Limeira is a city in the eastern part of the

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

ian

state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for ' Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the Ga ...

. The population is 308,482 (2020 est.) in an area of 581 km². The elevation is 588 m. It is 154 km from

, the state capital, and 1011 km from Brasilia, Brazil's capital. The city can be easily reached from São Paulo by two highways:

Rodovia Anhanguera The Rodovia Anhanguera (official designation SP-330) (In English: Anhanguera Highway) is a highway in the state of São Paulo, Brazil. It is one of the country's busiest transportation corridors. A 2005 survey conducted amongst Brazilian truck d ...

and Rodovia dos Bandeirantes. Once an important and strategical pole of the

coffee culture Coffee culture is the set of traditions and social behaviors that surround the consumption of coffee, particularly as a social lubricant. The term also refers to the cultural diffusion and adoption of coffee as a widely consumed stimulant. In the ...

, Limeira was also known as the "Brazilian

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

capital" due to the great

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

production that occurred in the past, although now the main crop cultivated in the city is the

sugar cane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) tall, perennial grass (in the genus '' Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fibrous stalk ...

. Afterwards, it became recognized by its new plated

jewelry Jewellery ( UK) or jewelry ( U.S.) consists of decorative items worn for personal adornment, such as brooches, rings, necklaces, earrings, pendants, bracelets, and cufflinks. Jewellery may be attached to the body or the clothes. From a w ...

and semi-jewelry industry which attract customers from all over the world, giving the city the title of "Brazil's plated jewellery capital". There are more than 450 companies that are responsible for half of Brazil's exports in this sector. There is a famous farm located in Limeira, Fazenda Ibicaba, that belonged to

Nicolau Pereira de Campos Vergueiro Nicolau Pereira de Campos Vergueiro, better known as Senator Vergueiro ( pt, Senador Vergueiro) (20 December 1778 – 17 September 1859), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian coffee farmer and politician. He was a pioneer in the implementation of free ...

, who brought the first immigrants from

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

, especially from Germany,

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

, Switzerland and Belgium, to replace the enslaved African-Brazilian workers, which was basically a government effort to "bleach" the race, as it was feared Brazil would become a "black country". Limeira is thus said to have accomplished the first positive experience with immigrant workers in Brazil. Probably because Northern Europeans preferred to run their own farms rather than to subject themselves to indentured work and the Portuguese tended to work in commerce,

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

immigrants were brought to work the fields. Such immigrant groups were greater in numbers than all the others all over São Paulo state. Northern Europeans and the first Italians to arrive in the country often came with the promise of being granted lands in exchange for their work, but the last ones were treated socially only better than the slaves themselves. The latter, nonetheless, had nowhere to go for jobs as slavery ended and many begged to be rehired for food. The situation of some of them improved when the British installed the railway in the country and gave them prestigious jobs with housing. Today, Limeira is located in a prosperous region in São Paulo State.

History

The history of Limeira begins with the economic exploitation in the state of

, more precisely in mid-1826, which marks the founding of the region of Limeira. But also includes a period before this year involving a legend which tries to explain the origin of the current name of the city.

Legendary origin

The origin of the name involves a popular myth enshrined in its population. Tradition says that the pioneers used to rest in a guesthouse-situated 150 km from

, around the river Tatuibi, which the name in Tupi-Guarani means small armadillo. This landing was called Blue Hill Ranch (''Rancho Morro Azul'') since it was near an elevation that in the distance is seen in shades of blue. It is said that in 1781 a caravan was headed to the wilds of

Araraquara Araraquara ( or ) is a city in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population is 250.314 (2022 est.) in an area of . It is also known as "the abode of the sun," because of its impressive sunset and because of its hot atmosphere, especially in su ...

and while passing through Limeira, camped near the stream of the Bladder – Córrego do Bexiga (where today is the Market Model). In this caravan there was a Franciscan, Fr. João das Mercês, which carried a ''picuá de limas'' (a kind of lime orange), which claimed to cure and prevent fevers. But at night he began to feel ill, blaming the ''limas'' which he said had been poisoned. Eventually he died during the night and the next day he would have been buried there, along with his Picuá de Lima's that no one wanted to eat because could be poisoned, as he said. Then there would have sprung a lime tree, born from the limes of the Fr. João das Mercês. Years later, the Blue Hill Ranch (''Rancho do Morro Azul'') would be called the Ranch of the Lime Orange Tree (''Rancho de Limeira'').

