Aroa is the capital of the municipality of Bolívar in the state of

Yaracuy Yaracuy State ( es, link=no, Estado Yaracuy, ;) is one of the 23 states of Venezuela. It is bordered by Falcón in the north, in the west by Lara, in the south by Portuguesa and Cojedes and in the east by Cojedes and Carabobo. Its geograp ...

, Venezuela. It grew up to serve the Aroa copper mines, now defunct.

Location

Aroa grew up to serve the

Aroa mines The Aroa mines ( es, Minas de Aroa) were copper mines in the state of Yaracuy, Venezuela. Mining started in 1632, and at the end of the colonial period the mines were owned by the Bolívar family. Simón Bolívar leased the mines to an English c ...

, which are east of the village of Aroa in the state of

, about west of Caracas and from

San Felipe, Yaracuy San Felipe (Spanish: ''San Felipe'') () is the capital city of Yaracuy, Venezuela. The city is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of Venezuela. San Felipe is situated in a rich agricultural region of Western Ven ...

. The country is rugged, about above sea level on the northern side of the Andes, which run from east to west,. The climate is warm and humid, and the area is covered in thick forest.

History

Mining began in 1632, following gold veins, which led to discovery of large deposits of copper. Around the end of the 17th century the "Cobre Caracas" mining company became the property of the family of Simón Bolívar (1783–1830). The largest of the mines, La Vizcaina, was worked by 60 to 70 slaves. In 1824 Bolivar leased the mines to British entrepreneurs. The British employed about 1,200 workers in the mines, including British and Venezuelans. They used the Aroa River to carry the ore by barge to the coast, where it was loaded onto ships. A narrow gauge line from Aroa to the port of Tucacas was opened in 1877. The Ferrocarril Bolívar was the first railway in Venezuela. Also in 1877 the road from

Barquisimeto Barquisimeto (; guc, Watkisimeeta) is a city in Venezuela. It is the capital of the state of Lara and head of Iribarren Municipality. It is an important urban, industrial, commercial and transportation center of the country, recognized as the f ...

to Aroa was upgraded so it could be used by wagons and carts. In 1891 the railway was extended from Aroa via Duaca to Barquisimeto. Aroa was the first town in the country to obtain electricity and telephone service. A cableway was built linking the mines to the town. The mines were abandoned in 1936. The Parque Minas de Aroa (Aroa Mines Park) was created on 21 September 1974, containing the old mine workings.

Notes

Sources

* * * * * {{refend Yaracuy