Santa Rosalia, Mexico
Santa Rosalia
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Santa Rosalia, Mexico, is a small town of just under 10,000 people located in the Mexican state of Baja California Sur. Located on the eastern coast of Baja California, the town was once a major site of copper mining. Because its mines were owned by a French mining company, even today visitors can witness a unique fusion of Mexican and French culture in Santa Rosalia. The blend of Latin and French cultures has earned Santa Rosalia a comparison to New Orleans for its wooden houses sporting balconies.
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El Boleo was the French mining company that controlled Santa Rosalia’s copper mines for nearly one hundred years, beginning in 1885. With a tax exemption from the Mexican government, and a 99 year lease on the land that started with 44,000 acres but was eventually expanded to over a million acres, El Boleo was the major employer and economic stability in Santa Rosalia until midway through the twentieth century. In exchange for the lease, El Boleo agreed to build the town’s buildings and port, and establish an ocean route between Santa Rosalia on Baja’s east coast and Guaymas on Mexico’s mainland.
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The result of El Boleo’s influence is that the small Mexican town sports distinctively French architecture and style. One of the churches still standing in Santa Rosalia, Santa Barbara, was designed by Gustave Eiffel – whose famous name is easily recognizable because of his seminal work, the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Like the Eiffel tower, the Santa Barbara church was meant to be displayed at a World’s Fair in Paris, but for some reason it never made it across the Atlantic Ocean. The Santa Barbara church was built entirely from metal, giving it its nickname, “the metal church.” Although it has since been modified from Eiffel’s original design to be more user-friendly, the metal church remains one of the most popular tourist destinations in Santa Rosalia.
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Unfortunately, El Boleo drew justified criticism for its exploitation of its Mexican employees. In a system that essentially amounted to slavery, it was so bad that in one two-year period, 1901 to 1903, over 1,400 Mexican miners died. When the workers tried to revolt, their protests were suppressed by force. In 1985, the mines shut down for good, the copper having been long ago exhausted. Despite its somewhat bloody history, the residents of Santa Rosalia still proudly celebrate their history every October during their Foundation Festival. The mining facilities in the middle of town have never been dismantled, and can still be seen by visitors.
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Today, Santa Rosalia draws most of its income from tourists. A quiet seaside town, it has several resort hotels and is not far at all from some of Mexico’s more famous tourist destinations. With RV parks as well as more upscale hotels, not to mention easy access to ferries, bus depots, and a domestic airport, Santa Rosalia is a popular stop-off point for visitors to Baja California. There is also excellent sailing and fishing in Santa Rosalia you can try out yourself.