Historical facts

Limeira came in cleared land near the path known as the Picadão de Cuiabá, road flow of troops who were trading and sourcing supplies to the mines of Mato Grosso. From the observation of standard trees (indicating the fertility of the land) that existed along the road in still virgin lands, planters and noble farmers that were living in ‘Cidade da Constituição’ (town of the Constitution, today Piracicaba), Itu, Porto Feliz and Atibaia, know where the best lands were and managed to gain allotments from the provincial government. This occurred from 1799 to 1820 in the region. The beginning of the village took place then with the installation of mills, the coming of slaveholders and slaves and also with the expulsion of squatters who had in the area. It is possible to observe that, by the census of 1822, in the Town of New Constitution (

Piracicaba Piracicaba ( or ) is a city located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. The population is 407,252 (2020) in an area of 1378.07 km². It is at an elevation of 547 m above sea level. Name The place name comes from a word in the Tupi langua ...

), the region of Morro Azul and Tatuibi (both Limeira) had a population of 951 free people and 546 slaves. The roads that link these properties to the capital were precarious making

to lead a group of farmers like Manuel Bento de Barros, José Ferraz de Campos and others to ask the provincial government to construct a road that facilitates the flow of production of the mills in the region of Piracicaba and Limeira. This road was opened in 1826, while around it came a housing project, the Freguesia de Nossa Senhora das Dores do Tatuibi (Parish of Our Lady of Sorrows of Tatuibi), formalized by provincial law on December 9, 1930. The traffic of the road facilitated the growth of trade and other activities and marks the founding of the municipality of Limeira. The core was built on land donated by Captain Luis Manuel Bastos da Cunha, he is considered the founder of the city. In 1842 the region was elevated to village, but only in 1844 the city council land was installed and Limeira gained its first president, Manuel José de Carvalho. Limeira was elevated to city on April 18, 1863. On April 20, 1875 it was created the county of Limeira. Officially, the city's anniversary is September 15 and it is considered to be founded in 1826.

Origin of the private-sponsored European immigration

Limeira is one of the first cities in Brazil to receive private-sponsored European immigration. Through the pioneering effort undertaken by the then owner of the Mill Ibicaba in 1840, Nicolau Pereira de Campos Vergueiro (known as Senator Vergueiro), eighty Portuguese came to work on its lands. This was the first positive experience in developing the partnership system in Brazil. The immigrants would replace the slave labor, still in use at this time, but they would receive benefits, unlike the slaves. In 1846, Germans came to work in Ibicaba and Senator Vergueiro became an important figure in replacement of slave labor with free European labor. The farm Ibicaba was during a period the largest producer of coffee in Brazil. Today it is an important historical ensemble formed by its headquarters, slave quarters, terraces, dams and other facilities as part of the set of the city's historic farms.

Climate

Limeira experiences a humid subtropical climate (

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...

Cwa), with distinctive wet and dry seasons lasting from October to March and from April to September, respectively, and warm to hot temperatures year-round. The average temperature is 19.8 °C (67.6 °F) and yearly precipitation stands at 1300.5 mm (51.2 in). On 17 October 2014, temperatures in the city reached a record high of 38.6 °C (101.4 °F) and its coldest day was 9 July 2011, with a low of 0.1 °C (32.1 °F).

