Canóvanas, Puerto Rico
Encyclopedia
Canóvanas is a municipality
Municipio
Municipio and Município are terms used for country subdivisions. They are often translated as municipality.-Overview:...
in Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
, located in the northeastern region, north of Juncos
Juncos, Puerto Rico
Juncos is one of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico located in the eastern central region of the island, south of Canóvanas and Carolina; southeast of Gurabo; east of San Lorenzo; and west of Las Piedras. Juncos is spread over 9 wards and Juncos Pueblo...
and Las Piedras
Las Piedras, Puerto Rico
Las Piedras is a municipality in east Puerto Rico located in the center region of the island, north of Yabucoa; south of Canóvanas and Río Grande; east of Juncos and San Lorenzo; and west of Naguabo and Humacao. Las Piedras is spread over 7 wards and Las Piedras Pueblo...
; south of Loíza
Loíza, Puerto Rico
Loíza is a small town and municipality in the northeastern coast of Puerto Rico, north of Canóvanas; east of Carolina; and west of Río Grande. Loíza is spread over 5 wards and Loíza Pueblo...
; east of Carolina
Carolina, Puerto Rico
Carolina is a city located in the northern part of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean; it lies north of Gurabo and Juncos; east of Trujillo Alto and San Juan; and west of Canóvanas and Loíza. Carolina is spread over 12 wards plus Carolina Pueblo...
; and west of Río Grande
Río Grande, Puerto Rico
Río Grande is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Northern Coastal Valley, North of Las Piedras, Naguabo and Ceiba; east of Loíza and Canóvanas and west of Luquillo. Río Grande is spread over eight wards and Río Grande Pueblo...
. Canóvanas is spread over 7 wards and Canóvanas Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.
History
Canóvanas was formerly a "barrio" (ward) of LoízaLoíza, Puerto Rico
Loíza is a small town and municipality in the northeastern coast of Puerto Rico, north of Canóvanas; east of Carolina; and west of Río Grande. Loíza is spread over 5 wards and Loíza Pueblo...
for 200 years. In 1909, the Municipal administration was transferred to the new town of Canóvanas, with Juan R. Calderón as its first mayor.
The name of Canóvanas comes from a local Taíno
Taíno people
The Taínos were pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. It is thought that the seafaring Taínos are relatives of the Arawak people of South America...
cacique
Cacique
Cacique is a title derived from the Taíno word for the pre-Columbian chiefs or leaders of tribes in the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles...
called Canobaná (Canovanax). According to history, this Cacique did not join the Taíno rebellion against Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and remained an ally.
Barrio Canóvanas was for two centuries an agricultural zone where sugar cane was cultivated and sugar produced in mills belonging to several local families; the Zequeira, Gambaro, Calderón, and later, families of Irish origin
Irish immigration to Puerto Rico
From the 16th to the 19th century, there was considerable Irish immigration to Puerto Rico, for a number of reasons. During the 16th century many Irishmen, who were known as "Wild Geese," fled the English Army and joined the Spanish Army. Some of these men were stationed in Puerto Rico and...
; the Seary, Quidgley, Soegard, Skerret, and others.
Other wards of Loíza (which later became part of Canóvanas) were those in the rural, mountainous parts of the municipality; Hato Puerco, Cubuy and Lomas. Hato Puerco is mentioned in Municipal Protocols as early as 1827.
The 20 acres (8.1 ha) plot of land where the city of Canovanas was constructed was purchased by Don Luis Hernaiz Veronne, a townhall Senator and local farmer. The site location was strategic, to intercept traffic on the old Spanish Road #7 (then Road #3 from San Juan
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
to Fajardo
Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Fajardo is a small city in Puerto Rico located in the east region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Ceiba and east of Luquillo.Fajardo is spread over 7 wards and Downtown Fajardo , which serves as the administrative center of the city...
), and from Loíza to the towns of the Caguas Valley (Caguas
Caguas, Puerto Rico
Caguas , founded in 1775, is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey....
, Gurabo
Gurabo, Puerto Rico
Gurabo is a municipality in eastern Puerto Rico located in the central eastern region, north of San Lorenzo; south of Trujillo Alto; east of Caguas; and west of Carolina and Juncos. Gurabo is spread over 9 wards and Gurabo Pueblo...
, Juncos
Juncos, Puerto Rico
Juncos is one of the 78 municipalities of Puerto Rico located in the eastern central region of the island, south of Canóvanas and Carolina; southeast of Gurabo; east of San Lorenzo; and west of Las Piedras. Juncos is spread over 9 wards and Juncos Pueblo...
), through the actual Road #185. This allowed Canóvanas access to commerce and communication networks and the city rapidly developed and progressed.
In 1970, Loíza and Canóvanas were separated as municipalities and the old rural wards of Hato Puerco, Cubuy and Lomas, as well as Torrecilla Alta, a former sugarcane workers colony next to the old Central Canovanas, were all incorporated into the new municipality.
Geography
Canóvanas combines flat alluvial plainAlluvial plain
An alluvial plain is a relatively flat landform created by the deposition of sediment over a long period of time by one or more rivers coming from highland regions, from which alluvial soil forms...
s, areas with gentle hills made up of volcaniclastic rocks, and rugged mountainous areas made up of volcaniclastic and volcanic rocks (lava flows and exposed intrusive igneous rocks).
