Adrogué
Encyclopedia
Adrogué is a city
in Greater Buenos Aires
, Argentina
, located 23 km south of Buenos Aires
. It is the capital of the Almirante Brown Partido
(district).
At slightly more than 30,000 inhabitants, it is a prominent residential area, with numerous cobbled streets, lush trees and several squares. In addition, it has an important commercial center, with a variety of shops and banks.
approved the projected sketch map for this town and named it Almirante Brown. The plan for the map was designed by Nicolás and José Canale, two renowned Italian architects, who included a number of diagonals and squares, which later inspired the urban design for the city of La Plata
. The Canales also designed most of the public buildings in Adrogué (the Town Palace, the first church for Saint Gabriel, Castelforte, etc.) and the church of the Inmaculada Concepción in the neighbourhood of Belgrano
("La Redonda").
, an Argentine writer
, spent many childhood summers there and loved the city so much that he named a book of poems after it in dedication. In an excerpt, he writes:
's private residence, but he decided to turn it into a hotel in response to the wealthy families looking for a place to settle down in the area with the intention of building country houses, and his wish to turn this place into a summer resort. Thus, in 1873, Hotel Las Delicias was the preferred summer shelter of notable Argentines. To visit and stay there was at that time a respected distinction. Sarmiento
, president of Argentina
from 1868 to 1874, was one of those who enjoyed its amenities. The name of the hotel was conferred by Mr. Ochoa, friend of Esteban Adrogué, who exclaimed before its splendor, "this is a delight" (delicia is Spanish for delight).
Most recently, on the corner where the Hotel Las Delicias building was situated, there is a state school called Colegio Nacional Almirante Brown (Almirante Brown National School). This is where the Coro del Colegio Nacional de Adrogué (Almirante Brown National School Choir), entirely comprised by students of the school, rehearses. Both the school and the choir have national prominence and are supported by the community and authorities of Adrogué.
, who also founded Lomas de Zamora
and donated lands for the installation of the train station, town hall, main square and other important buildings.
He suggested that the train station be called Almirante Brown, but since that name had already been used and it was customary to name a station after its land donor, it was finally called Adrogué station. As a matter of fact, for more than 100 years, the city was officially called Almirante Brown, a name used only for official purposes, until a law stated that the name Adrogué should be used for this locality in the late 1990s.
Notable natives and inhabitants of the city include:
The two local theaters, Cine Adrogué and Cine Argentino, were closed down around the beginning of the 1990s. One of them was turned into a shopping mall
, which went into bankruptcy about a year after opening its doors and finally became the House of Culture. The other one houses a Protestant church. Some years later, a 10-screen Cinemark complex was built at the Boulevard Shopping mall, a fact that allowed the city to have local theaters again.
Cultural institutions Coro Juvenil Adrogué The youth choir of Adrogué whose director is Ricardo Barrera Coro de cámara Adrogué (Adrogué's chamber choir) Fundación de altos estudio Adrogué Centro Cultural de Adrogué
Tourism
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
in Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires
Greater Buenos Aires is the generic denomination to refer to the megalopolis comprising the autonomous city of Buenos Aires and the conurbation around it, over the province of Buenos Aires—namely the adjacent 24 partidos or municipalities—which nonetheless do not constitute a single administrative...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
, located 23 km south of Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
. It is the capital of the Almirante Brown Partido
Almirante Brown Partido
Almirante Brown is a partido of the Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, located at the south of the Gran Buenos Aires urban area, at coordinates .It has an area of 129.33 km² and 555,731 inhabitants , and its capital is Adrogué....
(district).
At slightly more than 30,000 inhabitants, it is a prominent residential area, with numerous cobbled streets, lush trees and several squares. In addition, it has an important commercial center, with a variety of shops and banks.
History
In March 1873, Governor Mariano AcostaMariano Acosta
Mariano Acosta was an Argentine lawyer and politician.-Life and times:Acosta was born in 1825 to Magdalena Santa Coloma Lezica, the daughter of a prominent Buenos Aires Province landowner, and José Francisco Acosta, from Corrientes Province...
approved the projected sketch map for this town and named it Almirante Brown. The plan for the map was designed by Nicolás and José Canale, two renowned Italian architects, who included a number of diagonals and squares, which later inspired the urban design for the city of La Plata
La Plata
La Plata is the capital city of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, and of La Plata partido. According to the , the city proper has a population of 574,369 and its metropolitan area has 694,253 inhabitants....
