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La Magdalena Contreras () is a
borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle Ag ...
(''demarcación territorial'') in the
Mexico City Mexico City ( es, link=no, Ciudad de México, ; abbr.: CDMX; Nahuatl: ''Altepetl Mexico'') is the capital and largest city of Mexico, and the most populous city in North America. One of the world's alpha cities, it is located in the Valley o ...
. As of the 2010 census, it has a population of 239,086 inhabitants and is the third-least populous of Mexico City's boroughs. It lies at an elevation of above sea level. It is named after two historically important communities—La Magdalena Atlitic and Colonia Contreras. The northern end of the borough is urbanized. The rest of Magdalena Contreras, with its mountains and ravines, is designated as a conservation zone. However, urban sprawl has put pressure on these conservation areas. In an effort to preserve the area's forests and natural resources, the borough government has started promoting
ecotourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...
. The largest ecotourism park is Los Dinamos where canyons and ravines are cut by streams and freshwater springs that eventually form the Río Magdalena, Mexico City’s only remaining free-flowing river.


History

The borough takes its name from the La Magdalena Atlitic, one of four communities with pre-Hispanic roots, and the Contreras neighborhood, an area noted for its
textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...
s until the 20th century. Human settlements in the area date to between , or the latter Preclassic period. These settlements were mostly located in the Contreras area and were under the control of
Cuicuilco Cuicuilco is an important archaeological site located on the southern shore of Lake Texcoco in the southeastern Valley of Mexico, in what is today the borough of Tlalpan in Mexico City. Some historians believe this settlement goes back to 1400 B ...
. After Cuicuilco was destroyed by an eruption of the
Xitle Xitle ( Nahuatl, "navel") is a monogenetic volcano in the Ajusco range in Cumbres del Ajusco National Park. It is located in the Tlalpan borough in the southwestern part of Mexico City. It is an ash cone volcano with a conical form, round base, ...
volcano, inhabitants fled to higher elevations. The higher elevations were inhabited by the
Otomi The Otomi (; es, Otomí ) are an indigenous people of Mexico inhabiting the central Mexican Plateau (Altiplano) region. The Otomi are an indigenous people of Mexico who inhabit a discontinuous territory in central Mexico. They are linguisticall ...
or the
Chichimeca Chichimeca () is the name that the Nahua peoples of Mexico generically applied to nomadic and semi-nomadic peoples who were established in present-day Bajio region of Mexico. Chichimeca carried the meaning as the Roman term "barbarian" that des ...
who were hunter-gatherers that lived in a stateless society. These peoples existed alongside the
Nahuatlaca The Nahuas () are a group of the indigenous people of Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua. They comprise the largest indigenous group in Mexico and second largest in El Salvador. The Mexica ( Aztecs) were of Nahua ethnici ...
. The
Tepanec The Tepanecs or Tepaneca are a Mesoamerican people who arrived in the Valley of Mexico in the late 12th or early 13th centuries.The dates vary by source, including 1152 CE in Anales de Tlatelolco, 1210 from Chimalpahin, and 1226 from Ixtlilxoch ...
eventually came to dominate the area, making it part of the Coyoacán dominion. With the rise of the
Aztec The Aztecs () were a Mesoamerican culture that flourished in central Mexico in the post-classic period from 1300 to 1521. The Aztec people included different Indigenous peoples of Mexico, ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those g ...
, the Tepanec were conquered and the area was renamed Atlitic—stone that drinks water—after a large rock which rose above a small lake. Four settlements date from the pre-Hispanic period, San Bernabé Ocotepec, San Nicolás Totolapan, La Magdalena Atlitic and San Jeronimo Aculco. After the
Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire The Spanish conquest of the Aztec Empire, also known as the Conquest of Mexico or the Spanish-Aztec War (1519–21), was one of the primary events in the Spanish colonization of the Americas. There are multiple 16th-century narratives of the eve ...
