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Banastre Tarleton

Sir Banastre Tarleton, 1st Baronet (21 August 1754 – 15 January 1833) was a British general and politician. He is best known as the lieutenant colonel leading the British Legion at the end of the American Revolutionary War. He later served in Portugal and held commands in Ireland and England.

During most of his service in North America, he led the British Legion, a provincial unit organised in New York in 1778. After returning to Great Britain in 1781 at the age of 27, Tarleton was elected to Parliament as a member for Liverpool. He served as a prominent Whig politician for 20 years. He was interested in military matters and opposed abolition of the slave trade.

Early life
Banastre Tarleton was the third of seven children born to merchant John Tarleton (1718–1773) and his wife. His father had prospered in the West Indian sugar trade and also managed several slaving vessels. Tarleton’s & Backhouse became one of the largest import-export companies in Britain. The family had trade interests throughout America and dealt in many cargoes, including slaves.

Tarleton was educated at Oxford, attending University College. He was further educated at Middle Temple, London, which, at that time, served as a college for the education of lawyers. In 1773 at the age of 19, he inherited £5,000 on his father's death. He squandered almost all of it in less than a year on gambling and women, mostly at the Cocoa Tree club in London.

In 1775 he purchased a commission as a cavalry officer (cornet) in the 1st Dragoon Guards (effective from 2 May 1775). He proved to be a gifted horseman and leader of troops. Owing to his abilities, he worked his way up through the ranks to lieutenant colonel without having to purchase any further commissions.

American War of Independence
In December 1775, at the age of 21, the volunteer-soldier Banastre Tarleton sailed from Cork to North America, where the American War of Independence (1775–83) had broken out. Tarleton sailed with Lord Cornwallis as part of an expedition to capture the southern city of Charleston, South Carolina. After that expedition failed, at the Battle of Sullivan's Island (28 June 1776), Tarleton went north to join the main British Army under command of General William Howe, in New York.

Under the command of Colonel William Harcourt, Tarleton, as a cornet, was part of a scouting party sent to gather intelligence on the movements of General Charles Lee, in New Jersey. On 13 December 1776, Tarleton surrounded a house in Basking Ridge, and forced Lee, still in dressing gown, to surrender, as he threatened to burn down the house. General Lee was taken to New York as a prisoner of war. He later was used in an exchange of prisoners.

In the course of the colonial war in North America, Cornet Tarleton's campaign service during 1776 earned him the position of brigade major at the end of the year; he was twenty-two years old. He was promoted to captain on 13 June 1778. Major Tarleton was at the Battle of Brandywine and at other battles in the campaigns of 1777 and 1778. One such battle, in 1778, was an attack upon a communications outpost on Signal Hill in Easttown Township, Chester County, Pennsylvania, which was guarded by troops commanded by Capt. Henry Lee III, of the Continental Army, who repulsed the British attack.

Capture of Charleston
After becoming commander of the British Legion, a force of American Loyalist cavalry and light infantry, Tarleton went to South Carolina at the beginning of 1780. There, the Legion supported Sir Henry Clinton in the siege operations that culminated in the British capture of Charleston. The siege and capture of the city were part of the British strategy in the southern military theatre meant to restore royal authority over the southern colonies of British North America.

Battle of Waxhaws

On 29 May 1780, Colonel Tarleton, with a force of 149 mounted soldiers, overtook a detachment of 350 to 380 Virginia Continentals, led by Colonel Abraham Buford]. Buford rejected Tarleton's invitation to surrender on essentially the same terms as the Charles Town garrison. The Continentals continued marching, not preparing for battle until they heard their rear guard in action. Only after sustaining many casualties did Buford order the American soldiers to surrender. Nonetheless, Tarleton's forces ignored the white flag and massacred the soldiers of Buford's detachment; 113 American soldiers were killed, 203 were captured, and 150 were severely wounded. The British army casualties were 5 soldiers killed and 12 soldiers wounded. From the perspective of the British Army, the affair of the massacre is known as the Battle of Waxhaw Creek. In that time, the American rebels used the phrase "Tarleton's quarter" (shooting after surrender) as meaning "no quarter offered".

Forty years later, Robert Brownfield, a surgeon’s mate in the Second South Carolina Regiment at the time of the battle, wrote an account. He said that Colonel Buford raised the white flag of surrender to the British Legion, "expecting the usual treatment sanctioned by civilized warfare"; yet, while Buford called for quarter, Colonel Tarleton's horse was shot with a musket ball, felling horse and man. On seeing that, the Loyalist cavalrymen believed that the Virginia Continentals had shot their commander – while they asked him for mercy. Enraged, the Loyalist troops attacked the Virginians and "commenced a scene of indiscriminate carnage never surpassed by the ruthless atrocities of the most barbarous savages"; in the aftermath, the British Legion soldiers killed wounded American soldiers where they lay.

Tarleton's account, published in 1787, said that his horse had been shot from under him, and that his soldiers, thinking him dead, engaged in "a vindictive asperity not easily restrained".

Regardless of the extent to which they were true or false, the reports of British atrocities motivated Whig-leaning colonials to support the American Revolution. On 7 October 1780, at the Battle of Kings Mountain, South Carolina, soldiers of the Continental Army, having heard of the slaughter at Waxhaw Creek, killed American Loyalists who had surrendered after a sniper killed their British commanding officer, Maj. Patrick Ferguson.

Subsequent operations
In South Carolina, to deny resupply of food and horses, cause attrition and reduce reconnoitering, Tarleton's British Legion were harried by Francis Marion, an American militia commander who practiced guerrilla warfare against the British. Throughout the campaigns, Tarleton was unable to capture him or thwart his operations. Marion's local popularity among anti-British South Carolinians ensured continual aid and comfort for the American cause. In contrast, Colonel Tarleton alienated the colonial citizens with arbitrary confiscations of cattle and food stocks.

Tarleton materially helped Cornwallis to win the Battle of Camden in August 1780. On 22 August, he was promoted to major in the 79th Regiment of Foot (Royal Liverpool Volunteers). He defeated Thomas Sumter at Fishing Creek, aka "Catawba Fords", but was less successful when he encountered the same general at Blackstock's Farm in November 1780.

On 17 January 1781, Tarleton's forces were virtually destroyed by American Brigadier General Daniel Morgan at the Battle of Cowpens. Tarleton and about 200 men escaped the battlefield.

Lieutenant Colonel William Washington commanded the rebel cavalry; to deprive the rebels of leadership he was targeted by the British commander and two of his men. Tarleton was stopped by Washington himself, who attacked him with his sabre, calling out, "Where is now the boasting Tarleton?" A cornet of the 17th, Thomas Patterson, rode up to strike Washington but was shot and killed by Washington's orderly trumpeter.

Washington survived this assault and in the process wounded Tarleton's right hand with a sabre blow, while Tarleton creased Washington's knee with a pistol shot that also wounded his horse. Washington pursued Tarleton for sixteen miles, but gave up the chase when he came to the plantation of Adam Goudylock near Thicketty Creek. Tarleton was able to escape capture by forcing Goudylock to serve as a guide.

He was successful in a skirmish at Torrence's Tavern while the British crossed the Catawba River (Cowan's Ford Skirmish, 1 February 1781) and took part in the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in March 1781. With his men, Tarleton marched with Cornwallis into Virginia. There he carried out a series of small expeditions while in Virginia. Among them was a raid on Charlottesville, where the state government had relocated following the British occupation of the capital at Richmond. He was trying to capture Governor Thomas Jefferson and members of the Virginia General Assembly. The raid was partially foiled by the ride of Jack Jouett, with Jefferson and all but seven of the legislators escaping over the mountains. Tarleton destroyed arms and munitions and succeeded in dispersing the Assembly.

Tarleton was brevetted to lieutenant-colonel in the 79th Foot on 26 June 1781. After other missions, Cornwallis instructed Tarleton to hold Gloucester Point, during the Siege of Yorktown. On 4 October 1781, the French Lauzun's Legion and the British cavalry, commanded by Tarleton, skirmished at Gloucester Point. Tarleton was unhorsed, and Lauzun's Legion drove the British within their lines before being ordered to withdraw by the Marquis de Choisy. The Legion suffered three Hussars killed with two officers and eleven Hussars wounded. Fifty British were killed or wounded, including Tarleton. The British surrendered Gloucester Point to the French and Americans after the surrender at Yorktown in October 1781. He returned to Britain on parole, finished with this war at the age of 27.

Return to England
Banastre Tarleton returned to England a hero: a triumphant veteran wounded in his country’s service. On his arrival “[in] Liverpool in 1782 after legendary exploits in the American war of independence, the church bells rang out and he was feted by admirers.”Knight expands on this: "Most British senior officers returned to England after the war to severe criticism from their compatriots…[They] received varying degrees of blame and censure for the loss of the American colonies.  But Tarleton was almost unique in attracting no such rebuke. …he was received home with universal acclaim, being feted at court and becoming an intimate friend to two future kings, George Prince of Wales and William Duke of Clarence…"

Images everywhere
Tarleton sat for portraits by three leading artists in London: Reynolds, Gainsborough, and Cosway. Contrary to claims of Tarleton’s vanity, he did not pay to have them painted.

