Vega Baja barrio-pueblo is a

barrio ''Barrio'' () is a Spanish language, Spanish word that means "Quarter (urban subdivision), quarter" or "neighborhood". In the modern Spanish language, it is generally defined as each area of a city, usually delimited by functional (e.g. residenti ...

and downtown area that serves as the administrative center (

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

) of

Vega Baja Vega Baja (, ) is a town and municipality located on the coast of north central Puerto Rico. It is north of Morovis, east of Manatí, and west of Vega Alta. Vega Baja is spread over 13 barrios. The population of the municipality was 54,414 at ...

, a municipality of

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 ...

. Its population in 2010 was 816.

The central plaza and its church

As was customary in Spain, in Puerto Rico, the municipality has a barrio called ''

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 ...

'' which contains a central plaza, the municipal buildings (city hall), and a Catholic church. Fiestas patronales (patron saint festivals) are held in the central plaza every year. The Vega Baja central plaza is called , and is named after a pharmacist from Vega Baja who was also one of its mayors. The central plaza, or square, is a place for official and unofficial recreational events and a place where people can gather and socialize from dusk to dawn. The

Laws of the Indies The Laws of the Indies ( es, Leyes de las Indias) are the entire body of laws issued by the Spanish Crown for the American and the Asian possessions of its empire. They regulated social, political, religious, and economic life in these areas. T ...

, Spanish law, which regulated life in Puerto Rico in the early 19th century, stated the plaza's purpose was for "the parties" (celebrations, festivities) ( es, a propósito para las fiestas), and that the square should be proportionally large enough for the number of neighbors ( es, grandeza proporcionada al número de vecinos). These Spanish regulations also stated that the streets nearby should be comfortable portals for passersby, protecting them from the elements: sun and rain. Located across from the central plaza is the Church Santa María del Rosario of Vega Baja, a

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

church which was inaugurated in 1870. There had been another church there, built in 1795 and demolished in 1860. The church has been listed in the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

since 1984.

History

Before being settled, the area used to be a

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of (often hybrid) 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 ...

plantation. The settlement that is today Vega Baja barrio-pueblo (downtown Vega Baja) was first founded in 1776 as Vega-Baxa del Naranjal de Nuestra Señora del Rosario by Don Antonio Viera in an area originally owned by Don Manuel Negrón Benítez. This is also considered the official founding of the municipality itself. The famous Casa Alonso is a good example of the Neoclassical vernacular style developed by sugarcane plantation owners in the downtown area during this time. Puerto Rico was ceded by

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

in the aftermath of the

Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...

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 ( fil, Kasunduan sa Paris ng 1898; es, Tratado de París de 1898), was a treaty signed by Spain and the United Stat ...

and became an

unincorporated territory of the United States Territories of the United States are sub-national administrative divisions overseen by the federal government of the United States. The various American territories differ from the U.S. states and tribal reservations as they are not sover ...

. 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, a ...

conducted a

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses incl ...

of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Pueblo was 2,288. The current city hall was built and inaugurated in 1923.

Landmarks and places of interest

* Adrián Santos Tirado School of Fine Arts (''Escuela de Bellas Artes Adrián Santos Tirado''), municipal fine arts school also containing a digital library. * Casa Alonso, a neoclassical

historic house A historic house generally meets several criteria before being listed by an official body as "historic." Generally the building is at least a certain age, depending on the rules for the individual list. A second factor is that the building be in ...

and local art museum listed on the

(NRHP) since 1996. * Casa Portela Museum, a

and

local history museum A local museum or local history museum is a type of museum that shows the historical development of a place/region (local history) using exhibits. These museums usually maintain a collection of historic three-dimensional objects which are exh ...

located in a revitalized city block. * ''Centro de Investigaciones Históricas Luis de la Rosa Martínez'', a cultural institution, research center and municipal archives dedicated to the local arts, geography, history, photography and demographics. * Church Santa María del Rosario, the historic Roman Catholic parish church of Vega Baja, located at the traditional public town square (''Plaza José Francisco Náter''). * Cine Teatro Félix, located in the former Félix Theater (''Teatro Félix''), a

Silent film era A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

theater. * Héctor Joy Sandín Marketplace (''Plaza del Mercado Héctor Joy Sandín''), the traditional town marketplace of Vega Baja contains stores, restaurants and other retail. * Melao Melao Artisanal Center (''Centro Artesanal Melao Melao''), cultural institution dedicated to the local traditional arts and crafts. * Migrants Square (''Plaza de los Inmigrantes'') * Old Vega Baja Cemetery, the old municipal cemetery is located right outside of the historic downtown and it includes prominent tombs such as the NRHP-listed Otero-Martinez Mausoleum. * Old Train Station of Vega Baja (''Antigua Estación del Tren''), the former railway station from 1891 now hosts a small museum dedicated to the history of the local railway system. * Rafael Canó Llovio Building (''Edificio Rafael Canó Llovio''), a historic building now housing government offices. * Teatro América, a historic

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

style former cinema turned into a theater and cultural center. * Vega Baja City Hall (''Casa Alcaldía de Vega Baj''a), the historic city hall building.

Gallery

File:Vega Baja City Hall, Vega Baja, Puerto Rico.jpg, Vega Baja City Hall (2019) File:Plaza de recreo en Vega Baja, Puerto Rico.jpg, (2019) File:Church Santa María Del Rosario Of Vega Baja 02.jpg, Closeup of the town's parish church (2019) File:Teatro Fenix, Vega Baja2.jpg, Cine Teatro Félix (2023) File:Casa Portela, Vega Baja1.jpg, Casa Portela courtyard (2023) File:Casa Portela, Vega Baja16.jpg, Betances Street (2023) File:Vega Baja Pueblo0.jpg, Historic Náter Pharmacy (2023) File:Teatro America, Vega Baja3.jpg, Teatro América from the church (2023) File:Antigua Estacion de Tren, Vega Baja1.jpg, Old railway station (2023). File:Escuela Bellas Artes, Vega Baja0.jpg, Vega Baja School of Fine Arts (2023) File:Casa Alcaldia, Vega Baja4.jpg, Vega Baja city hall and plaza (2023)

References

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External links