'Coamo' is a
municipality in
Puerto Rico located in the southern region, north of
Santa Isabel; south of
Orocovis and
Barranquitas; east of
Villalba and
Juana Díaz; and west of
Aibonito and
Salinas. Coamo is spread over 10 wards and Coamo Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city).
Coamo is a small town nestled in a valley about 10 miles east of
Ponce (about 30 minutes by car). It was named ''San Blas Illescas de Coamo'' by its first settlers. ''San Blas'' was the Catholic saint who remains the town's patron. ''Illescas'' is the Spanish town the original founders came from (nowadays in Toledo province, Castile-La Mancha, Spain). There are a couple of theories regarding the origin of the word ''Coamo''. Some think it comes from an indigenous word that means "valley" but it's also plausible that Coamo derives its name from ''Coamex'' (or ''Coamey''), who was a celebrated local ''cacique'' (or "chieftain" in the
Taino language). Archeological digs near the region have produced some of the best examples of the island's pre-columbian cultural artifacts.
History
Founded July 15, 1579, Coamo is the third oldest settlement of the island's post Columbian period (after
San Juan in the north and
San Germán in the west). By 1582, there were twenty families living in Coamo, in the same area where the Tainos had had their village of
Guayama. Coamo became officially a town in 1616, and given the title of "Villa" by Spanish Royal Decree in 1778.
It was the administrative center that encompassed most of the southern half of the island during the early colonial period. As the agriculture and sugar industry which became the mainstays of the colony's economy grew, the province would eventually subdivide into several distinct municipalities and the administrative center of the region would later shift west to the coastal town of
Ponce.
Coamo boasts an elegant picturesque downtown ''plaza'' area, and is the home of a series of natural hot springs, ''Los Baños de Coamo'', which has attracted visitors to its medicinal waters since even before the Spaniards landed. Indeed, these very springs were once rumored to have been
Juan Ponce de León's legendary "fountain of youth", or so the local folklore tells. In the early nineteenth century, a system of pools of varying depths and sizes and temperatures was constructed at the site of these springs to serve as a spa for the colonials. During the North American invasion in the
Spanish American War (1898), this site was the scene of one of the decisive battles of that conflict (the
Battle of Coamo). The North Americans troops took possession of the island and the spa was subsequently abandoned. Though the site lay in ruins for most of the twentieth century, long neglected, it continued to be a landmark to the ''Coameños'' (as the residents of Coamo are called) who would often come to bathe in its healing thermal waters. The pools are still there but the buildings which once hosted the island's affluent and colonial soldiers are long gone, except for the remains of one central wall structure which has been preserved and incorporated into a fountain courtyard on the grounds of a popular tourist hotel and rest stop which has replaced the ancient Spanish ruins. During the 1970s, this writer ran and played around those ruins; the place was all mango trees. Huge ones.
Flag
The flag of Coamo derives its colors from the Coat of Arms.
Coat of Arms
The top left and the lower right have a red background with a gold Episcopal hat each. These parts of the Coat of Arms represent the old seat of San Blas de Illescas. The horse and the bull represent the cattle wealth of the population. The gold color that serves as background in contrast with the black color, recalls the yellowish reddish tone of the fields of Coamo during the droughts. The heavy border of the Coat Of Arms contains the following figures: two flames; three bell towers with gold bells outlined in red; two red crosses with arms ending in three petals; and a circle with a surface divided by horizontal blue and silver-plated stripes.
Demographics
'Barrios' (Districts/Wards)
★ Coamo Arriba
★ Cuyón
★ Hayales
★ Los Llanos
★ Palmarejo
|
★ Pasto
★ Pedro Garcia
★ Pulgillas
★ San Idelfonso
★ Santa Catalina
★ Río Jueyes
|
Geo/Topography
★ Cerro Pulguitas, Cuchillas de Coamo, Presidio and Santa Ana.
★ Rivers are: Coamo, Descalabrado, Lapa, Jueyes and Mina.
★
Coamo Thermal Baths, nourished by the Coamo river.
Anthem
By Manuel Torres Tapia
Allá muy cerca del pueblo
donde nació Muñoz
entre montañas y flores
se encuentra también
donde nací yo.
Tierras de lindas mujeres
y de seres a quien amo.
un nombre Taíno tiene
y es mi bello pueblo Coamo.
Coamo, desde que partí
eché muy de menos
tus lindas mujeres
tu sol tropical.
Coamo hoy he vuelto hasta ti
para que sepas
que aunque estuve lejos,
no te puedo olvidar.
Coamo, aquí estoy otra vez
y yo te aseguro
que de ti más nunca
me separaré.
Quiero volver a gozar
de tu clima tropical
y aunque pasen años
nunca te olvidaré.
Economic
Agriculture
Coamo is an agricultural center where mangoes, corn, avocados, oranges, plantains, poultry and cattle are raised.
Business
Industrial
Coamo is a trading center for machinery, aircraft radio components, and clothing.
Tourism
Landmarks and places of interest
★ Coamo Thermal Baths - near the Santa Isabel border.
★ Historic Museum
Festivals and events
★ Coamo is famous for being the host of the
San Blas Half-Marathon, a yearly world-class professional marathon that attracts the best competitive runners in the world. It was inaugurated in 1963 by
Delta Phi Delta Fraternity in honor to the founder of the town. World-class international and local runners compete in a 13.1-mile half marathon. It's Puerto Rico's biggest race, and the crowds are always large.
★ Patron Festivities - February
★ San Blas Half Marathon - February
★ Flower Carnival - May
★ Yuca (cassava) Carnival - August
★ Juey (crab) Carnival - October
★ Bomba & Plena Festival - November
Transportation
Education
Sports
The ''Maratonistas'' (
BSN), is the only professional team the towns hosts. The team has played in Coamo with mixed success since joining the league in 1985.
Notable "Coameños"
★
Bobby Capó (1922-1989) - Singer, composer and government official
★
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