San Clemente del Tuyú is an Argentine town in the '' Partido de la Costa'' district of the

Province of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires (), officially the Buenos Aires Province (''Provincia de Buenos Aires'' ), is the largest and most populous Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of th ...

History

Noticed by

Ferdinand Magellan Ferdinand Magellan ( or ; pt, Fernão de Magalhães, ; es, link=no, Fernando de Magallanes, ; 4 February 1480 – 27 April 1521) was a Portuguese explorer. He is best known for having planned and led the 1519 Spanish expedition to the Eas ...

in 1520, who gave nearby Cape San Antonio its name, Spanish authorities first surveyed the area in 1580. Led by reformist Governor

Hernando Arias de Saavedra Hernando Arias de Saavedra (September 10, 1561 – 1634), commonly known as Hernandarias, was a soldier and politician of criollo ancestry. He was the first person born in the Americas to become a governor of a European colony in the New World, ...

, his

Guaraní Guarani, Guaraní or Guarany may refer to Ethnography * Guaraní people, an indigenous people from South America's interior (Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay and Bolivia) * Guaraní language, or Paraguayan Guarani, an official language of Paraguay * ...

staff christened the spot ''Rincón del Tuyú'' ("muddy corner"). First mapped by

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Jesuit

Thomas Falkner Thomas Falkner (6 October 1707 – 30 January 1784) was an English Jesuit missionary, explorer and physician, active in the Patagonia region for nearly forty years. His primary work, ''The Description of Patagonia'', was written towards the idea ...

in 1744, the neighboring stream was named ''San Clemente'' by

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...

Jesuit José Cardiel. The waterfront area was soon purchased by the Ortiz de Rozas family, one of Argentina's most well-established landowners. Sold to another prominent family, the Leloirs, in 1816, the area became a sheep ranch. A descendant of the Ortiz de Rozas', General Juan Manuel de Rosas, had the area incorporated into a district of the

in 1825, the area's first assigned jurisdiction since national independence in 1816; as governor, Rosas brutally repressed a local insurrection in 1839 against his repressive rule. Following Rosas' 1852 overthrow, the area was given a county seat ( Mar del Tuyú) in 1864 and, with the arrival of

abattoir A slaughterhouse, also called abattoir (), is a facility where animals are slaughtered to provide food. Slaughterhouses supply meat, which then becomes the responsibility of a packaging facility. Slaughterhouses that produce meat that is no ...

s, the government had fishermen's docks, a canal between San Clemente and

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

, a

railhead In the UK, railheading refers to the practice of travelling further than necessary to reach a rail service, typically by car. The phenomenon is common among commuters seeking a more convenient journey. Reasons for railheading include, but are ...

and two

lighthouses A lighthouse is a tower, building, or other type of physical structure designed to emit light from a system of lamps and lenses and to serve as a beacon for navigational aid, for maritime pilots at sea or on inland waterways. Lighthouses mar ...

built between 1878 and 1902. Prospering during the 1920s, the Argentine middle class first became widely aware of the idyllic coast through the efforts of Mayor Jorge Gibson, who had the local coastline graded into public beaches. The project's success led to the first gravel road into San Clemente in 1932 and its formal designation as a municipality; soon followed service stations, campgrounds, real estate developments, a power plant and even a monastery. President Juan Perón made plans for a nearby submarine base that, though never built, resulted in a four-lane highway into San Clemente. This and continuing national prosperity led to the town's rapid development after 1950, which led to the establishment of a hospital in 1970 and of

Mundo Marino Mundo Marino is the largest aquarium in Argentina. It is located in San Clemente del Tuyú, Argentina. History Juan David Méndez sold his properties in Buenos Aires in the 1960s, and moved to San Clemente del Tuyú. He visited the United Sta ...

in 1979, still the largest

oceanarium An oceanarium can be either a marine mammal park, such as Marineland of Canada, or a large-scale aquarium, such as the Lisbon Oceanarium, presenting an ocean habitat with marine animals, especially large ocean dwellers such as sharks. First ma ...

in South America. A nature theme park (''Parque Bahía Aventura'') opened in 1997; drawing few crowds, the area was slated for closure when, in 2003, mineral hot springs were discovered at the spot. County Mayor Juan de Jesús set aside part of Bahía Aventura and opened Termas Marinas, today one of Argentina's most popular hot springs. Tapera of Lòpez: 1922: is there installed the young marriage formed by Manuel López and Magdalena Luero. Manuel was engaged in fishing and fish salting built there, in that place they had 12 children.

The city today

San Clemente del Tuyú, the northernmost among seven sea-side communities in the ''Partido de la Costa'' district, today counts 27 hotels (of which 14 are three or four-star establishments). The aquarium, adventure park and hot springs are complemented by two natural sciences museums, fishing boat tours and the 129 meter (400 feet) -long pier, among other parks and attractions. Punta Rasa, at the northern end of the city and the cape, was made a nature preserve in 1997. The activity around fishing boat tours centers around the black corvine feast held annually since 1966, towards December. The area's vast dunes also set the stage for the annual

Enduro Enduro is a form of motorcycle sport run on extended cross-country, off-road courses. Enduro consists of many different obstacles and challenges. The main type of enduro event, and the format to which the World Enduro Championship is run, is ...

competition held here every February since 1998. A small but loyal contingent of visitors also arrives seasonally from San Clemente, California, a sister city of San Clemente del Tuyú since 1969. The seven sister communities receive nearly a million visitors monthly during the peak summer season (January and February), of which San Clemente del Tuyú hosts roughly one tenth, given its proportion of the district's hotel room availability. A considerable number of summertime visitors also come to enjoy

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monk Mamerto Menapace's sermons and lectures, which takes place at the order's San Clemente estancia and offers ascetic "pilgrim" accommodations. San Clemente del Tuyú hosted the Sixth Iberoamerican Congress on Environmental Education in September 2009.VI Congreso Iberoamericano de Educación Ambiental
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Climate

Sister cities

* San Clemente, California

References

External links

Todo San Clemente
{{DEFAULTSORT:San Clemente del Tuyu Populated coastal places in Argentina Populated places in Buenos Aires Province Populated places established in 1935 Seaside resorts in Argentina