Nueva Pompeya - History

History

Nueva Pompeya was given its name by the faithful of the Virgin of the Rosary of Pompeya, raised in 1900 by Capuchin monks. Until then, it was often referred to as the "district of the Frogs." The term “frog”, in the Buenos Aires vernacular, refers to the "street-wise" man, and, indeed, many of Nueva Pompeya's youth as thought of this way to the present day.

Nueva Pompeya was largely built on the alluvial plain north of the Riachuelo and, at the time, it was subject to frequent flooding. It was, consequently, thinly populated and was notorious for its poverty and high crime rate.

Until the 1930s, when industries began setting up in the area, most locals worked in the large slaughter house in neighboring Parque Patricios. Sáenz Avenue, which leads through Nueva Pompeya, is still sometimes referred to as "the street of bones", for the many cattle that died on their way to the slaughterhouse, early in the twentieth century.

The area was also well known for its many pulperías, seedy saloons frequented by cutlers, carriers and guitarists. Two are still preserved as museums: La Blanqueada and the Maria Adelia Pulperia, which had a so great patio that it served as a field hospital during the 1880 conflict between the Nation and secessionist factions in Buenos Aires.