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Pilar is a city in
Buenos Aires Province Buenos Aires, officially the Buenos Aires Province, is the largest and most populous Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province. It takes its name from the city of Buenos Aires, the capital of the country, which used to be part of the province an ...
, Argentina. It is part of the
Greater Buenos Aires Greater Buenos Aires (, GBA), also known as the Buenos Aires Metropolitan Area (, AMBA), refers to the urban agglomeration comprising the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of B ...
urban conurbation and is the seat of the administrative division of
Pilar Partido Pilar Partido is a Partidos of Buenos Aires, partido in the northern part of Greater Buenos Aires in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. The provincial subdivision has a population of about 232,000 inhabitants in an area of , and its capital city i ...
. It is located about 51 km northwest of downtown Buenos Aires. As of the 2022 Census, the city had a population of nearly 52,000. Originally located on the flood-prone banks of the
Luján River The Luján River ( Spanish, Río Luján) runs from its source near Espora about west of Buenos Aires, Argentina, to its outflow into the Río de la Plata north of the city. The first ''Megatherium ''Megatherium'' ( ; from Greek () 'great' + ...
, the small town of Pilar and its chapel were relocated to their current site in the 1800s. Pilar was the site of the signing of the
Treaty of Pilar The Treaty of Pilar (in Spanish, ''Tratado del Pilar'') was a pact signed among the rulers of the Argentine provinces of Santa Fe, Entre Ríos and Buenos Aires, which is recognized as the foundation of the federal organization of the country. ...
in 1820, a foundational document that is one of "pre-existing pacts" of the
Constitution of Argentina The Constitution of the Argentine Nation () is the basic governing document of Argentina, and the primary source of existing law in Argentina. Its first version was written in 1853 by a constitutional assembly which gathered in Santa Fe; the ...
and laid the foundation for Argentina's federal system of government. Since the 1990s, Pilar has undergone a demographic transformation fueled by the development of gated communities within and around the city limits. In recent decades, as the administrative center of Pilar Partido, the city has diversified its economy, supported by neighbouring industries and a growing service sector in the district. As a result, Pilar has solidified its position as a development hub on the outskirts of Greater Buenos Aires.


History

The rural outpost that later became Pilar was first assigned a local authority in 1774 with the appointment of Ventura López Camelo as its first ''
alcalde ''Alcalde'' (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and Administration (government), administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor (position), corregidor, the presiding officer o ...
'', or mayor. Pilar was originally located next to the
Luján River The Luján River ( Spanish, Río Luján) runs from its source near Espora about west of Buenos Aires, Argentina, to its outflow into the Río de la Plata north of the city. The first ''Megatherium ''Megatherium'' ( ; from Greek () 'great' + ...
. After frequent floods, was requested in the 1800s to relocate the small town and chapel on higher land (its current location). Pilar is the site where the
Treaty of Pilar The Treaty of Pilar (in Spanish, ''Tratado del Pilar'') was a pact signed among the rulers of the Argentine provinces of Santa Fe, Entre Ríos and Buenos Aires, which is recognized as the foundation of the federal organization of the country. ...
was signed on February 23, 1820, establishing the basis for Argentine federalism, as a result of which the city of Pilar is acknowledged as the "Cradle of National Federalism." This Treaty marked the end of the war between the League of Free Peoples formed by the provinces of Entre Ríos and Santa Fe against Buenos Aires. The Parish of
Our Lady of the Pillar Our Lady of the Pillar () is the name given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the context of the traditional belief that Mary, while living in Jerusalem, supernaturally appeared to the Apostle James the Greater in AD 40, AD 40 while he was pre ...
was consecrated in 1856, and the '' partido'' (county) of Pilar was established in 1864, its first municipal mayor being Tomás Márquez. A Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway line, its first, reached the town in 1886, and by 1895 nearly 10,000 inhabitants lived in Pilar. The opening of National Route 8 in 1934 eased the commute to
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
, and Pilar subsequently became a growing
commuter town A commuter town is a populated area that is primarily residential rather than commercial or industrial. Routine travel from home to work and back is called commuting, which is where the term comes from. A commuter town may be called by many o ...
. Pilar grew further after the construction in the late 1960s of a
freeway A controlled-access highway is a type of highway that has been designed for high-speed vehicular traffic, with all traffic flow—ingress and egress—regulated. Common English terms are freeway, motorway, and expressway. Other similar terms ...
along the stretch of National Route 8 to Buenos Aires, and with the establishment in 1970 of the local
industrial district Industrial district (ID) is a place where workers and firms, specialised in a main industry and auxiliary industries, live and work. The concept was initially used by Alfred Marshall to describe some aspects of the industrial organisation of nat ...
, the ''Parque Industrial Pilar'', which grew to be among the largest in South America and home to 200 national and international companies. The establishment of the first
polo Polo is a stick and ball game that is played on horseback as a traditional field sport. It is one of the world's oldest known team sports, having been adopted in the Western world from the game of Chovgan (), which originated in ancient ...
fields beginning in the late 19th century and of a number of
country club A country club is a privately-owned Club (organization), club, often with a membership quota and admittance by invitation or sponsorship, that generally offers both a variety of recreational sports and facilities for dining and entertaining. Ty ...
s from 1948 onward, as well as the development of numerous gated communities beginning in the 1990s, gave Pilar an increasingly upscale profile in subsequent years. In 2017, the municipality created the locality of Pilar Sur, out of the southern portion of the city.


