Rincón (; ) is a popular beach

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

founded in 1771 by Don Luis de Añasco, who previously founded Añasco in 1733. It is located in the Western Coastal Valley, west of Añasco and Aguada. Rincón is spread over 9 barrios and Rincón Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area. The municipality is home to many of the

surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

beaches in Puerto Rico, including

Domes A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

, Marias, Tres Palmas, Sandy Beach, Pools Beach, Córcega Beach and Rincón Town Beach. The word "Rincón" means "nook" in

Castilian Spanish In English, Castilian Spanish can mean the variety of Peninsular Spanish spoken in northern and central Spain, the standard form of Spanish, or Spanish from Spain in general. In Spanish, the term (Castilian) can either refer to the Spanish langu ...

. Rincón is in the north, on the westernmost tip of Puerto Rico proper.

History

Rincón was founded in 1771 by Don Luis de Añasco. In 1885, Benito Cumpiano was mayor of Ríncon and in 1890, Victor Cumpiano was Ríncon's mayor. Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the

Spanish–American War The Spanish–American War (April 21 – August 13, 1898) was fought between Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States in 1898. It began with the sinking of the USS Maine (1889), USS ''Maine'' in Havana Harbor in Cuba, and resulted in the ...

under the terms of the

Treaty of Paris of 1898 The Treaty of Peace between the United States of America and the Kingdom of Spain, commonly known as the Treaty of Paris of 1898, was signed by Restoration (Spain), Spain and the United States on December 10, 1898, and marked the end of the ...

and became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the

United States Department of War The United States Department of War, also called the War Department (and occasionally War Office in the early years), was the United States Cabinet department originally responsible for the operation and maintenance of the United States Army, als ...

conducted a

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Rincón was 6,641. On September 20, 2017

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

struck the island of Puerto Rico. In Rincón, infrastructure was damaged and about 400 homes were damaged or completely destroyed. Intense rainfall and winds triggered numerous landslides. The storm surge bought 4 feet of water into homes on the coast.

Geography

Rincón is located on the western coast of Puerto Rico, on the westernmost tip. Rincon Aerial Panorama

Updated flood zone maps (as of 2019) show that Rincón is extremely vulnerable to

flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

ing, along with Humacao, Toa Baja, Barceloneta, and Corozal. For its high levels of erosion, Rincón is vulnerable in the case of a major

hurricane A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system with a low-pressure area, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Depending on its ...

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Rincón is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, main central square and large Catholic church are located in a downtown barrio referred to as . # Atalaya # Barrero # Calvache # Cruces # Ensenada # Jagüey #

Pueblo Pueblo refers to the settlements of the Pueblo peoples, Native American tribes in the Southwestern United States, currently in New Mexico, Arizona, and Texas. The permanent communities, including some of the oldest continually occupied settlement ...

, (not to be confused with Rincón barrio-pueblo) # Puntas # Rincón barrio-pueblo # Río Grande

Sectors

Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions) are further subdivided into smaller areas called (''sectors'' in English). The types of ''sectores'' may vary, from normally ''sector'' to ''urbanización'' to ''reparto'' to ''barriada'' to ''residencial'', among others.

Special Communities

(Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of

social exclusion Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...

. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Rincón: La Playa Sector in Barrero, Cerro Los Pobres, El Pico in Atalaya, Hoyo Caliente, and Parcelas Stella.

Bodies of water

*Gorges: Caño García, Quebrada Grande de Calvache, Quebrada Los Ramos, Quebrada Piletas, Punta Ensenada. *River: Río Grande

Economy

The 1968 World Surfing Championship was held at Domes Beach in Rincón. Since then, surfers from around the world have been visiting Rincón. Rincón has a tourism economy which also boasts scuba diving, snorkeling, and sunsets. Rincón has also been an area for internet-based companies to set up shop. In 2007, Rincón was the site for the ISA World Masters where local surfer Juan Ashton won first place in the Masters division.

Agriculture

Fruits and

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

are the primary sources of agriculture in Rincón. Cattle ranching also is popular.

Industry

The major industry of Rincón is tourism. The

Boiling Nuclear Superheater (BONUS) Reactor Facility The Boiling Nuclear Superheater (BONUS) Reactor Facility, also known to the locals as "Domes Beach, Domes", or formally as Museo Tecnologico BONUS Dr. Modesto Iriarte, is a decommissioned nuclear power plant in Rincón, Puerto Rico. It was liste ...

, also known to the locals as "the Domes", is a decommissioned

nuclear plant A nuclear power plant (NPP), also known as a nuclear power station (NPS), nuclear generating station (NGS) or atomic power station (APS) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power s ...

. The construction of BONUS started in 1960, and the reactor had its first controlled nuclear chain reaction on April 13, 1964, achieving full power operation in September 1965. Operation of the BONUS reactor was terminated in June 1968 because of technical difficulties and the ensuing need for high-cost modifications. General decontamination of the reactor was performed with the goal of meeting unrestricted use criteria in all accessible areas of the building. Residual radioactive materials remaining in the structure were isolated or shielded to protect site visitors and workers. During subsequent years, more

radioactive contamination Radioactive contamination, also called radiological pollution, is the deposition of, or presence of Radioactive decay, radioactive substances on surfaces or within solids, liquids, or gases (including the human body), where their presence is uni ...

was identified in portions of the building, and additional clean-up and shielding activities were conducted in the 1990s and early 2000s. It was Puerto Rico's only nuclear reactor.

