Ubá
Encyclopedia
Ubá is a city located in the Zona da Mata
mesoregion
of Minas Gerais
, Brazil
, 290.88 kilometres (180.7 mi) southeast of Belo Horizonte
, and 284.31 kilometres (176.7 mi) north of Rio de Janeiro
. The estimated population of the city of Ubá was 99,708 in 2009. The current mayor of Ubá is Vadinho Baião.
Once a great tobacco
producer, Ubá has one of the main furniture
industry parks in Brazil. The city is the economic and cultural center of Ubá microregion
. It is also home of the famous Ubá mango (Manga Ubá).
basin settlement took place, initially, due to the decline of mining activities. In the late 18th and early 19th century, several families left Mariana
, Ouro Preto
, and other mining
centers in search of fertile land where they could undertake activities that would result in a more stable and secure incoming. The regions bathed by the Itajaí River, Chopotó River, Pomba River, among others, were of great interest due to the fact that the land in those areas were of great fertility, and that they were previously inhabited only by natives (Coroados, Coropós and Purí
s) and adventurers.
The attempts of colonization of Coroados, Coropós, Purís and Botocudo
s always ended in bloody battles between the true owners of the land and the white invaders. During the battles, using arrows and axes against firearms, the Indians were gradually slaughtered or made prisoners for slave labor, especially when it comes to young people and women.
Due to the international pressure against the genocide of natives, the King of Portugal
was convinced to order the Governor Luís Diogo Lobo da Silva to organize an expedition in an attempt to friendly approach the natives. In November 1767, Father Manoel de Jesus Maria was put in charge for the conversion of the natives to Catholicism, laying the groundwork for the entry of the owners of land grants after 1797. Captain Francisco Pires de Farinho, who was familiar with the tracks of forests and the indigenous customs, and was familiar with them, was named special guide with control power.
Father Jesus Maria arrived at Uba River
, where the Coroado natives lived. Those natives used a kind of grass, Gynerium sagittatum
(in Portuguese, U-Uva), to make the arrows they used. For linguistic evolution U-Uva became Ubá. Between 1797 and 1798, the first land grants located around the river were donated.
In 1805, Captain Antonio Januário Carneiro and his brother-in-law Commander Jose de Faria Alvim Cesario, acquired several land grants previously belonging to the Municipality of São João Batista do Presídio
, bringing their families, slaves and livestock. In this period, according to an agreement between the Vatican
and the Catholic Monarchs
, when a settlement in the colonies was founded, a church was to be the first building to be built. While the former owners of land were concerned about their farms, Antonio Januário Carneiro idealized establish a settlement. His first step was to lead a movement to sign the petition requesting the permit for the construction of the church. On November 3, 1815, the request was granted.
To promote this settlement, Captain Januário Carneiro brought all the workers needed to build the church by giving them small pieces of land, housing and food, while they could not have its own supply by cultivating the land. The chapel
received the name of St. Januarius, and the village the name of Capela de São Januário de Ubá (Chapel of St. Januarius of Ubá).
Due to the growth of the village, it was elevated to Paróquia de São Januário de Ubá (Parish of St. Januarius of Ubá) on April 7, 1841. The development of the town took place gradually around the parish. Due to the development of the parish and the activities of the inhabitants, especially coffee plantations, the settlement was officially recognized as a village on June 17, 1853, and on July 3, 1857 was incorporated as a municipality
.
The first city council
was composed by:
basin, with a small part of it lying in the Doce River
basin. The city is not surrounded by any large river. Ubá River
crosses the city from northwest to southeast and is responsible for drainage of most sewers in the city.
The city sits in a valley
and has only 5% of its area flat, the rest being rugged. The altitude ranges from 295 meters to 875 meters.
Zona da Mata (Minas Gerais)
Zona da Mata is a mesoregion of the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil, situated in the southeastern part of the state, along the border of the states of Minas Gerais, Rio de Janeiro and Espírito Santo...
mesoregion
Mesoregion (Brazil)
Mesoregions are subdivisions of Brazilian states, grouping together various municipalities in proximity and with common characteristics. They were created by the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics for statistical purposes and do not, therefore, constitute an administrative area....
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...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
, 290.88 kilometres (180.7 mi) southeast of 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...
