San Germán () is a historic

town A town is a type of a human settlement, generally larger than a village but smaller than a city. The criteria for distinguishing a town vary globally, often depending on factors such as population size, economic character, administrative stat ...

and

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' ...

located in the Sabana Grande Valley of southwestern region of

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

, south of Mayagüez and Maricao, north of Lajas, east of Hormigueros and Cabo Rojo, and west of Sabana Grande. San Germán is spread over eighteen barrios plus San Germán Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is both a principal city of the San Germán–Cabo Rojo Metropolitan Statistical Area and the Mayagüez–San Germán–Cabo Rojo Combined Statistical Area. San Germán is the second oldest city of Puerto Rico, after

San Juan San Juan, Spanish for Saint John (disambiguation), Saint John, most commonly refers to: * San Juan, Puerto Rico * San Juan, Argentina * San Juan, Metro Manila, a highly urbanized city in the Philippines San Juan may also refer to: Places Arge ...

, and its historic downtown is preserved as the San Germán Historic District. Puerto Rico was, at one time, divided administratively between the San Juan and the San Germán municipalities. The latter covered the western half of Puerto Rico and extended from the western shores of the island to

Arecibo Arecibo (; ) is a Arecibo barrio-pueblo, city and Municipalities of Puerto Rico, municipality on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, on the shores of the Atlantic Ocean, located north of Utuado, Puerto Rico, Utuado and Ciales, Puerto Rico, Ciale ...

in the north and Ponce in the south.

History

The population of San Germán when Alonso Manso was named the first bishop of Puerto Rico in 1511 was "about 50 residents". Outside of San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Germán was one of the largest settlements in the 16th century, as well as Coamo and Aguada. Spanish settlement in San Germán occurred early in the conquest and

colonization 475px, Map of the year each country achieved List of sovereign states by date of formation, independence. Colonization (British English: colonisation) is a process of establishing occupation of or control over foreign territories or peoples f ...

of Puerto Rico. After the destruction of a small early settlement of the same name near modern-day Añasco during a

Taíno The Taíno are the Indigenous peoples of the Caribbean, Indigenous peoples of the Greater Antilles and surrounding islands. At the time of European contact in the late 15th century, they were the principal inhabitants of most of what is now The ...

uprising which started in February 1511, in 1512 the new settlement was built by Miguel Díaz at Guayanilla and was named after

Germaine of Foix Ursula Germaine of Foix (c. 1488 – 15 October 1536) was an Early modern period, early modern French nobility, French noblewoman from the House of Foix. She was the daughter of John, Viscount of Narbonne, and Marie of Orléans, Viscountess of Na ...

, the second wife of King Fernando II, and in reference of

Saint Germanus of Auxerre Germanus of Auxerre (; ; ; 378 – c. 442–448 AD) was a western Roman clergyman who was bishop of Autissiodorum in Late Antique Gaul. He abandoned a career as a high-ranking government official to devote his formidable energy towards the pr ...

. This town was attacked by

French corsairs Corsairs () were privateers, authorised to conduct raids on shipping of a foreign state at war with the Kingdom of France, on behalf of the French crown. Seized vessels and cargo were sold at auction, with the corsair captain entitled to a portio ...

in August 1528, May 1538 and 1554. The construction of a small fort began in 1540, but work stopped in 1546 when the population of the town began moving inland to the current modern location. On May 12, 1571, the Royal Audience (''

Real Audiencia A ''Real Audiencia'' (), or simply an ''Audiencia'' (), was an appellate court in Spain and its empire. The name of the institution literally translates as Royal Audience. The additional designation ''chancillería'' (or ''cancillería'', Catala ...

'') of

Santo Domingo Santo Domingo, formerly known as Santo Domingo de Guzmán, is the capital and largest city of the Dominican Republic and the List of metropolitan areas in the Caribbean, largest metropolitan area in the Caribbean by population. the Distrito Na ...

authorized that both the populations of San Germán and Santa María de Guadianilla be merged into a single city due to the constant French attacks. The new city was built on the

Hills of Santa Marta A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit, and is usually applied to peaks which are above elevation compared to the relative landmass, though not as prominent as mountains. Hills fall unde ...

, next to the Guanajibo River in 1573. Its official name was Nueva Villa de Salamanca, named after the city of Salamanca in Spain. However, the population called the city San Germán el Nuevo (''New San Germán'') and, eventually, the Villa de San Germán (City of San Germán). San Germán is also known as the "''founder of towns''", given the fact that in 1514 the Spanish Crown separated the island into two administrative territories (''Partidos''). The borders of the two partidos were established as the Camuy River to the north and the Jacagua River to the south. They were named the ''

Partition'' and the ''San Germán Partition''.

