made up of the following neighborhoods:

North panoramic of the city.

Residential building to the west of the city.

Sidewalks

According to the political-administrative Map Number 41ª, of the 1999-2010 Land Management Plan, in February 2000, the city was made up of 18 villages:

Alto Chicamocha metropolitan area

The Alto Chicamocha metropolitan area is an urban organization project, located in the center of the department of Boyacá and made up of the municipalities of Paipa, Duitama, Sogamoso, Nobsa, Tibasosa and Firavitoba. It would become one of the most prosperous regions in the country. It is the region with the greatest movement in the department, since it concentrates the largest economic, commercial and industrial activity in Boyacá, as well as being the most densely populated area. It has about 350,000 inhabitants.

Symbols

Flag of the city.

City shield.

Provincial tradition says that, in the XVIII century, the Spanish Crown granted Sogamoso the power to dispose of a coat of arms. To date, no parchments have been found to testify to it.

In the middle of the XX century, the historian Gabriel Camargo Pérez devised the Spanish-shaped coat of arms, divided into four quarters, with mural crown and white emblem. In the upper left canton, on a blue field, the legendary sun that gives its name to the city; on the opposite, the Phrygian cap, symbol of freedom on a gold field, on the lower right three black bars (representing iron and steel) on a silver field and in the lower left canton a black bull's head, on green that represent the cattle ranch and the fertile Valley of Iraca.

The Sogamoso Anthem premiered on September 6, 1986 in the Plaza de la Villa of that city. Music by maestro Luis Antonio Escobar. Letter of doctor Pedro Medina Avendaño.

The flag of Sogamoso is made up of three horizontal stripes, characteristic of the department of Boyacá: the upper one, green, represents the agrarian wealth of the Sugamuxi valley and the hope for a better future; the one in the center, red, recalls the blood of the patriots and the desire for freedom. The lower stripe is white.

In recent days, a complex, gold-colored spiral has been added. This design is based on ancient cave pictographs that are supposed to represent the Muisca sun or a feathered snail, as an allusion to progress. However, the clockwise development of the curves, contrary to the reading direction, gives the impression of going backwards.

Economy

Iwoka Shopping Center.

Carrera 11 is the main commercial axis of the city.

Headquarters EBSA - Energy Company of Boyacá.

The economy of Sogamoso is based on the iron and steel industry and construction materials, and on the exploitation of limestone, marble and coal and agriculture and on regional trade with central Colombia and the eastern Plains. 11.0% of the department's economy and its added value is 3.0 billion pesos.

These are some of the companies that are located in the city:

Transportation

Infrastructure

Alberto Lleras Camargo Airport

Currently, it does not operate for passenger or cargo transportation, mainly due to the disinterest of the municipal, departmental and national administration, and the lack of private investment. However, it is in the process of being modernized by the Ministry of Transportation.^{[citation required]}

• Number of tracks: 1
• Longitude between beacons: 1500 meters.
• Track length: 1881 meters.
• Width between beacons: 40 meters.
• Track width: 23 meters.
• Roll cap: asphalt folder.
• The ramp and road of the road paved specifically asphalt; there is an area for heliport.
• The terminal has a waiting room, coffee shop, three airline lockers and two cargo cellars. It has a Control Tower built in late 1996 and has transmitters, receivers, radiofares, telecommunications plans and equipment and aids in air navigation.

In the second quarter of 2002, Aerocivil assembled a modern radio beacon at the Alberto Lleras Camargo Airport, equipment that was imported from the United States of America and forced the acquisition of properties adjacent to the Torre de Control to carry out the installation of advanced technology equipment in this specialty.

Until the end of 2005, 20-passenger planes operated at the airport with service to five Colombian departments: Boyacá, Casanare, Santander, Norte de Santander, Arauca and Cundinamarca. The area served comprises 15% of the country's surface, and produces a significant volume of agricultural products intended especially for internal consumption of the country, with a share in exports.

In September 2009, Aerocivil lifted the operation restriction at the airport, because it once again complied with the technical standards for its operation.

Land Transportation Terminal- TTS

Main entrance TTS.

The Sogamoso-TTS Transport Terminal is a mixed economy company (public-private), together with the Chiquinquirá terminal, they are the only ones recognized with the ICONTEC certificate before the Ministry of Transport as Transport Terminal in Boyacá, it provides the Service 24 hours a day.

Mobility

Public transport service

City Bus

Sogamoso has an urban bus service that covers the entire urban area. Service is provided from 5:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. m. until 10:00 p.m. m. (16 and a half hours). The urban public transport bus service is managed by four private companies that cover different routes in the city.

