Patagonian sheep farming boom
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In late 19th and early 20th centuries,
sheep farming Sheep farming or sheep husbandry is the raising and breeding of domestic sheep. It is a branch of animal husbandry. Sheep are raised principally for their meat (lamb and mutton), milk (sheep's milk), and fiber (wool). They also yield sheepskin an ...
expanded across the
Patagonian grasslands The Patagonian grasslands (NT0804) is an ecoregion in the south of Chile, Argentina and the Falkland Islands. The grasslands are home to diverse fauna, including several rare or endemic species of birds. There are few protected areas. The grasslan ...
making the southern regions of
Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
and
Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...
one of the world's foremost sheep farming areas. The sheep farming boom attracted thousands of immigrants from Chiloé and Europe to southern Patagonia. Early sheep farming in Patagonia was oriented towards
wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...
production but changed over time with the development of industrial refrigerators towards meat export. Besides altering the demographic and economic outlook of Southern Patagonia the sheep farming boom also changed the
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate grasslands, ...
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
. Sheep farming in Patagonia was carried out in an
estancia An estancia is a large, private plot of land used for farming or raising cattle or sheep. Estancias in the southern South American grasslands, the ''pampas'', have historically been estates used to raise livestock, such as cattle or sheep. In Pu ...
system. Each of these estancias was administered from a ''casco central'' (a central complex of buildings) where administrators, foremen and workers lived. Sociedad Explotadora de Magallanes possessed more than 200,000 sheep by 1901.


Development

In 1843 Chile established a colony in
Brunswick Peninsula Brunswick Peninsula () is a large peninsula in Magallanes y la Antártica Region, Patagonia, Chile, at . Geography The Brunswick Peninsula is triangular in shape, joined to the mainland in the north by a wide isthmus. It widens to almost in t ...
to assert sovereignty over the strategic
Strait of Magellan The Strait of Magellan (), also called the Straits of Magellan, is a navigable sea route in southern Chile separating mainland South America to the north and Tierra del Fuego to the south. The strait is considered the most important natural pass ...
. Early sheep herding activity in the Chilean colony was very modest. The first men to realize the potential for large-scale sheep herding in the lands around the Strait of Magellan were a group of British immigrants that settled in
Punta Arenas Punta Arenas (; historically Sandy Point in English) is the capital city of Chile's southernmost region, Magallanes and Antarctica Chilena. The city was officially renamed as Magallanes in 1927, but in 1938 it was changed back to "Punta Aren ...
in the 1870s. The first successful attempt at sheep farming in the Straits of Magellan is credited to the Englishman Henry Reynard ( es, Enrique Reynard) who raised sheep in 1877 on Isabel Island. These sheep were brought to the Straits of Magellan by Chilean governor Diego Dublé Almeyda who travelled specifically for that purpose to the
Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...
in the
corvette A corvette is a small warship. It is traditionally the smallest class of vessel considered to be a proper (or " rated") warship. The warship class above the corvette is that of the frigate, while the class below was historically that of the slo ...
''
Chacabuco Chacabuco is one of the many abandoned nitrate or "saltpeter" towns ("oficinas salitreras" in Spanish) in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. Other nitrate towns of the Atacama Desert include Humberstone and Santa Laura Saltpeter Works. Unlik ...
'' in 1876. In
Port Stanley Stanley (; also known as Port Stanley) is the capital city of the Falkland Islands. It is located on the island of East Falkland, on a north-facing slope in one of the wettest parts of the islands. At the 2016 census, the city had a populat ...
he bought 300 sheep and back in Chile he sold them to Henry Reynard. By 1878 this first sheep-raising experiment was considered a success and it created a huge demand for land among individuals who attempted to establish their own sheep-raising businesses.


Beyond the Strait of Magellan

All the best sheep-herding areas along the Strait had been leased or reserved by 1884. At this point the governor of the Argentine territory of Santa Cruz Carlos María Moyano travelled to the Falkland Islands where he promised cheap rental of land for any farmer that moved in to the scarcely populated territory. A group of five settlers who arrived this way, Henry Jamieson, John Hamilton, William Saunders, Mac Clain and George Mac George set up a plan to quickly set up large sheep farms. These men went in 1888 to Buenos Aires and then to Río Negro where they purchased thousands of sheep, horses and supplies. All sheep, herders, horses and supplies gathered at the Argentine outpost of Fortín Conesa from where they departed south on September 8. The herders followed a route along the coast similar to modern National Route 3 for hundreds of kilometers until reaching their land grants in the territory of Santa Cruz. As movement of livestock of this magnitude was unheard of the region the feat was later baptised as ''El Gran Arreo'' or The Great Herding by writer José Salvador Borerro Rivera. In Chile sheep farming expanded from the Strait of Magellan to the area around
Última Esperanza Sound Última Esperanza Sound ( es, Seno de Última Esperanza, ‘Last Hope Sound’ or 'Inlet of Last Hope') is an inlet stretching from the mouth of Eberhard Fjord to the outskirts of Monte Balmaceda, within the Magallanes Basin. The navigator Juan ...
where in 1893 that the first estancia was established. Attempts to establish a cattle farming business by entrepreneur Daniel Cruz Ramírez around 1899 in
Muñoz Gamero Peninsula Muñoz Gamero Peninsula () is a peninsula in Chile. It is bordered on the west by the Smyth Channel and is connected to the Patagonia mainland by a narrow isthmus, between Skyring Sound to the south and the Obstrucción estuary to the north. The p ...
failed given the humid climate and swampy terrain.