Hurricane Maria Hurricane Maria was an extremely powerful and devastating tropical cyclone that affected the northeastern Caribbean in September 2017, particularly in the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, which accounted for 2,975 of the 3,059 deaths. It is the ...

on September 20, 2017, triggered numerous landslides in San Germán with the significant amount of rainfall.

Geography

San Germán is in the southwest region of the island. The town is located on the Sabana Grande valley which is bound by the

Cordillera Central Central Cordillera refers to the New Guinea Highlands. Cordillera Central, meaning ''central range'' in Spanish, may refer to the following mountain ranges: * Cordillera Central, Andes (disambiguation), several mountain ranges in South America ** ...

to the north and the Santa Marta Hills and the Lajas Valley to the south. Mountains in San Germán include Alto del Descanso () and Tetas de Cerro Gordo (). San Germán has a number of rivers: Río Caín, Río Duey, Río Rosario, Río Guanajibo (Estero), Río Hoconuco, Guamá River and Rio El Brujo.

Barrios

Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, San Germán is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as . # Ancones # Caín Alto # Caín Bajo # Cotuí # Duey Alto # Duey Bajo # Guamá # Hoconuco Alto # Hoconuco Bajo # Maresúa # Minillas # Retiro # Rosario Alto # Rosario Bajo # Rosario Peñón # Sabana Eneas # Sabana Grande Abajo # San Germán barrio-pueblo #

Tuna A tuna (: tunas or tuna) is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bul ...

Sectors

Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions) and subbarrios, are further subdivided into smaller areas called (''sectors'' in English). The types of ''sectores'' may vary, from normally ''sector'' to ''urbanización'' to ''reparto'' to ''barriada'' to ''residencial'', among others.

Special Communities

(Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of

social exclusion Social exclusion or social marginalisation is the social disadvantage and relegation to the fringe of society. It is a term that has been used widely in Europe and was first used in France in the late 20th century. In the EU context, the Euro ...

. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in San Germán: Ancones, Comunidad El Retiro, Comunidad Las Quebradas, La Tea, Parcelas Las Carolinas, Parcelas Minillas en Barrio Minillas, Parcelas Sabana Eneas, and Rosario Peñón.

Climate

Tourism

San Germán's historic downtown is the site of the ''Porta Coeli'' church, one of the earliest Spanish churches built in the Americas. ''Porta Coeli'' is still a major historical attraction that attracts both domestic and international tourists every year.

Landmarks and places of interest

* Puente de Bolas (Bridge of Balls) * * (San Germán history museum) * Casa Morales * Ceiba de la Libertad * San Germán Historic Gallery * Lola Rodríguez de Tió Museum * Casa Cruz de la Luna * Ramírez de Arrellano y Rossell Museum * Santo Domingo Plazuela * Three Races and One Culture Mural * San Germán Historic District * Porta Coeli *

Inter-American University of Puerto Rico The Inter American University of Puerto Rico (Spanish: ''Universidad Interamericana de Puerto Rico''; often abbreviated to ''UIPR'' or ''Inter'') is a private Christian university with its main campus in San Germán, Puerto Rico. It also has ...

* Church San Germán de Auxerre *

Russian Orthodox Church The Russian Orthodox Church (ROC; ;), also officially known as the Moscow Patriarchate (), is an autocephaly, autocephalous Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox Christian church. It has 194 dioceses inside Russia. The Primate (bishop), p ...

Saint John Climacus (Only Russian Orthodox Church in Puerto Rico) The urban center of San Germán is mainly composed of

Spanish colonial The Spanish Colonial Revival architecture (), often known simply as Spanish Revival, is a term used to encompass a number of revivalist architectural styles based in both Spanish colonial architecture and Spanish architecture in general. These ...

houses. Many have been restored and conserve their Spanish look while other houses are somewhat abandoned and in poor condition. There are ongoing projects employing public and private funding to preserve and restore many houses and monuments and to maintain San Germán's colonial era look.

Culture

Festivals and events

San Germán celebrates its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

festival in late July / early August. The is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment. Other festivals and events celebrated in San Germán include: * Festival de la Pana – July * Anón Festival – September * Christmas Festival – December * Christmas Parade – Early December * Patron Celebrations (The

Virgin of the Rosary Our Lady of the Rosary (), also known as Our Lady of the Holy Rosary, is a Marian title. The Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, formerly known as Feast of Our Lady of Victory and Feast of the Holy Rosary is celebrated on 7 October in the General ...

)—Celebrated in San Germán's Rosario Poblado, which borders the municipality of Mayagüez.

