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Mejillones | |
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 Flag  Coat of arms  Map of Mejillones in Antofagasta Region   Mejillones Location in Chile | |
| Coordinates (city):23°06′S70°27′W / 23.100°S 70.450°W /-23.100; -70.450 | |
| Country |  Chile |
| Region |  Antofagasta |
| Province | Antofagasta |
| Founded | 1842 |
| Government | |
| • Type | Municipality |
| Area | |
• Total | 3,803.9 km2 (1,468.7 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 5 m (16 ft) |
| Population (2012 census)[1] | |
• Total | 9,218 |
| • Density | 2.423/km2 (6.276/sq mi) |
| • Urban | 7,888 |
| • Rural | 530 |
| Demonym | Mejillonino |
| Sex | |
| • Men | 4,654 |
| • Women | 3,764 |
| Time zone | UTC−4 (CLT) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC−3 (CLST) |
| Area code | 56 + 55 |
| Website | Municipality of Mejillones |
Mejillones is aChilean port city and commune inAntofagasta Province in theAntofagasta Region. Its name is the plural form of the Spanishmejillón meaning "mussel", referring to a particularly abundant species and preferred staple food of its indigenous inhabitants. It is situated in the northern side of theMejillones Peninsula, 60 km north of the city ofAntofagasta. To the west, in the northern part of peninsula, isPunta Angamos [es], the site of thenaval combat of the same name, fought during theWar of the Pacific (1879-1883).
Mejillones is surrounded by the waters of thePacific Ocean to the west and by the most arid desert in the world to the east, theAtacama Desert. It also marks the country's widest point (362 km) along aparallel.
The port of Mejillones has eight terminals which together stand for 7.1% of the annual tonnage of Chile's external trade as of 2024.[2]
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The settlement of Mejillones dates back to the first communities ofChango people who inhabited the coastal area from 1825.
Mejillones was included in maps of theCaptaincy General of Chile in the 18th century, depending from the city ofCopiapó.[3]
Between 1838 and 1839, French businessmen known asHermano Latrille ("Brothers Latrille"), contracted mining services of theCopiapinoJuan López (miner known asChango Lopez, considered the founder ofAntofagasta), to mineguano deposits located south of Mejillones. In this manner, Luan López began mining around the vicinity of San Luciano hill in 1841. The concession for the mining of thisraw material was obtained by Domingo Latrille at the hands of theBolivian government, which would last until 1842. Between 1841 and 1842, they made the largest shipments of this product to Europe.
In 1845,President of BoliviaManuel Isidoro Belzu had a smallfort built on the south side of Mejillones, to become a minor port of Bolivia. Through project development, the Bolivian government proposed to establish a major port city in the large jurisdiction of Mejillones.
The territory was disputed between Chile and Bolivia until the signing of theBoundary Treaty of 1866. Bolivia and Chile mutually agreed to finance the construction of theOficinas de Administración y Resguardo de Aduanas ("Offices of Administration and Security of Customs") in order to protect the interests of Chilean workers and to implement anexport tax on minerals, primarilysalt andguano. Subsequently, one of these buildings was transferred to the city of Antofagasta during the War of the Pacific; currently, this building is still in force and designated as the "Regional Museum".
On October 8, 1879, theBattle of Angamos was fought here in front of the peninsula of Angamos between the navies ofChile andPeru, which ended in the Chilean capture of themonitorHuáscar. Afterward, the increasingly prosperousnitrate industry showed a boom going through the port at Mejillones, where the mineral boarded on the Antofagasta railroad left for foreign ports abroad. During this time, strong waves wreaked havoc on the shipping facilities, which required the reestablishment of Mejillones, this time reborn under theChilean flag.
Also after the War of the Pacific, administrative organization began, which in the case of Mejillones would involve the preparation ofurban planning in agreement with the existing type of port. This work was commissioned tonaval engineer Emilio de Vitds. The plan, which was perhaps more realistic than those proposed before, was based on 63 city blocks and was completed with the Foundation Act (Acta de Fundación), signed bypresidentGermán Riesco and dated February 7, 1906.
In 1970, a majority vote approved the bill presented by Mayor Araya Cuadra to build a theater located across the rear of the Plaza Almirante Latorre. The work was carried out with the grant of a loan by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development in the amount of $500,000. Such funding would not satisfy the completion of the project, and work stopped in 1972 pending the granting of a loan extension that failed to materialize by the time of thecoup of the Armed Forces of September 11th of 1973.
Mejillones is within asacrifice zone in the Atacama and has eightcoal-fired power stations as of 2024. Pollution of the seabed has resulted in a decline in fishing in the area.[4]
According to data from the 2002 census by theNational Institute of Statistics, the Mejillones commune has 10,042 inhabitants; of these, 7,888 (78.6%) live inurban areas and 530 (5.3%) inrural areas. At that time, there were 4,654 men and 3,764 women residing in the commune. In the ten years since the previous census of 1992 (pop. 6,315), the population grew 33.3% (2,103 persons).[1] It is expected to grow after the construction ofMegapuerto de Mejillones, due to be Chile's biggest sea port, expected to be completed around 2030.[citation needed]
As a commune, Mejillones is a third-leveladministrative division of Chile administered by amunicipal council, headed by analcalde who is directly elected every four years.
Within theelectoral divisions of Chile, Mejillones is represented in theChamber of Deputies by Pedro Araya (PRI) and Manuel Rojas (UDI) as part of the 4th electoral district, together withAntofagasta,Sierra Gorda, andTaltal. The commune is represented in theSenate by Carlos Cantero Ojeda (Ind.) and José Antonio Gómez Urrutia (PRSD) as part of the 2nd senatorial constituency (Antofagasta Region).
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