Coamo, Puerto Rico
Encyclopedia
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
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 southern region, north of Santa Isabel
Santa Isabel, Puerto Rico
Santa Isabel is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the southern coast, south of Coamo; east of Juana Díaz; and west of Salinas. Santa Isabel is spread over 7 wards and Santa Isabel Pueblo...
; south of Orocovis
Orocovis, Puerto Rico
Orocovis is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range, north of Villalba and Coamo; south of Morovis and Corozal; southeast of Ciales; east of Jayuya; and west of Barranquitas...
and Barranquitas
Barranquitas, Puerto Rico
Barranquitas is a small mountain town located in the central region of Puerto Rico, south of Corozal and Naranjito; north of Coamo and Aibonito; west of Comerío and Cidra; and east of Orocovis. Barranquitas is spread over 6 wards and Barranquitas Pueblo...
; east of Villalba
Villalba, Puerto Rico
Villalba is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the central region, northeast of Juana Díaz; south of Orocovis; and west of Coamo. Villalba is spread over 6 wards and Villalba Pueblo...
and Juana Díaz
Juana Díaz, Puerto Rico
Juana Díaz is a municipality of Puerto Rico located in the southern coast of the island, south of Jayuya, Ciales, Orocovis and Villalba; east of Ponce; and west of Coamo and Santa Isabel and the Caribbean Sea to the south. Juana Díaz is spread over 12 wards and Juana Diaz Pueblo...
; and west of Aibonito
Aibonito, Puerto Rico
Aibonito is a small mountain town in Puerto Rico located in the Mountain range of Cayey, north of Salinas; south of Barranquitas and Comerio; east of Coamo; and west of Cidra, and Cayey. Aibonito is spread over 8 wards and Aibonito Pueblo...
and Salinas
Salinas, Puerto Rico
Salinas is a small municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico located in the southern coast of the island, south of Aibonito and Cayey; southeast of Coamo, east of Santa Isabel; and west of Guayama...
. Coamo is spread over 10 wards and Coamo Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is both a principal city of the Coamo Micropolitan Statistical Area and the Ponce-Yauco-Coamo Combined Statistical Area.
Coamo is a small town nestled in a valley about 10 miles (16.1 km) east of Ponce
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
(about 30 minutes by car). It was named San Blas Illescas de Coamo by its first settlers. San Blas was the Catholic saint who remains the town's patron. Illescas is the Spanish town the original founders came from (nowadays in Toledo province, Castile-La Mancha, Spain). There are a couple of theories regarding the origin of the word Coamo. Some think it comes from an indigenous word that means "valley" but it's also plausible that Coamo derives its name from Coamex (or Coamey), who was a celebrated local cacique (or "chieftain" in the Taino
Taíno language
Taíno, an Arawakan language, was the principal language of the Caribbean islands at the time of the Spanish Conquest, including the Bahamas, Cuba, Hispaniola, Jamaica, Puerto Rico, the Florida Keys, and the Lesser Antilles...
language). Archeological digs near the region have produced some of the best examples of the island's pre-Columbian cultural artifacts.
History
Founded July 15, 1579, Coamo is the third oldest settlement of the island's post Columbian period (after 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...
in the north and San Germán
San Germán, Puerto Rico
San Germán is a municipality located in the southwestern region of Puerto Rico, south of Mayagüez and Maricao; north of Lajas; east of Hormigueros and Cabo Rojo; and west of Sabana Grande. San Germán is spread over 18 wards and San Germán Pueblo...
in the west). By 1582, there were twenty families living in Coamo, in the same area where the Tainos had had their village of Guayama
Guayama, Puerto Rico
Guayama is a municipality of Puerto Rico founded on January 29, 1736 and located on the Southern Coastal Valley region, bordering the Caribbean, south of Cayey; east of Salinas; and west of Patillas and Arroyo. Guayama is spread over 9 wards and Guayama Pueblo...
. Coamo officially became a town in 1616, and was given the title of "Villa" by Spanish Royal Decree in 1778.
Coamo was the administrative center that encompassed most of the southern half of the island during the early colonial period. As the agricultural and sugar industries, which became the mainstays of the colony's economy, grew, the province would eventually subdivide into several distinct municipalities and the administrative center of the region would later shift west to the coastal town of Ponce
Ponce, Puerto Rico
Ponce is both a city and a municipality in the southern part of Puerto Rico. The city is the seat of the municipal government.The city of Ponce, the fourth most populated in Puerto Rico, and the most populated outside of the San Juan metropolitan area, is named for Juan Ponce de León y Loayza, the...
.
Coamo boasts a picturesque downtown plaza area, and is the home of a series of natural hot springs, Los Baños de Coamo, which has attracted visitors to its medicinal waters since before the Spaniards landed. These very springs were once rumored to have been Juan Ponce de León
Juan Ponce de León
Juan Ponce de León was a Spanish explorer. He became the first Governor of Puerto Rico by appointment of the Spanish crown. He led the first European expedition to Florida, which he named...
's legendary "fountain of youth". In the early nineteenth century, a system of pools of varying depths and sizes and temperatures was constructed at the site of these springs to serve as a spa for the colonials. During the North American invasion in the Spanish American War (1898), this site was the scene of one of the decisive battles of that conflict (the Battle of Coamo). The American troops took possession of the island and the spa was subsequently abandoned. Though the site lay in ruins for most of the twentieth century, it continued to be a landmark to the Coameños, who would often go to bathe in its healing thermal waters. The pools remain, but the buildings which once hosted the island's affluent and colonial soldiers are gone, except for the remains of one central wall structure which has been preserved and incorporated into a fountain courtyard on the grounds of a popular tourist hotel and rest stop which has replaced the ancient Spanish ruins.
