Hershey (officially known as Camilo Cienfuegos) is a

Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and several minor archipelagos. Cuba is located where the northern Caribbea ...

n village and ''consejo popular'' ("popular council", i.e. hamlet) of the municipality of

Santa Cruz del Norte Santa Cruz del Norte is a town and municipality in the Mayabeque Province of Cuba. Before 2011 it was part of La Habana Province. It is located on the north shore, between the cities of Havana and Matanzas, at the mouth of the Santa Cruz River. ...

, in

Mayabeque Province Mayabeque Province is one of two new provinces created from the former La Habana Province, whose creation was approved by the Cuban National Assembly on August 1, 2010, the other being Artemisa Province. The new provinces came in to existence on J ...

History

Milton Hershey Milton Snavely Hershey (September 13, 1857 – October 13, 1945) was an American chocolatier, businessman, and philanthropist. Trained in the confectionery business, Hershey pioneered the manufacture of caramel, using fresh milk. He launched t ...

, the famous American chocolatier and businessman, visited Cuba in 1916. Hershey decided to buy sugar plantations and mills in Cuba to supply the growing Pennsylvania-based

Hershey Company The Hershey Company, commonly known as Hershey's, is an American multinational company and one of the largest chocolate manufacturers in the world. It also manufactures baked products, such as cookies and cakes, and sells beverages like milksh ...

. He built an adjoining town for the workers and their families to live, which he named Hershey. The village grew to 160 homes and had high standards of living a public school, medical clinic, stores, a movie theater and a golf course. There was also a baseball stadium where a team sponsored by The Hershey Company played home games. The factory was one of the most productive sugar refineries in Cuba and Latin America. The Hershey Company sold their holdings in Cuba in 1948. Hershey was renamed after the

Cuban Revolution The Cuban Revolution ( es, Revolución Cubana) was carried out after the 1952 Cuban coup d'état which placed Fulgencio Batista as head of state and the failed mass strike in opposition that followed. After failing to contest Batista in co ...

in honor of Camilo Cienfuegos. The sugar refinery was nationalized, wages were lower and the baseball stadium was demolished. The mill was closed in 2002 under the pretense that the factory had become inefficient. Residents still refer to the town as Hershey (pronounced as AIR-see) and Hershey signs still hang at the town’s train station.

Geography

Hershey, located between the cities of

Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.

and Matanzas, is 3 km from Santa Cruz del Norte and the Atlantic coast. Other nearby villages are La Sierra,

Jibacoa Jibacoa, or more properly Playa Jibacoa, is a fishing village A fishing village is a village, usually located near a fishing ground, with an economy based on catching fish and harvesting seafood. The continents and islands around the world h ...

, San Antonio del Río Blanco and Loma de Travieso. The village has a station on the main line of the

Hershey Electric Railway The Hershey Electric Railway, also known as the Hershey Railway, is a standard-gauge electric interurban railway that runs from Casablanca, Havana, to the city of Matanzas, approximately to the east. There are a number of intermediate halts and ...

, with a branch to

Jaruco Jaruco is a municipality and town in the Mayabeque Province of Cuba. Geography The town is located in the east of Havana, between San José de las Lajas and Santa Cruz del Norte. The municipality borders with Habana del Este (municipal borough of ...

, and is 5 km from the " Vía Blanca" highway, that connects Havana to Varadero.

References

External links

{{commonscat-inline, Camilo Cienfuegos (Santa Cruz del Norte), Camilo Cienfuegos (Hershey) Populated places in Mayabeque Province Populated places established in 1916 Central Camilo Cienfuegos

History

Geography

See also

References

External links