Río Piedras is a populous district of San Juan, and former

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares an ori ...

and

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

Puerto Rico Puerto Rico (; abbreviated PR; tnq, Boriken, ''Borinquen''), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico ( es, link=yes, Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, lit=Free Associated State of Puerto Rico), is a Caribbean island and Unincorporated ...

, which was merged with the municipality of San Juan in 1951. The district today is composed of various '' barrios'' (these are the primary legal divisions of municipalities in Puerto Rico) such as

Pueblo In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...

and Universidad. The historic town was founded in 1714 as El Roble, it was given municipality rights in 1823, and since 1903 it has been the home of the University of Puerto Rico's main campus, earning the popular name of ''Ciudad Universitaria'' (similar to

college town A college town or university town is a community (often a separate town or city, but in some cases a town/city neighborhood or a district) that is dominated by its university population. The university may be large, or there may be several sma ...

) today. The downtown and historic center of Río Piedras is officially known as the Pueblo barrio of the municipality of San Juan.

Name

In addition to being the name of the barrio and district, Río Piedras ( Piedras River) is also the name of a river that crosses the district. Río Piedras was also the name of the former municipality of Puerto Rico (1823-1950).

History

University in Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico, circa 1900-1917

The area where Río Piedras is located today was previously settled by the

Taíno The Taíno were a historic Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, indigenous people of the Caribbean whose culture has been continued today by Taíno descendant communities and Taíno revivalist communities. At the time of European contact in the ...

, and archaeological sites have been uncovered nearby in Carolina. The town was founded as El Roble and officially recognized by Spanish Governor Juan de Rivera in 1714. It was settled on the intersection of the Piedras River and the Juan Méndez Creek (part of the

Puerto Nuevo River The Río Puerto Nuevo is a river of Puerto Rico. Flood control project In mid 2018, the United States Army Corps of Engineers announced it would be undertaking a major flood control project of the river, with a budget of $1552.4 million. See ...

basin). The town eventually adopted the name of that river, ''Río Piedras'', and was proclaimed a municipality in 1823, when the city hall and ''plaza'' (main town square) were built. During the

nineteenth century The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium. The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolish ...

, most of its territory was used for agricultural and livestock-raising purposes.

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 stalks t ...

cotton Cotton is a soft, fluffy staple fiber that grows in a boll, or protective case, around the seeds of the cotton plants of the genus ''Gossypium'' in the mallow family Malvaceae. The fiber is almost pure cellulose, and can contain minor perce ...

and

coffee Coffee is a drink prepared from roasted coffee beans. Darkly colored, bitter, and slightly acidic, coffee has a stimulant, stimulating effect on humans, primarily due to its caffeine content. It is the most popular hot drink in the world. S ...

were some of the goods produced during this era at the municipality. A road connecting Río Piedras to San Juan was built during this time, along with the first church, ''Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Pilar'', at the site of the modern town ''plaza''. The ''Camino Real'', precursor to the Carretera Central, connected Río Piedras with Caguas and to southern Puerto Rico, was also built before the end of the century. Its location along the ''Camino Real'' between the walled city of San Juan and the rest of the island turned Río Piedras into a commercial hub and junction between the Spanish colonial government and the rest of Puerto Rico. The

University of Puerto Rico The University of Puerto Rico ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, UPR) is the main public university system in the U.S. Commonwealth of Puerto Rico. It is a government-owned corporation with 11 campuses and approximately 58,000 students and 5,3 ...

was founded in Río Piedras on May 12, 1903 with funds diverted from the former ''Escuela Normal Industrial'' (Normal Industrial School). The

University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus The University of Puerto Rico, Río Piedras Campus ( es, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Recinto de Río Piedras; UPR-RP, or informally La IUPI) is a public land-grant research university in San Juan, Puerto Rico. It is the largest campus in the Univ ...

today one of the largest universities in Puerto Rico. The university was a central part of the commercial and residential development of Río Piedras. The University Botanical Gardens are also located in Río Piedras.

Incorporation into San Juan

The municipality of Río Piedras became part of the capital city of San Juan on July 1, 1951, after the approval of ''Project 177'' by the

House of Representatives of Puerto Rico The House of Representatives of Puerto Rico ( es, Cámara de Representantes de Puerto Rico) is the lower house of the Legislative Assembly of Puerto Rico, the bicameral state legislature (United States), territorial legislature of Puerto Rico. ...