Tarleton’s brother commissioned Sir Joshua Reynolds’ well-known painting of Banastre for their mother. “Colonel Tarleton” is regarded as one of the finest examples of Reynolds' work and portraiture in general. The full-length painting, at 236 × 145.5 cm (92.9 x 57.3 inches) is too tall to fit in many homes. Like Tarleton’s mark on the history of the war, the painting is larger than life. The National Gallery describes it:

"Reynolds portrays Tarleton momentarily dismounted on a battlefield, with gun-smoke swirling behind him. Wearing the uniform of the British Legion, he props one leg up on a cannon to re-fix his sword to his belt before changing horses. Reynolds frequently drew on ideas from old master paintings, drawings and antique sculpture for his compositions. Tarleton’s pose appears to be based on works by Rembrandt, Tintoretto and an ancient Roman sculpture of Hermes." The pose disguises Tarleton’s mutilated right hand, of which he lost two fingers to a musket ball at the Battle of Guilford Court House. The flags are unidentified. The Reynolds painting was shown at the Royal Academy later in the year.

Thomas Gainsborough’s equestrian portrait of Tarleton, an even larger canvas, was also exhibited in 1782. John Tarleton wrote to their mother in evident pride, “The picture of my Brother at Gainsborough's will not measure with the frame less than 12 feet 6 inches."

The portrait by the third artist, Richard Cosway, is on quite a different scale. During the late Georgian and Regency periods, Cosway became a sought-after miniaturist as well as receiving commissions for his full-sized portraits. He was the only artist ever appointed official painter to the Prince of Wales. Miniatures were the wallet photos of their era, meeting the need for images which could be transported easily, and it is for these which Cosway is most famous today. His miniature of Banastre Tarleton is in a private collection and a photograph of it is copyrighted.

Some good quality engravings of Tarleton exist, having met the popular interest in him. Most commonly, they were based on the Reynolds painting. Others likely arise from the Gainsborough. Some are inaccurate, perhaps imagined by the engraver. A few were coloured to show him in a red uniform, presumably to meet the expectations of some readers.

Engravings were the basis for illustrations of Tarleton in books and magazines. Others were made for transfer printing on earthenware. There are examples of jugs with his likeness in museums on both sides of the Atlantic.

As a well-known person, politician, and member of the princely social circle, Tarleton was satirized. A caricature of him appeared in several Gilray prints, both as one of the group and as the main subject. L'Assemblée Nationale includes a figure in a Tarleton helmet.

Recriminations
The war wasn’t over after the capitulation at Yorktown, though most of the fighting was finished. Yet the war of words amongst soldiers and politicians was already under way. The London Morning Chronicle printed an anonymous letter castigating Tarleton on 9 August 1782. Lieutenant Roderick MacKenzie was probably the author. MacKenzie had been a junior officer of the 71st Regiment of Foot (Fraser’s Highlanders). He was wounded and captured at the Battle of Cowpens for which he blamed Tarleton. Agniel wrote “If one takes exception to the premise that Lieutenant MacKenzie loathed his commanding officer, it is entirely feasible to substitute any other verb which means roughly the same thing.” Babits noted “Lieutenant Roderick MacKenzie and others had clear bias and slanted their accounts to suit their own purposes...MacKenzie hated Banastre Tarleton…” Buchanan said Mackenzie “bore considerable personal animosity against Tarleton”.

Subsequent letters extended Mackenzie’s criticism to Cornwallis and Clinton, and continued to attack Tarleton for years. As the events of 1781, the year of the defeat at Cowpens and the surrender at Yorktown, were picked apart, the principal actors responded. Clinton’s account was first. He held that “none of the misfortunes of the very unfortunate campaign of 1781 can, with the smallest degree of justice, be imputed to me.” Cornwallis rebutted Clinton’s claims the same year. They continued to trade shots for years after the treaty was signed, attempting to prove themselves blameless for the loss of thirteen of the provinces in North America. Tarleton became a focus of the controversy due to the loss of the light infantry at Cowpens. However, according to Scotti, the criticism of Tarleton “was fuelled by resentment and jealousy.”

Tarleton defended himself in response to their publications and Mackenzie’s vendetta. The eventual result was Tarleton’s 1787 book, History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Provinces of North America. Mackenzie followed by compiling his letters into a book, and explicitly criticised Tarleton’s account almost line by line. The Cornwallis Correspondence also included responses. Major George Hanger (Lord Coleraine) published a rebuttal to Mackenzie in his “Address to the Army”.

Of all the British documentation about the war, Tarleton’s History of the Campaigns of 1780 and 1781 in the Southern Provinces of North America has remained a resource for historians. The book questions decisions made by Cornwallis.

Later military career
Tarleton continued to serve in the British Army and was promoted to colonel on 22 November 1790, to major-general on 4 October 1794 and to lieutenant-general on 1 January 1801. Whilst on service in Portugal, Tarleton succeeded William Henry Vane, 3rd Earl of Darlington as colonel of the Princess of Wales's Fencible Dragoons in 1799. Tarleton was appointed colonel of the 21st Light Dragoons on 24 July 1802. He was brevetted to general on 1 January 1812. He had hoped to be appointed to command British forces in the Peninsular War, but the position was instead given to Wellington. He held a military command in Ireland and another in England.

Tarleton had lost two fingers from a musket ball received in his right hand during the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in North Carolina, but "his crippled hand was to prove an electoral asset" back home. The condition of his hand is disguised in the pose of his 1782 portrait (shown in this article) by Sir Joshua Reynolds.

Member of Parliament
Tarleton first stood as a Whig candidate for Liverpool in the 1784 general election. He was narrowly defeated by Richard Pennant as the second MP of this borough constituency. In the 1790 general election Pennant was ahead in the poll, but withdrew in favour of Tarleton. With the exception of a single year, Tarleton was re-elected to the House of Commons until 1812. Throughout his tenure in Parliament, he generally voted with the Parliamentary opposition. He was also a supporter of Charles James Fox despite their opposing views on the British role in the American War of Independence.

Tarleton was known for speaking on military matters as well as opposing abolition of the slave trade. Thorne wrote "most of his speeches in his first two sessions in the House assailed the 'mistaken philanthropy' of abolishing the slave trade, which Liverpool Members were instructed to oppose."

Appointments
He was appointed governor of Berwick and Holy Island in 1808.

On 23 January 1816, he was made a baronet; and in 1820 a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB).

Personal life

Tarleton had a 15-year relationship with the actress and writer Mary Robinson, known as Perdita, the character she played to much acclaim. She was an ex-mistress of the Prince of Wales (future King George IV). Tarleton and Robinson had no children; in 1783 Robinson had a miscarriage. She was important to his parliamentary career, writing many of his speeches.

Tarleton ultimately married Susan Bertie, the young, illegitimate and wealthy daughter of the 4th Duke of Ancaster in 1798. Tarleton had no children with Bertie. Tarleton did however, father an illegitimate daughter in 1797, prior to his marriage. The child was named Banina Georgina (1797–1818), her mother being named simply as Kolina.

Death
Tarleton died in January 1833, at Leintwardine, Herefordshire.

Tarleton helmet
During the American War of Independence, Tarleton made popular a leather helmet with antique style applications and a fur plume (woolen for lower ranks) protruding far into the upper front side. It was based on the Continental European dragoon helmet that became popular in several other armies before it fell out of fashion. Sir Joshua Reynolds' portrait of Tarleton shows him wearing the helmet; it was worn by all ranks in the British Legion. Royal Horse Artillery troops wore the helmet until the end of the Napoleonic Wars as well as by light dragoon regiments from about 1796 to 1812.

Auction of captured battle flags
In 2006, four Patriot regimental colours captured by Tarleton in 1779 and 1780 were auctioned by Sotheby's in New York City. The flags sold for US$17.3 million at auction on Flag Day in the United States on 14 June 2006.

These battleflags are the last American Revolutionary War colours known to remain in British hands and the last such colours to remain in private hands anywhere. Banastre Tarleton bequeathed the trophies to his nephew Thomas Tarleton. They have remained in the family for nearly 250 years.

Lot 1 was the colour of the 2nd Continental Light Dragoons (Sheldon’s Dragoons), captured by the British Legion at Pound Ridge on 2 July 1779. It is the earliest surviving American flag of any kind with thirteen horizontal red and white stripes. Including its silver metallic fringe, the silk flag is 35 1/8 inches (hoist) x 38 ¾ inches (fly). In the centre, there is a square of red silk bordered in gold and black. On it is a painted badge of a winged dark storm cloud from which ten gold and orange thunderbolts are emanating. Below that is the motto “PAT:A CONCITA  FULM:NT NATI.”(roughly translated, “When their country calls, her sons answer in tones of thunder.”)

Lot 2 was the complete stand of three regimental colours of the 3rd Virginia Detachment. The British Legion, commanded by Tarleton, captured them at the Battle of Waxhaws on 29 May 1780. They are the only remaining intact stand of colours from the Revolution. The 50 ¼ inches (hoist) x 45 3/8 inches (fly) regimental flag is the oldest surviving American flag having a canton of five-pointed stars. It is of gold silk painted with a beaver felling a palmetto tree. Below that is the motto “Perseverando”. At the upper hoist is a blue silk canton with thirteen stars. It is very similar to No. 7 described in the 1778 inventory "A Return of ye New Standards & Division Colours for ye Army of ye United States of America In Possession of Major Jonathan Gostelowe, Comy. Mily. Stores."

