San Lorenzo (, ; Spanish for "''

Saint Lawrence Saint Lawrence or Laurence ( la, Laurentius, lit. "Laurel wreath, laurelled"; 31 December AD 225 – 10 August 258) was one of the seven deacons of the city of Rome under Pope Sixtus II who were martyred in the Persecution of Christians, perse ...

"'') is a

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 ...

located in the eastern central region, north of

Patillas Patillas (, ) is a beach town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the southeastern coast, south of San Lorenzo; west of Yabucoa and Maunabo; and east of Guayama and Arroyo. It is spread over 15 barrios and Patillas Pueblo (the downtown a ...

and

Yabucoa Yabucoa () is a town and municipality in Puerto Rico located in the eastern region, north of Maunabo; south of San Lorenzo, Las Piedras and Humacao; and east of Patillas. Yabucoa is spread over 9 barrios and Yabucoa Pueblo (the downtown area ...

; south of Gurabo; east of

Caguas Caguas (, ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey. Caguas was founded ...

and

Cayey Cayey (), officially Cayey de Muesas, is a mountain town and municipality in central Puerto Rico located on the Sierra de Cayey within the Central Mountain range, north of Salinas and Guayama; south of Cidra and Caguas; east of Aibonito and Sal ...

; and west of Juncos and Las Piedras. San Lorenzo is spread over twelve barrios and San Lorenzo Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area. San Lorenzo is called "''The town of the

Samaritans Samaritans (; ; he, שומרונים, translit=Šōmrōnīm, lit=; ar, السامريون, translit=as-Sāmiriyyūn) are an ethnoreligious group who originate from the ancient Israelites. They are native to the Levant and adhere to Samarit ...

''" and ''"Land of Legends''." The patron of the municipality is ( Our Lady of Mercedes). The surrounding areas produce

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

and

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 ...

History

San Lorenzo was founded in 1737 under the name San Miguel de Hato Grande by Valeriano Muñoz de Oneca from

Seville, Spain Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spanish autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the River Guadalquivir, in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula ...

. The original settlers of the then village were the Muñoz de Oneca, López de Alicea, and Sánchez de Cos families. The church was erected in 1811.

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was a deadly Saffir–Simpson scale#Category 5, Category 5 Tropical cyclone, hurricane that devastated the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly Dominica, Saint Croix, and Puerto Rico. It is regarded as the wo ...

on September 20, 2017 triggered numerous landslides in San Lorenzo with the significant amount of rainfall. South Atlantic Division (SAD) USACE in San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico.jpg, South Atlantic Division (SAD) USACE in San Lorenzo USACE working in San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico, 7 months after Hurricane Maria (2017).jpg, USACE working to restore power in San Lorenzo, 7 months after Hurricane Maria USACE restoring power to San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico.jpg, USACE restoring power to San Lorenzo in April, 2018

Geography

San Lorenzo is located in the eastern central region, north of

and

; south of Gurabo; east of

and

; and west of Juncos and Las Piedras. The town is located on a high valley that is formed by the

Río Grande de Loíza The Rio Grande de Loíza (English: ''Great River of Loíza'', ''Grande de Loíza'', or just ''Loíza River'') is a river in the island of Puerto Rico. It is the largest river in Puerto Rico by discharge volume. It is situated on the north coast of ...

which flows northwestwards towards the Caguas Valley. The town is located on the San Lorenzo Batholith, which is a mountainous region composed of intrusive

igneous rock Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main The three types of rocks, rock types, the others being Sedimentary rock, sedimentary and metamorphic rock, metamorphic. Igneous rock ...

. It is bordered by the

Sierra de Luquillo The Sierra de Luquillo is a mountain range located in the northeastern part of Puerto Rico. Also known as the Luquillo Mountains, these are steep-sided, densely-forested mountains rising to elevations of around , the highest point being the summit ...

to the north and by the

Sierra de Cayey Sierra de Cayey is a mountain range in the main island of Puerto Rico. It is located in the southeast section of the island. Its elevations do not exceed 1000 m (3,280 ft.). The Grande de Loíza, which is one of the most important rivers in Puer ...

to the south.

Rivers

* Río Cayaguás * Río Emajagua *

* Río de las Vegas

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, San Lorenzo is subdivided into barrios and barrios are further divided into sectors. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as . # Cayaguas # Cerro Gordo # Espino #

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

# Hato # Jagual #

Quebrada Quebrada may refer to: Places Argentina * Quebrada de Las Flechas, a valley in the province of Salta in northern Argentina * Quebrada de Humahuaca, World Heritage, a valley in the province of Jujuy in northern Argentina * Quebrada de Luna, vill ...

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 ...

# Quebrada Honda #

Quemados Quemados is a Barrios of Puerto Rico, barrio in the municipality of San Lorenzo, Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 4,712. History Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of ...

San Lorenzo barrio-pueblo San Lorenzo barrio-pueblo is a barrio and the administrative center ( seat) of San Lorenzo, a municipality of Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 2,045. As was customary in Spain, the municipality has a barrio called ''pueblo'' which conta ...

Sectors

Barrios (which are like

minor civil divisions A minor civil division (MCD) is a term used by the United States Census Bureau for primary governmental and/or administrative divisions of a county or county-equivalent, typically a municipal government such as a city, town, or civil township. MCD ...

) in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (''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. It is used across discipline ...

