Santa Rosalía is a city and municipal seat of Mulegé Municipality, in Baja California Sur, situated along the Gulf of California. Located on the east coast of the Baja Peninsula, the town had a population of 14,357 inhabitants in 2020. The city was founded as a company town by the French Compagnie du Boleo in 1884, which established the local copper mines. Today the city is a popular tourist destination. In 2023, Santa Rosalía was designated a Pueblo Mágico by the Mexican government, recognizing its cultural and historical importance.

History

thumb|left|[[Iglesia de Santa Bárbara (Santa Rosalía)|Santa Bárbara Church was designed by famed French architect Gustave Eiffel for the 1889 Paris Exposition and brought to Mexico in 1897.]]

thumb|left|[[El Boleo copper mines in 1890]]

thumb|left|View of the [[Compagnie du Boleo train monument]]

thumb|[[France|French tropical architecture]]

The town was named after Saint Rosalia, although the mission is not located by the town, but is in original location Mulegé, about south.

Santa Rosalía boasts French influence, particularly in its architecture. The French Compagnie du Boleo founded the town in 1884 and exploited copper mines there until they closed in 1954. They built houses and installed the metallic Iglesia de Santa Bárbara.

Unlike many other mining sites, the industrial facilities which are located in the very middle of the town, were never dismantled. Of particular interest are the reverberatory furnace and the metallurgical converter, although they are currently not accessible by the public due to safety concerns. Old locomotives, mining equipment and machinery are visible everywhere, much preserved as ornate. The main mining company building (La dirección) have been reconverted into the city hall and its offices into an industrial museum.

El Boleo copper mines

The Boleo Mine is an unusual sediment-hosted copper-cobalt-zinc-manganese ore deposit. Seven large manto ore deposits have been identified. Baja Mining, in partnership with a Korean Consortium began developing the $1.6 Billion project in 2010.

In 2012 however, construction cost overruns reported by Baja Mining threatened to halt or delay construction of the project. Majority ownership interest and control of the project was transferred to the Korean consortium, in return for funding the reported cost overruns. On January 26, 2015 Minera y Metalurgica del Boleo obtained its first copper production from the process of crushing, leaching, extracting and electrowinning in its mine-metallurgic project "El Boleo".

Geography

thumb|[[Tres Vírgenes]]

Santa Rosalía is a port city, and a regular ferry connects with Guaymas, Sonora, on the other side of the Gulf of California. At the Palo Verde Airport daily flights are available from Guaymas and twice a week from Hermosillo, Sonora. It is located along Mexican Federal Highway 1.

Climate

Due to its location in the warm Gulf waters, which are considerably warmer than Pacific waters in the winter, the town is the northernmost (and thus closest to the US border) year-round warm locale on the main peninsular highway. Nevertheless, it's not much of a tourist town and sees few snowbirds.

Demographics

The 2020 census showed a population of 14,357 persons.

See also

  • Volcanoes of east-central Baja California
  • Porfirio Díaz

References

  • 2010 census tables: INEGI: Instituto Nacional de Estadística, Geografia e Informática