Hormigueros (, ) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the western region of the island, northeast of Cabo Rojo; northwest of San Germán; and south of Mayagüez. Hormigueros is spread over 5 barrios and Hormigueros Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center). It is part of the Mayagüez Metropolitan Statistical Area.

History

The region of what is now Hormigueros belonged to the Guaynia region, located on the southwest portion of Puerto Rico. Archaeological findings have established that there were tribes already settled in the region around 820 BC.

During the Spanish colonization at the beginning of the 16th century, European colonizers settled in the area. A coffin found underground the basilica was tested in laboratories and was dated prior to 1600. Historians also mention the Horomico River as one of the main sources of gold during the rush of the era. In 1692, the settlement that would become the town of Hormigueros was first established as a village of San Germán. It was founded by Giraldo González de la Renta (sometimes spelled Geraldo).

After its initial establishment, Hormigueros belonged to the municipality of San Germán.

After the American invasion of 1898, Hormigueros was annexed this time to the town of Mayagüez. The annexation was ordered by Guy V. Henry, but according to Adolfo de Hostos, it was a town's petition. In 1912, they were granted their independence once again, although there were attempts to annex them again during 1928–29.

On September 20, 2017 Hurricane Maria struck Puerto Rico. In minute Hormigueros, 651 residences were affected. The hurricane triggered landslides in Hormigueros with its wind and rainfall.

Folklore

thumb|right|[[Virgin of Montserrat|Virgen de La Monserrate at the Museo de las Americas in San Juan, Puerto Rico]]

There is folklore about the town's founder, an explanation of why the church in the town, Basílica Menor de la Virgen de Monserrate, became so important. The legend has to do with the townspeople aiding Geraldo in finding his eight-year-old daughter, "with eyes as blue as the turquoise skies", when she disappeared. When his daughter was found 15 days later she was unharmed, not hungry, and unafraid and happily explained that a black woman had helped her. Geraldo and the townspeople imagined it was the Virgin of Montserrat and Geraldo said that for having helped his daughter she would be venerated for all ages. Many people heard of the tale and began praying for miracles at the place. Many pilgrimages have been made to the church, even as early as in the 17th century. It had not been the first time Geraldo had experienced a miracle at the location where the church would be built. The first miracle was when a savage bull was going to attack him but when he prayed the bull bent its knees, bowed its head to the ground, and didn't attack.

Some versions of the story of the bull that would kill Geraldo state the bull's legs actually broke and thus was unable to charge at him. Since then, many Catholics perform penitence by walking the steps to the church on their knees.

Geography

The municipality of Hormigueros can be divided in three areas: the northern mountainous region that covers one fourth of the town, with hills of relative height; a semi-mountainous region that extends from east to west covering downtown Hormigueros; and the flat, valley region that extends to the south covering 5.6 square miles.

  1. Benavente
  2. Guanajibo
  3. Hormigueros
  4. Hormigueros barrio-pueblo
  5. Jagüitas
  6. Lavadero

These residential areas are located outside Hormigueros downtown:

  1. Buenaventura
  2. San Romualdo Norte
  3. San Romualdo Sur
  4. Valle Hermoso Norte
  5. Valle Hermoso Sur

Sectors

Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions) are further subdivided into smaller areas called (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.

Special Communities

(Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Hormigueros: Sector El Hoyo in Jagüitas, Lavadero, Salsipuedes and San Romualdo.

Culture

Festivals and events

Hormigueros celebrates its patron saint festival in September. The is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.

Despite its small size, Hormigueros does have several attractions for visitors including:

|align-fn=center

|footnote=U.S. Decennial Census<br /> 1899 (shown as 1900) 1910–1930<br />1930–1950 1960–2000 2010

2020

{| class="wikitable"

|-

!colspan=3|Race – Hormigueros, Puerto Rico – 2000 Census

|-----

! Race

! Population

! % of Total

|-----

| White||14,283||86.0%

|-----

| Black/African American||811||4.9%

|-----

| American Indian and Alaska Native||31||0.2%

|-----

| Asian||21||0.1%

|-----

| Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander||4||0.0%

|-----

| Some other race||1,063||6.4%

|-----

| Two or more races||401||2.4%

|}

Hormigueros is one of the least populated municipalities. The population, according to the 2000 census, was 16,614 with a population density of 1,510.3 people per square mile (580.9/km<sup>2</sup>). Since the 1950s, the population has more than doubled.

Statistics taken from the 2000 census shows that 86.0% of Hormiguereños self-identify as Spanish or white origin, 4.9% as black, 0.2% as indigenous or other.

Government

The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district IV, which is represented by two senators. In 2012, Gilberto Rodríguez and María Teresa González were elected as district senators.

Symbols

The has an official flag and coat of arms.

Flag

The town's flag is based on the towns shield. It consists of a blue cloth with a horizontal white rhombus. Superposed on the white rhombus is another blue rhombus with a white globe outlined in blue with a cross. The globe with the cross symbolises royalty and represents Christ's domain over the world. This symbol is a traditional attribute to the Virgin of Montserrat.

Coat of arms

The town's shield is formed by a blue rhombus, with silver-plated edge. On the blue bottom there's a green hill which is a representation of Our Lady of Monserrate de Hormigueros Sanctuary, with its silver stairway. The border has symmetrical black dots, on guard. On the top of the shield resides a crown formed by a wall, with three towers that have blue doors and windows. The joints of the stones are filled with blue lines. The shield is surrounded by two chains that begin at the crown and finish under the bottom part of the shield with the last links broken.

See also

  • List of Puerto Ricans
  • History of Puerto Rico
  • National Register of Historic Places listings in Hormigueros, Puerto Rico
  • Did you know-Puerto Rico?
  • Latin American miracles

References

Further reading

  • Puerto Rico Government Directory – Hormigueros