San Pedro, which full name is ''Rincon de San Pedro Dávila de los Arrecifes'', is a city and port 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 ...

, Argentina, on the side of the Parana River. It is one of five ''localidades'' and the administrative seat of the Partido de San Pedro. It's situated 164 km away from

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 ...

via National Route 9, and 141 km away from

Rosario Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city is located northwest of Buenos Aires, on the west bank of the Paraná River. Rosario is the third-most populous ci ...

Economy

San Pedro is located in the industrial corridor between

and

, and is readily accessible to both via

National Highway 9 Route 9, or Highway 9, may refer to: International * European route E09 * European route E009 Albania * SH-9 Road in Albania. Argentina * National Route 9 (Argentina), National Route 9 Australia New South Wales * A9 (Sydney) South Austra ...

, as well as by the Mitre Railway Line. Natural harbors along San Pedro's Paraná River shores contributed to its early development as a trading hub, and later to its industrial base, and the city is today home to an important

port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as Ham ...

. Among the service sector activities that stand out in San Pedro is tourism, since the city is a frequent weekend destination for visitors from Buenos Aires. San Pedro draws tourism with its well-preserved nineteenth century architecture, as well as from the surrounding natural beauty. A

marina A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats. A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...

and numerous riverfront hotels have opened in recent decades, notably a

Howard Johnson's Howard Johnson's, or Howard Johnson by Wyndham, is an American hotel chain and former restaurant chain. Founded by Howard Deering Johnson in 1925 as a restaurant, it was the largest restaurant chain in the U.S. throughout the 1960s and 1970s, ...

, and San Pedro is a leading regional destination for

water sports Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a s ...

enthusiasts in Argentina. San Pedro is known for its fruit production, being the main products

orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower *Orange (colour), from the color of an orange, occurs between red and yellow in the visible spectrum * ...

s and

peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, non-fu ...

es, in that order. Another typical product from San Pedro is the '' ensaïmada'', a pastry of

Mallorca Mallorca, or Majorca, is the largest island in the Balearic Islands, which are part of Spain and located in the Mediterranean. The capital of the island, Palma, is also the capital of the autonomous community of the Balearic Islands. The Bal ...

n origin, and the city has been declared "National Capital of the Argentine Ensaimada."

History

The foundation of San Pedro can be traced to 1637, when a document signed by Pedro Esteban Dávila (Knight of the Order of Santiago, Governor and General Captain), established an outpost on the site, and with its current name. The land was deeded to Captain Juan Gutiérrez de Humanes in 1641 for his services to the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, partic ...

. San Pedro began as a settlement on August 26, 1748, when construction began on the ''Antigüo Convento Recoleto de Franciscanos'', around which the original settlement developed. The parish of San Pedro was created in 1778, and on December 30, 1784, the ''Partido'' (County) was officially established. The historic

Battle of Vuelta de Obligado The naval Battle of Vuelta de Obligado took place on the waters of the Paraná River on 20 November 1845, between the Argentine Confederation, under the leadership of Juan Manuel de Rosas, and a combined Anglo-French fleet. The action was part o ...

took place on the town's Paraná River shores on November 20, 1845. The city is home to a sizable

Italian Argentine Italian Argentines ( it, italo-argentini; es, ítalo-argentinos, or ''tanos'' in Rioplatense Spanish) are Italian-born people (born in Argentina or Italy) or non-Italian citizens of Italian descent residing in Argentina. Italian is the largest ...

community, who established the local ''Sociedad Italiana de Unión y Benevolencia'', a charitable organization, in 1873. San Pedro was officially designated as a city by the Provincial Legislature on July 25, 1907. A former

Querandí The Querandí were one of the Het peoples, indigenous South Americans who lived in the Pampas area of Argentina; specifically, they were the eastern Didiuhet. The name Querandí was given by the Guaraní people, as they would consume animal fat i ...

settlement, a vestige of the area's original inhabitants, was unearthed nearby by archaeologists in 1965. The nation's largest

newsprint Newsprint is a low-cost, non-archival paper consisting mainly of wood pulp and most commonly used to print newspapers and other publications and advertising material. Invented in 1844 by Charles Fenerty of Nova Scotia, Canada, it usually has an ...

maker,

Papel Prensa Papel Prensa S.A. is an Argentine manufacturing company, being the largest producer of newsprint in the country. The company furnishes 58% of the local market in the staple. The public–private partnership became the focus of one of a series of ...

, established its principal facility in San Pedro in 1978.