Places named for Banastre Tarleton

 * A house at the site of the skirmish in Easttown Township after the Battle of Brandywine came to be known as "Tarleton." A school later based there was also named Tarleton.
 * The "General Tarleton Inn" in Ferrensby, North Yorkshire, is named after him.
 * A street, still in existence, was named for Banastre Tarleton—others for Howe and Rawdon—in Freetown, the Sierra Leone colony established by former slaves.

Representation in other media

 * In the 1835 novel Horse-Shoe Robinson by John Pendleton Kennedy, a historical romance set against the Southern campaigns in the American War of Independence, fictional characters interact with the historic figure of Tarleton. He is depicted as a forceful martial character, sensitive to the duties of honour and chivalry.
 * In the 1959–1961 American Disney television series The Swamp Fox, John Sutton portrayed Colonel Banastre Tarleton to Leslie Nielsen’s Francis Marion.
 * In the novel Sharpe's Eagle by Bernard Cornwell (the first in the Richard Sharpe series), the novel's main antagonist, Colonel Sir Henry Simmerson is said to be a cousin of Tarleton. He relies on his cousin's political connections to support his position.
 * In the 1986 film Sweet Liberty Tarleton is played by actor Michael Caine and portrayed to the history professor Michael Burgess' (Alan Alda) dismay as a romantic, dashing hero.
 * In the 2000 film The Patriot, the fictitious Colonel William Tavington (played by Jason Isaacs) was based on Tarleton.
 * In the 2006 film Amazing Grace, Tarleton is played by Ciarán Hinds and is portrayed as a leading opponent of William Wilberforce’s abolition bill.

Perceptions
Numerous tales about Tarleton exist, mostly to show him in a bad light. Verified facts are included in the biographical information above. Widespread but dubious stories are discussed here.

Slave Trade
Banastre Tarleton was not engaged in the slave trade. As a child in Liverpool, he benefited from his father’s mercantile business, which included chartering ships, some of which carried slaves. But, as an adult, he did not join the business.

Tarleton is not listed by the Centre for the Study of the Legacies of British Slavery, which is based at University College London, nor by the Slave Voyages database, begun at Emory University, now hosted at Rice University. Furthermore, unlike many of the Patriots he fought, Banastre Tarleton never owned slaves.

Nevertheless, after his election to Parliament in 1790, Tarleton often spoke against the abolition of the slave trade: "most of his speeches in his first two sessions in the House assailed the 'mistaken philanthropy' of abolishing the slave trade, which Liverpool Members were instructed to oppose."

Raiders
The British Legion is occasionally referred to as “Tarleton’s Raiders“ in modern American sources. However, during its service in the American War of Independence, the British Legion was most often called Tarleton’s Legion. Lawrence Babits wrote of the unit’s formation: "These companies were combined into the British Legion in June and July 1778…Thereafter, the history of the British Legion, or Tarleton’s legion, as it came to be known, was the history of Tarleton in America." Modern historians also use that name. For example, in Cavalry of the American Revolution, Jim Piecuch says “Dockerty’s statement provides clear evidence of Americans switching sides in the South and Continentals enlisting in Tarleton’s Legion.” In the same book, Scott Miskimon wrote “Before the Americans could bridle a single horse, Tarleton’s Legion charged…”

Thomas Raddall, the prolific writer on historical subjects, said of the British Legion: "Of all the loyalists who fought in the War of the American Revolution none were more famous in their day than those who formed the British Legion, generally known as Tarleton's Legion."

Only after the American Civil War was the British Legion sometimes called “Tarleton’s Raiders“ by analogy with some Confederate units of that war. Knight explained:"The “Tarleton’s raiders” tag occurred with increasing regularity after the American Civil War.  Various Confederate partisan and guerrilla cavalry units, like Mosby’s and Quantrill’s, came to be named after their commanding officers, and [American] writers began following the same fashion with the British Legion, the corps that Tarleton commanded.  But the British Legion was never an irregular partisan unit, and though it carried out many daring raids, it was a mixed force of dragoon cavalry, light Infantry and small calibre artillery. Indeed, it was taken onto the British regular establishment in 1782, conferring on it official recognition of its prowess."

Epithets
In the United States, Banastre Tarleton is often disparaged as “Bloody Tarleton” or “Bloody Ban” in modern histories. But this label wasn’t used by his contemporaries. Scotti searched fruitlessly for examples of “Bloody Tarleton” before the twentieth century. He concluded “with some degree of certainty” that Robert Bass was an early writer to use the term. John Pancake varied it to “Bloody Ban” in 1985. Later, Scotti elaborated: "In 1957, Robert Duncan Bass coined the phrase in his eloquent biography of Tarleton…With the publication of The Green Dragoon, “Bloody Tarleton” became a part of the American heritage and the national psyche."

Knight agreed with that origin, saying "Both labels appear no earlier than the 1950s, originating in the Robert Bass book The Green Dragoon." and "The two personal monikers, the alternatingly violent and romantic caricatures by which Tarleton is now largely known, are sobriquets of pure fiction.  There is no evidence that Tarleton was ever referred to by either name…”"

Social rejection by American officers
Several writers have said that, after the surrender, Tarleton was the sole British senior officer not invited to dinner with any American officers. Where a source is given, it is the 1860 book of George Washington Parke Custis, a step-grandson of General Washington. Custis wrote “Colonel Tarleton…was left out in the invitations to headquarters.” He bases this on an alleged meeting between Tarleton and Lieutenant Colonel John Laurens about military etiquette. Scotti searched many sources, in particular the writing of Laurens and the Marquis de La Fayette, to whom Custis claimed Tarleton first complained. He found no indication that any such meeting took place and considers the incident to be apocryphal. Supporting Scotti's conclusion, a 1978 book about the end of the war, “The Campaign That Won America: The Story of Yorktown”, authored by Burke Davis, mentions only that “all the ranking British and German officers were invited”.

General information

 * Cassell's Biographical Dictionary of the American War of Independence, 1763–1783 by Mark Mayo Boatner (Cassell, London, 1966. ISBN 0-304-29296-6)
 * Knight, John. “War at Saber Point: Banastre Tarleton and the British Legion”. Yardley, Pennsylvania:Westholme Publishing 2023. ISBN 978-1-59416-352-4
 * Oller, John. The Swamp Fox: How Francis Marion Saved the American Revolution. Boston: Da Capo Press, 2016. ISBN 978-0-306-82457-9.
 * Oller, John. The Swamp Fox: How Francis Marion Saved the American Revolution. Boston: Da Capo Press, 2016. ISBN 978-0-306-82457-9.

title: Banastre Tarleton


text:
Talk:Burgas Province

[Untitled]
There was a move request to "Oblast", but a small majority was opposed. Radiant_ >|< 00:17, 30 October 2005 (UTC)

Discussion at Talk:Oblasts of Bulgaria

Hello,

I see you transliterated some pages from the Bulgarian wikipedia concerning Burgas region villages. There are some errors:
 * some letters are not transliterated, p.ex. "ь";
 * if you convert the names in English, please do so to fit the English pronounciation:
 * "Ц" is not "C", but "Ts"
 * "Ъ" is never "Y", more likely an "A". In English the letter "Y" is a kind of "i";
 * "Й" is not a "J" but an "y" or an "i".

Same text in Bulgarian:

Здравей,

Видях, че си превел някои страници от Българската Уикипедия за населените места в Бургаска област. Има някои грешки, които трябва да се поправят:
 * някои букви не са преведени, например "ь", който се транслитерира като "i";
 * като прехвърляш текст от кирилица на латиница, използвай английското произношение:
 * "Ц" не е "C", ами "Ts", на английски "c" се чете или като "s", или като "k";
 * "Ъ" не може да се преведе като "Y", на английски тази буква е един вид "И", използвай "А";
 * "Й" не се превежда "J", ами "Y" или "I". Буквата "J" на английски отговаря на "Дж".

--5ko 19:54, 14 May 2004 (UTC)

I made a new transliteration, using the official Bulgarian transliteration as shown on Transliteration of Bulgarian into English. Markussep 21:21, 20 Jun 2005 (UTC)

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title: Talk:Burgas Province


text:
Talk:Hooded crow

Untitled
Feel free to use the picture in the german wikipedia. Kind regards Soebe

Nesting
"As a rule the nest is placed on or near the ground, on a cliff, in heather or a low bush, but trees are occasionally used." Is that in Scotland? In Scandinavia the nest is almost always placed in trees. Who can find published information about nesting habits?Apus 07:05, 17 August 2006 (UTC)
 * I'll check, prob in next few hours, jimfbleak 07:17, 17 August 2006 (UTC)

Expansion request
A good discussion of systematics is completely missing from Wikipedia (even the German one). What needs to be in there:
 * status (review of modern research papers)
 * hybrid zones; discontinuous distribution of Hooded
 * status of Middle East populations (capellatus) Dysmorodrepanis 00:53, 4 September 2006 (UTC)

Kraa call notes
This section mentions three birds and then says "the kraa call notes of the two are indistinguishable" I wasn't sure which way to correct it so I've left it for the author to decide. --Jethrobrice 13:59, 29 April 2007 (UTC)

GA review
I have reviewed this article against the Good Article criteria, and this is what I have found:
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] Well written: Meets criteria
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] Factually accurate and verifiable: Meets criteria
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] Broad in its coverage: Meets criteria
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] NPOV: Meets criteria
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] Stable: Meets criteria
 * [[Image:Crystal button ok.png|20px]] Images: Meets criteria

Congratulations! I feel this article meets the GA criterion. Good luck in any future plans you may have for this article! —Scott5114↗ [EXACT CHANGE ONLY] 06:21, 17 March 2008 (UTC)

 * Gosh, thanks, that was quick! Cheers, Casliber (talk · contribs) 07:28, 17 March 2008 (UTC)
 * Update Current article has now issues. 2001:4455:364:A800:39A6:A5D8:C903:5E1D (talk) 06:33, 3 February 2022 (UTC)

Good species
In my opinion, one study isn't enough to say it's considered a good species. I think the article should list authorities that split it and those (such as the IUCN) that lump it. At least the easily Googlable ones. I can do this if people think it's a good idea. —JerryFriedman (Talk) 00:03, 12 February 2009 (UTC)

Geographic Range
I think there is an error in the description of Hooded and Carrion Crow ranges. The range of Carrion extends into Ireland but this is not shown on the map of the article. In addition, the range of Hooded Crow is shown to cover all of Ireland when it actually only lives in part of the island (the NW I think).