Users can get on or off the vehicle at any point along the way, except within the city, for which there are stops that provide security. The routes are identified with numbers and colors, according to the companies

The bus service has a cost of $COP 2000 - $0.53 US.

Taxi

The city has about 700 taxis, which provide service 24 hours a day throughout the city, provided by 5 private companies:

• Cootradelsol- Tel:7700000
• Sogataxi- Tel:7726666
• Asprotaxi Tel:7713333
• Transoga Tel:7714444
• Sugamuxi fleet

The minimum run service has a daytime cost of $COP 4,600 - $1.41 US. $COP 4,900 at night and holidays - $1.50 US.

The Morca Town Center has a cost of $COP 16,000 - $4.90 US and the Hourly Rate costs $COP 20,700 - $6.33 US

Road infrastructure of the area of influence

Landscape of Tota Lake from the tourist ring.

Viaducto Peña de Gallo between Sogamoso and Yopal.

Routes that communicate the City

Road	Identifier
Autopista Briceño-Tunja-Sogamoso
Transversal of Cusiana
Axis Tunja-Pesca-Sogamoso-Paz de Rio
Transversal of the liberators (Vía Tame)

Double Briceño-Tunja-Sogamoso.

Dual carriageway Briceño-Tunja–Sogamoso

The road built from the high flow of automobiles, and accidents on the old road, leads on a dual carriageway to Bogotá, with a large vehicular flow, in order to expand the transit of raw materials and products in a short time, reducing transport time by an hour or more.

In 2012, the commute between Sogamoso and Bogotá was between three and five hours.

Sugamuxi Tourist Ring

The tourist ring of Sugamuxi is made up of the municipalities that surround the Tota lagoon, the largest in Colombia. In this tourist route are the city of Sogamoso and the municipalities of Tota, Aquitania, Cuitiva, Iza.

The Cusiana road

It is a road that leads to Sogamoso with the city of Yopal, at this moment the road is being readjusted due to its current poor condition, the readjustment includes the construction of viaducts, resurfacing, and signage.

Rail transport

Rail transport is used by the company Acerías Paz del Río on the Paz de Río-Belencito-Paipa-Tunja-Bogotá D.C. route.

The Belencito- Paz de Río route has free service to the public from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. m. to 2:00 p.m. m.

It is mainly used as a freight corridor for coal.

Education

Education in the municipality is based on comprehensive training from pre-kindergarten, kindergarten, primary and secondary basic education (certified by the Ministry of National Education), technical, technological and university training (undergraduate and postgraduate); The city presents a wide educational offer that includes all levels in institutions such as:

UPTC Sogamoso Oriental Entrance.

University of Boyacá-Campus.

Technical and technological training

University education

List of undergraduate and postgraduate programs that are taught in the city of Sogamoso (face-to-face) and have administrative representation through physical facilities by the educational institution (distance/virtual)

Total: 36 undergraduate programs.

Total: 36 postgraduate programs - Specialization.

It is necessary to expand the offer of higher education, but especially face-to-face undergraduate and graduate programs, master's degrees, and access to doctoral and post-doctoral programs.

Total: 10 postgraduate programs - Master's.

Scientific - Investigative Events

Since the XXI century the city has had a greater offer of academic programs, a consolidation of research activities focusing Sogamoso as one of the knowledge-creating cities in eastern Colombia, some of the scientific events it has hosted are:

Schools

• Colegio Evangélico Luterano de Colombia "CELCO"
• Technical College in Micro-Business Administration " SOL CITY"
• Educational institution Independence
• Educational institution Politécnico "Álvaro González Santana"
• Technical Education Institution Fine Arts
• Sugamuxi National College
• Colegio Alejandro de Humboldt
• Colegio Cooperativo Reyes Patria
• Liceo Cooperativo Campestre
• Colegio Nuestra Señora del Rosario
• Center for Human Development "CEDHU"
• Suamox Administrative College
• Colegio Comercial Adventista De Sogamoso "CADES"
• Liceous College of Presentation
• Institución Educativa Empresarial y Agroindustrial de Los Andes "INSEANDES"
• Technical Education Institution San Martín de Tours
• Silvestre Arenas Education Institution
• Liceo Colombo Andino
• Institución Educativa Técnico Industrial Gustavo Jiménez
• Colegio Militar Inocencio Chinca
• Institución Educativa Integrado "Joaquín González Camargo"
• Technical Education Institution Francisco De Paula Santander
• Educational institution "Los Libertadores"
• Colegio Celestin Freinet
• Educational institution Magdalena
• Sogamoso Psychologist College.