, and 284.31 kilometres (176.7 mi) north of Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro
Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil, and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, boasting approximately 6.3 million people within the city proper, making it the 6th...
. The estimated population of the city of Ubá was 99,708 in 2009. The current mayor of Ubá is Vadinho Baião.
Once a great tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
producer, Ubá has one of the main furniture
Furniture
Furniture is the mass noun for the movable objects intended to support various human activities such as seating and sleeping in beds, to hold objects at a convenient height for work using horizontal surfaces above the ground, or to store things...
industry parks in Brazil. The city is the economic and cultural center of Ubá microregion
Microregion (Brazil)
Microregions are legally defined administrative areas in Brazil consisting of groups of municipalities bordering urban areas. Microregions are grouped together into mesoregions....
. It is also home of the famous Ubá mango (Manga Ubá).
Settlement
The Pomba RiverPomba River
The Pomba River is a river of Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro states in southeastern Brazil.-See also:* ] map]* Rand McNally, The New International Atlas, 1993....
basin settlement took place, initially, due to the decline of mining activities. In the late 18th and early 19th century, several families left Mariana
Mariana, Minas Gerais
Mariana is the oldest city in the state of Minas Gerais, Brazil. It is a touristic city, founded on July 16, 1696, and retains the characteristics of a baroque city, with its churches, buildings and museums.-Further reading:...
, Ouro Preto
Ouro Preto
-History:Founded at the end of the 17th century, Ouro Preto was originally called Vila Rica, or "rich village," the focal point of the gold rush and Brazil's golden age in the 18th century under Portuguese rule....
, and other mining
Mining
Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, from an ore body, vein or seam. The term also includes the removal of soil. Materials recovered by mining include base metals, precious metals, iron, uranium, coal, diamonds, limestone, oil shale, rock...
centers in search of fertile land where they could undertake activities that would result in a more stable and secure incoming. The regions bathed by the Itajaí River, Chopotó River, Pomba River, among others, were of great interest due to the fact that the land in those areas were of great fertility, and that they were previously inhabited only by natives (Coroados, Coropós and Purí
Purí
300px|thumb|right|The Purí tribe of BrazilPurí tribe lived along the northern coast of South America and in Brazil. They are extinct, but were last found in the lowlands of the Mato Grosso....
s) and adventurers.
The attempts of colonization of Coroados, Coropós, Purís and Botocudo
Botocudo
Botocudo , is the foreign name for a tribe of South American Indians of eastern Brazil, also known as the Aimorés, Aimborés, or Krenak people...
s always ended in bloody battles between the true owners of the land and the white invaders. During the battles, using arrows and axes against firearms, the Indians were gradually slaughtered or made prisoners for slave labor, especially when it comes to young people and women.
Due to the international pressure against the genocide of natives, the King of Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
was convinced to order the Governor Luís Diogo Lobo da Silva to organize an expedition in an attempt to friendly approach the natives. In November 1767, Father Manoel de Jesus Maria was put in charge for the conversion of the natives to Catholicism, laying the groundwork for the entry of the owners of land grants after 1797. Captain Francisco Pires de Farinho, who was familiar with the tracks of forests and the indigenous customs, and was familiar with them, was named special guide with control power.
Father Jesus Maria arrived at Uba River
Uba River
The Uba River is a river of Kazakhstan....
, where the Coroado natives lived. Those natives used a kind of grass, Gynerium sagittatum
Gynerium sagittatum
Gynerium sagittatum, known locally by various common names, is a tall grass that grows up to five meters long. It is a very vigorous species that grows into a considerably dense mass of vegetation. It is harvested as a semi-crop in some localities to be distributed commercially, mainly in Latin...
(in Portuguese, U-Uva), to make the arrows they used. For linguistic evolution U-Uva became Ubá. Between 1797 and 1798, the first land grants located around the river were donated.
In 1805, Captain Antonio Januário Carneiro and his brother-in-law Commander Jose de Faria Alvim Cesario, acquired several land grants previously belonging to the Municipality of São João Batista do Presídio
Visconde do Rio Branco
Visconde do Rio Branco is a Brazilian city in the state of Minas Gerais. As of 2004 its population is estimated to be 34,726.-See also:* List of municipalities in Minas Gerais...