I don't think the above is true. I know for a fact that Hooded Crows are extremely common in the south and southwest of Ireland, and I presume is as common in other areas. The Carrion Crow, on the other hand, does not occur here.
 * If I may elaborate on this, Hooded Crows are also very common (moreso than the Carrion Crow, I'd say) in Eastern Germany (particularly Berlin), but this area is also outside the indicated distribution.--Ilja.nieuwland (talk) 11:38, 9 June 2013 (UTC)

'Royston' Crow
The disambiguation page for Royston led me here but there's no mention here that Royston is an alternative name for a hooded crow. Is it or not? If so, where does the name come from? Penguin2006 (talk) 15:20, 20 March 2013 (UTC)
 * It's definitely a genuine alternative name from when this was a more common winter visitor to England. It refers to Royston in North Hertfordshire, hence it's presence on the council's crest, and the local newspaper is still the Royston Crow. I'll add this later if I can find a ref.  Jimfbleak -  talk to me?  06:42, 21 March 2013 (UTC)
 * Ah, interesting. I came across 'Royston' in another place as a translation for 'funnock' or feannog in Irish - the translation called it royston or scalded crow. Scalded crow isn't on the list of alternatives for hooded crow on this article either. I think Royston might be the old English name, scald the old Irish. I had a quick look but couldn't find any citeable references online. Just the article Badb. I have a couple of books I'll check later. Penguin2006 (talk) 00:27, 23 March 2013 (UTC)
 * Cocker gives Danish Crow, Norway Crow and Denmarks, as well as winter/grey/dun/grey-backed crow, and Dunstable crow, but says Royston was the most widely used  Jimfbleak -  talk to me?  16:11, 23 March 2013 (UTC)

The corbie?
I've allowed myself the freedom of removing the mention of "corbie", as that does not seem to be a proper name for the grey crow ("Hooded crow"). It is apparently for the black one ("Carrion crow"), or for the Raven. Source. Also, I have added the fact that "grey crow" is also a name used in Denmark. To be accurate, it is the Danish name (Gråkrage : "grå" = "grey" - "krage" = "crow"). As a sidenote, we have both kinds in Denmark, the Carrion Crow is called "black crow" ("sort" = "black"). We also have Ravens. claus (talk) 20:15, 2 March 2015 (UTC)

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Smiling-like call sounds
Some reference should probably be made on smiling-like sounds they make. It is almost always very annoying but those who know something about birds say it is simply not a smile because they cannot know what human thinks. --5.43.99.155 (talk) 05:26, 1 October 2019 (UTC)

External links modified
Hi people, just added a link to educational article with video. — Preceding unsigned comment added by Mark.barkan (talk • contribs) 08:49, 8 September 2020 (UTC)

Issues
This important article probably needs help right now. 2001:4455:364:A800:39A6:A5D8:C903:5E1D (talk) 06:33, 3 February 2022 (UTC)
 * I'd agree with that Cas Liber (talk · contribs) 00:45, 14 March 2022 (UTC)

Norway
I saw a lot of these birds on a recent trip to Norway in the Town of Stavanger — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.43.107.33 (talk) 20:43, 1 October 2022 (UTC)
 * The map [[File:Hooded crow map2.jpg]] shows that. Invasive Spices (talk) 2 October 2022 (UTC)

title: Talk:Hooded crow


text:
User talk:198.185.18.207

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Nomination of Problem domain for deletion
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title: User talk:198.185.18.207


text:
Wikipedia:WikiProject Maps/Source materials

In creating geographical maps for Wikipedia, it is often useful to have high-quality source material such as blank outline maps, Adobe Photoshop or GIMP-format images with layers, SVG files and so on. If you have such source material that you think may be helpful to other map authors, please feel free to upload it to Wikipedia and list it here.

Blank maps
When making your own maps for a specialized purpose, check out the basic templates provided at

 * Blank maps
 * User:Brooke Vibber/Maps and images for Wikipedia
 * User:Morwen/maps
 * Libre Map Project boundary maps - Blank boundary maps for all 50 United States including state, county, and county subdivisions.
 * Commons:Map resources#Map resource subpages

Active

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 * United Nations Cartographic Section has many free maps in PDF format, at least some with the layers intact. However most UN maps are under UN copyright, so check before uploading. See here for their policy, this page about requesting permission.
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text:
Aguada, Puerto Rico

Aguada, originally San Francisco de Asís de la Aguada, is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico, located in the northwestern coastal valley region bordering the Atlantic Ocean, east of Rincón, south of Aguadilla, west of Moca; and north of Añasco and Mayagüez. It is part of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area. Aguada's population is spread over 17 barrios and Aguada Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city).

Etymology and nicknames
The name Aguada is a shortening of the town's original name San Francisco de Asís de la Aguada. The word aguada literally translates to "watery" or "watered down" from Spanish, possibly a reference to the town's strategic importance as a port in the Mona Passage and the Atlantic Ocean.

The municipality has many nicknames: La Villa de Sotomayor ("Sotomayor's Villa") is a reference to one of the town's Spanish founders, Cristóbal de Sotomayor; La Ciudad del Descubrimiento ("City of the Discovery") is a reference to the possibility that Christopher Columbus first landed in Puerto Rico at what is today the municipality's territory; El Pueblo Playero translates to "the beach town" and La Ciudad del Vaticano ("the Vatican's City") which references the town's early importance for Catholicism in the island.

History
A Taíno settlement called Aymamón was located close to the Culebrinas River.

Bahía de Aguada (Aguada Bay) in Aguada has historically been recognized as the location where Christopher Columbus first landed in Puerto Rico during his second voyage on 19 November 1493. However, it is believed by most historians that Bahía de Añasco (Añasco Bay) in the neighboring town of Añasco was the place of Columbus’ first landing and stay of two days in Puerto Rico before continuing to La Navidad, first European settlement in the Americas, in Haiti in Hispaniola.

In July 1510, Cristóbal de Sotomayor received control of the area from Juan Ponce de León and renamed the town Villa de Sotomayor (Sotomayor Village). However, in 1511 the settlement was attacked and burned by the local Taínos. That same year, the Spanish crown ordered a monastery be established in Puerto Rico, and the Ermita de Espinar was founded. The name of the area was then changed to San Francisco de Asís de la Aguada, since the friars were Franciscan. The monastery was finished in 1516.

In 1526, King Charles I of Spain officially founded the Aguada settlement. However, in 1529, Taínos attacked the monastery killing the friars and burning the settlement. The Taínos, indigenous people of Puerto Rico, were believed to have practiced polytheism. As the Spanish began to colonize the Caribbean area, they wanted to convert the natives to Catholicism. The Caribs destroyed a church of Franciscans in Aguada and killed five of its members in 1579.

Still, Aguada resurfaced and became a stopover point for ships on their way to Spain from South America. On September 17, 1692, King Charles II of Spain emitted a Royal Decree declaring Aguada a "village" and assigning Captain Juan López de Segura as War Lieutenant and Ordinary Mayor of the Villa de San Francisco de Asís de la Aguada.

In 1737, Philip V, King of Spain, declared that all mail en route to Venezuela and other South American countries from Puerto Rico should exit from Aguada's ports, leading to the area's economic growth. Also, an increase in population has been attributed to possible desertions from foreign merchant ships.

Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became an unincorporated territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States Department of War conducted its first census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Aguada was 10,581.

In the early years of the 20th century, two disasters affected the town of Aguada. First, a huge fire in 1912 destroyed most of the town buildings, including the old city hall, which contained all the city archives. On October 11, 1918, at 10:14:42 local time an earthquake known as the San Fermín earthquake destroyed the church and other structures. At Rio Culebrinas, 1000 kg blocks of limestone from the wrecked Columbus monument were carried inland to distances of 46 – by waves 4.0 m high.

Hurricane María on September 20, 2017, triggered numerous landslides in Aguada, with its strong winds and heavy rain. Infrastructure and an estimated 8,000 homes in Aguada were damaged or destroyed. Two police officers died when they were caught in the flooded Culebrinas River.

On July 16, 2023 a tornado touched down in Aguada, producing EF1 damage which included tearing a roof from a house and damage to power lines. The city is notorious for stormy weather.

