Cárdenas San Juan de Dios de Cárdenas | |
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 Street in Cárdenas | |
 Coat of arms | |
| Motto: Primus In Cuba | |
.png) Cárdenas municipality (red) within Matanzas Province (yellow) and Cuba | |
| Coordinates:23°02′34″N81°12′13″W / 23.04278°N 81.20361°W /23.04278; -81.20361 | |
| Country | Cuba |
| Province | Matanzas |
| Founded | 1828[1] |
| Established | 1859 |
| Area | |
• Total | 577.88 km2 (223.12 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 10 m (33 ft) |
| Population (2022) | |
• Total | 158,322 |
| • Density | 273.97/km2 (709.58/sq mi) |
| Demonym | Cardenense |
| Time zone | UTC-6 (EST) |
| Postal code | 42110 |
| Area code | +53 45 |
| Website | https://www.cardenenses.gob.cu/es/ |
San Juan de Dios de Cárdenas, or simplyCárdenas (Spanish pronunciation:[ˈkaɾðenas]), is a municipality and city in theMatanzas Province ofCuba,[3] about 116 km (72 mi) by air [156 km (97 mi) by road] east ofHavana.[4] Cárdenas is the15th most-populated Cuban city and the second most populated one not being a provincial seat, afterManzanillo.
The Cuban Flag was first raised over Cuba in this historic city of straight and narrow streets (the "Charleston of the Caribbean"), horse-drawn carriages, industry and "cangrejos" (blue crabs).[5] It was in Cárdenas whereJosé Arechabala S.A. launched and started production ofHavana Club in 1934.
Cárdenas is the northernmost municipality in Cuba.
Cárdenas is a maritime port town on the level and somewhat marshy shore of a spacious bay of the northern coast of the island (Bay of Cárdenas), sheltered by a long promontory (Hicacos peninsula,[3] including theVaradero beach resort). The city lies between the sea and hills.[3]
A large quantity of asphalt has been taken from the bed of the harbour. A flow of fresh water from the bed of the harbour is another peculiar feature; it presumably comes from the outlets of subterranean rivers.[3]
There are mostly narrow streets, various squares (including the Plaza de Colón, with a bronze statue ofColumbus given to the city by QueenIsabella II. and erected in 1862)[3] and substantial and elegant business and public buildings, including the ornate parish church designed by Architect Rafael Carrerá, who also built the famous Palacio Aldama in Central Havana.[6]
Before the 1976 reform, Cárdenas was divided into thebarrios of Cantel, Fundición, Guásimas, Marina, Méndez Capote, Pueblo Nuevo and Versalles.[1]
The world-famous beach and resort town ofVaradero is part of the municipality. Other villages included in the territory areBoca de Camarioca,Buena Vista,Camarioca, Cantel, Central José Smith Comas, Dos de Diciembre, El Castillito, Guásimas, Humberto Álvarez, Julián Alemán, La Emilia, Los Morúa, Méndez Capote, Merceditas, Precioso, San Joaquín de Mora,Santa Marta and Siguapa.
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Cárdenas was founded on 8 March 1828,[1][7] with the help of several old aristocratic Spanish-Cuban families from the nearby provincial capital ofMatanzas and in 1861 already had 12,910 inhabitants. The completion of therailroad in 1841 led to further development. Cárdenas was one of the first cities in Cuba to have electric service, public transportation (trams), telegraph and telephone.
The city was not laid out in the traditional central-plaza Spanish custom, but rather, inspired on a North American perpendicular grid pattern,[8] modeled on the city ofCharleston, South Carolina, with the help of American (Confederate) landscape engineers. Another notable link between the city and South Carolina was Cárdenas native,Ambrosio José Gonzales, who would spend several years residing there and married Harriet Elliot, daughter of prominent South Carolina planter and state Sen.William Elliot, in 1856, living 24 miles from Charleston.[9] According to historian Antonio Rafael de la Cova, Gonzales would join the Confederate forces and was nominated for the rank of general six times but was unsuccessful due to a personal feud withJefferson Davis.[10]
In 1850, theVenezuelan GeneralNarciso López, along with some Americans and Cuban exiles (includingGonzales), landed here on a filibustering expedition, and held the town for a few hours, abandoning it when he saw that the people would not rise to support him in his efforts to secure Cuban independence.[3] López did, however, raise for first time the modernFlag of Cuba, designed by him along with a local CubanMiguel Teurbe Tolon.
In May 1898, during theSpanish–American War, three notablebattles were fought at Cardenas. However, credit for the Spanish victories goes mainly to the local Cuban forces, led, among others, by General Carlos M. de Rojas.
In the late 19th century and early 20th Century, Cárdenas was one of the main sugar-exporting towns of Cuba,[11] and had received a great influx of European immigrants, including fromIreland,France,Italy andCorsica - many Cárdenas families were known for having foreign-sounding surnames, such as Jones, Larrieu, Smith, Villa-Giorgi and Sterling, among others.
By 1907 the population was 24,280. The shallowness of the harbour required loads to be lightened and repeated loading of cargoes. After the1933 Cuba–Brownsville hurricane hit the city badly,José Arechabala S.A. financed thedredging of the harbour and the reform of the whole coastline, including the construction of theMonumento a la Bandera (monument to the national Cuban flag).[citation needed] This justified the Arechabala appointment asBenefactora eminente of Cárdenas.[12] The surrounding region is farmed for its fertility.
In 2022, the municipality of Cárdenas had a population of 158,322.[13] With a total area of 566 km2 (219 sq mi),[2] it has a population density of 270/km2 (700/sq mi). Cardenas experiences a population growth of 0.95% a year.
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One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Cárdenas".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 5 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 316.
Places adjacent to Cárdenas, Cuba | |
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