, the Dominicans established a town and church dedicated to
Mary Magdalene Mary Magdalene (sometimes called Mary of Magdala, or simply the Magdalene or the Madeleine) was a woman who, according to the four canonical gospels, traveled with Jesus as one of his followers and was a witness to crucifixion of Jesus, his cru ...
and changed the name of the area to Magdalena (de) Atlitic. The first to take advantage of the waters of the Río Magdalena, Jerónimo de León established the first water-powered saw mill in 1543. In the 17th century the Contreras family established a factory in the location that bears their name. At the end of the 18th century, a group of Spanish industrialists founded a textile factory which caused an increase in the economy and the population of the area. By the end of the 19th century, the river was powering four textile factories named El Águila Mexicana, Tizapán, Santa Teresa, and Loreto. These factories produced wool, cotton and cashmere thread, and cloth of various types and by the end of the century had the use of the Mexico City-
Cuernavaca Cuernavaca (; nci-IPA, Cuauhnāhuac, kʷawˈnaːwak "near the woods", ) is the capital and largest city of the state of Morelos in Mexico. The city is located around a 90-minute drive south of Mexico City using the Federal Highway 95D. The na ...
rail line for shipping. However, from the colonial period through most of the 19th century, the area was mostly populated by farm and textile laborers who lived in poor conditions. The modern borough was a result of several reorganizations of the Federal District of Mexico City at the beginning of the 20th century. Initially the area was governed by a municipality system, but then by presidential decree in 1928 the municipality was abolished and it became one of the boroughs of Mexico City. At the beginning of the 20th century, there was a political power struggle as part of the
Mexican Revolution The Mexican Revolution ( es, Revolución Mexicana) was an extended sequence of armed regional conflicts in Mexico from approximately 1910 to 1920. It has been called "the defining event of modern Mexican history". It resulted in the destruction ...
. The "Club Democrático Antireelectionista Vicente Guerrero" formed in 1911 to fight against the power of local strongmen. The Mexico City-Cuernavaca rail line continued to operate through most of the 20th century with train "501" noted for carrying famous passengers between the two destinations. The line was officially shut down in 1997. The Contreras station was converted into a park. The latter 20th century is marked by population growth, especially in the borough's north end. In 1963, an extension of the
Anillo Periférico The Anillo Periférico (Spanish for ''peripheral ring'') is the outer beltway of Mexico City. The ''Periferico'' was originally planned by architect Carlos Contreras as early as 1925, together with other major roads such as the Viaducto Mig ...
ring road A ring road (also known as circular road, beltline, beltway, circumferential (high)way, loop, bypass or orbital) is a road or a series of connected roads encircling a town, city, or country. The most common purpose of a ring road is to assist i ...
was constructed through the borough. The road brought people and prompted the development of housing projects in the 1970s for the city’s growing population. These developments include Santa Teresa, Pedregal II, Pueblo Nuevo, Potrerillo, El Rosal, El Tanque, and El Toro, heading west from the roadway. In 1900, the area was completely rural, with a population of only 8,150 people mostly located in the town of La Magdalena. The borough's population began growing quickly in the 1940s to over 40,000 in 1960, but by 1990 the population had reached over 195,000. Population growth continues but at a slower pace: 222,000 by 2000 and 229,000 in 2005. There is limited space for housing projects due to the geography of the area but population growth has prompted illegal settlements in conservation areas and in steep ravines where landslides are a danger. File:Cerro del Judío Mazatépetl 17.jpg, Archaeological area of the Cerro del Judío or Mazatépetl in Ejido San Bernabe Ocotepec File:MagdelenaAtliticChurch06.JPG, Magdalena Atlitic Church File:ForoCulturalMC08.JPG, Ruins of the El Águila
textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...
File:FerrocarrilCuernavacaPark13.JPG, Old station of the Mexico City-Cuernavaca line


