History
In the 17th century Alta Gracia was as a large ranch (an estancia) operated by Jesuits. Along with other ranches, including Colonia Caroya, Jesús María, Santa Catalina, La Candelaria y San Ignacio de los Ejercicios, Alta Gracia was founded to economically support the Collegium Maximum or "Colegio Máximo", one of Argentina's first universities (Universitas Cortuba Tucumanæ) today: Universidad Nacional de Córdoba, and other educational institutes that are now part of the Manzana Jesuítica ("Jesuit Block"), an important center in Córdoba City. The Jesuit Block and Estancias of Córdoba were named World Heritage site in 2000.
Owners of the Estancia Alta Gracia:
- Don Juan Nieto, 1588
- Alonso Nieto de Herrera, who named it after "Nuestra Señora de Alta Gracia"
- The Society of Jesus (donated by Alonso Nieto)
- Santiago de Liniers, 1810, who lived there for about 5 months
- José Manuel Solares, 1868 (last owner, in his will he decides to turn the Estancia to a Village, called "La Merced", giving as a gift to his employees pieces of land to raise the village, with the conditions of keeping the Tajamar and going on with the veneration of the Virgin Nuestra Señora de la Merced) That's why September 24th is the special day in alta Gracia, in honour of that Virgin.
Read more about this topic: Alta Gracia
Famous quotes containing the word history:
“The whole history of civilisation is strewn with creeds and institutions which were invaluable at first, and deadly afterwards.”
—Walter Bagehot (1826–1877)
“The history of all countries shows that the working class exclusively by its own effort is able to develop only trade-union consciousness.”
—Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870–1924)
“No one is ahead of his time, it is only that the particular variety of creating his time is the one that his contemporaries who are also creating their own time refuse to accept.... For a very long time everybody refuses and then almost without a pause almost everybody accepts. In the history of the refused in the arts and literature the rapidity of the change is always startling.”
—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)