Online Encyclopedia

Search over 40,000 articles from the original, classic Encyclopedia Britannica, 11th Edition.

QUERETARO

Online Encyclopedia
Originally appearing in Volume V22, Page 743 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
» Make a correction to this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Spread the word: del.icio.us del.icio.us it!

QUERETARO , a See also:

city of See also:Mexico, See also:capital of the See also:state of Queretaro-Arteaga, 152 M. by See also:rail N.W. of the See also:national capital. Pop. (1900) 33,152, including a large See also:Indian See also:element. Queretaro is served by the Mexican Central railway. The city stands on a See also:plain at the See also:foot of the Cerro de See also:las Campanas, 6168 ft. above See also:sea-level. Among the important buildings are the See also:Cathedral (said to have been built originally about 1535, and subsequently restored at various times), the See also:Iturbide See also:theatre (in which occurred the trial of See also:Maximilian), the See also:government offices, the federal See also:palace and the churches of See also:Santa See also:Rosa, Santa See also:Clara and See also:San Augustin. The federal palace and the See also:church of Santa Rosa are examples of the See also:work of the celebrated Mexican architect, Francisco Eduardo de Tresguerras (1765-1833), who restored the church of Santa Clara also. The gilded See also:wood carvings of Santa Clara are noteworthy; and in the courtyard of the federal palace there are other specimens of the same work. The See also:water-See also:supply is brought over a See also:fine See also:aqueduct 5 M. See also:long, dating from 18th See also:century. Among manufactures are cottons, woollens, pottery and ironwares. Queretaro has one of the See also:oldest and largest See also:cotton factories in Mexico, employing about 2000 operatives, and maintaining a small private military force for See also:protection. It was built in the days when See also:brigandage held the whole See also:country in terror, and was strongly fortified and provided with See also:artillery and See also:garrison.

The latter was also used to escort See also:

pack trains of goods and supplies before the See also:building of the railway. This old factory has also played its See also:part in the See also:civil See also:wars of the country since 1840, becoming a fortress whenever Queretaro became involved in military operations. Queretaro occupies the site of an Otomie Indian See also:town dating from about 1400. It was captured by the Spaniards in 1531 and was raised to the See also:rank of a city in 1655. It was the See also:scene of a revolutionary outbreak against See also:Spain in x81o. In 1848 a Mexican See also:congress met here to ratify the treaty of See also:peace with the See also:United States, and in 1867 Queretaro was the scene of Maximilian's last stand against the republicans'(under Escobedo), which resulted in his See also:capture and subsequent See also:execution ' on the Cerro de las Campanas just N. of the city. QUERETARO-ARTEAGA, a central state of Mexico, bounded N. by San Luis See also:Potosi, E. by See also:Hidalgo, S.E. by the state of Mexico, S. by See also:Michoacan and W. by See also:Guanajuato; See also:area, 3556 sq. m. Pop. (1900) 232,389, largely Indian. The state belongs to the elevated See also:plateau region, with its semi-arid conditions. The N. part of the state is traversed from E. to W. by the wooded Sierra Gorda, whose spurs reach southward to the central districts. The central and S. parts are covered by plains, broken by See also:low hills.

The See also:

rivers are small and flow chiefly to the San Juan, a part of the Panuco drainage See also:basin. There are some small lakes and swamps and a number of See also:mineral springs. See also:Sugar, cotton, Indian See also:corn, beans and considerable quantities of See also:wheat are grown, but See also:agriculture is largely hampered by the uncertainty of the rainfall. The See also:chief See also:wealth of the state is in its mines. See also:Silver, See also:gold, See also:copper, See also:mercury, See also:lead, See also:tin, See also:antimony and See also:precious stones are found, in some cases in very See also:rich deposits. The richest See also:mining districts are those of Cadereyta and Toliman, where there are metallurgical See also:works for the reduction of ores. The Mexican Central and Mexican National See also:railways See also:cross the S. end of the state and afford transportation facilities for the agricultural districts, but the mining districts of the N. are still dependent upon old methods. The capital of the state is the historic city of Queretaro (q.v.), and other important towns, with their populations in 19oo, are: San Juan del Rio (8124), Landa (about 7000), Ahuacatlan (J929 in 1895), Jalpan (about 6000), and Toliman, celebrated for its opals.

End of Article: QUERETARO

Additional information and Comments

There are no comments yet for this article.
» Add information or comments to this article.
Please link directly to this article:
Highlight the code below, right click, and select "copy." Then paste it into your website, email, or other HTML.
Site content, images, and layout Copyright © 2006 - Net Industries, worldwide.
Do not copy, download, transfer, or otherwise replicate the site content in whole or in part.

Links to articles and home page are always encouraged.

[back]
QUERCY (Lat. pagus Caturcinus, Fr. Cahorsin) 		[next]
QUERFURT

Site © 2006 - Net Industries