Folklore
El Matador de Tiburones (The Aguada Shark Killer) is folklore that comes out of Aguada and was written around 1640. It tells of a young man who was accustomed to fighting sharks but was without his religious charm. When asked to demonstrate his shark-fighting capabilities to visiting Spanish dignitaries, he hesitated. All day and night he pondered whether he could fight a shark without his religious charm. Even though the Spaniards had increased their offer to 3 bars of gold the matador was hesitant. In the morning, as the shark came into the bay, the spectators who were gathered on the beach yelled in anticipation, and El Matador de Tiburones, as the young man was called, was unable to stop himself. He jumped into the open sea pursuing the shark and fought it with his bare hands. He was nearly killed and after receiving his prize of gold, vowed to never again fight a shark.

Geography
Aguada is located in the west coast of the island of Puerto Rico. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and Aguadilla on the north, Moca on the east, Añasco on the south, and Rincón on the west. Aguada is part of the Coastal Plains of the West, which features alluvial and fertile terrain. Although the terrain is mostly plain, there are some mountains to the south and southeast.

Among the mountains located in Aguada are the Atalaya Peak, located within the limits of Aguada and Rincón. Also, San Francisco Mountain, which is popularly known as the birth point of the Cordillera Central, and Cerro Gordo, peaking at 853 ft.

Water features
Aguada's hydrographic system is composed of the Río Culebrinas, Río Grande, Río Cañas, Río Culebra, Río Guayabo, and Río Ingenio. All of these rivers flow into the Mona Passage. According to a news article by Primera Hora, there are ten beaches in Aguada. Aguada has an area of 45.55 square miles and 14.62% are water bodies.

Barrios
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Aguada is subdivided into barrios:

 * 1) Aguada barrio-pueblo
 * 2) Asomante
 * 3) Atalaya
 * 4) Carrizal
 * 5) Cerro Gordo
 * 6) Cruces
 * 7) Espinar
 * 8) Guanábano
 * 9) Guaniquilla
 * 10) Guayabo
 * 11) Jagüey
 * 12) Lagunas
 * 13) Mal Paso
 * 14) Mamey
 * 15) Marías
 * 16) Naranjo
 * 17) Piedras Blancas
 * 18) Río Grande

Sectors
Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions) in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (which means sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.

Special Communities
Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. 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 Aguada: Parcelas Noboa Vieja and Parcelas Noboa Nuevas in Guanaquilla barrio, Calle San Francisco, Calle San José, Comunidad Las Flores, Sector Las Bimbas in Luyando comunidad, Parcelas Matías, Parcelas Nieves, and Sector García.

Demographics
In 2020, the population of Aguada decreased by 9.1% to 38,136. In 2010, the population of Aguada was 41,959, which represented a small decrease from the 42,042 registered in the 2000 Census. Until its decrease in 2010, Aguada's population had been increasing steadily.

According to the 2020 Census, 22.7% of the population identifies themselves as White, and 10.6% as Black. Also, according to the census, the population is equally divided by gender (49.1% are males, while 50.1% are females). Finally, 23.7% of the population is under 18 years old. The next biggest percentage of population (20.8%) is between 35 and 49 years old.

Economy
Historically, the economy of Aguada was mostly based on the processing of sugarcane. The Central Coloso, located in the Guanábano barrio of Aguada, was one of the most important refineries in the island. It was also the last one to cease operations, officially closing in 2003. Aside from sugar mills, there was also a cattle and wood industry. The commercial economy in Aguada reached a great boom in the 1950s. There were many commercial stores selling merchandise, grocery, hardware, and food products of all categories. “La Villa de Sotomayor” by Rivera & Rivera, Inc., founded around 1912 by Remigio Rivera Bonet, was the biggest and most important business in Aguada with an estimated income that exceeded the million dollars annually at that time. Rivera & Rivera, Inc. had department stores, hardware stores, bakeries, travel agencies and LPG gas distribution, among other business in Aguada and the region. As of 2012, the Aguada economy relies mostly on small businesses and manufacturing.

In late 2014, the government announced a $172 million deal with private investors to restart sugar production in Puerto Rico for the purpose of supplying the island rum producers with up to 56% of the molasses needed. The plan involved building a new processing plant on the grounds of the old Coloso Sugar Cane factory in Aguada.

Tourism
Aguada is part of the Porta del Sol touristic region in Puerto Rico. The Porta del Sol website highlights Aguada's town square and beaches as its most notable touristic attractions. It also mentions landmarks like the Espinar Hermitage Ruins and a children playground.

Landmarks and places of interest
To stimulate local tourism, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo ("I'm Touring") campaign, with a passport book and website. The Aguada page lists the Ruins of Ermita Espinar, the first commercial cocoa farm in Puerto Rico known as Jeanmarie Chocolat, and the only pyramid in Puerto Rico called Pirámide, as places of interest.
 * Aguada Museum (located in a former railroad station building)
 * Church of San Francisco de Asís
 * Coloso Sugar Cane Refinery
 * La Cruz de Culebrinas
 * Pico de Piedra Beach
 * Playa Espinar
 * Loma Linda Stables
 * Aguada transmission station, the tallest man-made structure in Puerto Rico
 * The Aguada Pyramid

The Puente de Coloso, built in 1928, is an 85-ft-long bridge which crosses over the Culebrinas River, and is located between the Guanábano and Espinar barrios in Aguada. It is recognized for its historic significance.

The only Oriental Orthodox Church in Puerto Rico specifically the Syriac Orthodox Church is located in Aguada near the downtown area in the Novoa II Community.

Education
Like all other municipalities in the island, public education is overseen by the Puerto Rico Department of Education. In 2020, there were 11 public schools in Aguada, most of them in the elementary level.

Public health
Although there are no hospitals in Aguada, the town does have a small emergency medical center located near the town center. Most important emergency procedures are carried out in Mayagüez and Aguadilla, Puerto Rico local hospitals.

Festivals and events
Aguada celebrates its patron saint festival in October. The Fiestas Patronales de San Francisco de Asis is a religious and cultural celebration in honor of Saint Francis of Assisi that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment. The festival has featured live performances by well-known artists such as Kany García, Tito Rojas, Andy Montañez, and Cano Estremera.

Other festivals and events celebrated in Aguada include:

Festival de Reyes (Three Kings Festival) which is celebrated in January at Paraíso de los Niños park. It is an activity dedicated to children of Aguada and is celebrated with gifts, music, clowns, and raffles.

Festival de Playa (Beach Festival) is celebrated on June 24, the day of San Juan Bautista (Saint John the Baptist), at the Pico de Piedra Beach.

Festival y Feria de Artesanías (Arts & Craft Fair) takes place from November 17–20 at the Plaza Cristóbal Colón.

Every year in November, a parade called La Parada del Descubrimento takes place to remember the discovery of Puerto Rico by Christopher Columbus. In this parade the people walk from the Catholic church in the town square to the Santurario Histórico a Colón (Cross of Columbus) next to the beach in Guaniquilla.

Festival de Cabras de Raza is held on the last weekend of May in the Atalaya barrio, with exhibitions of different goat breeds and competitions.

Parranda del Octavón is a one-day annual, cultural activity that takes place in January at the Plaza Cristóbal Colón, with local music.

Encuentro de Talladores (Carvers' Meeting) is a one-day annual celebration that takes place the first weekend of July at the Plaza Cristóbal Colón, to commemorate the birthday of Don Zoilo Cajigas a carver of wooden saints. Carved wooden saints are on exhibition and for sale.

Sports
Los Santeros de Aguada is the name of Aguada's current basketball team.

Transportation
The main road leading to Aguada is PR-115, if you're coming from the north. If you're traveling from the south, you have to take PR-2.

There are 18 bridges in Aguada.

Mayors
All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. The mayor of Aguada is Christian Cortes.

This is a list of registered and known mayors of Aguada, until present time.

Senate
The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV of Mayagüez-Aguadilla, which is represented by two Senators.

House of Representatives
The city is represented in the 18th District which is represented by one representative.

Local Legislature
All municipalities have a local legislature.

Symbols
The municipio has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag
Aguada's flag was designed by Pedro Vélez Adróvar. It features three main colors: white, red, and yellow. White represents purity and the waters of Culebrinas River. Over the white field, a blue triangle with a white dove is featured. The dove is the symbol of peace that unites the towns. Red symbolizes the martyrdom of Franciscan friars from Espinal. Over the red field, there's a black cross which represents the birth of Christianity in Puerto Rico. The name of "Aguada" is also above the cross. The yellow field represents happiness and hospitality of the residents. Over the yellow field, there's a white star which symbolizes the hope of the town for more development and progress.

Coat of Arms
The coat of arms is divided into two main fields. The upper field features a cross, with the interlaced arms of Christ and Father Saint Francis. It is taken from the badge of the Order of Friars Minor. It represents the motto "Pax et Bonum", which means "peace and good will between man and the Redeemer". The sun below the cross symbolizes the light that brightens the world. The lower part of the shield consists of five ships that symbolize the second voyage of Christopher Columbus, who allegedly arrived at the western "Guaniquilla" coast on November 19, 1493, to gather water. Although the precise location is disputed, the Aguada wells (Puerto de los pozos de la Aguada de Colón) is a plausible site for the actual event.

The mural crown in the upper part of the shield signifies the title of village, that was given to this town by King Charles III in 1778. The official colors of the shield are red, which stands for the fraternal love in Aguada; gold, for the Spanish royalty in Puerto Rico; green, for the island's hope and fertility; black, for the wooden beam of the cross; blue, for the sky and the kingship of God; and white, for Christ's purity and the purity of the people of the town toward the cultural patrimony.

