San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan is the
capital of the
United States commonwealth of
Puerto Rico. The city is located in the northeastern part of the island. It is the largest city and principal seaport, as well as the main manufacturing, financial, cultural, and tourist center of Puerto Rico.
History
\n
\nIn 1508 Juan Ponce de León founded the original settlement, Caparra, now known as Pueblo Viejo, behind the almost land-locked harbor just to the west of the present San Juan metropolitan area. A year later, the settlement was abandoned and moved to the site of which was called Puerto Rico, meaning "rich port" or "door to riches". In 1521, the name of the settlement was reversed with the name which Christopher Columbus had originally given the island, San Juan, after John the Baptist.
Old San Juan is the historical district of the city which lies on a small island connected to the mainland by bridges and a causeway, characterized by its narrow cobblestone streets. The buildings in Old San Juan date back to the 16th and 17th century. The oldest parts of the city remain partly enclosed by massive walls and contains several defensive structures and notable forts, such as El Morro (begun [1539]) and San Cristóbal (17th century), both part of San Juan National Historic Site, and El Palacio de Santa Catalina, also known as La Fortaleza (begun 1533), which now serves as the governor's mansion. Also on the island where Old San Juan is situated is the Cathedral of San Juan Bautista (begun in the 1520s), a Gothic structure that contains the tomb of the Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de León.
Subjected to attacks
The city was subject to frequent attacks from the world powers of the time. The city saw attacks from the English in 1595 by Sir Francis Drake and 1598 led by George Clifford, Earl of Cumberland, which sieged the city but where forced to abandon it because of exhaustion and sickness. The city was sacked by the Dutch in 1625. \nIn 1898, United States troops bombed, shelled and subsequently occupied the city during the Spanish-American War in 1898.
San Juan today
San Juan today extends beyond the walls of the old city, and now encompasses more districts. East of Old San Juan lies the hotel and condominum filled district of Condado. Nearby, are two separate business districts, Santurce and Hato Rey. The Museum of Puerto Rican Art ("Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico") is also located in Santurce. In the southern part of the city is the residential area of Río Piedras, which contains the principal campus of the University of Puerto Rico, founded in 1903.
San Juan has the headquarters of Banco Popular, the largest Hispanic bank in the United States.
Current mayor: Jorge Santini (PNP)
See also
\n*Coro de Ninos de San Juan - San Juan Children's Choir
External links
Municipal Government
\n*City of San Juan
Tourism Information
\n*National Park Service - San Juan
Educational Institutions
\n*University of Puerto Rico: Rio Piedras Campus\n*University of the Sacred Heart
Maps of San Juan
\n*1785 Map of San Juan
Media
\n*Puerto Rico Media
\n\n\nCategory:Puerto Rico\nCategory:Municipalities of Puerto Rico