Sports

San Germán is home to one of Puerto Rico's oldest basketball franchises, dating back to the 1930s, the San Germán Athletics (los Atléticos de San Germán), nicknamed "The Orange Monster". Many glories of Puerto Rican basketball have played in San Germán, a city that is also known as "The Cradle of Puerto Rican Basketball". Some of those players are Arquelio Torres, José "Piculín" Ortiz, Eddie Casiano, Nelson Quiñones, Elías "Larry" Ayuso, Christian Dalmau, and so many others. Their home court is The Arquelio Torres Ramírez Court, which houses approximately 5,000 fans. The Athletic's fan base is most commonly referred to as their sixth man, or "The Orange Monster". This is because for a visiting team it's extremely hard to win in San Germán due to how vigorous and "into" the game the fans are. The Athletics have been to 26 National Superior Basketball (BSN) Finals, of which one was cancelled (1953) due to confiscation because of a fight between players from San Germán and the Ponce Lions, giving birth to Puerto Rican basketball's most intense rivalry. Championships (14): 1932, 1936, 1939, 1941, 1942, 1943, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1950, 1985, 1991, 1994, 1997 Sub-Championships (11): 1931, 1933, 1936, 1938, 1940, 1954, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1965, 1986

Economy

Agriculture

The area around San Germán grows fruits (banana,

pineapple The pineapple (''Ananas comosus'') is a Tropical vegetation, tropical plant with an edible fruit; it is the most economically significant plant in the family Bromeliaceae. The pineapple is indigenous to South America, where it has been culti ...

) and

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of 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 stout, jointed, fib ...

on mid-scale. Dairy farms are also present in small scale. Some locals grow other produce on a small scale.

Business

Most businesses are located in or near the downtown area ( San Germán Pueblo).

Plaza del Oeste A town square (or public square, urban square, city square or simply square), also called a plaza or piazza, is an open public space commonly found in the heart of a traditional town or city, and which is used for community gatherings. Relat ...

is the main shopping center.

Industry

Major employers of the city include Fresenius Kabi, CCL, Wallace International, Baxter Serum Mfg., Cordis, Insertco (print shop for medical instructions inserts), Wallace Silversmiths de Puerto Rico,

General Electric General Electric Company (GE) was an American Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate founded in 1892, incorporated in the New York (state), state of New York and headquartered in Boston. Over the year ...

(production of circuit breakers) and several other companies in the service industry.

Motion pictures filmed in San Germán

* Act of Valor (2012) Which follows a Navy Seal squad on a covert mission to recover a kidnapped CIA Agent Morales (

Roselyn Sánchez Roselyn Milagros Sánchez Rodríguez (born April 2, 1973) is a Puerto Rican singer-songwriter, dancer, model, actress, producer, and writer. On television, she is best known for her roles as Elena Delgado on the CBS police procedural ''Without ...

). * Dinero Sangre (1986) In a banana republic a ruthless mercenary waits to make a killing in gold. Only two people stand in his way ( Guy Ecker)

Demographics

Government

Like all municipalities in

, San Germán is administered by a mayor. The current mayor is Virgilio Olivera Olivera from the New Progressive Party. Olivera was first elected in the 2020 general elections. The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV, which is represented by two Senators. In

2024 The year saw the list of ongoing armed conflicts, continuation of major armed conflicts, including the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the Myanmar civil war (2021–present), Myanmar civil war, the Sudanese civil war (2023–present), Sudane ...

, Jeison Rosa and Karen Michelle Román Rodríguez were elected as District Senators.

Transportation

By the 16th century there was a rough road called (Camino Real) connecting San Germán (which was located near the mouth of the Añasco River) to other areas of Puerto Rico, including

San Sebastián San Sebastián, officially known by the bilingual name Donostia / San Sebastián (, ), is a city and municipality located in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. It lies on the coast of the Bay of Biscay, from the France–Spain border ...

, Toa Alta, and Caparra. In 2019, there were 44 bridges in San Germán.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag

Green – The Episcopal dignity and also the color of the Shield of

Christopher Columbus Christopher Columbus (; between 25 August and 31 October 1451 – 20 May 1506) was an Italians, Italian explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed Voyages of Christopher Columbus, four Spanish-based voyages across the At ...

and his son, don

Diego Colón Diego Columbus (; ; ; 1479/1480 – February 23, 1526) was a navigator and explorer under the Kings of Castile and Aragón. He served as the 2nd Admiral of the Indies, 2nd Viceroy of the Indies and 4th Governor of the Indies as a vassal to the K ...

, Viceroy of the Indies, who named the city in honor of Germane de Foix. White – The purity of the blood of the great families who colonized San Germán, according to a history book by

Fray Íñigo Abbad y Lasierra Fray Íñigo Abbad y Lasierra (1745–1813), born in Estadilla, Spain, was a Benedictine monk and the first historian A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concer ...