. The Canales also designed most of the public buildings in Adrogué (the Town Palace, the first church for Saint Gabriel, Castelforte, etc.) and the church of the Inmaculada Concepción in the neighbourhood of Belgrano
Belgrano, Buenos Aires
Belgrano is a leafy, northern barrio or neighborhood of the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina.- Location :The barrio of Palermo is to the southeast; Nuñez is to the northwest; Coghlan, Villa Urquiza, Villa Ortúzar and Colegiales are to the southwest....
("La Redonda").
Borges and Adrogué
Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis Borges
Jorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
, an Argentine writer
Writer
A writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, spent many childhood summers there and loved the city so much that he named a book of poems after it in dedication. In an excerpt, he writes:
- "Wherever in the world I might sense the smell of gum treesEucalyptusEucalyptus is a diverse genus of flowering trees in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Members of the genus dominate the tree flora of Australia...
, I feel as if I had been take back to Adrogué. And that is exactly what Adrogué was: a large and quiet maze of streets surrounded by lush trees and country houses, a maze of many peaceful nights that my parents liked to traverse. Country houses in which you could guess how life was behind those country houses. In some way, I have always been there, I am always here. You take the places with yourself, the places are within yourself. I am still among the gum trees and labyrinths, that place where you can easily get lost. I guess you might as well get lost in Paradise. Bizarre statues turn pretty, a ruin that is not a ruin, a tennis court. And then, in the very Las Delicias Hotel, a big room with mirrors. I have certainly found myself in those infinite looking glasses. Many arguments, many scenes, many poems that I imagined were born in Adrogué or were fixed in Adrogué. Whenever I talk about gardens, whenever I talk about trees, I am in Adrogué; I have thought about that city, it is unnecessary to name it." (1981)
Hotel Las Delicias
Hotel Las Delicias was inaugurated on December 1, 1872. It had been previously Esteban AdroguéEsteban Adrogué
Esteban Adrogué was an Argentine citizen born in Buenos Aires and founder of the city of Adrogué in the southern part of Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina....
's private residence, but he decided to turn it into a hotel in response to the wealthy families looking for a place to settle down in the area with the intention of building country houses, and his wish to turn this place into a summer resort. Thus, in 1873, Hotel Las Delicias was the preferred summer shelter of notable Argentines. To visit and stay there was at that time a respected distinction. Sarmiento
Sarmiento
-People:*Diego Sarmiento de Acuña, conde de Gondomar, Spanish diplomat*Domingo Faustino Sarmiento, president of Argentina*Ismael Sarmiento , Colombian road cyclist*María José Sarmiento, Argentine judge*Martín Sarmiento, Galician Enlightenment priest...
, president of Argentina
President of Argentina
The President of the Argentine Nation , usually known as the President of Argentina, is the head of state of Argentina. Under the national Constitution, the President is also the chief executive of the federal government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.Through Argentine history, the...
from 1868 to 1874, was one of those who enjoyed its amenities. The name of the hotel was conferred by Mr. Ochoa, friend of Esteban Adrogué, who exclaimed before its splendor, "this is a delight" (delicia is Spanish for delight).
Most recently, on the corner where the Hotel Las Delicias building was situated, there is a state school called Colegio Nacional Almirante Brown (Almirante Brown National School). This is where the Coro del Colegio Nacional de Adrogué (Almirante Brown National School Choir), entirely comprised by students of the school, rehearses. Both the school and the choir have national prominence and are supported by the community and authorities of Adrogué.
Origin of the name
The city is named after its founder, Esteban AdroguéEsteban Adrogué
Esteban Adrogué was an Argentine citizen born in Buenos Aires and founder of the city of Adrogué in the southern part of Greater Buenos Aires, Argentina....
, who also founded Lomas de Zamora
Lomas de Zamora
Lomas de Zamora is a city in the province of Buenos Aires, Argentina, located next to the border of Buenos Aires City and within the metropolitan area of Greater Buenos Aires.It is the capital of Lomas de Zamora Partido and has a population of 111,897....
and donated lands for the installation of the train station, town hall, main square and other important buildings.
He suggested that the train station be called Almirante Brown, but since that name had already been used and it was customary to name a station after its land donor, it was finally called Adrogué station. As a matter of fact, for more than 100 years, the city was officially called Almirante Brown, a name used only for official purposes, until a law stated that the name Adrogué should be used for this locality in the late 1990s.
Notable public buildings and monuments
- Edificio Municipal, restored in 1991.
- Castelforte (former residence of the Canale architects).
- Historic building La Cucaracha, Swiss-style house built for Esteban Adrogué's two married daughters.
- The House of Culture, former theater and shopping mall.