Demographics

Rincón reported the smallest decline in population of any Puerto Rican municipality between the 2010 and 2020 censuses (no municipality recorded an increase). The population fell by only 13, less than 0.1% of the overall population. As of 2020, 5.1% of the population is of non-Hispanic origin, making Rincón the least Hispanic municipality on the Puerto Rican mainland. This represents an increase from 2010, when only 3.6% of the population was non-Hispanic.

Tourism

"Art Walk", a community initiative to build the social fabric of Rincón, takes places every Thursday. Locals and tourists mingle in the main town square in downtown Rincón to enjoy food, drinks, music and local art.

Landmarks and places of interest

There are 53 beaches in Rincón. Main attractions of Rincón include: *La Bandera (Pico Atalaya) * Domes Beach *Steps Beach * Balneario de Rincón * Punta Higuero Lighthouse * Tres Palmas Marine Reserve

Culture

Surfing

Rincón is well known as a

destination. Rincón rose to international recognition through the 1968 World Surfing Championship, which was held at

and Maria's Beaches. The winter surf along Rincón's coast is some of the best in the region. Generally regarded as one of the best surf spots across the globe, Rincón draws surfers from around the world and is the center of the island's surf scene. Dubbed the "

Caribbean The Caribbean ( , ; ; ; ) is a region in the middle of the Americas centered around the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, mostly overlapping with the West Indies. Bordered by North America to the north, Central America ...

's Hawaii," winter waves here can approach 25–30 feet (6.7m) in height, sometimes equaling the force of the surf on

Oahu Oahu (, , sometimes written Oahu) is the third-largest and most populated island of the Hawaiian Islands and of the U.S. state of Hawaii. The state capital, Honolulu, is on Oahu's southeast coast. The island of Oahu and the uninhabited Northwe ...

's north shore. Famed surfing beaches in town include Little Malibu, Tres Palmas, Maria's, Indicators, Domes, Pools, Sandy Beach and Antonio's. The best time to surf is from November through March, but summer storms can also kick up the surf during the late summer.

Festivals and events

Rincón celebrates its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

festival in September. The is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment. Other festivals and events celebrated in Rincón include: *

Whale watching Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and dolphins (cetaceans) in their natural habitat. Whale watching is mostly a recreational activity (cf. birdwatching), but it can also serve scientific and/or educational purposes.Hoyt, E. ...

– January and February *

Humpback whale The humpback whale (''Megaptera novaeangliae'') is a species of baleen whale. It is a rorqual (a member of the family Balaenopteridae) and is the monotypic taxon, only species in the genus ''Megaptera''. Adults range in length from and weigh u ...

Festival – March *

Surfing Surfing is a surface water sport in which an individual, a surfer (or two in tandem surfing), uses a board to ride on the forward section, or face, of a moving wave of water, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suita ...

season – all year long * Ultimate Dirt Challenge – March * Rincón International Film Festival – April *

Coconut The coconut tree (''Cocos nucifera'') is a member of the palm tree family (biology), family (Arecaceae) and the only living species of the genus ''Cocos''. The term "coconut" (or the archaic "cocoanut") can refer to the whole coconut palm, ...

Festival – May * Rincon Triathlon – June

Government

Like all municipalities in

, Rincón is administered by a mayor. The current mayor is Carlos López Bonilla, from the Popular Democratic Party (PPD). López was first elected at the 2000 general election. The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV, which is represented by two Senators. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, Jeison Rosa and Karen Michelle Román Rodríguez, both from the New Progressive Party (PNP), were elected as District Senators.

Transportation

There are 8 bridges in Rincón.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag

Created and designed by Evaristo Cardona Moreno and art performed by Jose Luis Cardona Martinez (his eldest son). The colors of the Rincón flag are red, orange, yellow, green and white. The triangle has a five-pointed white star representing the urban zone. There are white stars of equal size which represent the 9 barrios. The red and orange symbolize the vitality and vigor of its people. The yellow symbolizes Christianity, the green symbolizes vegetation and hope for progress and the white symbolizes the integrity between its barrios and urban zone.

Coat of arms

Created and designed by Angel L. Cardona Moreno, the shield consists of a green and orange Spanish blazon, with a yellow band inclined left to right. To the right and on a green background a cross, symbol of Christendom. To the left and on an orange background a Spanish ship, symbol of the discovery of Puerto Rico, in the coasts of Rincón (this is greatly disputed, as the towns of Aguada, Rincón, and Añasco all claim entry-point status).

Notable people

* Kiara Ortega – Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2018

Gallery

Some of the scenes in Rincón: House on water in Rincón, Puerto Rico.jpg, House on water Steps Beach Rincon.JPG, Steps Beach 2015-361-291 Neapolitan Beach (21671419873).jpg, Domes Beach Flamboyan en Puerto Rico.jpg, Flamboyan Sunset at a beach in Rincón, Puerto Rico.jpg, Sunset 2015-365-290 The West Side (22272734161).jpg, South of Rincón Rainbow in Rincón, Puerto Rico.jpg, Rainbow over hills Sunset at Rincon, PR - panoramio.jpg, Sunset Rincón, Puerto Rico beach.jpg, Beach

References

External links

Puerto Rico Government Directory – Rincón
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rincon, Puerto Rico Municipalities of Puerto Rico Populated places established in 1771 Aguadilla–Isabela–San Sebastián metropolitan area