Novo Cruzeiro
Encyclopedia
Novo Cruzeiro is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais
. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 30,331 people living in a total area of 1,701 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequitinhonha and to the microregion of Araçuaí
. The elevation of the municipal seat is 980 meters. It became a municipality in 1943.
Most of the population lives in the rural area, with over 10,000 people still engaged in agriculture, which is mainly subsistence.
Novo Cruzeiro was founded by Anastácio Roque Esteves, who settled here in 1917 along the banks of the Ribeirão São Bento, a tributary of the Rio Gravatá. The first name was Fazenda Santa Maria do Ribeirão da Pedra, then Vila Gravatá, São Bento, and finally Novo Cruzeiro, the name coming from the change of the currency of the country from mil réis to the Cruzeiro.
The town was once connected with the south by a railroad line, E. F. Bahia a Minas, which was extinguished in 1965. Several of the old stations have been restored and are now used as public buildings.
The economy is based on cattle raising, services, and subsistence agriculture, with the main crops being coffee (5,500 ha.), rice, beans, sugarcane, and corn. The cattle herd had 18,000 head in 2006. In 2005 there were 3318 rural producers but only 47 tractors. 10,300 persons were dependent on agriculture. As of 2005 there were 10 public health clinics, with 2 carrying out diagnosis and complete therapy. There was one hospital with 42 beds. Educational needs were met by 37 primary schools, 6 middle schools and 6 nursery schools. There were 569 automobiles in 2006, giving a ratio of 60 inhabitants per automobile (there were 1650 motorcycles). There was 1 bank in 2007.
Neighboring municipalities are: Araçuaí
- Caraí
- Itaipé
- Ladainha - Setubinha
- Minas Novas
- Chapada do Norte
- and Jenipapo de Minas
. The distance to Belo Horizonte
is 557 km. The distance to the nearest major population center, Teófilo Otoni
is 111 km. As of 2002 most of the access roads were still not paved.
Social Indicators
Novo Cruzeiro is ranked low on the MHDI and was one of the poorest municipalities in the state and in the country in 2000.
The above figures can be compared with those of Poços de Caldas
, which had an MHDI of .841, the highest in the state of Minas Gerais
. The highest in the country was São Caetano do Sul
in the state of São Paulo
with an MHDI of .919. The lowest was Manari in the state of Pernambuco
with an MHDI of .467 out of a total of 5504 municipalities in the country as of 2004. At last count Brazil had 5,561 municipalities so this might have changed at the time of this writing.
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 30,331 people living in a total area of 1,701 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequitinhonha and to the microregion of Araçuaí
Araçuaí
Araçuaí is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais in the Jequitinhonha River valley. The Araçuaí River, a tribuatary of the Jequitinhonha, flows through it.. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 36,083 people living in a total area of 2,235 km²....
. The elevation of the municipal seat is 980 meters. It became a municipality in 1943.
Most of the population lives in the rural area, with over 10,000 people still engaged in agriculture, which is mainly subsistence.
Novo Cruzeiro was founded by Anastácio Roque Esteves, who settled here in 1917 along the banks of the Ribeirão São Bento, a tributary of the Rio Gravatá. The first name was Fazenda Santa Maria do Ribeirão da Pedra, then Vila Gravatá, São Bento, and finally Novo Cruzeiro, the name coming from the change of the currency of the country from mil réis to the Cruzeiro.
The town was once connected with the south by a railroad line, E. F. Bahia a Minas, which was extinguished in 1965. Several of the old stations have been restored and are now used as public buildings.
The economy is based on cattle raising, services, and subsistence agriculture, with the main crops being coffee (5,500 ha.), rice, beans, sugarcane, and corn. The cattle herd had 18,000 head in 2006. In 2005 there were 3318 rural producers but only 47 tractors. 10,300 persons were dependent on agriculture. As of 2005 there were 10 public health clinics, with 2 carrying out diagnosis and complete therapy. There was one hospital with 42 beds. Educational needs were met by 37 primary schools, 6 middle schools and 6 nursery schools. There were 569 automobiles in 2006, giving a ratio of 60 inhabitants per automobile (there were 1650 motorcycles). There was 1 bank in 2007.