Attractions

Numerous visitor and tourist attractions are located in the city. These include the Parish of Our Lady of the Pillar (1856); the October 12 Plaza facing it (both National Historic Monuments); the Spanish Colonial Revivalist City Hall (1896); the Alcalde Lorenzo López Historical Museum; the (reputedly haunted) Pando-Carabassa Chalet (1900), the Argentine Polo Association therein, and the adjoining polo fields; several country clubs including the Highland Park Country Club (1948), Golfer's Country Club (1973), Pilar Golf Club (1992), and the Estancias Golf Club (2008); and the Pilar Nature Reserve (2003). Pilar is also the site of the private Austral University, founded in 1991.


The celebrations of the pilar

Signing of the Treaty of Pilar. It is celebrated on February 23, the anniversary of the peace agreement signed by Manuel de Sarratea, Governor of Buenos Aires; Estanislao López, Governor of Santa Fe; and Francisco Ramírez, governor of Entre Ríos. The treaty, signed in 1820, laid the foundation of the federal system of government today prevailing in Argentina. Pilar recalls the historic pact with protocol events, conferences and art festivals, among other activities.
Our Lady of the Pillar Our Lady of the Pillar () is the name given to the Blessed Virgin Mary in the context of the traditional belief that Mary, while living in Jerusalem, supernaturally appeared to the Apostle James the Greater in AD 40, AD 40 while he was pre ...
. Each October 12, the community of Pilar and the whole Party celebrated the feast of their patron saint, the Virgin of Pilar. He remembers when, in 1729, a local indigenous man exposed to public worship an image of the Virgin in a chapel erected on his property. In addition to the liturgical activities, including the huge procession with the venerated image stands out, the Municipality of Pilar organized a civic-military parade that the forces of the district, educational, social and sporting institutions, traditionalist centers and schools involved native dances, among other social organizations.


