Cruzeiro, São Paulo

Coordinates: 22°34′38″S 44°57′30″W / 22.57722°S 44.95833°W / -22.57722; -44.95833
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Cruzeiro
Municipality of Cruzeiro
Aerial view of the city
Aerial view of the city
Flag of Cruzeiro
Coat of arms of Cruzeiro
Location in São Paulo
Location in São Paulo
Cruzeiro is located in Brazil
Cruzeiro
Cruzeiro
Coordinates: 22°34′38″S 44°57′30″W / 22.57722°S 44.95833°W / -22.57722; -44.95833
Country Brazil
RegionSoutheast Brazil
State São Paulo
Metropolitan RegionVale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte
Founded2 October 1901
Government
 • MayorThales Gabriel (SD)
Area
 • Total305.70 km2 (118.03 sq mi)
Elevation
508 m (1,667 ft)
Population
 (2020)[1]
 • Total82,571
 • Density270/km2 (700/sq mi)
Demonymcruzeirense
Postal code
12700-xxx
Area code+55-12-31xx-xxxx
HDI (2010)0.788 – high[2]
Websitecruzeiro.sp.gov.br

Cruzeiro (Portuguese meaning the Southern Cross, the Brazilian national symbol) is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is located about 220 km (137 mi) from the state capital. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Vale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte.[3] The population is 82,571 (2020 est.) in an area of 305,70 km2.[4] People of things who come from or inhabit in Cruzeiro are called "cruzeirense".

Population history[edit]

Year Population
2000 73,492
2004 74,986
2015 81,082

Coat of arms[edit]

Its coat of arms features a shield with blue on the top and white at the bottom with its part of a flag in the top left and the Southern Cross which has its golden stars on the right.

Flag[edit]

Its flag colors are red on the top left with four golden stars with a white circle and its state (São Paulo) where the city is located in the middle and with 13 stripes, seven of them are blue and six of them are white. It has a red tag reading in Portuguese Cultura Civismo meaning Civic Culture on the left, Paz meaning Peace in the middle and Liberdade e Trabalho meaning Freedom and Work on the bottom and a golden crown on the top.

Geography[edit]

The municipality is situated at an elevation of 508 m (1,667 ft) in the valley of the river Paraíba do Sul. To the north is the mountain range Serra da Mantiqueira, which reaches elevations up to 2,800 m (9,186 ft) and forms the border with the state of Minas Gerais. Cruzeiro lies about halfway between the two largest agglomerations of Brazil: São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro. Within a radius of 200 km (124 mi) around Cruzeiro, the population is around 40 million people.

The municipality contains part of the 292,000 hectares (720,000 acres) Mananciais do Rio Paraíba do Sul Environmental Protection Area, created in 1982 to protect the sources of the Paraíba do Sul river.[5]

Transportation[edit]

The main highways around Cruzeiro are the President Dutra Highway (BR-116, São Paulo - Rio de Janeiro) and the state highways of SP-52 (towards São Lourenço, Minas Gerais) and SP-58. Cruzeiro has a station on the main railway line from São Paulo to Rio de Janeiro, but this was closed for passenger traffic in 1998.[6]

Distances[edit]

History[edit]

Cruzeiro was founded at the junction of the railway lines of three states (São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro). The railway, as well as coffee production were important in the 19th century, when Brazil was still an agrarian monarchy.

The first owner of what would be Cruzeiro's lands was Major Novaes, a resident of Fazenda Dona Tita, now a museum.

At the Mantiqueira railway tunnel, north of the city, an important battle between the Federalists and the Constitutionalists took place in 1932.

Nowadays, the municipality contains an economic focus on commerce, tourism, as well as metallurgical industry: e.g., former FNV (Fábrica Nacional de Vagões), now run by Maxion Rodas e Chassis, a division of an international company that produces rail components, makes up for a large part of the fragile economy.

Twin towns[edit]

Cruzeiro is twinned with

References[edit]

  1. ^ IBGE 2020
  2. ^ "Archived copy" (PDF). United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 8, 2014. Retrieved August 1, 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  3. ^ Assembleia Legislativa do Estado de São Paulo, Lei Complementar Nº 1.166
  4. ^ Instituto Brasileiro de Geografia e Estatística
  5. ^ Unidade de Conservação: Área de Proteção Ambiental Bacia Hidrográfica do Paraíba do Sul (in Portuguese), MMA: Ministério do Meio Ambiente, retrieved 2016-10-01
  6. ^ Estações Ferroviárias do Brasil

External links[edit]