Culture

The city is home to an active trade by

artisan An artisan (from french: artisan, it, artigiano) is a skilled craft worker who makes or creates material objects partly or entirely by hand. These objects may be functional or strictly decorative, for example furniture, decorative art ...

s; the host a weekly fair on the ''Parque Artistico'', and a selection of their works can be seen in the ''Sueño del Tano'' Museum. Other local museums include the Museum of Paleontology, the Fernando García Curten Museum, and the Osvaldo "Pato" Morresi Museum; Morresi (1952 — 94) was a champion

Turismo Carretera Turismo Carretera ( Road racing, lit., ''Road Touring'') is a popular stock car racing series in Argentina, and the oldest auto racing series still active in the world. The series is organized by Asociación Corredores de Turismo Carretera. Th ...

stock car racer. San Pedro has six FM radio stations, cable television service, and the newspapers ''El Imparcial'', ''El Diario de San Pedro'', and the weekly ''La Opinión''.

Sanpedrinos fallen in the Falklands War

Numerous Sanpedrinos fought in the ill-fated

Falklands War The Falklands War ( es, link=no, Guerra de las Malvinas) was a ten-week undeclared war between Argentina and the United Kingdom in 1982 over two British dependent territories in the South Atlantic: the Falkland Islands and its territorial de ...

of 1982, and in 2005, the City Council passed a resolution in their honor. These included: *Sbert, Mateo Antonio (1964-†1982): Assistant Sergeant in the Engineers Corps. Fought in the Comandos Company 602, and died in combat on the zone of Top Malo House, near Bluff Cove. *Magliotti, Sergio Daniel (1964-†1982): Sergeant, 2nd class, of the Argentine Navy in the cruiser , sunk by the Royal Navy submarine . His body lies in the

South Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...

Surviving local veterans of the Falklands War

*Ancharek, Domingo Faustino (1962):

Argentine Army The Argentine Army ( es, Ejército Argentino, EA) is the land force branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic and the senior military service of Argentina. Under the Argentine Constitution, the president of Argentina is the commander- ...

, 3rd Infantry Machinery Corps. Fought in Sapper Hill. *Azimonti, Pablo Enrique (1962): Army, Logistic Battalion 10. Fought in Cerro Dos Hermanas. *Cano, Sergio Rubén (1963): Navy, Nursery assistant on the ARA ''Bahía Paraíso'',

survey ship A survey vessel is any type of ship or boat that is used for underwater surveys, usually to collect data for mapping or planning underwater construction or mineral extraction. It is a type of research vessel, and may be designed for the purpo ...

, *Martínez, Jorge Pablo (1962): Navy, Cruise ARA ''General Manuel Belgrano'' gunner, sunk by torpedoes from the submarine HMS ''Conqueror''. Marooned on a raft for 48 hs, and rescued by the ARA ''Gurruchaga'',

auxiliary ship An auxiliary ship is a naval ship designed to support combatant ships and other naval operations. Auxiliary ships are not primary combatant vessels, though they may have some limited combat capacity, usually for purposes of self-defense. Auxil ...

. *Montorfano, Adrian Oscar (1962): Army, Chief of the 3rd Infantry Machinery Corps, La Tablada. Fought in Sapper Hill and Monte William. *Novaro, Domingo Ángel (1961): Army, Mounted Grenadier, Coronel Pringles Squad. Fought in Cerro Dos Hermanas; operator-aimer of Browning MAG 7,62 mm next the Infantry Corp 4. *Ramírez, Raúl Horacio (1962): Navy, ARA ''General Manuel Belgrano'' gunner. Fought in the South Atlantic theater; sank, and rescued by the ARA ''Bahía Paraíso'' after 48 hs on a raft. *Ríos, Victor Hugo (1962): Army, ARA ''General Manuel Belgrano''. Rescued after 48 hs on a raft by the ARA ''Bahía Paraíso''. *Saucedo, Javier Huber (1963):

Argentine Air Force "Argentine Wings" , mascot = , anniversaries = 10 August (anniversary) 1 May (Baptism of fire during the Falklands War) , equipment = 139 aircraft , equipment_label = , battles = * Operation Independence * Operation Soberanía * Falkl ...

, Río Gallegos Air Base. Fought in the Puerto Argentino Airport (

Stanley Stanley may refer to: Arts and entertainment Film and television * ''Stanley'' (1972 film), an American horror film * ''Stanley'' (1984 film), an Australian comedy * ''Stanley'' (1999 film), an animated short * ''Stanley'' (1956 TV series) ...

), operating a bitube canon 20 mm.San Pedro City Council homage
/ref>

Climate

Historic Buildings

*''Nuestra Señora del Socorro'' Church, 1872, in

Italianate The Italianate style was a distinct 19th-century phase in the history of Classical architecture. Like Palladianism and Neoclassicism, the Italianate style drew its inspiration from the models and architectural vocabulary of 16th-century Italian R ...

style. *Municipal Palace, with its Regional Museum. *Ramos Generales Dutra ( general store); created in 1865, was declared by the City Council as a "Place of Local Historical Interest." *The Rafael Obligado Popular Library, established in 1872 and housed in an Italianate building completed in 1921. *The site of the 1845

References

{{Authority control Populated places in Buenos Aires Province Populated places established in 1748