. Following the annexation of Río Piedras, the city of San Juan, quadrupled its former size, becoming the largest city in Puerto Rico. With a population of 143,989 in 1950, Río Piedras was the most populous municipality in Puerto Rico before its consolidation with San Juan. The last mayor of the municipality of Río Piedras was Ángeles Méndez de López Corver. The former downtown area of the municipality is today part of the ''barrio'' (district) of

in San Juan, more popularly known as ''Río Piedras Antiguo'' (Old Río Piedras) and ''Río Piedras Pueblo'' (downtown Río Piedras), and it still preserves its former city hall, town square or plaza, and its cathedral, ''Catedral de San Juan Bautista''.

Symbols

Flag

The flag of Río Piedras consists of a yellow cloth with a wavy blue stripe. The stripe has small white stones crossing it, and symbolizes the

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wate ...

that gave its name to the former town. The yellow background represents the sun, progress, and the future.

Geography and climate

The region is mostly flat due to its location in the Northern Coastal Plains of the island. The highest regions are located at the south, mainly in the Caimito and Cupey barrios. The ''Río Piedras'' (or Piedras River) which gives name to the area crosses the region.

Cityscape

Barrios

By 1948, Río Piedras had the following 12 urban barrios: * Buen Consejo * Capetillo * El Cinco * Gobernador Piñero *

Hato Rey Central Hato Rey Central is one of the 18 barrios of the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. With a population density of 16,155.3 per square mile. It has a land area of 1.03 sq mi and a 2010 Census population of 16,640. Hato Rey Central was a bar ...

Hato Rey Norte Hato Rey Norte is one of the 18 barrios of the municipality of San Juan, Puerto Rico. Hato Rey Norte was part of the former municipality of Rio Piedras, before it was merged with the municipality of San Juan in 1951. It is bounded by Hato Rey C ...

* Hato Rey Sur * Oriente * Río Piedras Antiguo * Sabana Llana Norte * Sabana Llana Sur * Universidad Buen Consejo, Capetillo, and Río Piedras Antiguo made up the original urban area of the municipality of Río Piedras. The rural zone, 42% of Río Piedras in 1948, were the following six barrios: * Caimito * Cupey * Monacillo *

Quebrada Arenas Quebrada Arenas is a Barrios of Puerto Rico, barrio in the municipality of Maunabo, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 1,667. History Cueva del Indio (Las Piedras), Cueva del Indio, a prehistoric rock art site which is now a public park, is ...

* Sabana Llana Rural * Tortugo

Demographics

Tourism

Tourism spots in Río Piedras include: Municipal Market in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico (1920) - photograph - page 153

* The Río Piedras campus of the

(and its theater, bell tower and museums) * , which is a cultural center * Heladería Georgetti, an iconic ice-cream shop * El Churro Bar, popular Mexican taqueria and bar *

Plaza del Mercado de Río Piedras A town square (or square, plaza, public square, city square, urban square, or ''piazza'') is an open public space, commonly found in the heart of a traditional town but not necessarily a true square, geometric square, used for community gathe ...

, the historic marketplace building in downtown Río Piedras * El Boricua, a popular gathering place for locals and tourists alike

Government

Río Piedras first mayor was Juan de la Cruz in 1814. The last mayor of the municipality of Río Piedras was Ángeles Méndez de López Corver. The

Puerto Rico Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation The Puerto Rico Department of Correction and Rehabilitation () is the law enforcement executive department of the government responsible for structuring, developing, and coordinating the public policies in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territ ...

operates the Hogar Intermedio para Mujeres in

Río Piedras Rio or Río is the Portuguese, Spanish, Italian, and Maltese word for "river". When spoken on its own, the word often means Rio de Janeiro, a major city in Brazil. Rio or Río may also refer to: Geography Brazil * Rio de Janeiro * Rio do Sul, a ...

, which opened in 1996.

Education

Río Piedras is perhaps more known for being the site of the main campus of the

. Located in downtown Río Piedras, the university has more than 20,000 students enrolled and a faculty of more than 1,000. Other universities located in what was known as Río Piedras are the Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico and the

Interamerican University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus The Inter American University of Puerto Rico, Metropolitan Campus ( es, Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico, Recinto Metropolitano) is located in Cupey, San Juan, Puerto Rico. It was built in San Juan due to the large success of the Polytec ...