Geography

Magdalena Contreras is located in the southwest area of the Federal District of Mexico City. It is bordered to the north, south, and east by the boroughs of
Álvaro Obregón Álvaro Obregón Salido (; 17 February 1880 – 17 July 1928) better known as Álvaro Obregón was a Sonoran-born general in the Mexican Revolution. A pragmatic centrist, natural soldier, and able politician, he became the 46th President of Me ...
and
Tlalpan Tlalpan ( nci, Tlālpan, , place on the earth, ) is a borough (''demarcación territorial'') in Mexico City. It is the largest borough, with over eighty percent under conservation as forest and other ecologically sensitive area. The rest, almost ...
with the
State of Mexico The State of Mexico ( es, Estado de México; ), officially just Mexico ( es, México), is one of the 32 federal entities of the United Mexican States. Commonly known as Edomex (from ) to distinguish it from the name of the whole country, it is ...
to the west. It has a territory of accounting for 5.1% of the Federal District. It has an average altitude of above sea level. The borough is divided into forty seven official neighborhoods called colonias. The oldest of these are La Magdalena Contrereas, San Jerónimo Aculco, San Bernabé Ocotepec, and San Nicolás Totolapan. Magdalena Contreras lies in the southwest area of the
Valley of Mexico The Valley of Mexico ( es, Valle de México) is a highlands plateau in central Mexico roughly coterminous with present-day Mexico City and the eastern half of the State of Mexico. Surrounded by mountains and volcanoes, the Valley of Mexico wa ...
along the lower eastern slopes of the
Sierra de las Cruces The Sierra de las Cruces, also popularly called Sierra del Monte de las Cruces, is a mountain range in Mexico, in its south central region, which delimits the valleys of Mexico and Cuautitlán in the Basin of Mexico, with Toluca Valley as well as a ...
which is a volcanic mountain range. The geographic features of the borough stretch from foothills to the lower mountains of the volcanic range. The hills and mountains are separated by ravines and canyons. Major elevations include Cerro Panza (), Nezehuiloya (), Pico Acoconetla (), Cerro Palmitas (), Cerro Palmas (), Piedras Encimadas (), El Aguajito (), Tarumba (), Cerro del Judío (), Cerro Sasacapa (), and Cerro San Miguel () . Principle canyons and ravines which are located in the center of the borough include Tlalpuente, Cainotitas, Atzoma, and Tejocote. The ravines and canyons are carved by streams and run off from freshwater springs. Some of these flow year round and others only during the summer rainy season. The most important springs are Pericos, Mal Paso, Apapxtla, Las Ventanas, Cieneguillas, Los Cuervos, and San Miguel. There are two major flows of water—the Río Magdalena and the Río Eslava. The Río Magdalena is the only free flowing river in the Federal District. It begins on the slopes of the Cerro La Palma in the Cuajimalpa borough. Some of the water is captured at a section of the Los Dinamos park to be treated at a plant but the rest flows down to the floor of the valley. The borough has little in the way of structured drainage for wastewater and rainwater. Much of the wastewater flows openly which has contaminated local streams, the Río Magdalena, and the supply of drinking water. The problem is serious enough in the urbanized area to affect the population’s health.


Climate

There are three main climates found in the borough. The urbanized part is temperate and semi-moist. Conservation areas between above sea level are semi-cold and semi-moist, and those areas above are semi-cold and moist. All areas receive most of their rainfall during the summer rainy season particularly in July. This precipitation can often take the form of hail, with fog common during the summer and in November and December. Snow is rare.


Natural resources

Wildlife and native flora are mostly restricted to the conservation areas of the southern two thirds of the borough. The vegetation of this conservation area is an important source for oxygenation in the Valley of Mexico. Vegetation varies by altitude. Tree species include oaks, holm oaks, and pines. Bushes, brush, and other vegetation is mostly deciduous and includes plants from the legume and cactus families. A number of ravines and some of the higher altitudes have species adapted to wetter climes including
Alnus jorullensis ''Alnus jorullensis'', commonly known as Mexican alder, is an evergreen or semi-evergreen alder, native to eastern and southern Mexico, Guatemala and Honduras. Although previously reported from the Andes, further collections showed these to be th ...
, Salix bonpladiana,
Fraxinus uhdei ''Fraxinus uhdei'', commonly known as tropical ash or Shamel ash, is a species of tree native to Mexico and Central America. It is commonly planted as a street tree in Mexico and the southwestern United States. It has also been planted and sprea ...
, Buddlei cordata, Pronus capuli, and
Taxodium mucronatum ''Taxodium mucronatum'', commonly known as Montezuma bald cypress, Montezuma cypress, or ahuehuete, is a species of ''Taxodium'' that is primarily native to Mexico and Guatemala, with a few populations in the southwestern United States. Ahuehuet ...
. In the pre-Hispanic period, fauna was highly varied; however, many species, such as wildcats, wolves, coyotes, anteaters and many others, are no longer found due to human settlement and habitat loss. Smaller mammals such as rabbits and squirrels still remain, especially in the higher elevations. Various types of birds such as hummingbirds, carpenter birds, and more, along with various lizards, snakes, and amphibians remain. The borough has important ecological and tourist centers but these are facing degradation from
urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...
. The area is 73% under conservation with 18% in urban space. An estimated 3.5% of the conservation area has illegal settlements. The illegal settlements are problematic for the borough with most environmental damage occurring in or near them. For environmental and safety reasons, a significant problem is the
illegal construction Illegal construction (also known as illegal building or illegal housing) is construction work (or the result of such) without a valid construction permit. Besides the potential technical hazards on uncontrolled construction sites and in finished ...
of residences on the steep slopes of ravines. These illegal settlements also generate a large number of dumps of solid and liquid waste into ravines which pollute the water supply. The borough states that there are 106 areas of construction, about 1,000 residences, at high risk of landslides during the rainy season. Efforts to combat these problems include relocating those residing in illegal settlements and developing ecotourism and other programs for those that own rural areas of the borough.