Nicknames
Aguada has various nicknames, most of them pertaining to its origins. One is "La Villa del Sotomayor" ("Sotomayor Village"), which was the name originally given to it by Cristóbal de Sotomayor during its colonization in 1510. It is also called "Villa de San Francisco de Asís de la Aguada", which was the name given to the region when the Franciscan friars took control of it. Aguada is also called "La Ciudad del Descubrimiento" ("City of the Discovery") in reference to it being one of the possible places where Christopher Columbus entered the island. Other nicknames are "El Pueblo Playero" ("The Beach Town") for its many beaches, and "La Ciudad del Vaticano" ("The Vatican City") for being considered the "capital of Catholicism" in the island.

Anthem
Aguada's anthem was written by Rolando Acevedo Lorenzo.

Patron Saint
Saint Francis of Assisi is Aguada's patron saint.

Notable "Aguadeños"

 * Ismael Miranda – Salsa Singer
 * Guillermo "Willie" Hernandez – former Major League Baseball (MLB) pitcher and winner of the 1984 American League MVP and Cy Young Abarrios.
 * Andrés Torres – Major League Baseball (MLB) player (San Francisco Giants)
 * Zoilo Cajigas Sotomayor – Wood carving artist, especially religious figurines

title: Aguada, Puerto Rico


text:
Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico

Aguas Buenas,, popularly known as "La Ciudad de las Aguas Claras" or "The City of Clear Waters", is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range, north of Cidra, south of Bayamón, Guaynabo and San Juan; east of Comerio; and north-west of Caguas. Aguas Buenas is spread over 9 barrios and Aguas Buenas Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center of the city). It is part of the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology and nicknames
The name Aguas Buenas translates to "good waters". The town's and municipality's original names were Aguabuena ("good water"), originally a barrio or district of Caguas, and Aguas Claras ("clear waters"). These names and some of the municipality's nicknames such as Ciudad de las Aguas Claras ("city of clear waters") and Oasis de Puerto Rico ("Puerto Rico's oasis") are a reference to the number of natural water springs that can be found in the municipality, particularly those founds around the Aguas Buenas Cave and Caverns System Nature Reserve (Spanish: Reserva Natural Sistema de Cuevas y Cavernas de Aguas Buenas). In addition to aguasbonenses, citizens and residents of Aguas Buenas are often referred to as Mulos ("mules") or Ñocos ("amputees").

History
Aguas Buenas was originally a sector of Caguas known as Aguabuena. In 1798, a group of residents started establishing their houses near some of the rivers in the area and started calling the sector Aguas Claras.

The quantity of residents incremented with time and on July 25, 1832, they organized a meeting and commissioned Francisco de Salas Torres and Ramón Díaz to do the necessary arrangements for the region to be declared a municipality. A resident, Julian López, offered part of his estate to be used for the construction of a town square, a church, the city hall, and the priest house.

The town was officially founded on May 25, 1838, and the name was changed to Aguas Buenas. Francisco de Salas Torres was declared the first mayor. Initially, the economy of the town relied on coffee plantations and commerce. At the end of the 19th century, the town's population was close to 7,000.

In 1906, mayor Don José E. Morales bought nearly six acres of terrain from Don Guillermo Díaz Delgado. In these lands, the sectors of La Pajilla, El Pueblito and El Guanábano were established, expanding the town's area.

The epicenter of the 2010 Aguas Buenas earthquake, popularly known as the Nochebuena Earthquake, was centered between the barrios Juan Asencio, Mulita and Sonadora.

Hurricane Maria on September 20, 2017, triggered numerous landslides in Aguas Buenas with the significant amount of rainfall. Between1,000 and 3,000 homes in Aguas Buenas were destroyed or suffered significant damage as a result of the hurricane. A year after the hurricane struck, many older residents refused to leave their damaged homes and continued to live in their homes, without a reconstructed roof, but with a blue tarp for a roof. The hurricane winds and rain damaged infrastructure and caused the entire electrical system to collapse.

Geography
The terrain is moderately mountainous located in the northern edge of the Cayey mountain range (Sierra de Cayey), part of the Cordillera Central in Puerto Rico. The highest peaks are La Peña, Santa Bárbara, La Tisa, and La Marquesa.

Water features
Several rivers flow through Aguas Buenas. Some of them are the Bayamón River, and several small rivers that are part of the Río Grande de Loíza, like Bairoa, Caguitas, and Cañas.

Barrios
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Aguas Buenas is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo", near the center of the municipality.
 * 1) Aguas Buenas barrio-pueblo
 * 2) Bairoa
 * 3) Bayamoncito
 * 4) Cagüitas
 * 5) Jagüeyes
 * 6) Juan Asencio
 * 7) Mula
 * 8) Mulita
 * 9) Sonadora
 * 10) Sumidero

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

Special Communities
Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. 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 Aguas Buenas: Vázquez neighborhood, Las Parcelas in Bayamoncito barrio, Sonadora barrio, Cagüitas Centro, Pajilla sector in Centro Urbano, Jagüeyes Abajo, Las Corujas, and Parcelas Santa Clara in Sumidero barrio.

Tourism
Some of the landmarks and places of interest in Aguas Buenas are located in its town square. Places of interest in Aguas Buenas include:
 * Finca Artesanal
 * La Charca Recreational Center
 * Aguas Buenas Caves
 * El Mirador Walkway
 * Luis A. Ferré Plaza (main square of the downtown area)
 * City Hall
 * Lecture House
 * Christ Redeemer House
 * Jagüeyes Country Club
 * Monte La Tiza
 * Maximiliano Merced fire station
 * Juan Nieves Cotto baseball park
 * Holy Spirit parish

To stimulate local tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo (I'm Touring) campaign in 2021. The campaign featured a passport book with a page for each municipality. The Voy Turisteando Aguas Buenas passport page lists Viva La Cosecha (agritourism), Hacienda Cascada (agritourism), Centro Recreativo La Charca, and Paseo Mirador as places of interest.

Sports
Aguas Buenas has an amateur baseball team called Los Tigres de Aguas Buenas.

Festivals and events
Aguas Buenas celebrates its patron saint festival in September. The Fiestas Patronales Nuestra Señora de la Monserrate 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 Aguas Buenas include the Salsa, Bomba & Plena Festival held in late summer, an Agricultural festival held in May and the Festival Folklórico de Campo y Pueblo held in January. An annual Carnival is held in March.

Economy
After its foundation, the economy of Aguas Buenas relied mostly on coffee plantations.

Demographics
According to the 2020 census, Aguas Buenas has a population of 24,223. This represents a decline of 15.5% or over 4,000 inhabitants in comparison to the 2010 census.

According to the 2010 Census, 72.5% of the population identifies themselves as White, and 12.6% as African-American. Also, according to the census, the population is equally divided by gender (49% are males, while 51% are females). Finally, 25% of the population is under 18 years old. The next biggest percentage of population (19.4%) is between 35 and 49 years old.

Government
All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. The current mayor of Aguas Buenas is Javier García Pérez, of the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was elected at the 2016 general elections. However, on May 5, 2022, García Pérez was arrested by the FBI on corruption, bribery, and extortion charges. and was subsequently removed from his position.

Since 2011, the city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district I, which is represented by two Senators. In 2012, José Nadal Power and Ramón Luis Nieves were elected as District Senators.

Mayors
The following have been the Mayors of the Aguas Buenas Municipality, from its foundation to the present:

Symbols
The municipio has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag
The flag of Aguas Buenas features a blue triangle with the base at the hoist. The triangle has a solitary white star, like the national banner. A second triangle appears interposed with the first one, in yellow, with its point reaching the other end of the flag. The main field of the flag, under both triangles, is color green.

Coat of arms
Designed by Francisco Diaz Rivera in 1975, the coat of arms features a four-paneled shield. The upper left panel shows the Virgin of Monserrate, while the upper right panel features a Taíno, a symbol of the original inhabitants of this region. At the bottom right panel, lies a cornucopia containing the native fruit of Aguas Buenas. This panel represents how the agriculture was the primary source of income for the town. In the lower left panel, there are four maracas and a güicharo, typical instruments of the "jibaros" of Aguas Buenas and Puerto Rico. The crown, as with other municipalities of Puerto Rico, consists of three towers.

Anthem
Bajo el azul del cielo de mi patria

En el oriente de la Cordillera

Aguasbonenses forjando la historia

Defendiendo el honor de su bandera.

De sol a sol sembrando nuestros frutos

El orgullo labrado en nuestra tierra

La siega de un futuro va anunciando

El brillo de la solitaria estrella.

Que se levanta en medio del combate

Por negarse a ser solo una quimera

Raices firmes que en el pecho laten

Afirmando la patria y la conciencia.

Aguas Buenas, estirpe de valientes

Pedazo del terruño borinqueño

Un pueblo que se une en la conquista

De lo que es ser un buen puertoriqueñio.

Yo soy Aguas Buenas!

Transportation
To reach the town of Aguas Buenas, visitors must take the Puerto Rico Highway 52 to the city of Caguas. From there, PR-156 leads directly into the downtown square. Other minor roads lead to nearby towns such as Comerío.

There are 13 bridges in Aguas Buenas.