. Río Piedras also has several public and private schools distributed through several regions. Public education is handled by the

Puerto Rico Department of Education The Puerto Rico Department of Education (PRDOE; ) is one of the statewide public education system in the United States, with (Hawaii being the other). The PRDOE is the state education agency in charge of managing public schools in Puerto Rico as ...

Transportation

Río Piedras is served by the

Tren Urbano The ''Tren Urbano'' (English: Urban Train) is a fully-automated rapid transit system that serves the municipalities of San Juan, Guaynabo, and Bayamón, in Puerto Rico. The Tren Urbano consists of 16 stations operating on of track along a ...

metro Metro, short for metropolitan, may refer to: Geography * Metro (city), a city in Indonesia * A metropolitan area, the populated region including and surrounding an urban center Public transport * Rapid transit, a passenger railway in an urba ...

system with stations at the

and

in downtown Río Piedras. Even though these two stations are considered the current stations at Río Piedras, most of the stops of the train in the municipality of San Juan are located in areas that were part of the municipality of Río Piedras prior to 1951.

Culture

At the heart of Río Piedras lies the

Avenida José de Diego Avenue or Avenues may refer to: Roads * Avenue (landscape), traditionally a straight path or road with a line of trees, in the shifted sense a tree line itself, or some of boulevards (also without trees) * Avenue Road, Bangalore * Avenue Road, L ...

, a one-kilometer pedestrianized street with stores and shops. The Río Piedras Plaza del Mercado (the old

marketplace A marketplace or market place is a location where people regularly gather for the purchase and sale of provisions, livestock, and other goods. In different parts of the world, a marketplace may be described as a '' souk'' (from the Arabic), ' ...

) is the largest of its kind on the island and features a series of shops that offer goods and services, and it is also popular with students of the university. Ponce de León Avenue is popular with bookstores and small theaters and with students, faculty, and intellectuals in the community.

Notable people

* Luis Torres Díaz lived in the city.Luis Torres Diaz, Breve historia de la farmacia en Puerto Rico, Instituto Americano de la Historia de Farmacia y la Editorial Universitaria, Universidad de Puerto Rico, Río Piedras (1951).
/ref> *

La India Linda Viera Caballero (born March 9, 1969), better known as La India, is a Puerto Rican singer and songwriter of salsa, house music and Latin pop. La India has been nominated for both Grammy and Latin Grammy Awards, winning the Latin Grammy Aw ...

Tito Nieves Humberto "Tito" Nieves (born June 4, 1959; also known "El Pavarotti de la Salsa") is a Puerto Rican musician who became one of the leading salsa singers of the 1980s and the early 1990s. Born in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico, and raised in the Unite ...

Frank H. Wadsworth Frank Howard Wadsworth (November 26, 1915 – January 5, 2022) was an American forester, conservationist and researcher. He made important scientific contributions to forestry, through his work in Puerto Rico where he lived from 1942. Life an ...

Gallery

File:Parroquia de Nuestra Señora del Pilar (02).jpg, ''Iglesia Nuestra Señora del Pilar'' in Río Piedras Pueblo. File:Santa Rita, Rio Piedras.jpg, Santa Rita File:Ponce de León avenue opposite Plaza de la Convalecencia, Río Piedras.jpg, Historic buildings and TU

Río Piedras station Río Piedras is a rapid transit station in San Juan–Caguas–Guaynabo metropolitan area, the San Juan Metropolitan Area, Puerto Rico. It is located between Cupey station, Cupey and Universidad station (Puerto Rico), Universidad stations on the o ...

entrance in Plaza La Convalecencia across Ponce de León Ave. File:Casa Georgetti, Río Piedras (02).jpg, Historic Casa Georgetti in

. File:Antigua Casa Alcaldía de Río Piedras.jpg, Former city hall building. File:Calle Ferrocarrill 1018-Río Piedras Antiguo.jpg, Abandoned Creole-style house on Ferrocarril Street.

References

External links

Río Piedras, Puerto Rico - AreciboWeb
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rio Piedras, Puerto Rico Districts of San Juan, Puerto Rico 1714 establishments in the Spanish Empire