, a Spanish

Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...

monk. Purple – Color of the Shield of

Juan Ponce de León Juan Ponce de León ( – July 1521) was a Spanish explorer and ''conquistador'' known for leading the first official European expedition to Puerto Rico in 1508 and Florida in 1513. He was born in Santervás de Campos, Valladolid, Spain, in ...

, first

governor of Puerto Rico The governor of Puerto Rico () is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. Elected to a 4 year-term through popular vote by the residents of the archipelago and island, ...

Coat of arms

First Quarter: The Mitre and the Staff in a green field represent St. Germain of Auxerre, the Patron Saint of the city. Second Quarter: The second quarter exhibits the arms of the Kingdoms of Aragón and Sicily, where don Fernando the Catholic reigned. Third Quarter: In this quarter the arms combine with the County of Foix and the Kingdom of France, which constitute the family shields of

Germaine de Foix Ursula Germaine of Foix (c. 1488 – 15 October 1536) was an early modern French noblewoman from the House of Foix. She was the daughter of John, Viscount of Narbonne, and Marie of Orléans and granddaughter of Queen Eleanor of Navarre. By ma ...

whose name is perpetuated as the name of the city of San Germán. Fourth Quarter: Is Ponce de León's shield. The Crown: Is a civic or municipal standard and is used as a stamp for towns and cities; San Germán was assigned five towers to denote that this population formally obtained the title of city from the Spanish crown in the nineteenth century.

Education

The following schools are in San Germán: #Bartolome de Las Casas: PK-6 #Georgina Alvarado: PK-5 #Henry W. Longfellow: PK-5 #Herminia C. Ramirez: PK-5 #Julio Victor Guzman: KG-8 #Laura Mercado: 6–12 #Lola Rodriguez de Tio: 9–10 #Mariano Abril: PK-6 #(Second Unit) Francisco Maria Quinones: KG-8 The main campus of the

is located adjacent to the downtown area of San Germán. It was founded in 1912 as the ''Polytechnical Institute of Puerto Rico'', the first

private university Private universities and private colleges are higher education institutions not operated, owned, or institutionally funded by governments. However, they often receive tax breaks, public student loans, and government grants. Depending on the count ...

on the island. The Colegio San José, was a private school which was established in San Germán in 1930 and closed in 2017.

Puerto Ricans from San Germán

* PFC Joseph R. (José) Martínez destroyed a German infantry unit and tank in Tunisia, during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, by providing heavy artillery fire, saving his platoon from being attacked in the process. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Cross, second only to the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest Awards and decorations of the United States Armed Forces, military decoration and is awarded to recognize American United States Army, soldiers, United States Navy, sailors, Un ...

, by General

George S. Patton George Smith Patton Jr. (11 November 1885 – 21 December 1945) was a general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh Army in the Mediterranean Theater of World War II, then the Third Army in France and Germany after the Alli ...

, thus becoming the first Puerto Rican recipient of said military decoration. * Ubaldino Ramírez de Arellano—Senator *

Lola Rodríguez de Tió Lola Rodríguez de Tió (September 14, 1843 – November 10, 1924) was a Puerto Rican woman who established herself a reputation as a great poet throughout all of Latin America. A believer in women's rights, she was also committed to the abolit ...

—poet, author of the original lyrics of Puerto Rico's national anthem, La Borinqueña, and pro-independence advocate * Benjamín Marcantoni – opera singer *

Benicio del Toro Benicio Monserrate Rafael del Toro Sánchez (; born February 19, 1967) is a Puerto Rico, Puerto Rican actor. List of awards and nominations received by Benicio del Toro, His accolades include an Academy Awards, Academy Award, a British Academy ...

—Award-winning actor * Francisco Mariano Quiñones—Abolitionist and politician * Samuel R. Quiñones—Longest-serving President of the Puerto Rico Senate, serving for twenty years.

Gallery

San Germán, Puerto Rico.jpg, San Germán San German, Puerto Rico.jpg, Street in San Germán LA BOTICA.jpg, Pharmacy Museum Residential building in San Germán, Puerto Rico.jpg, Residential building in San Germán

References

External links

San German, Puerto Rico

San Germán and its barrios, United States Census Bureau

Official Webpage of the San German Atleticos

Welcome to Puerto Rico! San German Map

Welcome to Puerto Rico! San Germán

San German Municipality on Facebook
{{DEFAULTSORT:San German, Puerto Rico Municipalities of Puerto Rico Populated places established in 1511 San Germán–Cabo Rojo metropolitan area 1511 establishments in the Spanish Empire