Much of the flat plains are part of the flood-prone alluvial valley of the Río Grande de Loíza and its main tributaries, the Río Canóvanas
Río Canóvanas
-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
and Río Canovanillas
Río Canovanillas
-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
. Floods are typical during the storm season, between June and November.
Cityscape
The urban center of Canóvanas is located along Road PR-3, historically the main road between San JuanSan Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
and Fajardo
Fajardo, Puerto Rico
Fajardo is a small city in Puerto Rico located in the east region of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Ceiba and east of Luquillo.Fajardo is spread over 7 wards and Downtown Fajardo , which serves as the administrative center of the city...
.
Barrios
- Cambalache
- Canóvanas
- Canóvanas Pueblo
- Cubuy
- Hato Puerco (Campo Rico)
- Lomas
- Torrecilla Alta (La Central)
- San Isidro
Tourism
Some of the landmarks of Canóvanas are:- Antigua Lechería (Old Dairy)
- Central Canóvanas Ruins
- El Camarero Horse Racetrack
- El Español Bridge
- Jesús T. Piñero's House
- Old Ceiba Tree
- Villarán Park
- Belz Factory Outlet World Shopping Mall
Sports
Canóvanas professional sports teams have traditionally been nicknamed the "Indios". In 1983, BSN's Indios won Puerto RicoPuerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
's national basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
championship and they repeated in 1984, but they eventually disappeared during the 1990s. The Indias women's volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
team has also won a number of championships.
In Horse-racing, Canóvanas is home to Hipodromo Camarero, formerly named El Nuevo Comandante
El Nuevo Comandante
El Nuevo Comandante , renamed Hipodromo Camarero after a change of ownership in 2006, is a horse racing building located in Canóvanas, Puerto Rico, to the east of San Juan and Carolina...
, Puerto Rico's only horse racetrack, since 1972.
Agriculture
Canóvanas agriculture relies primarily on minor vegetable and fruit cultivation; It also has a minor cattleCattle
Cattle are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos primigenius...
and poultry industry. Most of Canovanas flat areas are subject to occasional flooding and are used as pastures for cattle. Many of these lands were previously used for sugar cane cultivation, but sugar cane is no longer harvested in most of Puerto Rico.
Business
Most of Canovanas commerce is driven by retail businesses. There are three main shopping mallShopping 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...
s, located along Road PR-3, which is the main roadway between San Juan and the east coast. These malls are the location of main stores like Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart
Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. , branded as Walmart since 2008 and Wal-Mart before then, is an American public multinational corporation that runs chains of large discount department stores and warehouse stores. The company is the world's 18th largest public corporation, according to the Forbes Global 2000...
and Belz Factory Outlets
Belz Enterprises
Belz Enterprises is a major American-based developer of hotels, retail, and commercial properties, including shopping malls.Belz operates throughout much of the country. They are most notably known for owning and operating the Peabody Hotels in Memphis, Little Rock, and Orlando...
.
Other typical businesses in Canovanas are pharmacies, liquor stores and bars, restaurants, cafeterias, gasoline stations, auto repair shops, supermarkets and bakeries.
Canovanas is considered the "Door to the East" due to its closiness to Metro San Juan and its privileged location in the rapidly developing northeast of Puerto Rico. Also the expansion of route 66 has placed the City of Canovanas on the spot for new industrial, commercial and high income residential projects.
Industrial
The most growing sector is the industrial zone where large international pharmaceuticals like AstraZenecaAstraZeneca
AstraZeneca plc is a global pharmaceutical and biologics company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the world's seventh-largest pharmaceutical company measured by revenues and has operations in over 100 countries...
, IPR, QBD
QBD
QBD may stand for:*QBD *Quantum brain dynamics*Queen's Bench Division*Queensland Book Depot*Quasi-birth-death process*Quality by Design *QBD the Bookshop Queensland Book Depot...
, among others have established their manufacturing plants. An PRIDCO industrial zone has many lots available for new industries looking to establish their plant operations near Metro San Juan and the northeast of the island.
Symbols
The Coat of Arms today contains the following symbolisms: The colors gold and violet taken from the banner of the "Hijos y Amigos Ausentes de Canóvanas" (Absent Children and Friends of Canóvanas), The crown symbolizing municipality, the broken chain symbolizing the discontinuation of Canóvanas as a district of LoízaLoíza, Puerto Rico
Loíza is a small town and municipality in the northeastern coast of Puerto Rico, north of Canóvanas; east of Carolina; and west of Río Grande. Loíza is spread over 5 wards and Loíza Pueblo...
. The crown in the center symbolizing and recalling the supreme hierarchy of the Cacique Canobaná, The laurels indicating the 23 consecutive wins (one leaf for each win) of the "Loíza Indians" basketball team, establishing a record in Puerto Rico. The basket in the middle of the leaves represents the team and its accomplishments. The rising sun and its 16 rays of light indicating the sprouting of a new municipality in Puerto Rico and the number of the incumbent mayors, respectively, before Canóvanas was separated from Loíza. The inscription in the banner recalls: the name of the Cacique and the dates of the installation of the municipal seat of Loíza in Canóvanas, November 30, 1909; and its creation August 15, 1970.