Communities

The four oldest communities in the borough are La Magdalena Atlitic, San Nicolás Totolapan, San Jerónimo Aculco, and San Barnabé Ocotepec, all of pre-Hispanic origin. The modern community of La Magdalena Atlitic is centered on a church which was founded in the 16th century as a hermitage. The current structure dates to 1760. In 1932, it was named a national monument. The church has a
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
facade with raised patterns, fronted by a stone paved atrium which has a fountain with an image of the
Archangel Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...
. The main portal is flanked by
Doric Doric may refer to: * Doric, of or relating to the Dorians of ancient Greece ** Doric Greek, the dialects of the Dorians * Doric order, a style of ancient Greek architecture * Doric mode, a synonym of Dorian mode * Doric dialect (Scotland) * Doric ...
pilaster In classical architecture Classical architecture usually denotes architecture which is more or less consciously derived from the principles of Greek and Roman architecture of classical antiquity, or sometimes even more specifically, from the ...
s holding up an arch and a
cornice In architecture, a cornice (from the Italian ''cornice'' meaning "ledge") is generally any horizontal decorative moulding that crowns a building or furniture element—for example, the cornice over a door or window, around the top edge of a ...
to the choir window. Inside, at the base of the arches over the main altar, there are feather designs unique to Mexico. The town of San Nicolás Totolapan is centered on the Plaza Cívica Benito Juárez. Its church was founded in 1535 over a former pre-Hispanic ceremonial center. It has as simple facade and a Baroque bell tower surrounded by gardens that contains a stone with inscriptions. San Jerónimo Aculco has a plaza called Plaza Cívica Lidice, named after a Czech town that attacked the Nazis in 1942. It contains Rosedal de Paz (Rose Garden of Peace) and mural called ''Campos de Luz y Muerte'' (Fields of Light and Death) by Ariosto Otero. The town of San Jerónimo Aculco dates back to the
Toltec The Toltec culture () was a Pre-Columbian era, pre-Columbian Mesoamerican culture that ruled a state centered in Tula (Mesoamerican site), Tula, Hidalgo (state), Hidalgo, Mexico, during the Epiclassic and the early Post-Classic period of Mesoam ...
period. Its church was built in the 16th century by the Franciscans and maintains its open chapel and original baptismal font. Its facade is Baroque with sculpted sandstone. Its atrium dates to the 18th century. The San Baranbé Ocotepec church was built in the 16th century as part of evangelization efforts and dedicated to Barnabas. Its main altar is Baroque and there are archeological remains in its atrium. History and population growth have led to other communities being established in the area. In the colonial period up until the 19th century, the main industry was textiles. Textile factories were built in the area now known as Colonia Contreras. The grounds of the former El Águila
textile mill Textile Manufacturing or Textile Engineering is a major industry. It is largely based on the conversion of fibre into yarn, then yarn into fabric. These are then dyed or printed, fabricated into cloth which is then converted into useful goods ...
are now the Foro Cultural (Cultural Forum), inaugurated in 1979. Remains of the mill's installations, such as its smokestack, still remain, but it is now a wooded area with an auditorium, gallery, offices, workshops and libraries. Near the Foro is the Purísima Concepción Church. It was founded in the 16th century, but the current structure was built in the 17th by the Contreras family, owners of the El Águila mill. It offered mass to textile workers. The area's former rail station, Estación Ferrocarril de Cuernavaca, is now a park. It contains a large mural by Ariosto Otero called ''El viaje del siglo veinte'' (Voyage of the 20th Century) that features the "501" train. This train carried famous passengers such as
Diego Rivera Diego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez, known as Diego Rivera (; December 8, 1886 – November 24, 1957), was a prominent Mexican painter. His large frescoes helped establish the ...
,
Tin Tan Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, ...
, and
Lilia Prado Lilia (Latin plural, meaning "lilies" in English; singular, ''lilium'') are pit traps arranged in a quincunx pattern dug by the Roman armies in front of their defences. Frequently they had sharpened stakes set inside them as an extra obstacle to a ...
. Although named for the Magdalena and Contreras areas, the borough’s main institutions are in Colonial Barranca Seca. These include the civic plaza, the municipal building, and the Centro Cultural La Magdalena Contreras, which is in a former 1940s movie theater . Other notable, modern communities include the Unidad Habitacional de Servicios Sociales, which was established in 1960, Ampliación Lomas de San Bernabé, El Tanque, and La Malinche.