. 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 San Lorenzo: Roosevelt neighborhood, El Bosque, La Marina, Parcelas Jagual (Nuevas y Viejas), Parcelas Quemados and Sector Los Oquendo. Between 2013 and until their arrest by the FBI in 2019, dozens of drug traffickers were operating in the Roosevelt neighborhood and near the Lorenzana

public housing Public housing is a form of housing tenure in which the property is usually owned by a government authority, either central or local. Although the common goal of public housing is to provide affordable housing, the details, terminology, def ...

residential units in San Lorenzo.

Demographics

Tourism

Landmarks and places of interest

*Priscilla Flores Theater *Santuario de la Virgen del Carmen in Montaña Santa *Gallera San Carlos *

(its main source is located within municipal boundaries) *Iglesia Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes (the church located on the main town square); a National Historic Site; built in 1737 and renovated in 1993. * Hacienda Muñoz

Economy

;Agriculture The economy of San Lorenzo was founded on livestock farming and later included the cultivation of sugar cane, which had been processed on steam-driven farms with oxen. Coffee and fruits are also now cultivated in the municipality. Timber production, which was once very prolific, has declined due to the uncontrolled exploitation of forests. ;Industry Clothing, pharmaceuticals, footwear, electromechanical equipment, industrial and household paints.

Culture

Festivals and events

San Lorenzo celebrates its

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

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 San Lorenzo include: *Three Kings Caroling-January *Cavalcade Moncho Roldán-January *Candelaria Celebrations-February *Kite Festival-March *Cross Celebrations-May *Embroidering and Weave Festival-September *Passion Fruit Festival-November

Sports

Double-A (baseball) Double-A (officially Class AA) is the second-highest level of play in Minor League Baseball in the United States since 1946, below only Triple-A. There are currently 30 teams classified at the Double-A level, one for each team in Major League ...

team - National Champions in 1975, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, and 2002 * Agustin Reyes Half Marathon

Government

Like all municipalities in

, San Lorenzo is administered by a mayor. The current mayor is

Jaime Alverio Ramos Jaime is a common Spanish and Portuguese male given name for Jacob (name), James (name), Jamie, or Jacques. In Occitania Jacobus became ''Jacome'' and later ''Jacme''. In east Spain, ''Jacme'' became ''Jaime'', in Aragon it became ''Chaime'', and i ...

, from the New Progressive Party (PNP). Alverio was elected at the 2020 general election. The city belongs to the

Puerto Rico Senatorial district VII Puerto Rico Senatorial District VII, also known as the Senatorial District of Humacao, is one of the eight senatorial districts of Puerto Rico. It is currently represented by José Luis Dalmau and Miguel Laureano (from the Popular Democratic Pa ...

, which is represented by two Senators. In 2012, Jorge Suárez and

José Luis Dalmau José Luis Dalmau Santiago (born September 19, 1966) is an attorney and politician. He is the current President of the Senate of Puerto Rico and President of the Popular Democratic Party. Early years and studies José Luis Dalmau Santiago was ...

were elected as District Senators.

Transportation

There are 49 bridges in San Lorenzo.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag

The flag of San Lorenzo is divided in four rectangles of equal size, two rectangles are yellow and the other two are striped with red and yellow stripes.

Coat of arms

The grill is the traditional symbol of San Lorenzo, deacon and martyr, patron of the town, because in a grill he underwent the martyrdom, slowly burned to death. The hill or mountain represent the Gregorio Hill, which dominates the San Lorenzo panorama. The cross is one of the heraldic attributes of San Miguel Arcángel.

Notable people

Chayanne Elmer Figueroa Arce (born June 28, 1968), better known under the stage name Chayanne, is a Puerto Rican Latin pop singer and actor. As a solo artist, Chayanne has released 21 albums and sold over 50 million records worldwide, making him one of ...

- Singer and actor * Ernestina Reyes “La Calandria” - Singer *

José Tous Soto José Tous Soto (October 2, 1874 – March 22, 1933) was a Puerto Rican politician and former Senator and Representative. Early years and education José Tous Soto was born in San Lorenzo on October 2, 1874. He graduated with a law degree from ...

- Former Speaker House Of Representatives *Antonio Fernós-Isern - Former Resident Commissioner *José Aponte Hernandéz - Former Speaker House Of Representatives *

Carmita Jiménez Carmita Jiménez (August 3, 1939 – August 10, 2003) was a Puerto Rican singer who was considered a diva in Puerto Rico. She was born in San Lorenzo. Carmita Jiménez started her singing career at the young age of six, on the radio show na ...

- Singer * Priscila Flores - Singer * El Invader #1- Puerto Rican wrestler * Dr. Marc H. Rosa, - Former Teacher, School Administrator And University Professor * Josúe "Jay" Fonseca - Political Commentator * Edwin Cruz - Lead Singer - “Mechi” * Antulio Parrilla Bonilla - Father of Puerto Rican

Cooperative Movement The history of the cooperative movement concerns the origins and history of cooperatives across the world. Although cooperative arrangements, such as mutual insurance, and principles of cooperation existed long before, the cooperative movement bega ...

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

priest. * Victor Rivera - Wrestler

References

External links

San Lorenzo and its barrios, United States Census Bureau

Puerto Rico Government Directory - San Lorenzo
{{Subject bar, auto=y, d=y Municipalities of Puerto Rico Populated places established in 1811 San Juan–Caguas–Guaynabo metropolitan area