Elói Mendes is a

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the south of the Brazilian

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

Minas Gerais Minas Gerais () is one of the 27 federative units of Brazil, being the fourth largest state by area and the second largest in number of inhabitants with a population of 20,539,989 according to the 2022 Brazilian census, 2022 census. Located in ...

. In 2020 the population was 28,320 in a total area of 498 km².IBGE 2020
/ref> The elevation of the municipal seat is 899 meters.

Geography

Neighboring municipalities are

Três Pontas Três Pontas (, ''Three Tips'') is a Municipalities of Brazil, municipality located in southern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. It's a city with about all streets of urban zone paved and services of water and sewage to all people. The municipality h ...

, Paraguaçu, Cordislândia, Monsenhor Paulo and

Varginha Varginha is a municipality in southwest Minas Gerais state, Brazil. Varginha stands out as one of the major centers of commerce and coffee production in Brazil and the world. The city is a center for export of coffee draining most of the producti ...

. The IBGE statistical microregion is

. Elói Mendes lies on federal highway BR-491 and is between

and Paraguaçu. The distance to

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte is the List of largest cities in Brazil, sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population of around 2.3 million, and the third largest metropolitan area, containing a population of 6 million. It is the List of cities in Sout ...

is 335 km.

Climate and Temperatures

*Maximum elevation: 1,084 m - Cab. Córrego Pitangueira *Minimum elevation: 793 m - Represa de Furnas *Elevation of the city: 899,36 m *Average annual temperature:19.6 °C *Average annual minimum: 14.3 °C *Average annual maximum: 26.9 °C *Rainfall index: 1,592.7 mm

Economy

The economy is based on agriculture and small and medium size industries. In agriculture the main crops are coffee, with 9,300 hectares planted in 2006, rice, sugarcane, beans and corn, with 3,200 hectares planted. In the industrial sector there are factories of cardboard tubes, furniture, mattresses, cement products, wires and thread, textiles, and magnetic cards. In 2007 there were 3 financial institutions.

Sectors of economic activity by workers

*Agriculture, fishing, and forestry: 3,900 *Industry: 1,687 *Commerce and merchandise: 1,379 *Other services: 3,007 TOTAL: 9,973

History

The town traces its beginnings to the middle of the eighteenth century. Explorers arrived and camped on the banks of a small river. The climate was mild, there was abundant water, and the lands were fertile. But the site had one defect: it was infested by clouds of a blood-sucking mosquito called Mutuca. For this reason the river and the lands nearby were given the name "Mutuca". 1792 is the first date known in an authentic document referring to the existence of the town. The first settlement of Mutuca changed its name to Espírito Santo da Mutuca, later Espírito Santo do Pontal, and later reducing the name to Pontal. In 1911 it got its municipal emancipation from

. The name, Pontal, was changed to Eloy Mendes in honor of Major Joaquim Eloy Mendes (1827–1913), who was an important local figure and a baron in the Empire of Brazil with the title of Baron of Varginha. Later with modern spelling the name was changed to Elói Mendes.

Tourism

Elói Mendes is not far from the Rio Verde and the gigantic Furnas Reservoir, which is used for fishing, swimming, and boating. The annual carnival celebration attracts revelers from all over the south of Minas Gerais. Municipal

Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistical composite index of life expectancy, Education Index, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income i ...

*MHDI: .768 *State ranking: 181 out of 853 municipalities *National ranking: 1,385 out of 5,138 municipalities *Life expectancy: 72 years at birth *Literacy rate: 85% For the complete list se
Frigoletto

References

City governmentEloi Mendes.comIBGE
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eloi Mendes Municipalities in Minas Gerais 1911 establishments in Brazil Populated places established in 1911