Villa Mercedes is a city in the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
San Luis, Argentina. It lies on the center-east of the province, on the left-hand banks of the
Quinto River, 32 km from the border with
Córdoba, on
National Route 148, and near the intersection of National Routes
8 and
7. National Route 7 links the city to the provincial capital
San Luis, 90 km to the north-west. It had 96,781 inhabitants during the .
History
The city was founded by Governor
Justo Daract on or around December 1, 1856, as ''Fortín Constitucional'', a mixed civilian-military
fort
A fortification (also called a fort, fortress, fastness, or stronghold) is a military construction designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from La ...
, to protect the territory against
attacks by the
Ranquel aboriginal tribes. The original name was changed in 1861 to Villa Mercedes by decision of the residents, who had adopted the Virgin of Mercy (''Virgen de las Mercedes'') as their patron.
Villa Mercedes grew quickly after a railway line from
Villa María on the
Central Argentine line between
Rosario
Rosario () is the largest city in the central provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Santa Fe Province, Santa Fe. The city, located northwest of Buenos Aires on the west bank of the Paraná River, is the third-most populous city in the ...
and
Córdoba, reached the town in 1875. Built by the State-owned company
Ferrocarril Andino, the line was extended to
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 ...
in 1885 via
San Luis and
Mendoza. The line from Villa Mercedes to Mendoza would become the middle section of the route from
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 was bought by the
Argentine Great Western Railway in 1887 and later became part of the
Buenos Aires and Pacific Railway network.
Villa Mercedes was officially declared a city in 1896. It is now the second largest in San Luis, and an industrial and educational center, hosting a branch of the
National University of San Luis.
Geography
Climate
Villa Mercedes has a dry winter
humid subtropical climate
A humid subtropical climate is a subtropical -temperate climate type, characterized by long and hot summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between ...
(
Köppen Köppen is a German surname. Notable people with the surname include:
* Bernd Köppen (1951–2014), German pianist and composer
* Carl Köppen (1833-1907), German military advisor in Meiji era Japan
* Edlef Köppen (1893–1939), German author ...
''Cwa''), typical from the geographic center of Argentina. Summer is warm to hot with frequent thunderstorms, whereas winter is dry and prone to heavy frosts. Snowfall is unusual but still more common than in Eastern Argentina, and occasionally it can stay on the ground for a couple of days, for example, during the
July 2007 Argentine winter storm
The July 2007 Argentine winter storm resulted from the interaction of an area of low pressure systems across central Argentina and the entry of a massive polar cold snap during the 6–8 July 2007; it was the worst winter of Argentina in almos ...
, when the temperature hit -16.8 °C,
the lowest on record for the city.
Transportation
It is served by
Villa Reynolds Airport.
References
H.R.Stones, ''British Railways in Argentina 1860-1948'', P.E.Waters & Associates, Bromley, Kent, England, 1993.
*
*
Municipality of Villa Mercedes(official website).
{{Authority control
Populated places in San Luis Province
Populated places established in 1856
Cities in Argentina