Neighboring municipalities are: Araçuaí
Araçuaí
Araçuaí is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais in the Jequitinhonha River valley. The Araçuaí River, a tribuatary of the Jequitinhonha, flows through it.. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 36,083 people living in a total area of 2,235 km²....
- Caraí
Caraí
Caraí is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 21,530 people living in a total area of 1,240 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Jequitinhonha and to the microregion of Araçuaí. The elevation of the...
- Itaipé
Itaipé
Itaipé is a Brazilian municipality located in the northeast of the state of Minas Gerais. Its population as of 2007 was estimated to be 11,497 people living in a total area of 483 km². The city belongs to the mesoregion of Vale do Mucuri and to the microregion of Teófilo Otoni. It became a...
- Ladainha - Setubinha
Setubinha
Setubinha is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. As of 2007 the population was 10,834 in a total area of 536 km². The elevation is 729 metres. It is part of the IBGE statistical microregion of Teófilo Otoni...
- Minas Novas
Minas Novas
Minas Novas is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. As of 2007 the population was 30,578 in a total area of 1,810 km². The elevation of the urban area is 635 meters. It is part of the IBGE statistical meso-region of Jequitinhonha and the micro-region of Capelinha...
- Chapada do Norte
Chapada do Norte
Chapada do Norte is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. As of 2007 the population was 15,429 in a total area of 828 km². The elevation of the town center is 751 meters. It is part of the IBGE statistical meso-region of Jequitinhonha and the micro-region...
- and Jenipapo de Minas
Jenipapo de Minas
Jenipapo de Minas is a municipality in the northeast of the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais. As of 2007 the population was 6,905 in a total area of 284 km². The elevation of the town center is 521 meters. It is part of the IBGE statistical meso-region of Jequitinhonha and the micro-region...
. The distance to Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte
Belo Horizonte is the capital of and largest city in the state of Minas Gerais, located in the southeastern region of Brazil. It is the third largest metropolitan area in the country...
is 557 km. The distance to the nearest major population center, Teófilo Otoni
Teófilo Otoni
Téofilo Otoni is a city in northeast Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The population of the municipality was 126,895 in 2007 and the area is 3,253.4 km².-Origin of the name:...
is 111 km. As of 2002 most of the access roads were still not paved.
Social Indicators
Novo Cruzeiro is ranked low on the MHDI and was one of the poorest municipalities in the state and in the country in 2000.
- MHDI: .629 (2000)
- State ranking: 791 out of 853 municipalities
- National ranking: 4,147 out of 5,138 municipalities in 2000
- Life expectancy: 64
- Literacy rate: 61
- Combined primary, secondary and tertiary gross enrolment ratio: .745
- Per capita income (monthly): R$125.00
The above figures can be compared with those of Poços de Caldas
Poços de Caldas
Poços de Caldas is a city and municipality in south-western Minas Gerais state, Brazil, in the microregion of the same name. Its estimated population in 2009 was 151,449 inhabitants...
, which had an MHDI of .841, the highest in the state of Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais
Minas Gerais is one of the 26 states of Brazil, of which it is the second most populous, the third richest, and the fourth largest in area. Minas Gerais is the Brazilian state with the largest number of Presidents of Brazil, the current one, Dilma Rousseff, being one of them. The capital is the...
. The highest in the country was São Caetano do Sul
São Caetano do Sul
São Caetano do Sul is a city in São Paulo state in Brazil, located in the Greater São Paulo Metropolitan Area. It is the city with the highest per capita income in Brazil and it also has the highest Human Development Index .-Geography:São Caetano do Sul is located on a plateau that is part of the...
in the state of São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
with an MHDI of .919. The lowest was Manari in the state of Pernambuco
Pernambuco
Pernambuco is a state of Brazil, located in the Northeast region of the country. To the north are the states of Paraíba and Ceará, to the west is Piauí, to the south are Alagoas and Bahia, and to the east is the Atlantic Ocean. There are about of beaches, some of the most beautiful in the...
with an MHDI of .467 out of a total of 5504 municipalities in the country as of 2004. At last count Brazil had 5,561 municipalities so this might have changed at the time of this writing.
See also
- List of municipalities in Minas Gerais