Health

The hospital infrastructure of the city contemplates the levels of care (I, II, III) through:

• E.S.E. Sogamoso Regional Hospital.
• Clínica Julio Sandoval Medina
• Specialist clinic.
• El Laguito Clinic.
• Clínica Valle del Sol.
• Chia Clinic.
• E.S.E. Sogamoso.

Places of interest

Plaza de la Villa Centro.

In the main square of the city you can find the maximum architectural jewel: The monument to the race, remembering the origin of life and the arrival of man to the American continent; Its Cathedral and its churches that are characterized by the structure and design of past centuries are also found as architectural heritage. The roots of the Sogamoseña culture can be found in the archaeological museum that highlights and recovers some traditions of the ancestors. It is home to the condor of the Andes and a factory of crystal clear water, a fundamental factor for the birth of streams, ravines, ravines and rivers.

San Martín Cathedral of Tours.

Plaza de la Villa

It is the heart of the city, where the San Martín de Tours Cathedral and the monument to the sun are located, where the market square used to be.

Teatrino.

Pilita de la Union.

Parque el laguito.

Plaza 6 de septiembre

The City Hall is located there. It has ample parking and a stage for cultural events.

Race 11 - Centre

From the Plaza de la Villa to the Plaza 6 de septiembre the street has large palm trees around it, the road is made of cement and brick, it is considered that the entire city center revolves around this stretch of street the street.

Cathedral of San Martín de Tours

It is located in the current Plaza de la Villa exactly in the place where the first church of Sogamoso was built in 1564, due to seismic factors in 1836 the church was rebuilt and then between 1917 and 1928 the new temple was built. It was erected as a cathedral on July 16, 1972.

Cerro y Capilla de Santa Bárbara

Place where the aqueduct was located. In 1872 the chapel was built at the expense of the priest Francisco Lasprilla. Colonial in style, with a stone façade, it was built in homage to the Virgin of the Immaculate. Sports are done on its stairs and it is a viewpoint of the city's landscape.

Platelet and Chapel of Christ

Built at the suggestion of Adolfo Larrarte, a humble craftsman, its main animator was the priest Dr. Juan Nepomuceno Rueda. The direction of the work was in charge of the architect Martín Vácares and there was an urn there for a long time that contained information about the families of Sogamoso and other important topics of citizen life. In 1869 its construction was determined, in 1872 it was dedicated to Our Lady, in 1997 a reconstruction was made, in 2004 the roof collapsed and between 2006 and 2007 it was rebuilt.

Eliécer Silva Celis Archaeological Museum

One of the sites of scientific, tourist and cultural value is the Suamox archaeological museum founded in 1942 by the anthropologist Eliécer Silva Celis. This museum preserves the most important archaeological pieces of the Muisca culture, as well as the record of the old Chibcha cemetery whose tombs presented the most important demonstrations of the industry developed by our ancestors in terms of art in animal bone, mineral coal, fiber threads, basketry, weapons, utensils, war items, sacred and musical instruments, aspects of the phallic cult, muisca medicine. In addition to the above, on this site the construction or reconstruction of the temple of the sun was carried out to recover the one that was burned by the Spanish at the time of the conquest, as it is known the sun was the highest deity of our aborigines, hence this temple is so important for the study of Colombian culture. It was also established that seminars were held in the vicinity of the temple where priests known by the name of CUCAS were trained; Inside the museum there are also representative rooms of all the aboriginal cultures of America and Colombia mainly, one of the most important activities that take place in the museum in the so-called HUAN festival that has immense importance within the historical calendar of Colombia and It is related to the so-called Conchucua fountain, a spring of water where the high priest of Suamox took his baths.

Parque del Laguito

The old cemetery was built in a circular shape in the year 1850 on land donated by Dr. Bernardino Guevara Díaz, the cemetery was surrounded by iron bars that in the year 1860 were uprooted to convert them into war material In the civil conflict that confronted the revolutionary troops and the government, around the year 1955, when the development of the city made it necessary to build roads and places of recreation, the cemetery was transferred to another place and the roundabout was reconstructed. according to the design of the engineer Julio Ernesto Plazas and the historical assistance of Gabriel Camargo Pérez. Among the aspects taken into account in the construction of the roundabout was the location of the replica of the Tota lagoon from which the ¨laguito¨ derived.