Flag
The flag of Coamo derives its colors from the Coat of Arms.Its colors are red, yellow, and black.
Coat of Arms
The top left and the lower right have a red background with a gold Episcopal hat each. These parts of the Coat of Arms represent the old seat of San Blas de Illescas. The horse and the bull represent the cattle wealth of the population. The gold color that serves as background in contrast with the black color, recalls the yellowish reddish tone of the fields of Coamo during the droughts. The heavy border of the Coat Of Arms contains the following figures: two flames; three bell towers with gold bells outlined in red; two red crosses with arms ending in three petals; and a circle with a surface divided by horizontal blue and silver-plated stripes.Demographics
| Race - Coamo, Puerto Rico - 2000 Census | ||
|---|---|---|
| Race | Population | % of Total |
| White White people White people is a term which usually refers to human beings characterized, at least in part, by the light pigmentation of their skin... |
30,264 | 80.5% |
| Black Black people The term black people is used in systems of racial classification for humans of a dark skinned phenotype, relative to other racial groups.Different societies apply different criteria regarding who is classified as "black", and often social variables such as class, socio-economic status also plays a... /African American African American African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States... |
2,165 | 5.8% |
| American Indian Native Americans in the United States Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as... and Alaska Native |
101 | 0.3% |
| Asian Asian people Asian people or Asiatic people is a term with multiple meanings that refers to people who descend from a portion of Asia's population.- Central Asia :... |
25 | 0.1% |
| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander Pacific Islander Pacific Islander , is a geographic term to describe the indigenous inhabitants of any of the three major sub-regions of Oceania: Polynesia, Melanesia and Micronesia.According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, these three regions, together with their islands consist of:Polynesia:... |
6 | 0.0% |
| Some other race | 3,799 | 10.1% |
| Two or more races | 1,237 | 3.3% |
Barrios (Districts/Wards)
- Coamo Arriba
- Coamo Pueblo
- Cuyón
- Hayales
- Los Llanos
- Palmarejo
- Pasto
- Pedro Garcia
- Pulguillas
- San Idelfonso
- Santa Catalina
Geo/Topography
- Cerro Pulguitas, Cuchillas de Coamo, Presidio and Santa Ana.
- Rivers are: Río CoamoRío Coamo-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
, Río DescalabradoRío Descalabrado-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
, Río LapaRío Lapa-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
and Río de la MinaRío de la Mina (Coamo, Puerto Rico)-See also:*List of rivers of Puerto Rico-References:*USGS Hydrologic Unit Map – Caribbean Region *...
. - Los Baños de Coamo (Coamo Thermal Baths), nourished by the Coamo river.
Agriculture
Coamo is an agricultural center where mangoes, corn, avocados, oranges and plantains are grown, and where poultry and cattle are raised.Landmarks and places of interest
- Los Baños de Coamo (Coamo Thermal Baths)- near the Santa Isabel border.
- Historic Museum (Pico Pomar ResidencePico Pomar ResidencePico Pomar Residence, also known as Coamo Historic Museum, is a Spanish Colonial Neoclassical architecture building from 1840. It was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1988.-External links:*, at The Puerto Rico Channel...
) - Church San Blas de Illescas of CoamoChurch San Blas de Illescas of CoamoChurch San Blas de Illescas of Coamo is a Catholic parish church located on the center plaza of Coamo, Puerto Rico. Construction on the church began in 1661; it has since been judged one of the most important works of religious architecture in Puerto Rico. The church is separated from the open...
, construction on the church began in 1661 and is one of the oldest parish on the island.
Festivals and events
- Coamo is famous for being the host of the San Blas Half-Marathon, a yearly world-class professional marathon that attracts the best competitive runners in the world. It was inaugurated in 1963 by Delta Phi Delta Fraternity in honor to the founder of the town. World-class international and local runners compete in a 21.0975 kilometres (13.1 mi) half marathon. It's Puerto Rico's biggest race, and the crowds are always large.
- Patron Festivities - February
- San Blas Half Marathon - February
- Flower Carnival - May
- Yuca (cassava) Carnival - August
- Juey (crab) Carnival - October
- Bomba & Plena Festival - November
Sports
The Maratonistas (BSNNational Superior Basketball League of Puerto Rico
The Baloncesto Superior Nacional or BSN is the main Puerto Rican men's basketball league. It currently has 10 teams, but has had many teams in several cities of the island. The league was established in 1929. It has produced players that have distinguished themselves in the NBA, European Leagues,...
), is the only professional team the town hosts. The team has played in Coamo with mixed success since joining the league in 1985.
External links
- Coamo and its barrios, United States Census Bureau
- Historic Places in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands, a National Park Service Discover Our Shared Heritage Travel Itinerary
| title = Coamo, Puerto Rico
| work = Geographic Names Information System
Geographic Names Information System
The Geographic Names Information System is a database that contains name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features located throughout the United States of America and its territories. It is a type of gazetteer...
| publisher = USGS
United States Geological Survey
The United States Geological Survey is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, and the natural hazards that threaten it. The organization has four major science disciplines, concerning biology,...
| accessdate = 2008-05-06 }}