Manatí logo Atenas de Puerto Rico (in English: Athens of Puerto Rico)
Manatí was founded in 1738 by Don Pedro Menendez Valdes. The Iglesia Nuestra Señora de la Candelaria church was built in the seventeenth century and is still standing in its original spot.[2] Manati is known as La Ciudad Metropolitana (The Metropolitan City), and also as Las Atenas de Puerto Rico, (The Athens of Puerto Rico).[3] It is named after the manatee.
In the formative years of the town's development, the town mayor was José Aulet. It was Juan Ponce de León who identified the Manatí section of the Manuatabón River as the inaugural site for gold panning efforts. The Aulet family possessed extensive lands that were abundant in pineapples, sugar cane, and green bananas. In 1985, the Aulet family entered into a transaction to sell this land to the government.[citation needed]
In 1853, the region experienced a significant transition from mining to an expansion of agricultural practices, with particular emphasis on the cultivation and processing of sugar cane. The demand for sugar, coupled with its elevated price in international markets, solidified sugar cane as the primary commodity crop of the area. Additionally, carpentry gained prominence as a trade during this period. At that time, the town consisted of 280 residences, two public squares, eight streets, and a school serving 50 pupils.[citation needed]
On September 20, 2017 Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. In Manatí, the hurricane wrought considerable devastation, resulting in approximately 1,500 residences being either destroyed or damaged. Highways were rendered impassable due to the accumulation of debris and flooding, leaving numerous communities isolated and without means of communication. The breaching of the Río Grande de Manatí caused the destruction of many structures including around 70 residences.[5][6][7][8][9]
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Manatí is divided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and a large Catholic church are located in the center of the municipality, in a barrio referred to as "el pueblo".[11][12][13][14]
Barrios (which are, in contemporary times, roughly comparable to minor civil divisions)[15] and subbarrios,[16] 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.[17][18][19]
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 Manatí: Cerro Gandía, Cerro Quiñones and El Horno.[20]
Climate
Climate data for Manatí 2E, Puerto Rico (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1900–present)
In 2014, Manati welcomed its first hotel, the Hyatt Place Hotel and Casino, located next to Casino Atlántico and a LongHorn Steakhouse, which opened in April 2014. The hotel has an outdoor swimming pool, 3 meeting rooms and a fitness center. The official name was Hyatt Place Manati & Casino. Manati is popular for its beaches and is part of the Porta Altantico tourism district.
In 2019, Manatí began offering free tours of its city, beaches, historic places and eateries.[30][31]
Landmarks and places of interest
Some of the places of interest in Manatí include:[31]
Isidoro Colón established the "Candelaria" sugar mill in the years between 1860 and 1870, located between Manatí and Barceloneta. Manatí is the pineapple center of Puerto Rico. In addition in Manatí, there is cultivation of fruits, sugar cane, and coffee.[3]Los Frutos del Guacabo is a farming company in Manatí that provides local fruit and vegetables to local chefs.[35][36]
Industry
The industry of Manatí is shoes, woodwork, and a pineapple cannery as well as pharmaceuticals:[37]
Manati has two large, private hospitals, Doctor's Center Hospital, and Manatí Medical Center Dr. Otero Lopez (formerly the government owned Hospital de Area). There is also the smaller Municipal Hospital.
The area surrounding PR-2 is known for having many medical offices.
Education
Manati has 3 public high schools: Petra Corretjer de O'neill High School, Fernando Callejo High School, and the Escuela Instituto Tecnologico Recinto De Manati, the latter also serving as a technical institute.
Manatí celebrates its patron saint festival in February. The Fiestas Patronales Virgen de la Candelaria is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.[10][40]
Other festivals and events celebrated in Manatí include:
^Rivera Quintero, Marcia (2014), El vuelo de la esperanza: Proyecto de las Comunidades Especiales Puerto Rico, 1997-2004 (first ed.), San Juan, Puerto Rico Fundación Sila M. Calderón, ISBN978-0-9820806-1-0
^"Leyes del 2001". Lex Juris Puerto Rico (in Spanish). Archived from the original on September 14, 2018. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
^Rivera Quintero, Marcia (2014), El vuelo de la esperanza:Proyecto de las Comunidades Especiales Puerto Rico, 1997-2004 (Primera edición ed.), San Juan, Puerto Rico Fundación Sila M. Calderón, p. 273, ISBN978-0-9820806-1-0
^"Manati Bridges". National Bridge Inventory Data. US Dept. of Transportation. Archived from the original on February 20, 2019. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
^J.D. (May 2, 2006). "Manatí". Link To Puerto Rico.com (in Spanish). Retrieved July 18, 2020.
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