Caguas 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 ''Downtown'' is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's sometimes commercial, cultural and often the historical, political and geographic heart. It is often synonymous with its central business distric ...

area that serves 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 the city and municipality 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 ...

, a municipality of Puerto Rico. It is bordered by the

Cagüitas River The Cagüitas River ( es, Río Cagüitas) is a river of Caguas and Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico. See also *List of rivers of Puerto Rico A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Orga ...

to the north and located two miles southwest of the Grande de Loiza River. Its population in 2010 was 22,406. As was customary in

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 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 ...

'' (''barrio-pueblo'' starting with the 1990 US Census) which contains a central plaza or main town square, the municipal buildings (such as the city hall), and a Catholic church. Fiestas patronales (patron saint festivals) are held in the main town square every year. The municipal and mayoral offices were located in the City Hall building at the western edge of the main town square until 2010 when a new City Hall building located in the northwestern side of the downtown area was inaugurated.

Geography

Caguas Pueblo (

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, Cana ...

: ''Pueblo de Caguas''), officially designated as Caguas Barrio-pueblo and popularly referred to as ''Downtown Caguas'' in English, is located in the middle plains of the

Caguas Valley Caguas Valley (Spanish: ''Valle de Caguas''), or the Caguas-Juncos Valley and popularly referred to as the Turabo Valley (Spanish: ''Valle del Turabo''), is a large valley lying between the Central Mountain Range and the Sierra de Luquillo in the ...

. It is bordered by the

to the north, the Loíza River to the east and the

Turabo River The Turabo River ( es, Río Turabo ) is a river of Caguas, Puerto Rico. See also *List of rivers of Puerto Rico A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List Colle ...

to the south.

History

The area where downtown Caguas is located today was originally inhabited 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 ...

people. This area of the

valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...

was ideal for the cultivation of crops, such as

cassava ''Manihot esculenta'', common name, commonly called cassava (), manioc, or yuca (among numerous regional names), is a woody shrub of the spurge family, Euphorbiaceae, native to South America. Although a perennial plant, cassava is extensively ...

, due to the fertile river-fed soil. At the time of the

Spanish colonization The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...

the local tribes were led by the cacique

Caguax Caguax was a Taíno cacique who lived on the island of Borikén (Taíno name for Puerto Rico) before and during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. His yucayeque or Taino village's name was Turabo, it included the lands in the Caguas Valley ...

, from whom the Spanish settlement of San Sebastián del Piñal de Caguax got its name. This village was granted

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the tradition ...

in 1812 and its first city hall was built in 1820 when it received the title of ''Villa y cabeza de distrito de Provincia de España'' ("''Villa'' and District headquarters of a Spanish province"). The village was finally granted full city rights in 1894. Puerto Rico was ceded by

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 Caguas Pueblo was 5,450. The area was heavily damaged by San Felipe Segundo (also known as the

1928 Okeechobee hurricane The Okeechobee hurricane of 1928, also known as the San Felipe Segundo hurricane, was one of the deadliest hurricanes in the recorded history of the North Atlantic basin, and the fourth deadliest hurricane in the United States, only behind the ...

) in 1928 and many historical buildings were demolished then, which is why many of the older buildings, such as the cathedral, date from the 1930s after many rebuilding projects in the downtown took place.

The central plaza and its church

The main town square of Caguas is named . This is one of the largest main town squares or ''plazas'' in Puerto Rico. The central plaza or square, is a public space that is often used for official and unofficial recreational events and is 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. Th ...

, 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 in Caguas barrio-pueblo is the which serves as the regional

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

cathedral. A hermitage was built in 1626 and by 1775 it had been renamed to its current name. In 1830 the construction of a church made of masonry began. The church was used until 1928 when it was damaged by San Felipe Segundo hurricane. Having sustained too much damage, it was demolished and reconstructed starting in 1936 based on an architectural design by Pedro Méndez and Joseph O'Kelly. The church was restored in 1999. In 1964 the church became a cathedral.