Economy

Industry

By the year of 1850, agricultural equipment started to be produced in Limeira and during the

Paraguayan War The Paraguayan War, also known as the War of the Triple Alliance, was a South American war that lasted from 1864 to 1870. It was fought between Paraguay and the Triple Alliance of Argentina, the Empire of Brazil, and Uruguay. It was the deadlies ...

instruments to the soldiers were also produced. Between the years of 1907 and 1922 important industries, such as ' Chapéus Prada' (1907), ' Café Kühl' (1920) and 'Indústria de Papel Santa Cruz' (1922) started their production in Limeira. However, it was after the 1940s that Limeira became well known for its industry. Prada

Between the 1940s and 1970s many citrus companies started producing orange and orange juice in Limeira to export to inside and outside of

, including to USA and Europe, this commerce gave to the city the title of 'The City of Orange'. Citrobrasil (1940) and Citrosuco (1966) were the biggest companies in Limeira in orange production, however when the United States started its policy to protect and encourage the nacional industry of orange in California, the production of orange in Limeira collapsed. Also after the Second World War the automotive industries took place in the city with 'Freios Varga' (today TRW) in 1945 and 'Rodas Fumagalli' in 1946. After the 1970s, the industrial section area started to grow faster and some multinational companies came to Limeira, such as:

Ajinomoto is a Japanese multinational food and biotechnology corporation which produces seasonings, interlayer insulating materials for semiconductor packages for use in personal computers, cooking oils, frozen foods, beverages, sweeteners, amino acids, ...

; the American company Rockwell bought Fumagalli in 1974, and 'Freios Varga' joined the English Group Lucas in 2000. Recently, some Japanese and Korean automotive companies have settled in Limeira, for example: Yacchyio do Brasil, Stanley, Mando, DAS and

Faurecia Faurecia SE is a French global automotive supplier headquartered in Nanterre, in the western suburbs of Paris. In 2018 it was the 9th largest international automotive parts manufacturer in the world and #1 for vehicle interiors and emission contr ...

, which is a French company that has been building a new plant in the city. Recently,

Samsung The Samsung Group (or simply Samsung) ( ko, 삼성 ) is a South Korean multinational manufacturing conglomerate headquartered in Samsung Town, Seoul, South Korea. It comprises numerous affiliated businesses, most of them united under the ...

invested U$300 million in building an industry in Limeira. Limeira is also known for its new plated jewelry and semi-jewelry industry which attract customers from all over the world, giving the city the title of "Brazil's plated jewelry capital." There are more than 450 companies that are responsible for half of Brazil's exportation in this sector. The city has been trying to become more attractive to industries related to incentive programs. This policy tries to reduce the unemployment and the informal jobs, which has been growing together with its population. Part of the population works in cities nearby, including

and

Americana Americana may refer to: *Americana (music), a genre or style of American music *Americana (culture), artifacts of the culture of the United States Film, radio and television * ''Americana'' (1992 TV series), a documentary series presented by J ...

. According to

IBGE The Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics ( pt, Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística; IBGE) is the agency responsible for official collection of statistical, geographic, cartographic, geodetic and environmental information ...

(Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics), Limeira has a GDP of R$5.6 billion (2010), around U$3.6 billion. The industrial sector accounts for approximately 50% of registered jobs in the city. Thus, Limeira took its industrial vocation with its incentive program, which guided the development and implementation of its current industrial park. The city has a number of favorable conditions for their development, such as the extension of Highway Bandeirantes ( Rodovia dos Bandeirantes), the implementation of the Tietê-Paraná waterway, and the installation of the Brazil-Bolivia gas pipeline. All these factors, combined with their potential and possibilities, specified multiple paths for the development of the industrial sector of the city: * Limeira is inserted in the

Campinas Campinas (, ''Plains'' or ''Meadows'') is a Brazilian municipality in São Paulo State, part of the country's Southeast Region. According to the 2020 estimate, the city's population is 1,213,792, making it the fourteenth most populous Brazilian ...