Tourism

Some notable points of interest in Pilar are: October 12 Square. Declared a National Historic Landmark on May 21, 1942. The city has an urban design around a rectangular plaza which in turn gives rise to the trace the streets and a grid amanzanamiento. The square is graced
Ginkgo biloba ''Ginkgo biloba'', commonly known as ginkgo or gingko ( ), also known as the maidenhair tree, is a species of gymnosperm tree native to East Asia. It is the last living species in the order Ginkgoales, which first appeared over 290 million year ...
, planted between 1958 and 1962.
Treaty of Pilar The Treaty of Pilar (in Spanish, ''Tratado del Pilar'') was a pact signed among the rulers of the Argentine provinces of Santa Fe, Entre Ríos and Buenos Aires, which is recognized as the foundation of the federal organization of the country. ...
. Signed here on February 23, 1820, it marked the origin of the federal system of government and made the city the "cradle of federalism" in Argentina. The pact, signed in the original chapel of Pilar by Francisco Ramírez, Estanislao López, and Manuel de Sarratea, ended the war between the provinces of Entre Ríos and Santa Fe against Buenos Aires. Municipal Palace. Is cornerstone was laid in 1896 by the Governor of the Province, Guillermo Udaondo. The first Municipal Mayor was Thomas Márquez. The building originally housed four dungeons. Our Lady of the Pilar. Begun as a simple adobe structure in 1821 under the direction of architect José Villa, the vault of the nave and the upper floors were made from 1840. The work was then interrupted until 1854 and continued until its conclusion directed by architect Roque Petrocchi. It was declared a National Historic Landmark on December 7, 1994.Basílica de Nuestra Señora del Pilar
/ref> Mayor Lorenzo López Historical Museum. The Museum preserves and exhibits historical and religious artifacts from Pilar. Of particular interest is the display of objects linked with the signing of the Treaty of Pilar. Cross of Pilar. Located on the corner of the intersection of Pedro Lagrave and Paraná streets, it's believed to have been placed in 1790 by Spanish missionaries traveling north from Buenos Aires; another version has it that this cross was placed as a guidepost when the original settlement was moved to its current location. The first mass in Pilar was held here, and with the advent of bricks as building material in the 19th century, the old wooden cross was replaced by masonry. The Site of the Miracle. The site, known originally as Rosendo's Post, where the miracle of the Virgin of Luján reportedly took place in 1630. There are two milestones that make reference to the miracle: a small altar with the image of the Virgin of Luján; and an old adobe chapel. The Ministry of Culture of the Nation declared this a National Historic Landmark. Pilar Nature Reserve. Established on 20 August 2003, the reserve made use of five former military lots bordering the north bank of the Luján River and totals . A series of lagoons make it home to a profusion of roman cassie, Jerusalem thorn, tule, catay, waxyleaf nightshade and other flora, as well weasels, rabbits, nutria, skunks, amphibians, reptiles, and over 60 species of birds. Polo and golf. Pilar is known in Argentina as the National Capital of Polo. The Argentina Polo Association is headquartered in Pando-Carabassa Castle, built in the late nineteenth century. The site has nine fields and is home to the most important tournaments in the country.


Demographics

Pilar is the third most populous locality of Pilar Partido. Colors= id:lightgrey value:gray(0.9) id:darkgrey value:gray(0.8) id:sfondo value:rgb(1,1,1) id:barra value:rgb(0.6,0.7,0.8) ImageSize = width:155 height:303 PlotArea = left:50 bottom:50 top:30 right:30 DateFormat = x.y Period = from:0 till:55000 TimeAxis = orientation:vertical AlignBars = justify ScaleMajor = gridcolor:darkgrey increment:5000 start:0 ScaleMinor = gridcolor:lightgrey increment:1000 start:0 BackgroundColors = canvas:sfondo BarData= bar:2010 text:2010 bar:2022 text:2022 PlotData= color:barra width:20 align:left bar:2010 from: 0 till:39241 bar:2022 from: 0 till:52000 PlotData= bar:2010 at:39241 fontsize:XS text: 39241 shift:(-8,5) bar:2022 at:52000 fontsize:XS text: 52000 shift:(-8,5) TextData= fontsize:S pos:(20,20) text:Data from INDEC


Notable people

* Belén Rodríguez, television personality and model * Franco Colapinto, racing driver * Valentina Zenere, actress


References


External links

{{Authority control Populated places in Buenos Aires Province Populated places established in 1774 Cities in Argentina