Landmarks and places of interest

* Aguayo Aldea Vocational High School, historical

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 ...

building from 1939 listed on 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 ...

. * Caguas Cathedral Dulce Nombre de Jesús, the historical Catholic cathedral of the Diocese of Caguas. * Caguas Museum of Art, housed in a historic building known as ''Casa Amarilla''. * Caguas Museum of Folk Arts, dedicated to the popular arts and crafts of Caguas and Puerto Rico. * Caguas Museum of History in the old city hall. * Caguas Museum of Tobacco, dedicated to the history of tobacco in Caguas and the Caribbean. *Centro Criollo de Ciencias y Tecnología del Caribe, a science and technology institution hosting special educational events, a museum, science and engineering workshops and a movie theater. * Centro de Bellas Artes de Caguas, the municipal center for performing arts which houses one of the largest theaters in Puerto Rico. * First Baptist Church of Caguas, historic church and museum. *

Gautier Benítez High School The Gautier Benitez High School, a school named after Puerto Rican poet José Gautier Benítez, was built in 1924 in Caguas, Puerto Rico and is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places. It is a U-shaped, two-story concrete struct ...

, historical Neoclassical building from 1924 also listed on the

. *''La Asturiana'', a historical bakery and café. *

Las Catalinas Mall Las Catalinas Mall is an enclosed shopping mall located in Caguas, Puerto Rico. The mall opened in 1997, and is currently anchored by Sector Sixty6 Entertainment Center. A former anchor tenant, Sears, closed their store in February 2021. The stor ...

, located in the former Central Santa Catalina

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 and refinery. * Logia Unión y Amparo No. 44, historic masonic lodge. * Old Telegraph at the Casa del Rey building next to the city hall. *Panadería ''La Française'', a popular bakery turned into a restaurant (Eiffel Café) and pizza parlor (Farinole Pizza & Bar), popular with locals and visitors alike. * Paseo de las Artes Abelardo Díaz Alfaro, a promenade located next to the Caguas Center for Performing Arts, popular for its nightlife and social events. * Paseo Gautier Benítez, a pedestrian street with stores, restaurants and bars. * Plaza del Mercado de Caguas, the city's main marketplace which today houses food stores, restaurants, private offices and often hosts cultural events. *Plaza Juan Corujo Collazo, a small square and recreational park. * Taíno Heritage Monument, popularly known as ''La India de Caguas''.

Gallery

Places in Caguas barrio-pueblo: File:Carousel and church at main plaza in Caguas, Puerto Rico.jpg, Carousel in Plaza Palmer (main town square) and the

cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denomination ...

in the back File:171016-F-FH950-0052 (37544309370).jpg, New Caguas City Hall File:Plaza clock - Caguas Puerto Rico.jpg,

Floral clock A floral clock, or flower clock, is a large decorative clock with the clock face formed by carpet bedding, usually found in a park or other public recreation area. Most have the mechanism set in the ground under the flowerbed, which is then pl ...

with faces of famous past citizens of Caguas File:Museo de Arte en Caguas, Puerto Rico.jpg, Caguas Museum of Art File:Caguas building - Puerto Rico.jpg, Typical architecture File:Logia Union y Amparo No44 1 - Caguas Puerto Rico.jpg, Historic

masonic lodge A Masonic lodge, often termed a private lodge or constituent lodge, is the basic organisational unit of Freemasonry. It is also commonly used as a term for a building in which such a unit meets. Every new lodge must be warranted or chartered ...

File:PlazaPalmer2.jpg, Fountain in Plaza Palmer. File:2021antiguoteatrocaguas1.jpg, Old Caguas theater. File:2021antiguotelegrafocaguas1.jpg, The old Telegraph building of Caguas. File:2021bibliotecadecaguas1.jpg, Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos Public Library and Caguas Historical Archives File:2021pueblodecaguas4.jpg, Monument to the Cadiz Constitution File:2021pueblodecaguas3.jpg, Padial Street File:2021pueblodecaguas2.jpg, Historic bank building in Plaza Palmer

References

{{Reflist Barrios of Caguas, Puerto Rico