Education
There are around 14 public schools in Aguas Buenas. As with all other municipalities, education is handled by the Puerto Rico Department of Education. These are divided as follows:

Elementary Schools
 * Dr. Gustavo Muñoz Díaz
 * Ezequiel Ramos La Santa
 * Jagüeyes Abajo
 * José R. González
 * Luis Santaella
 * Luis T. Baliñas
 * Mulitas Alvelo
 * Ramón Luis Rivera/Juan Asencio
 * Santa Clara

Junior High Schools
 * Dr. Pedro Albizu Campos
 * Luis Muñoz Marín
 * Su Bayamoncito
 * Su Sumidero

High Schools
 * Josefa Pastrana

Notable people

 * Victor Hernández Cruz – Poet
 * Gustavo Muñoz Díaz – Dramatist
 * Jacobo Córdova Chirino (1901–1955) – Journalist & Humorist
 * José Arsenio Torres – Professor
 * Luis Rechani Agrait (1902–1997) – Dramatist
 * Pio Rechani – Journalist
 * Rafael Nicolau – Journalist
 * Josefa Pastrana Lopez (1899–1958) – Professor
 * Joyce Giraud – Actress and Miss Puerto Rico 1998

title: Aguas Buenas, Puerto Rico


text:
Añasco, Puerto Rico

Añasco, named after one of its settlers, Don Luis de Añasco, is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located on the west coast of the island bordering the Mona Passage to the west, north of Mayagüez, and Las Marias; south of Rincón, Aguada, and Moca and west of San Sebastián and Las Marias. It is part of the Aguadilla-Isabela-San Sebastián Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology and nicknames
The name Añasco comes from Don Luis de Añasco, former owner of the land where the town and municipality were founded. This family name is of Spanish origin from the province of Extremadura.

Some of the municipality's nicknames include: La ciudad donde los dioses mueren ("The city where gods die") and Los nativos ("the natives") are a reference to the legend of Spanish conquistador Diego Salcedo, who according to the story was drowned by the indigenous Taíno in order to prove that the European colonizers were not immortal deities; and Pueblo del Hojaldre ("Puff Pastry Town") after the hojaldre, a type of puff pastry the municipality is famous for.

History
Although the Bahía de Aguada (Aguada Bay) in the neighboring town of Aguada, commonly known as the Ciudad del Descubrimiento (City of the Discovery), has historically been recognized as the location where Christopher Columbus first landed in Puerto Rico during his second voyage on 19 November 1493, it is believed by most historians that Bahía de Añasco (Añasco Bay) in Añasco was the place of Columbus’ first landing and stay of two days in Puerto Rico before continuing to La Navidad, first European settlement in the Americas, in Haiti in Hispaniola.

The town of Añasco was founded on October 18, 1733, and named after Don Luis de Añasco, a colonist from the Extremadura region of Spain who came to Puerto Rico with Juan Ponce de León. Añasco was founded by the initiative of rich landowner Don José de Santiago, who wanted to establish the villa in properties owned by Don Luis de Añasco. The property was located on the margins of the río Guaorabo, as the Taínos called it.

Añasco town was preceded by the first settlement in the western part of Puerto Rico, San Germán. In November 1511, Juan Ponce de León handed over governorship to Juan Cerón, a lieutenant of the viceroy Diego Colon (son of Cristobal Colon or Cristopher Columbus). Cerón ordered Miguel de Toro, a lieutenant of Juan Ponce de León, to create a "Christian Village" in western Borinquen, calling it San Germán. This was the second attempt of foundation given in 1511 at the mouth of the Guaorabo River (present day Rio Añasco), near the area known today as Añasco, Puerto Rico. This first settlement was attacked in 1528, 1538, and again in 1554. A fort to protect this town began in 1540, but its construction was suspended in 1546 when the people decided to move inland being tired of attacks. Attacks by Carib Indians forced the population to move south inland to the present site of the present town of San Germán.

The Añasco River is also claimed to be the site of the popular legend of the drowning of the Spaniard Diego Salcedo in 1511 at the hands of the Taínos, proving the Spanish soldiers were not gods and igniting a revolt. It is believed that the revolt was led by the cacique "Cacique Chayoán" (Uruyoán) and suppressed by Spanish soldiers.

Many of the first settlers to the area came from the Canary Islands and the south of Spain. The 1918 San Fermín earthquake destroyed Añasco's parish church, the town hall and other buildings, almost eliminating most of the historic downtown structures.

Hurricane María on September 20, 2017, triggered numerous landslides in Añasco. In some areas of Añasco there were more than 25 landslides per square mile due to the significant amount of rainfall. Barrio Playa was particularly affected with about 96% of the homes under water. Bridges in and around Añasco sustained extensive damage as a result of Hurricane María.

Geography
Añasco is located in the Coastal Plains of the west, bordered by the Río Grande de Añasco. It is bordered in the north by Rincón, Aguada, and Moca; Mayagüez to the south; and San Sebastián and Las Marías to the east. The Mona Passage lies to the west of the town. The Añasco terrain is mostly plain but features a series of hills and mountains like Canta Gallo (1,194 feet, or 364 meters), Gordo and Pichón (both at 1,115 feet, or 340 meters). It is also crossed by several rivers like Icaco River, Caguabo River, La Balsa, and others.

Barrios
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Añasco is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo", near the center of the municipality.

 * 1) Añasco Abajo
 * 2) Añasco Arriba
 * 3) Añasco barrio-pueblo
 * 4) Caguabo
 * 5) Caracol
 * 6) Carreras
 * 7) Casey Abajo
 * 8) Casey Arriba
 * 9) Cerro Gordo
 * 10) Cidra
 * 11) Corcovada
 * 12) Dagüey
 * 13) Espino
 * 14) Hatillo
 * 15) Humatas
 * 16) Marías
 * 17) Miraflores
 * 18) Ovejas
 * 19) Piñales
 * 20) Playa
 * 21) Quebrada Larga
 * 22) Río Arriba
 * 23) Río Cañas

Sectors
Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions) in turn are further subdivided into smaller local populated place areas/units called sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.

Special Communities
Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. 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 Añasco: Cerro Gordo, Corcovada, Hatillo, Miraflores, and Caguabo barrios, Comunidad La Playa, Parcelas Josefa (Comunidad Espino), Parcelas Marías, Piñales (La Choza), and Zumbadora sector in Río Arriba barrio.

Demographics
Like most of the people of Puerto Rico, the Añasco population originated with the Taino Indians and then by immigrants from Spain that settled the central highland, most prominently the Andalusian and Canarian Spanish migration who formed the bulk of the jibaro or white peasant stock of the island. The Andalusian and Canarian Spaniards also influenced much of the Puerto Rican culture which explains the Southern Spanish dialect, and the Spanish colonial architecture.

Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States conducted its first census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Añasco was 13,311.

Landmarks and places of interest
There are 18 beaches in Añasco. Tres Hermanos Beach is a well-known Añasco beach which remained closed for more than two years after Hurricane Maria destroyed it in September 2017. It was set to reopen in 2020 after many renovations which continued into February 2020.

Some other beaches and places of interest in Añasco include: To stimulate local tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo (I'm Touring) campaign in 2021. The campaign featured a passport book with a page for each municipality. The Voy Turisteando Añasco passport page lists Casco Urbano, Mirador de la Bahía, and restaurants on Puerto Rico Highway 115 as places of interest.
 * Añasco Beach
 * Autodrome
 * El Salto de la Encantada
 * Hacienda La Eugenia
 * Río Grande de Añasco
 * San Antonio Abad Parish Church
 * Villa Pesquera

Festivals and events
Añasco celebrates its patron saint festival in January. The Fiestas Patronales de San Antonio Abad 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 Añasco include:
 * Mayuco Festival – January
 * Fine Arts Festival (Festival de Bellas Artes – January
 * Three Kings Day Festival in Ovejas and Corcovada barrios – January
 * Saint Anthony's Marathon – January
 * Antique Car Fair – January
 * Theater Festival – May
 * Youth Festival – July
 * Festival in Honor of Saint Rose of Lima – August
 * Añasco Triathlon – September
 * Chipe Festival – October

Sports
Añasco has a AA baseball team called the Fundadores de Añasco. It is also known for being the hometown of some amateur boxing prospects like Samuel Figueroa.

Notable people

 * Mariana Bracetti - (1825–1903) was a patriot and leader of the Puerto Rico independence movement in the 1860s. She is attributed with having knitted the flag that was intended to be used as the national emblem of Puerto Rico in its attempt to overthrow the Spanish government on the island, and to establish the island as a sovereign republic.
 * Ivy Queen - Singer
 * Aristides Gonzalez - boxer, Olympic bronze medalist in 1984
 * Young Miko- rapper and singer-songwriter.

Economy
In 2016 the municipal government reported a budget surplus of $1.3 million nonetheless the government also indicated that the municipal debt was $13 million.

Agriculture
Sugar cane had been cultivated in Añasco as early as the 16th century. The earliest known sugar mill ("ingenios") operator around the Añasco area was Tomás de Castellón in 1523. Añasco has also been a place for fruits and coffee cultivation.

Government
All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. The current mayor of Añasco is Kabir Solares García, of the New Progressive Party (PNP). He was elected at the 2020 general elections and is currently serving his first term after defeating the incumbent mayor Jorge Estévez Martínez.

The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV, which is represented by two Senators. In 2020, Ada García Montes and Migdalia González were elected as District Senators.

