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Sao Paulo, Brazil (Capital)

1911 Encyclopedia Britannica

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Sao Paulo, Brazil (State)

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A city of Brazil, capital of a state of the same name, and seat of a bishopric, on the Tiete river 49 m. by rail N.W. of the port of Santos and 308 m. by rail W. of Rio de Janeiro. Pop. (1890) 64,934; (1902, estimate) 332.000. Sao Paulo is connected with Santos, its port, by a double-track railway built, owned and worked by a British company (S. Paulo Railway Co.); with Rio de Janeiro, by the Sao Paulo branch of the Central do Brazil line; with Campinas and other inland cities by the Sao Paulo and Paulista railways; with the N.E. part of the state, Minas Geraes, and Goyaz by the Mogyana line starting from Campinas; and with Sorocaba and the southern parts of the state, Parana, and with Santa Catharina and Rio Grande, by the Sorocabana line and the Sao Paulo and Rio Grande line. In great part the city occupies an elevated open stretch of tableland commanding extensive views of the surrounding country; and a small part of it is in the low alluvial land bordering the Tiete. The upper part has several slight elevations forming healthy residential districts. The elevations above sea-level are 2382 ft. at the Central do Brazil railway station in the lower town, 2418 ft. at the Sao Paulo railway station, 2841 ft. in the Consolagdo suburb, and 2953 ft. in Villa Mariana. The city is just within the tropics, but its elevation above the sea gives it a temperate climate, bracing in the cool season and yet with high sun temperatures in summer. The broad eroded bed of the Tiete is swampy and is subject to extensive inundations causing malarial and intestinal disorders; otherwise the city is singularly healthy, though its sanitary condition is poor. The picturesqueness of the city is heightened by the ravine of a small stream passing through it and spanned by viaducts and bridges. The city squares are commonly open places with an occasional statue but without ornamental gardens. The Public Garden, near the Sao Paulo railway station in the Luz section, is a recreation ground embellished with tropical plants and an artificial lake. The streets are well paved and lighted with gas and electricity, and have electric tramways. Although there are still many old structures and residences to be seen in the old town, most of the public and business buildings and private residences are of the modern Italian and French type. Brick is used to some extent, but the building material most used is broken stone and mortar, plastered outside, and covered with stucco mouldings and ornaments. The private residences of the city are the finest in the republic. There is much wealth in the state, especially among the large coffee planters, and the city is their favourite residence. Some of their palatial dwellings are surrounded with beautiful gardens and parks. The watersupply is derived from Cantareira hills, and there is a modern sewerage system, constructed by an English company. The more important public buildings are the new government palace, the palaces of agriculture, finance and justice, the executive residence, the immense Polytechnic School, the Normal School, the School of Agriculture, the public hospital called the Isolamento, the charity hospital, the Sao Paulo railway station with a beautiful stone tower, and the theatre, rivalling some of the best in Europe. Like other Brazilian cities Sao Paulo has a number of old religious buildings. There are also several excellent educational and scientific institutions which are in great part supported by the state, among which are the Mackenzie College, created through the gift of an American capitalist, a school of law, a Pasteur Institute, and a bacteriological institute. The police force of the state is a military organization and consists of a brigade of about 5000 men (infantry, cavalry, civic guards, firemen, and a body of hospital attendants for public emergency cases), under a colonel of the regular army. Manufactures include textiles, footwear, clothing, food products, beer, artificial liquors, furniture, domestic utensils, &c. The Sao Paulo Light and Power Co., whose works are situated at the falls of the Tiete a considerable distance N.W. of the city, supplies about 8000 horse-power to local industries in addition to what is needed for the electric railway (108 m.), the oldest enterprise of this character in Brazil. The city has a large Italian population and many Italian shops and industries.

Sao Paulo was founded by the Jesuits under Manoel de Nobrega in 1554 and at first bore the name of Piratininga.

In 1681 it succeeded Sao Vicente as the capital of the captaincy. The declaration of Brazilian independence occurred on Sept. 7, 1822, on the plain of Ypiranga, near the city, where a monument commemorates the event.