The Estação das Docas (English: Docks Station) is a Brazilian tourist-cultural complex and multi-environmental space created in 2000. It is located in the Campina neighborhood, in

Belém Belém (; Portuguese for Bethlehem; initially called Nossa Senhora de Belém do Grão-Pará, in English Our Lady of Bethlehem of Great Pará), often called Belém of Pará, is the capital and largest city of the state of Pará in the north of B ...

, the capital of

Pará Pará () is a Federative units of Brazil, state of Brazil, located in northern Brazil and traversed by the lower Amazon River. It borders the Brazilian states of Amapá, Maranhão, Tocantins (state), Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Amazonas (Brazilian st ...

, and was originally built as part of the city's port. It is currently managed by the Pará 2000 Social Organization.

History

The Estação das Docas is the result of restoration work on three warehouses in the old port of Belém, which replaced the precarious

Ver-o-Peso The Ver-o-Peso Market, Mercado Municipal Bolonha de Peixe, Mercado de Ferro, or Ver-o-Peso is a street market and fair, and small port area inaugurated in 1901 (replacing the "Casa de Haver-o-Peso", 1625-1899) that is part of the Ver-o-Peso Compl ...

and Reduto docks. In 1909, the first 120-meter stretch of quay and a 2,000 m² warehouse were built in English iron with steam engines powering the site's equipment, typical of the architecture of the second half of the 1800s. External cranes were manufactured in the United States at the beginning of the 20th century. The site features the ruins of the São Pedro Nolasco Fort (also known as the Bastion of Our Lady of Mercy), originally built in 1665 on the shores of

Guajará Bay Guajará Bay ( Portuguese: ''Baía do Guajará'') is formed by the confluence of the mouths of the Guamá and Acará rivers, which border the municipalities of Barcarena and Belém, the capital of Pará. Its waters flow into Marajó Bay and end ...

, in front of the Convent of the Mercedarians, to assist the Presépio Fort in the defense of the city's initial colonial nucleus. In 1825, it was destroyed during the

Cabanagem The Cabanagem (; 1835–1840) was a popular revolution and pro-separatist movement that occurred in the then province of Grão-Pará, Empire of Brazil. Among the causes for this revolt were the extreme poverty of the Paraense people, oppressio ...

and, in 1842, it was demolished for the construction of the

port of Belém The Port of Belém was built in 1909 and is located in the neighborhood of Reduto, in the city of Belém, capital of Pará, on the right bank of Guajará Bay, about 120 km from the Atlantic Ocean. It was designed in 1897 and the first stretch ...

and to create the ''Rua do Imperador'' (now Boulevard Castilhos França). Formerly part of the Port of Belém, Estação da Docas was inaugurated as a tourist complex on May 13, 2000, in an area that previously had high levels of crime and prostitution, revitalizing the area and transforming it into a regional leisure spot with its 500 meters of waterfront.

Characteristics

The complex includes different activities, including gastronomy, culture, fashion and events. It has 32,000 square meters divided into three warehouses and a passenger terminal, with a viewpoint of the

and the Onças Island.

Divisions

* Warehouse 1: Boulevard of the Arts and cinema; Maria Sylvia Nunes Theater; * Warehouse 2: Boulevard of Gastronomy; * Warehouse 3: Boulevard of Fairs, Exhibitions; Museum of the Port of Belém; * Amphitheater of the São Pedro Nolasco Fort;

Museum of the Port of Belém

In 1985, the Museum of the Port of Belém was inaugurated in warehouse 3 of the Estação das Docas, which can be accessed via the Boulevard Castilhos França. The construction of the museum was conceived by Colonel Raul da Silva Moreira, then CEO of the port. Its collection, organized by a team of staff led by historian Dantas de Feitosa, tells the story of navigation in the state of Pará and is composed of photographs and pieces found through excavations during the restoration of the space.

São Pedro Nolasco Fort

The São Pedro Nolasco Fort was built in 1665 by the former captain-general of the captaincy of Grão-Pará, Rui Vaz de Siqueira, to protect the colonial settlement of Feliz Lusitânia (now Belém), along with the Presépio Fort and the São José Redoubt. During the

, a popular-social uprising that occurred in the then Province of Grão-Pará between 1835 and 1840, the fort suffered major damage. After the conflict, when plans were made to build a new pier for the

, it was necessary to choose between rebuilding or demolishing the fort. The then president of the province, Bernardo de Sousa Franco, consulted the then Minister of War,

José Clemente Pereira José Clemente Pereira, known as José Pequeno (José, the short) (12 February 1787 – 10 March 1854), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian magistrate and politician who fought in the Peninsular War and of high relevance to the Empire of Brazil, i ...

, who took the question to Emperor

Pedro II '' Dom'' PedroII (Pedro de Alcântara João Carlos Leopoldo Salvador Bibiano Francisco Xavier de Paula Leocádio Miguel Gabriel Rafael Gonzaga; 2 December 1825 – 5 December 1891), nicknamed the Magnanimous (), was the second and last monar ...

; he chose to dissolve the remains of the structure in 1841. After its demolition, the area around the fort was landfilled to create the ''Rua do Imperador'' (now Boulevard Castilhos França). In 2000, the ruins were revitalized and transformed into the

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (American English, U.S. English: amphitheater) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ('), meani ...

of the Estação das Docas.

Maria Sylvia Nunes Theater

Founded in 2002, the

building A building or edifice is an enclosed Structure#Load-bearing, structure with a roof, walls and window, windows, usually standing permanently in one place, such as a house or factory. Buildings come in a variety of sizes, shapes, and functions, a ...

was named after Maria Sylvia Ferreira da Silva Nunes, a professor and theater director from Pará. She was the founder of the current School of Theater and Dance at the

Federal University of Pará The Federal University of Pará (, UFPA) is one of the Public university, public universities maintained by the Brazilian Federal government of Brazil, federal government in the States of Brazil, state of Pará. The university, with + 50,000 stude ...

in 1962, in partnership with her husband and writer

Benedito Nunes Benedito Nunes (November 21, 1929 - February 27, 2011) was a Brazilian philosopher and literary critic. He was born Benedito José Viana da Costa Nunes in Belém, a major city in the north of Brazil, where he was later a professor at the Federal U ...

References

{{Portal bar, Brazil, Architecture Geography of Pará Belém Pará 2000 establishments in Brazil Tourist attractions in Pará