, bringing their families, slaves and livestock. In this period, according to an agreement between the Vatican
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
and the Catholic Monarchs
Catholic Monarchs
The Catholic Monarchs is the collective title used in history for Queen Isabella I of Castile and King Ferdinand II of Aragon. They were both from the House of Trastámara and were second cousins, being both descended from John I of Castile; they were given a papal dispensation to deal with...
, when a settlement in the colonies was founded, a church was to be the first building to be built. While the former owners of land were concerned about their farms, Antonio Januário Carneiro idealized establish a settlement. His first step was to lead a movement to sign the petition requesting the permit for the construction of the church. On November 3, 1815, the request was granted.
To promote this settlement, Captain Januário Carneiro brought all the workers needed to build the church by giving them small pieces of land, housing and food, while they could not have its own supply by cultivating the land. The chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
received the name of St. Januarius, and the village the name of Capela de São Januário de Ubá (Chapel of St. Januarius of Ubá).
Due to the growth of the village, it was elevated to Paróquia de São Januário de Ubá (Parish of St. Januarius of Ubá) on April 7, 1841. The development of the town took place gradually around the parish. Due to the development of the parish and the activities of the inhabitants, especially coffee plantations, the settlement was officially recognized as a village on June 17, 1853, and on July 3, 1857 was incorporated as a municipality
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...
.
The first city council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
was composed by:
- Colonel Francisco de Assis Ataíde
- Pedro de Souza Ozório
- Maximiano José Pereira de Souza
- Joaquim Vieira da Silva Pinto
- Manoel de Oliveira da Silva Brandão
- Diogo da Rocha Bastos
Geography
Ubá is situated in the Zona da Mata mesoregion of Minas Gerais. Most of the city lies in the Paraíba do Sul RiverParaíba do Sul
thumbThe Paraíba do Sul , or simply termed Paraíba, is a river in the south-east of Brazil. It flows 1,137 kilometres west to northeast from its farthest source at the source of the river Paraitinga to the sea near Campos...
basin, with a small part of it lying in the Doce River
Doce River
The Doce River is a river in southeast Brazil, which has an extension of 853 km.It is formed by the junction of the Piranga and the Carmo near the historical city of Ouro Preto, whose sources are located in the foothills of the Mantiqueira and Espinhaço mountain chains at altitudes of about 1,200...
basin. The city is not surrounded by any large river. Ubá River
Uba River
The Uba River is a river of Kazakhstan....
crosses the city from northwest to southeast and is responsible for drainage of most sewers in the city.
The city sits in a valley
Valley
In geology, a valley or dale is a depression with predominant extent in one direction. A very deep river valley may be called a canyon or gorge.The terms U-shaped and V-shaped are descriptive terms of geography to characterize the form of valleys...
and has only 5% of its area flat, the rest being rugged. The altitude ranges from 295 meters to 875 meters.
Climate
Ubá's climate can be classified as Tropical, with yearly average temperature between 18 and 31°C (64 and 88°F). The city is considered the warmest one in the Zona da Mata mesoregion, and the temperatures can reach over 40°C between November and February.Notable current and former residents
- Ary BarrosoAry BarrosoAry Barroso was a Brazilian composer, pianist, soccer commentator, and talent-show host on radio and TV...
, composer and radio man - Antônio OlintoAntônio OlintoAntônio Olinto Marques da Rocha was a Brazilian writer.Among his work are included poetry, novels, literary criticism, political analysis, children's literature and dictionaries....
, writer - Ascânio Lopes, poet
- Evandro SoldatiEvandro SoldatiEvandro Soldati is a Brazilian male model. According to Forbes, he was the 7th most successful male model in the world in 2008. Evandro is of Italian ancestry. Soldati appears in the music video for Lady Gaga's single Alejandro .He started modelling in 2002 when his mother signed him up for a Ford...
, fashion model - Mauro Mendonça, actor
- Nelson NedNelson NedNelson Ned is a famous Brazilian singer from Ubá, Minas Gerais. Nelson built a solid career as a singer and composer of sentimental, suffering songs, rising to popularity in Brazil and Latin America in 1969 and becoming known internationally, especially in Portugal, France and Spain...
, singer - Levindo Ozanam Coelho, politic, lawer and prosecutor
- Raul Soares de Moura, politic, jurist and professor