Transportation
There are 22 bridges in Añasco, and many sustained damages on September 20, 2017, when Hurricane María hit Puerto Rico.

Education
The Puerto Rico Department of Education operates several public schools in the municipality, including two bilingual schools, Antonio Gonzalez Suarez Regional Bilingual Elementary School and Sergio Ramirez de Arellano-Hostos Regional Bilingual Secondary School, the first public bilingual schools on the island. There are also private bilingual schools in the municipality, such as Colegio de la Salle and MAS Integrated School.

Symbols
The municipio has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag
The flag colors, design and symbolism are taken from the Añasco's coat of arms, with the only exception the silver parts on the coat of arms are white on the flag.

Coat of arms
The green field of the shield contains a saber cross massed in black, outlined in silver, and has a gold scallop shell in each quadrant formed by a cross fleury. A gold mural crown of three towers crests the shield.

title: Añasco, Puerto Rico


text:
Arroyo, Puerto Rico

Arroyo is a town and municipality located along the southern coast of Puerto Rico and bordered by the Caribbean Sea, east of the municipality of Guayama and northwest of the municipality of Patillas. Arroyo is spread over 5 barrios and Arroyo barrio-pueblo (the downtown area and administrative center). It is part of the Guayama Metropolitan Statistical Area.

Etymology and nicknames
It is believed that the name of Arroyo (which means "creek" or "brook" in English) is derived from a small water stream where travelers stopped to freshen up before continuing on their way.

According to legend, one the town's first nicknames, Pueblo Ingrato ("Ungrateful Town"), comes from the locals in the 19th century who either burned or drowned a resident who contracted either Cholera or the Bubonic plague, even if he was renown for his generosity. In the last century, however, there has been a push to change the nickname to Pueblo Grato ("Grateful Town") in order to clean the town's modern laidback and friendly reputation.

Residents of Arroyo are often referred to as Bucaneros ("Buccaneers"), a reference to the region's historic pirate and buccaneer activities. The main sports teams of the municipality, most notably its volleyball team, are also called Los Bucaneros.

History
The town of Arroyo was officially founded on December 25, 1855. However, some historians believe there were previous settlements in the area even previous to the Spanish colonization. There are four different versions about the founding of the town, including that it was formed when a small group of people from the neighbor town of Guayama came to the region looking for a port to export and import merchandise. Still, a local newspaper called La Gaceta de Puerto Rico published in 1868 that Arroyo was founded in 1852. Between 1859 and 1860, City Hall signed agreements to open streets and build a town square and a sewer system for the town.

In 1858, Samuel Morse introduced wired communication to Latin America when he established a telegraph system in Puerto Rico, then a Spanish Colony. Morse's oldest daughter Susan Walker Morse (1821–1885), would often visit her uncle Charles Pickering Walker who owned the Hacienda Concordia in the town of Guayama. During one of her visits she met and later married Edward Lind, a Danish merchant who worked in the Hacienda La Henriqueta in Arroyo. Lind purchased the Hacienda from his sister when she became a widow. Morse, who often spent his winters at the Hacienda with his daughter and son-in-law, set a two-mile telegraph line connecting his son-in-law's Hacienda to their house in Arroyo. The line was inaugurated on March 1, 1859, in a ceremony flanked by the Spanish and American flags. The first lines transmitted by Samuel Morse that day in Puerto Rico were: "'Puerto Rico, beautiful jewel! When you are linked with the other jewels of the Antilles in the necklace of the world's telegraph, yours will not shine less brilliantly in the crown of your Queen!'"

Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States Department of War conducted a census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Arroyo was 4,867.

In 1902, Puerto Rico's Legislative Assembly approved a law to consolidate certain municipalities. According to it, Arroyo would be merged with Guayama starting on July 1 of that year. However, the law was revoked in 1905 returning Arroyo to its municipal status.

In early 1999, the U.S. Congressional record documented a commendation of Arroyo, on its 100-year relationship with the U.S., noting that many citizens of Arroyo, such as Virgilio Sánchez and Raul Serrano, have fought and died in wars for the U.S.

On September 20, 2017, Hurricane Maria's wind and rainfall triggered numerous landslides in Arroyo. The hurricane destroyed 1,550 structures in Arroyo. A bridge on PR-725 collapsed leaving 130 families trapped.

Geography
Arroyo belongs to the alluvial plains sub-region of Ponce-Patillas known as the Southern Coastal Valley. The area is very dry although its plains are productive thanks to artificial irrigation.

Barrios
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Arroyo is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a small barrio referred to as "el pueblo", near the center of the municipality.
 * 1) Ancones
 * 2) Arroyo barrio-pueblo
 * 3) Guásimas
 * 4) Palmas
 * 5) Pitahaya
 * 6) Yaurel

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

Special Communities
Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. 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 Arroyo: the Marín neighborhood, Palmas barrio, Yaurel barrio, and the San Felipe-Arizona zone.

Water features
The Nigua River crosses the municipality from north to south. Its hydrographic system is completed by a series of smaller rivers. There is also a mineral water spring in Virella Colony.

Landmarks and places of interest
There are eight beaches in Arroyo.

Among the places of interest in Arroyo are the Enrique Huyke Monument, dedicated to the educator and athlete, and the Samuel Morse Monument, dedicated to the American inventor of the telegraph. Casa de Aduana is a museum located in Arroyo.

Other landmarks are Hacienda La Cora, Las Palmas Beach, Punta Guilarte, Punta de Las Figuras Lighthouse and the Arroyo Sugar Cane Train.

To stimulate local tourism during the COVID-19 pandemic in Puerto Rico, the Puerto Rico Tourism Company launched the Voy Turistiendo (I'm Touring) campaign in 2021. The campaign featured a passport book with a page for each municipality. The Voy Turisteando Arroyo passport page lists Malecón Paseo Las Américas, Centro Vacacional Punta Guilarte, Faro Punta Figuras, and the Arroyo Surfing Park, as places of interest.

Festivals and events
Arroyo celebrates its patron saint festival in July. The Fiestas Patronales de Nuestra Sra. del Carmen is a religious and cultural celebration in honor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.

A traditional carnaval is held in the month of February. Fiesta Negra, which celebrates the African heritage of the island, is held in March. The Festival del Pescao is celebrated in November.

Sports
Although Arroyo doesn't have a professional sports team, it has several amateur teams in Class A category.

Cultural/art venues
The Museo Antigua Aduana is a historic building that now showcases art by local artists, such as Angel Cora. In 2011, the Cine Renacimiento (Renaissance Cinema), which was founded in 1922, re-opened after a little over a year of construction to transform into a theater space compatible with new uses and now known as Teatro Renacimiento (Renaissance Theater). It is located at Morse St. (PR-178) and Arizona 7 St.

Economy
During past centuries, Arroyo was known for the production of sugar in the Central Lafayette, a sugar mill.

In recent years, manufacture and pharmaceutical industries have taken control of the economy of Arroyo. Stryker Corporation, a developer of medical implants and other surgical equipment, has a production plant in the town.

Government
Since its foundation, Arroyo's municipal government has been led by a mayor, with its first mayor being Marcelino Cintrón. The current mayor is Eric Bachier Román. The city also has a municipal legislature that handles local legislative matters.

The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district VI, which is represented by two Senators. In 2012, Miguel Pereira Castillo and Angel Rodríguez Otero were elected as District Senators.

Symbols
The municipio has an official flag and coat of arms. Arroyo's flag has two horizontal bands of equal size. The upper band is color orange, while the lower one is black. In the middle of the flag lies Arroyo's coat of arms.

The coat of arms is also split in two sections. The upper section features a church in a blue field a church with a rosary to the right and a flower to the left. The lower section features two silver telegraph poles on green hills. At the bottom, waving stripes of blue and silver, with a fish below them. Above the shield, lies a crown of three towers filled in with purple. Below there's a banner with the motto, Arroyo Pueblo Grato.

Education
Education is handled by the Puerto Rico Department of Education. Arroyo has seven elementary schools, three junior high schools, and one high school.

Transportation
During the peak of the sugarcane industry in the island, Arroyo was part of the railroad system of the island, with trains hauling production to other municipalities in the island. A small portion of that train remained in use until recently for tourism purposes, under the name of Tren del Sur.

To reach Arroyo, visitors have to take the Puerto Rico Highway 3. However, there are other rural roads available to reach the municipality.

There are 13 bridges in Arroyo.

Notable people

 * Carmen Bozello y Guzmán, one of three known female Puerto Rican nineteenth-century playwrights who wrote a comedy entitled Abnegación y Sacrificio: Comedia en 2 Actos y en Prosa (which premiered on October 15, 1876, in Puerto Rico and was printed by Cayetano Sánchez y Vegas in 1876).
 * Juan Bernardo Huyke, former interim Governor of Puerto Rico.
 * Alberto A. Nido, former United States Air Force officer.
 * José Cruz, baseball player, former player for the Houston Astros.
 * Jake Rodríguez, former IBF light welterweight champion.
 * Génesis Dávila, beauty pageant, former Miss Mundo Puerto Rico and Miss Florida USA.
 * Rafael Román Meléndez, former Secretary of Education of Puerto Rico.
 * Celiangely Morales, sprinter, competed at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
 * Héctor Soto, known as Picky Soto, professional volleyball player, captain and former member of the Puerto Rico men's national volleyball team.
 * Monica Gonzalez Rivera, female boxer

title: Arroyo, Puerto Rico