San Sebastián, Puerto Rico

San Sebastián is a municipality of Puerto Rico located south of Isabela and Quebradillas; north of Las Marías; east of Moca and Añasco; and west of Lares. San Sebastián is spread over 24 wards and San Sebastián Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city).

History

The permission to found the town was officially given in 1752 under the leading of the founder captain Cristobal Gonzalez de la Cruz who among other neighbors had the interest in converting the cowfarms into an agricultural village. The foundation of the town from the religious aspect, was consummated in December of 1762 by Mariano Martin, the island Catholic bishop at that time. At the beginning, by 1700, San Sebastian was a conglomerate of few cowfarms, owned by some residents of the Partido de Aguada. Las Vegas was the former plain site of one of the first cowfarms located by the Guatemala riverside at the north. Also, another of those cowfarms was Pepinito (today's downtown) that was a low green mountain with a white calcium carbonate face. On the north side of the town it can be seen some of this "pepinos". These two cowfarms gave the town its first name. These geographical accidents come the first name of the new village: Las Vegas del Pepino. In 1765 it is documented as San Sabastian de Las Vegas del Pepino.

At the beginning of 1800, rich business families arrived to Pepino fleeing from the independence revolutions of Venezuela and the Dominican Republic. Later, by 1850, some came directly from Cataluña and Vasconia, Spain. These people, after taking over the local political power, developed a coffee industry and brought some material progress to the town. The resident vasconians in the municipality, in remembrance of their town and religious patron of Spain, saw the need of upgrading the old traditional canarian Pepino to the new and "uptodated" San Sebastian, promoted and got the name changed of Pepino to San Sebastián from the central government authority. Nevertheless, the citizens of San Sebastian are called "pepinianos".

San Sebastián Martir (Spanish for Saint Sebastian, martyr of Rome and patron of archers), is the patron saint of the town since its early history, first brought by the canarian immigrants and later confirmed by the vasconians with the town name changed in 1869.

Bibliography

* Boceto Histórico Del Pepino - Andrés Méndez Liciaga
* San Sebastián Del Pepino, Notas Para Su Historia - Walter Cardona
* La Fundación De Las Vegas Del Pepino - Eliut González Vélez
* La Formación De La Etnia Cultural Pepiniana - Eliut González Vélez

Flag

It consists of a rectangular flag of the usual proportions, crossed by a white waved band that separates its red superior part from the inferior one, that is green.

Coat of Arms

The Mountains: With silverplated borders, represent the characteristic mountains (Pepinos) The Crown: Is the heraldic standard used to identify towns, villas and cities. The Sugar Cane and Coffee Branches: They represent main agricultural products.

I.C.P.

Arcelay Medina,Rubén Diccionario Biográfico Pepiniano

Barrios (Districts/Wards) [http://welcome.topuertorico.org/maps/sansebastian.pdf]

*Alto Sano *Aibonito *Bahomamey *Calabazas *Cibao *Cidral *Culebrinas *Eneas

*Guacio *Guajataca *Guatemala *Hato Arriba *Hoya Mala *Juncal *Magos *Mirabales

*Perchas I *Perchas II *Piedras Blancas *Pozas *Robles *Salto *San Sebastian Pueblo *Sonador

Geography

*Guajataca Lake.

Rio Grande de Añasco, Culebrinas, Guajataca [ [http://puerto_rico9.tripod.com/sansebastian2.htm San Sebastian ] ]

Anthem

Lyrics: Juan Avilés Medina
Music: Guillermo Figueroa

Van más de dos siglos de historia de vida,
vida con historia, siempre florecida
de esperanzas nuevas, de anhelo y de afán,
con el gran prodigio de la Fe Cristiana
que abrió los caminos de ayer al mañana
bajo el nombre augusto de San Sebastián.

Somos de los llanos, somos de la sierra,
somos de los valles, somos de la tierra
que lleva muy hondo clavada en su entraña
la feliz historia del Río Culebrinas,
las nobles leyendas de hazañas taínas
y la historia escrita con sangre de España.

Tenemos orgullo, forjamos cultura,
labramos rencores, sentimos bravura,
guardamos amores en el corazón.
Pero en un instante, cultura y rencores,
bravura y ternura y orgullo y amores
se postran de hinojos a nuestro patrón.

De prisa vivimos la vida de día;
vamos al progreso con la gallardía
de un pueblo que marcha con paso seguro.
Y el Viejo Pepino de los pepinianos
sigue siendo el pueblo de miles
de hermanos que van siempre unidos.

Economic

Agriculture

Coffee, Minor Fruits, Dairy Farms

Tourism

Hacienda El Jibarito

Landmarks and places of interest

* Barandillo (Hamac Bridge) - over Río Guatemala
* Doña Bisa Cabrero House - Facing the Public Square
* Guajataca Lake
* Juan Amayat Cardona Coliseum
* Market Plaza
* Old Catholic Church
* Robles Waterfall
* Collazo Waterfall
* Sombrero Hill
*Hacienda El Jibarito

Festivals and events

* Patron Religious Feasts - January
* Three Kings Festival - January
* Heifer Festival (Festival de la Novilla) - January
* Chess Tournament - January
* Ateneo Pepiniano Cultural Festival - January
* Hammock Festival - July
* Comeback to the Mountaintop - September

Notable "Pepinianos"

* Isabe Bernal - artist, painter
* Venancio Román - martyr of the Grito de Lares
* Angel Mislán Huertas - danza composer and musician
* Narciso Rabell Cabrero - mayor and scientist
* Andrés Méndez Liciaga - first municipal historian
* Juan F. Acosta] - Composer & musician (biography)
* Dr. Salvador Arana Soto - prolific writer
* Jerónimo Ramírez de Arellano - poet
* Sinforoso Vélez Arocho - First Puerto Rican to participate in WW1.
* Delia Margarita (Margie) Castro Alberty - Opera singer
* Hilda de los Angeles Serrano - singer, music teacher
* Francisco Rodón - artist, painter
* Carmelo Aponte - poet, artist, painter
* Ramón Soto - Artist, painter
* José "Pinchy" Méndez - sociologist and writer
* Maria Libertad Serrano - librarian, historian
* Helen Santiago Méndez - historian
* Lourdes Pérez - poet, musician & singer
* Ramón Vargas Pérez - poet and historian
* Rubén Arcelay Medina - historian
* Rey F. Rivera Montalvo - historian
* Ramón Luis Cardé - poet
* Carlos López Dzur - poet and historian
* Eliut González Vélez - poet, historian

References

External links

* [http://factfinder.census.gov/servlet/GCTTable?_bm=y&-geo_id=05000US72131&-_box_head_nbr=GCT-PH1&-ds_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U&-redoLog=false&-mt_name=DEC_2000_SF1_U_GCTPH1_CO2&-format=CO-2 San Sebastián and its barrios, United States Census Bureau]