Chilean auctions of 1903–1906

When most of the land leases around the Strait of Magellan expired around 1902 the Chilean government decided to auction the lands. This was possibly due to pressure from commercial interests in
Valparaíso Valparaíso (; ) is a major city, seaport, naval base, and educational centre in the commune of Valparaíso, Chile. "Greater Valparaíso" is the second largest metropolitan area in the country. Valparaíso is located about northwest of Santiago ...
and Santiago that had come to realize how profitable sheep raising in Magallanes was. Chilean and foreign entrepreneurs that had leased the lands sought to be able to purchase the land directly from the state but were unsuccessful in their attempts. The first actions begun on March 20, 1903. Sheep farms around Última Esperanza Sound was initially unaffected by the auctions but on March 15, 1905, these lands too were auctioned. Sociedad Explotadora de Tierra del Fuego became the main landowner in the area establishing its local estancia headquarters in
Cerro Castillo : Cerro Castillo is a jagged rocky peak located in the Aysén del General Carlos Ibáñez del Campo Region of Chile, within the Cerro Castillo National Park. ''Castillo'' means ''castle'' in Spanish, and the steep basalt walls of the mountai ...
. When the auctions finished in September 1906 three companies owned by a total of 18 individuals owned most of the land suitable for sheep farming around the Strait. Many of the early sheep farming pioneers were not able to continue in business as owners, but some did. The concentration of land in a few properties gave land tenure in Magallanes as a
latifundium A ''latifundium'' (Latin: ''latus'', "spacious" and ''fundus'', "farm, estate") is a very extensive parcel of privately owned land. The latifundia of Roman history were great landed estates specializing in agriculture destined for export: grain, ...
structure. This increased concentration of land ownership faced criticism from authors like Lautaro Navarro who in 1908 wrote "...what was appropriate for the Territory was subivision f land into smaller propertiesas means to increase the population and give land access to small capitalists who whished to establish
estancia An estancia is a large, private plot of land used for farming or raising cattle or sheep. Estancias in the southern South American grasslands, the ''pampas'', have historically been estates used to raise livestock, such as cattle or sheep. In Pu ...
s in their own lands". With particular reference to the Última Esperanza area Swedish explorer
Carl Skottsberg Carl Johan Fredrik Skottsberg (1 December 1880 – 14 June 1963) was a Swedish botanist and explorer of Antarctica. Life Skottsberg was born in Karlshamn on 1 December 1880 the son of Carl Adolf Skottsberg a schoolmaster and his wife, Maria L ...
was also critical of the auctions and the resulting changes in land property, in his book ''The Wilds of Patagonia'' (1911) he wrote: "I can hardly believe that the revolution was favourable to Chile's interests, and I daresay that is a rather ugly page in the history of a so-called democratic people. Men who knew Patagonia before and now say that the "star of Ultima Esperanza sank when the all-mighty company became its master.". Interesting article in Berkshire History Society about the Waldron and Payne families of Lambourn and Peasemore House who were some of the early western settlers https://berksfhs.org/sheep-farming-in-patagonia/ They founded "The Patagonian Wool Company".


End of the boom

In the 1910s the economy of Magallanes faced several challenges such as the decline in sea traffic as a result of the opening of
Panama Canal The Panama Canal ( es, Canal de Panamá, link=no) is an artificial waterway in Panama that connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Pacific Ocean and divides North and South America. The canal cuts across the Isthmus of Panama and is a conduit ...
in 1914 and the establishing of customs in Punta Arenas. In 1920, in the aftermath of the
First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, the price of
wool Wool is the textile fibre obtained from sheep and other mammals, especially goats, rabbits, and camelids. The term may also refer to inorganic materials, such as mineral wool and glass wool, that have properties similar to animal wool. As ...
had dropped significantly provoking an economic crisis in sheep-breeding Argentine Patagonia.''Los Sucesos de la Patagonia, La Patagonia rebelde''
By Johana Farjat
The sheep farming economy came to face increased social unrest and addition to competition from New Zealand sheep farmers. After recognising the concentrated land tenure as a cause of social tensions Chilean authorities begun in the 1930s efforts to redistribute land and diversify the economy. Finally, in the 1950s oil began to be extracted from
oil platform An oil platform (or oil rig, offshore platform, oil production platform, and similar terms) is a large structure with facilities to extract and process petroleum and natural gas that lie in rock formations beneath the seabed. Many oil platfor ...
s in the Strait of Magellan effectively ending the dependence on sheep farming for the local economy.


Ecological impact

The sheep farming boom altered not only the demographic and economic outlook of Southern Patagonia, but also changed the
steppe In physical geography, a steppe () is an ecoregion characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes. Steppe biomes may include: * the montane grasslands and shrublands biome * the temperate grasslands, ...
ecosystem An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
. Research suggests that sheep
excrement Feces ( or faeces), known colloquially and in slang as poo and poop, are the solid or semi-solid remains of food that was not digested in the small intestine, and has been broken down by bacteria in the large intestine. Feces contain a relati ...
might have caused
eutrophication Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...
of lagoons like Potrok Aike, and sheep might also have caused considerable
erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is distin ...
. The Strait of Magellan and the Atlantic coast were covered by natural grasslands so no clearing of forests occurred during the introduction of sheep.


See also

* Amazon rubber boom *
Argentine beef Beef is a key component of traditional Argentine cuisine. History Cattle were first brought to Argentina in 1536 by Spanish ''conquistadors''. Due to the geography of the Pampas and a small national market, the cattle multiplied rapidly. Railw ...
*
New Zealand wool boom The New Zealand wool boom of 1951, one of the greatest economic booms in the history of New Zealand, resulted directly from United States policy in the 1950–53 Korean War. In 1950, when the Korean War broke out, the United States of Ameri ...
* Patagonia rebelde


Notes


References

{{reflist History of agriculture in Argentina History of agriculture in Chile Commodity booms History of Patagonia History of Magallanes Region Sheep farming in Argentina Sheep farming in Chile