Around 1969 a monument was erected to exalt the martyrs of La Ramada. It is a winged stele, the work of the sculptor Hugo Martínez González, in memory of 47 patriots who were speared on the site today occupied by the Comfaboy club. The Spanish authorities ordered that they be tied up naked in pairs, back to back, and pierced by spears.

In 1996 the place was illuminated and currently a beautiful remodeling project is being prepared that will undoubtedly make this place one of the biggest attractions in Sogamoso, only the monument and the beautiful gate that served as a access to the old cemetery.

Paraamo and lagoon of Siscunsi

The páramo vegetation that exists there contains the richest and most abundant diversity of the high tropical peaks, such as frailejones, pajonales, shrubs and aquatic vegetation. Its fauna is made up of amphibians, insects, mammals (jars, curies, hares, etc.). The bird life is very representative, made up of: blackbirds, partridges, the diving duck and the majestic condor of the Andes, the latter is part of a unique repopulation program in South America with 10 condors. This natural reserve is 45 minutes from Sogamoso, by paved road, followed by 12 minutes by car on a dirt road, and continuing for 40 minutes along a wide ecological path, until you reach the sighting of the condors. Another 20 minutes separate us from the Siscunsí lagoon where you can appreciate the diving duck and observe spectacular forests of frailejones. This tour can also be done on foot or on horseback from the end of the paved road. For any of the tours, the Hotel Bochica de Sogamoso offers the services of a tour guide and contacts to transport you to this natural beauty.

Train Station

The first railway station was located on land in the so-called “El Durazno” sector, but later the railway station was moved to what is now Plaza 6 de Septiembre. In the 1940s, the new station and its warehouses were built in a sector close to where the first train arrived in Sogamoso and had the service of passenger cargo trains and later the so-called autoferro, the development of land transport decreased the importance of the railway as a means of transport, of industrial products such as iron, cement, it has been thought of enabling these lines for the reactivation of tourism through the railway as in many countries of the world. When the station started operating in the current place, an avenue was built with the name of Avenida Bélgica because the Belgians were the builders and operators of the first railway in Sogamoso.

Palacio del Corregidor

This construction has been very important because, in addition to the offices of the city chief, there was a jail, police offices and even a kind of bullring where, in colonial times, the first bullfighting festivities were held. In the Spanish custom, also in this house in 1875 the first telegraph office was inaugurated. In 1930 the mansion or palace underwent a remodeling and placement of the first centenary of the death of Bolívar and served as the seat of the municipal council, later in 1955 it underwent restoration and expansion and the courts were installed there, the house also functioned there of culture and the Temístocles Avella conference room and the Jorge Camargo Spolidore auditorium, where today there is a public library. In addition to being the Corregidor Palace, it was for many years the seat of the council, the ombudsman's office, the treasury, and the Sogamoso fair corporation, including some UPTC courses. IN 1970 the administrative offices of the mayor's office were moved to Plaza 6 de September, where the head of Juan Lorenzo Alcantuz, a Sogamoseño community member executed by Spanish authorities after the community revolution, was exhibited.

Sogamoso Theatre

The architect of this work was Mr. Segundo Hernández and the engineer Daniel Hernández; the architectural project turned out to be not only of special beauty but also of great functionality and with magnificent acoustic conditions that make this place one of the most important theaters in the country.

The construction began on June 6, 1921, the first stage was completed in 1929 and the second in September 1940, initially plays, dances and other artistic expressions were presented there, later it was used as a theater film screening until a tragedy occurred there that left a death toll of more than 20 children who attended a matinee organized by the parish of Sogamoso.

In 1941, the reconstruction and conditioning of the theater began, which was inaugurated that same year thanks to the diligence of a Lebanese businessman named José Salomón.

In 1996 the theater was declared a national monument and later the Boyacá charity acquired it and later it was sold to the municipality of Sogamoso under the administration of Gustavo Sosa, and the improvement works that were built there during the administration of Gustavo Sosa and Edgar Espíndola were successfully completed and inaugurated on September 6.

In 2008, the theater's front curtain was installed and currently, in addition to the required maintenance, the construction of new services is being processed, especially to provide them with good dressing rooms and other needs that the establishment of its category requires.

Morcá

Morcá offers its visitors various activities of great interest since it offers the best of its crafts and gastronomy apart from being a religious center par excellence to which every first Saturday of each month a pilgrimage is made to the Sanctuary of the Virgin of the O of Morcá as a sign of faith; As for handicrafts, representative objects of Sogamoso are made in different materials produced in the region.

