Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a territory of the United States. The Carretera Central, which is the first paved road to cross Puerto Rico from north to south connecting San Juan to Ponce, was built during the last two decades of the 19th century, made Caguas more accessible therefore causing the population of the town to grow even more. Sugarcane was the primary crop during this time and important sugarcane plantations and refineries were those of Central Santa Juana (close to modern day Plaza Centro) and Central Santa Catalina (modern day Las Catalinas Mall). In 1820 the settlement was granted the title of Villa and it was granted city rights in 1894. The site of the historic downtown area of Caguas and its central square dates to 1779. The name of the city comes from the native name Caguax who was a local Taíno chief and early convert to Christianity. Postcard from 1912 showing a typical street in Caguas at the beginning of the 20th century.Ĭaguas was officially founded on January 1, 1775, as San Sebastián del Piñal de Caguax, with the name later being shortened and modernized to its current form. Most of the valley was later cleared of its original vegetation for the development of cattle farms such as Hato de Bairoa, Hato de Caguax and Hato de Gurabo. Most of the native Taínos living in the area were either forced out or taken as slaves and moved to the Real Hacienda del Toa (in modern day Toa Alta and Toa Baja). The Spanish conquistadors further developed the agriculture in the valley, while also establishing mines in search of gold, silver and copper. As with the rest of Puerto Rico, the Taínos were the primary group living in the valley at the time of the Spanish arrival. Findings from the Cagüitas archaeological site (CS-2) indicate that the area was later inhabited by various pre- Taíno (Ostionoid) cultures which first developed agriculture in the valley, primarily the cultivation of cassava, and hunted now extinct species such as hutias. The area of the Valley of Caguas was first settled by the Saladoid culture, an Arawak culture which originated in northern South America (today Venezuela), approximately between the years 100 BCE to 600 CE. Caguas is a principal city of both the San Juan-Caguas-Guaynabo Metropolitan Statistical Area and the San Juan-Caguas-Fajardo Combined Statistical Area. ![]() Its name originates from the Taíno cacique Caguax, who was a regional chief. It is known as La Ciudad Criolla ( Criollo City), Valle del Turabo (the Turabo Valley) and La Cuna de los Trovadores (The Cradle of the Trovadores). ![]() ![]() It is located in the Valle de Caguas or Caguas Valley (also known as Valle del Turabo or the Turabo Valley), at the eastern ranges of the Central Mountain Range. ![]() Ĭaguas is located 20 miles (32 km) from San Juan. The municipality had a population of 127,244 at the 2020 census. Caguas ( Spanish pronunciation: ) is a city and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the Central Mountain Range of Puerto Rico, south of San Juan and Trujillo Alto, west of Gurabo and San Lorenzo, and east of Aguas Buenas, Cidra, and Cayey.
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