region, an area marked by a strong industrial concentration and has a GDP that is larger than many states in the country, such as

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is a state in Southeastern Brazil. It ranks as the second most populous, the third by gross domestic product (GDP), and the fourth largest by area in the country. The state's capital and largest city, Belo Horizonte (literally ...

and Rio Grande do Sul, for example. * In the formal economy has approximately 1,000 industries, employing more than 22,000 registered employees, with a significant share of skilled labor. The size of the business is diversified, with a production quite varied, including brake systems, automotive wheels, exhausts, metal products, machinery for processing of agricultural products, paper and cardboard packaging, hats, and more. Limeira also has the largest concentration of production of machine tools in

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...

and the largest sugar refining industry in

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the sout ...

. However, the main segment that has been standing out in the city after the 1990s is to jewelry and lapidary stones, consisting mainly of micro and small businesses with family investment. Currently, the largest industries in operation are: *

Interamericana Ind. Com. Ltda. - Food * CPkelco, Huber Co. - Chemical, food, Citrus * ZF/TRW - Brakes - Truck and Car steering systems * Invicta - Machine tools for wood * Mastra Indústria e Comércio - Automotive Exhaust System * Metal Leve S.A. (Corporation) - Pistons for Engines * Arvin Meritor, Divisão LVS (antiga Rockwell Fumagalli) - Wheels * Newton Indústria e Comércio - Presses and Guillotines * Papirus Indústria de Papel S.A. (Corporation) - Paper * Ripasa S.A. Celulose Papel - Cellulose, Paper *

- Electronics * Bebidas Poty - Beverages and Soft Drinks The main industries in the business of jewelry in the city are: * Galle Indústria e Comércio de bijuterias - semi jewelry * Irmãos Gullo - jewelry and semi jewelry * Jóias Degan - jewelry and semi jewelry

Commerce and service sector

The commercial sector has more than 4,000 stores and 3,000 services business. The implementation of the Shopping Center, in the 1980s, along the

(Anhanguera Road), came to further boost the development of the tertiary sector in the city. Allied to this and following the world trend of globalization and outsourcing observed the emergence of many companies included in the modernization process, which now act as support for the industries of the city. After the 1990s, the mall closed, but there is still a shopping mall located in downtown (Shopping Patio Limeira). In the area of public services, Limeira presents itself as home to several organizations and government agencies in regional performance as the Caixa Economica Federal, Delegacia da Receita Federal,

, CETESB, Delegacia de Ensino do Estado, Inspetoria Fiscal da Secretaria da Fazenda do Estado, Comando da Polícia Militar and Secretary of Agriculture of the State of São Paulo; there is also private institutions, such as CIESP,

SENAI :For the Malaysian town with the same name, see Senai.'' Serviço Nacional de Aprendizagem Industrial (SENAI), Portuguese language for ''National Service for Industrial Training'' is a network of profitable secondary level professional schools e ...

, SESI, SENAC e JUCESP. The main concern is the competition around the city. There is a big competition from neighbor cities because of diversity, variety and comfort. Sometimes, people prefer to travel to

for consumption. Number of companies in Limeira by sector (

2001): * Agriculture and forestry - 37 companies * Fishery - 1 company * Extractive Industries - 10 companies * Manufacturing Industry - 1266 companies * Production and Distribution of electricity, Gas and Water - 3 companies * Construction - 170 companies * Trade, repair of motor vehicles, personal effects and household - 4,088 companies * Accommodation and Food - 605 companies * Transport, Storage and Communications - 238 companies * Financial Intermediation - 73 companies * Real Estate activities, Rentals and Business Services - 779 companies * Public Administration, Defense and Social Security - 6 companies * Education - 106 companies * Health and Social Services - 114 companies * Other Collective, Social and Personal - 405 companies

Agriculture

Currently, Limeira has more than 2,000 farms. Rural production remains strongly marked by the

