Detailed Description

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Title: Bosquejo estadístico de la región oriental de Colombia y medios económicos para su conquista, sometimiento y desarrollo industrial y político
Creator: Díaz Escobar, Joaquín
Publication Info: Bogotá : Imprenta de E. Zalamea, 1880.
Physical Details: 150 p. ; 23 5/10 x 16 3/10 cms.
Physical Condition: Frail: wrapper loose, as are many pages. Text fair.

Summary: Here Joaquín Díaz Escobar offers a detail description of the Colombian eastern plains. Díaz Escobar wished to convince the government that these plains were worthy of study and investment with great economic potential. The document describes the landscape, flora and fauna, sources of minerals, local industry, climate, rivers and their navigability, as well as describing the inhabitants and their customs. Díaz Escobar proposed a number of projects to develop the eastern plains and incorporate them into the nation.
Historical Notes: The eastern plains were more important for the government in colonial times than they were during the 19th century. The region’s weather moved between extremes of drought to flooding, with a wide range of tropical illnesses that were endemic. Its inhabitants were principally indigenous people who farmed and raised cattle. Other than large numbers of wild cattle, in the eyes of government officials the land had little potential. The Colonial government assumed the task of the Christianization of the Indians in the plains and, thus, the construction of towns. Jesuits, using the labor of Indians, created cattle ranches and sugar plantations, and, after the Jesuits were expelled from the country, other religious orders attempted to work in these regions without success. The region would re-capture the attention of the central government in the 20th century (19-20). Bushnell, David 1993 The Making of Modern Colombia: A Nation in Spite of Itself. Pp. 19-20. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Donor Notes: Second edition of an enthusiastic essay on the promise of the eastern regions (the llanos) of Colombia - J.L.H.

Subject(s): Llanos -- Colombia
Colombia -- Economic conditions -- 19th century

Type: Pamphlet
Language: Spanish
Format: JPG
PDF - Color
Donor: Helguera, J. León
Collection: Helguera, J. León Collection
Institution: Vanderbilt University
Accession Number: P00236
Record Number: 189
Islandora ID: islandora:5414