Economy

The borough is mostly residential in the northern third and mostly rural, agricultural, and conservation area in the south. The major population centers are found in the lower elevations of the central section of the borough. For both environmental and economic reasons, ecotourism is an important aspect of the borough economy. The borough government has promoted this development over the past twenty years by encouraging major landholders to develop ecotourism parks and other measures. It established a tourism corridor mostly focused on the older communities and natural areas. Magdalena Atlitic was declared a Barrio Magico with a "tourism market" located just outside the entrance to Los Dinamos. Established in 2010 to encourage the area's reputation for ecology, the Feria de la Trucha y la Quesadilla (Trout and
Quesadilla A quesadilla (; ; Mexican diminutive of ''quesada'') is a Mexican dish consisting of a tortilla that is filled primarily with cheese, and sometimes meats, spices, and other fillings, and then cooked on a griddle or stove. Traditionally, a co ...
Fair) occurs each year in this borough. The borough has several major ecotourism areas. The largest of these is Los Dinamos Park which is part of the Bosques de la Cañada de Contreras conservation area. It has an area of that encompass a series of canyons formed by streams that eventually empty into Río Magdalena. The longest of these canyons is . The park has over of hiking paths which connect with those of San Nicolás Totolapan.The park also contains the remains of several former textile factories which used the rivers for power. The
ejido An ''ejido'' (, from Latin ''exitum'') is an area of communal land used for agriculture in which community members have usufruct rights rather than ownership rights to land, which in Mexico is held by the Mexican state. People awarded ejidos in ...
of San Nicolás Totolapan has two main ecotourism areas, one called ''Parque Ecoturístico'' and the other called ''Valle de Monte Alegre'' with a total area of . The ejido is located in the south of the borough, on the northwest slope of the Ajusco Volcano. The San Bernabé Ocotepec Ecotourism Park is located on the Cajetes and Meyuca mountains next to the community of the same name. It is of pine and oyamel fir forest and was established in 1998 to block the advance of urban sprawl. The Mazatepetl Eco-archeological Park is located on the San Bernabé Ocotepec ejido on a large hill called Cerro del Judío. It contains a restored pyramid originally constructed by the Otomi between 1200 CE and 1380 CE. Mazatepetl is one of oldest stone constructions in the Valley of Mexico.


Culture

Some of Magdalena Contrera's rural character is still preserved in the observances of religious festivals. The Day of the Cross (May 3) is a popular festival in the borough, especially in the La Cruz neighborhood and the Cerro de Judío. During
Holy Week Holy Week ( la, Hebdomada Sancta or , ; grc, Ἁγία καὶ Μεγάλη Ἑβδομάς, translit=Hagia kai Megale Hebdomas, lit=Holy and Great Week) is the most sacred week in the liturgical year in Christianity. In Eastern Churches, w ...
, the custom of erecting altars in honor of the Virgin of Sorrows is still observed. There is a traditional passion play depicting the passion and crucifixion of Christ during the week, with the main event on
Good Friday Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Hol ...
at the Cerro de Judío. In addition, it is traditional to spend
Holy Saturday Holy Saturday ( la, Sabbatum Sanctum), also known as Great and Holy Saturday (also Holy and Great Saturday), the Great Sabbath, Hallelujah Saturday (in Portugal and Brazil), Saturday of the Glory, Sabado de Gloria, and Black Saturday or Easter ...
at Los Dinamos. Holy Week events have drawn up to 80,000 people at Los Dinamos. In addition, the area has a major annual pilgrimage to Chalma during this week. Another major traditional observance is
Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...
. This holiday has drawn up to 90,000 people to the borough, mostly to the cemeteries of San Bernabé, San Jerónimo and San Francisco.


Education

Public high schools of the '' Instituto de Educación Media Superior del Distrito Federal'' (IEMS) include: * Escuela Preparatoria Magdalena Contreras "Ignacio Manuel Altamirano" Private schools: *
Colegio Williams Colegio Williams ("Williams College") is a private school system in Mexico City, serving preschool through high school (senior high school). It has three campuses: Campus Mixcoac in Mixcoac, Benito Juárez; Campus San Jerónimo in San Jerónimo Lí ...
Campus San Jerónimo * Green Hills School South Campus *
Vermont School Vermont School ( es, Colegio Vermont, S.C.) is a private school in Mexico City. It has two campuses: Plantel Pedregal in Jardines del Pedregal, Álvaro Obregón, which has preschool and primary school; and Plantel San Jerónimo, in San Jerónimo, M ...
Plantel San Jerónimo''Catalogo de Instituciones Con Estudios Incorporados a la Unam 2005-2006''. Autonomous University of Mexico. p
202


References


External links

*
Alcaldía de Magdalena Contreras website
{{coord, 19, 20, 00, N, 99, 12, 50, W, scale:100000_source:INEGI, display=title Boroughs of Mexico City