- Adrogué Tennis Club (former residence of Esteban Adrogué).
- School EGB 16 (former residence of Carlos PellegriniCarlos PellegriniCarlos Enrique José Pellegrini Bevans was President of Argentina from 6 August 1890 to 12 October 1892....
). - School EGB 5 (founded by Domingo F. SarmientoDomingo Faustino SarmientoDomingo Faustino Sarmiento was an Argentine activist, intellectual, writer, statesman and the seventh President of Argentina. His writing spanned a wide range of genres and topics, from journalism to autobiography, to political philosophy and history...
). - Hospital Lucio Meléndez, named after the physician who died in this house on December 7, 1901.
- Monument to Admiral Gillermo Brown in the square with the same name.
Notable people
- Carlos PellegriniCarlos PellegriniCarlos Enrique José Pellegrini Bevans was President of Argentina from 6 August 1890 to 12 October 1892....
(1846 - 1906), president of ArgentinaPresident of ArgentinaThe President of the Argentine Nation , usually known as the President of Argentina, is the head of state of Argentina. Under the national Constitution, the President is also the chief executive of the federal government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.Through Argentine history, the... - Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis BorgesJorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
(1899 - 1986), writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images....
, considered one of the foremost literary figures of the 20th century, lived as a child in Adrogué - Sebastian Lucas Mazzuca (born 1971), economistEconomistAn economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, professor at Harvard University - José Luis Romero (1909 - 1977), teacher and historianHistorianA historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
- Ricardo PigliaRicardo PigliaRicardo Piglia is one of the foremost contemporary Argentine writers, known for his fiction, including several collections of short stories; the novels Artificial Respiration , The Absent City , Burnt Money ; and criticism including Criticism and Fiction , Brief Forms and...
(born 1940), writer - Juan Gujis (born 1946), publicistPublicistA publicist is a person whose job is to generate and manage publicity for a public figure, especially a celebrity, a business, or for a work such as a book, film or album...
and TV announcerAnnouncerAn announcer is a presenter who makes "announcements" in an audio medium or a physical location.-Television and other media:Some announcers work in television production , radio or filmmaking, usually providing narrations, news updates, station identification, or an introduction of a product in... - Ricardo López MurphyRicardo López MurphyRicardo Hipólito López Murphy is an Argentine economist and politician.-Career:López Murphy was born in Adrogué, Buenos Aires Province. He attended the National University of La Plata, where he was awarded the title of "Licenciado en Economía" in 1975...
(born 1951), economistEconomistAn economist is a professional in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy...
, former minister of Defense and presidential candidate - Fernando RedondoFernando RedondoFernando Carlos Redondo Neri is a retired Argentine footballer.A defensive midfielder with the ability to contribute both defensively and offensively, he played one full decade in La Liga, mainly for Real Madrid, then finished his career in Italy with Milan.Redondo was a member of the Argentine...
(born 1969), soccer player - Dolores FonziDolores FonziDolores Fonzi is an Argentine TV and film actress active since 1997.Several of her films have received critical acclaim such as Plata quemada , Esperando al mesías , El Fondo del mar and El Aura . Her brother, Tomás Fonzi is also an actor in the Cinema of Argentina...
(born 1978), actress
Trivia
The layout of the squares in Adrogué follows that of Fleet Admiral Brown's ships, and the squares are named after the corresponding ship's commander.The two local theaters, Cine Adrogué and Cine Argentino, were closed down around the beginning of the 1990s. One of them was turned into a shopping mall
Shopping mall
A shopping mall, shopping centre, shopping arcade, shopping precinct or simply mall is one or more buildings forming a complex of shops representing merchandisers, with interconnecting walkways enabling visitors to easily walk from unit to unit, along with a parking area — a modern, indoor version...
, which went into bankruptcy about a year after opening its doors and finally became the House of Culture. The other one houses a Protestant church. Some years later, a 10-screen Cinemark complex was built at the Boulevard Shopping mall, a fact that allowed the city to have local theaters again.
External links
General information Almirante Brown's town hall website TodoAdrogué provides general information about the city, including a commercial directory, phone numbers, on-going cultural events and more AdrogueLive.com general information provided, covering events. Adrogue-OnLine is another Adrogué portal providing general informationCultural institutions Coro Juvenil Adrogué The youth choir of Adrogué whose director is Ricardo Barrera Coro de cámara Adrogué (Adrogué's chamber choir) Fundación de altos estudio Adrogué Centro Cultural de Adrogué
Tourism
- Adrogué travel guide from WikitravelWikitravel-External links:* *...