(

Ethanol Ethanol (abbr. EtOH; also called ethyl alcohol, grain alcohol, drinking alcohol, or simply alcohol) is an organic compound. It is an alcohol with the chemical formula . Its formula can be also written as or (an ethyl group linked to a ...

production) and orange/citrus, which has remained virtually unchanged over the past two decades, with a slight decline. The sugar cane production reaches more than 1 million tons per year and

(orange, lemon and tangerine), more than 1.4 billion units. On a smaller scale for production there are avocados, corn, rice and beans. The city is considered the first producer of

citrus industry, and it is recognized by its production of seedlings, especially citrus. During the last three decades, Limeira gained a large center of commerce of plants and seedlings on Geada, located on Limeira-Piracicaba Road, approximately km 120. The biggest companies are Félix Plantas, Bonin Plantas, Dierberger and Chácara Roseira,

Local media

There are two daily newspapers in the city: " A Gazeta de Limeira", created in 1831, and "O Jornal de Limeira", created in 1982. But many newspapers are weekly, such as "Folha de Limeira", "Folha Cidade Interior", "Folha Cidade Gospel" and "Cidade Mais". Furthermore, there is a monthly circulation magazine called " Expressão Regional" and a bimonthly circulation magazine, the "Revista Estereosom." The TV channels that are well known to provide local programming are "TV Jornal", channel 39, and "TV Mix".

Health

Limeira has five main hospitals. Two of them are charitable and receive public financial and management assistance: *

Santa Casa de Misericórdia Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a legendary figure originating in Western Christian culture who is said to bring children gifts during the late evening and overnight ...

* Sociedade Operária Humanitária The other three are private: * Hospital Unimed * Hospital Medical * Hospital Dia (formerly "Hospital Filantrópico Beneficência Limeirense", which was closed and taken over by the

). The Brazilian public health system – SUS – operates within the

, which is one of the largest public hospitals in the countryside of

São Paulo State SAO or Sao may refer to: Places * Sao civilisation, in Middle Africa from 6th century BC to 16th century AD * Sao, a town in Boussé Department, Burkina Faso * Saco Transportation Center (station code SAO), a train station in Saco, Maine, U.S. ...

, serving currently patients in 92 cities in São Paulo and southern

. Limeira currently achieved a higher HDI and it has its medical sector very developed compared to the others along the country, and also by comparing to the hospitals over Latin America. There are also visits by the SUS to the neighborhoods if they are needed, several Basic Health Units (Unidades Básicas de Saúde) spread throughout the city can provide health care to any citizen in their own house if they want. Limeira also has public dentist assistance provided by the " Unidade Básica de Saúde", UBS, mainly with private characteristics,website that gives information about the schedule
and a special public health center specialized in children.

Sport

A.A. Internacional is a traditional football club based in Limeira, along with Independente F.C. The city's biggest stadium is the Major José Levy Sobrinho stadium, built in 1977. The city's basketball team is

Associação Limeirense de Basquete Associação Limeirense de Basquete, also commonly known as Basquete Limeira, and known as Winner/Kabum Limeira for sponsorship reasons, is a Brazilian professional basketball team that is based in Limeira, São Paulo, Brazil. History Winner Lime ...

, which plays in the

Novo Basquete Brasil Novo Basquete Brasil (NBB) (English language, English: New Basketball Brazil) is the Brazilian premier professional men's basketball league. It is organized by the Liga Nacional de Basquete (LNB) (National Basketball League), in a new format of B ...

and the

Liga Sudamericana Liga or LIGA may refer to: People * Līga (name), a Latvian female given name * Luciano Ligabue, more commonly known as Ligabue or ''Liga'', Italian rock singer-songwriter Sports * Liga ACB, men's professional basketball league in Spain * Liga ...

. Its home arena is the ''Ginásio "Vô" Lucato''.

Twin towns – sister cities

* Saga

References

Bibliography

* *

Notes

External links

Cityhall official website

State of São Paulo official website
{{Authority control Populated places established in 1863