Plaza de Toros de La Pradera

Great figures from the world of Spanish, Mexican and, of course, Colombian bullfighting have paraded in the la prairie bullring to the north of Sogamoso, and one of the most famous matadors of the Colombian bullfighting festival was wounded in its arenas: Pepe Caceres. The name of the meadow was chosen through a contest whose jury was made up of Rafael Sandoval Medina, Ramón Díaz Díaz. The winner of this contest was Dr. Daniel Gómez Vargas, and the name of the bullring was based on the fact that a traditional sector of Sogamoso known as the prairie was chosen as the site of its construction and because, in addition, the prairie is the habitat Natural from the recces of Lidia.

The construction of this bullring began in 1967 and is one of the most significant places for Sogamous residents and bullfighting fans. It was inaugurated on Saturday, July 20, 1968 with the presence of the matadors Pepe Cáceres, Alfonso Vásquez II and Manolo Espinosa "Armillita" from Mexico.

Monument to the Race

Inaugurated in 1976, its executors wanted to represent the origin of life and the arrival of man on the American continent. At the top of a cuneiform stela there is a figure of 16 flames symbol of the Sun and in front of it the figure of four women as the principle and conservation of the "Colombian race".

Culture

Historical and cultural heritage

Myths and legends

• The Güío o basilisco without legs.
• The feathered snail. It tells how the patient snail, with his house on slope, ascended through the rainbow to the top of the sky and became the sun.
• The Stone of PatienceOne stone of patience "is in Mecca and around it millions of pilgrims turn around telling her their misfortunes." The day you don't have more misfortunes will explode and the Apocalypse will take place. Another was found by the Humboldt Baron in the Bocas del Río Meta. These two stones remain in their places. Another gigantic dominated the city of Sogamoso and recorded this phrase: "If you came back to me, you'd see.".
• The strange story of the images of Sogamoso and Monguí. Three historical doubts in a legend.
• The ghost: For much of the 19th century he intimidated the population, forcing it to be picked up at night.
• The seductive tunjo: The Tunjo It was a small being that in the middle of the rainbow let him see his true face of gold, lived by a swamp, where the rainbow was born." Children and women should not approach that place.
• "Angel Custodio" or the amp of the fence: In the 20th century a spectre intimidated the marchers with their groans. One night, the adolorida soul remained in a swamp, wrapped with its white sheet, adorned with the sapos, frogs and leeches.
• The Living Flame of Holy Thursday:"In Sogamoso they believed that the Holy Thursdays at night, for a few minutes, appears in the savannahs of Tigrera a mysterious flame.
• The Treasure of Don Lorenzo Vácarez
• Don Jesus Bernal and the Moorish of the Macoya of Guafa
• Goblins and exorcismos: The elves, also called animes, they used to take over whole houses to destroy them in the astonishment of the great and the joy of the boys.
• Mitos de la Laguna de Tota
• The Devil of Tota Lake

Gastronomy

Costilla broth

• Maize and rice mast
• Corn oak
• Wheat owl
• Rib broth.
• Cocido boyacense
• Arepa boyacense
• Ajiaco
• Mute, you piece of shit.
• Mazamorra chiquita
• Pitch wraps.
• Empanada San pedrana
• roasted meat (res, pork, lamb)
• Peasant chicken.
• Trucha
• Sweets and fruit juices: bean, pear, apple, breva, pineapple, strawberry, peach, papayuela, feijoa, cherries, guava)
• Cuajada con melao
• Cheese (peasant, double cream, pear, cheese, cured, curdled)
• Almojabanas

Holidays and celebrations

• September 6: Anniversary of the city.
• July: Festivals of the Sun and the Steel.
• July: Festival de la mazorca
• August:
• September: International Festival of Culture.
• October: Festival of corn.
• October: Baroque Festival.* October: "Abya Yala" Festival Art, knowledge and diversity.
• December 21: The Fiesta del Huan, recreation of the indigenous ceremony of sun worship, on the occasion of the winter solstice.

Featured Characters

Stations

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Names of the city

The city is recognized as:

• The City of the Sun and the Steel
• Historical and Friendly City
• The Red Square of Colombia

Venezuelan immigration in the city

Since the beginning of Venezuelan immigration in Colombia; the city has received a large number of people from Venezuela. The vast majority work informally and resort to rebusquery. And also, about 74% of citizens do not have a job. The municipality is not able to serve the entire Venezuelan population that has entered in recent years. And the health service can only be provided to those who have their papers in order. Faced with the labor demand, it has been reported that it is not possible to provide assistance.