Río Gallegos is the capital of the Patagonic province of Santa Cruz, Argentina. It has a population of about 79,000 as per the 2001 census INDEC. The city sits on the estuary of the Gallegos River, 2,636 km (1,638 mi) south from Buenos Aires.
The river was first sighted by a European in 1525 by the explorer Jofré De Loaiza, and was called San Idelfonso River. Simón de Alcazaba's 1535 expedition was the first to name the river "Río Gallegos". The area was not settled by Europeans until much later, with one of the earliest recorded indications of habitation in 1885, when the Argentine government wished to better express its sovereignty over southern Patagonia — a naval base was created which increased the development of the town. Between 1912 and 1920, the government encouraged settlers from the Falkland Islands (Spanish: Las Islas Malvinas) and southern Chile with preferential farming conditions. Some 3,000 arrived and boosted the town. As sheep-farming increased, Río Gallegos became the principal port for exporting sheep and their products. The Pioneers Museum is a preserved old Patagonian house exhibiting the life of the early settlers.
Average temperatures (min., avrg., max.) and precipitations.
Roca Avenue, Rio Gallegos.
In 1888, then-governor Ramón Lista decided to move the Territorial Capital from Puerto Santa Cruz to Río Gallegos. Official ratification of this decision came on 19 May 1904. In 1957, the Territory of Santa Cruz was declared a Province, with Mario Cástulo Paradelo as its first Governor.
In the 1982 Falklands War (Spanish: Guerra de las Malvinas/Guerra del Atlántico Sur), the city airport was base of Argentine Air Force Mirage III interceptors and A-4 Skyhawks strike aircraft.
Argentina's former president, Nestor Kirchner, was mayor of Rio Gallegos between 1987 and 1991.
Today, Río Gallegos is an important city of the far south Argentina, with military bases and an international airport. Flights between Chile and Mount Pleasant airbase at the Falkland Islands stop at Río Gallegos once a month.
See also
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Provincial capitals of Argentina |
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La Plata, Buenos Aires · San Fernando del Valle de Catamarca, Catamarca · Resistencia, Chaco · Rawson, Chubut · Córdoba, Córdoba · Corrientes, Corrientes · Paraná, Entre Ríos · Formosa, Formosa · San Salvador de Jujuy, Jujuy · Santa Rosa, La Pampa · La Rioja, La Rioja · Mendoza, Mendoza · Posadas, Misiones · Neuquén, Neuquén · Viedma, Río Negro · Salta, Salta · San Juan, San Juan · San Luis, San Luis · Río Gallegos, Santa Cruz · Santa Fe, Santa Fe · Santiago del Estero, Santiago del Estero · Ushaia, Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands · Tucumán, Tucumán
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