Vinhedo, São Paulo, Southeast Region, Brazil

🇧🇷 Vinhedo is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Campinas. Vinhedo is 96% urbanized and It was founded in 1949.

Vinhedo is ranked 13th of the 5,565 municipalities in the 2010 Brazilian Municipal Development Index (FMDI), and 6th among the municipalities in the state of São Paulo. It had a per capita income of $638.17 in 2010 and an extreme poverty rate (defined as under $30 per year) of 0.13%. The municipality has made significant progress in the implementation of the digital city concept (11th in the state of São Paulo, which is defined as the level of digital infrastructure and services available to residents.

History The region of the São Paulo plateau was inhabited by several indigenous groups, some from the coast, who sought refuge from the wars and slavery of the Iberian settlers. Others, such as Tupi-Guaranys and Jés (like the Kaigang and the southern Kayapó), had lived in the region since before colonization.

With the arrival of Europeans to the South American continent, the region was crossed by the "Bandeiras", who occupied lands considered unexplored and hunted Indians for slave labor, as well as looking for natural resources like noble woods, gold and precious stones, during century XVII. For this, the indigenous tribes were decimated or expelled from the region. African slaves were introduced to forcefully aid the Flags or to work on the newly created subsistence crops that were forming on the way to Goyaz.

At the end of the 19th century coffee farms settled in the northern region of Jundiaí county - many of them taking advantage of former farms that had been producing sugar and brandy since the 18th century. All the work was done by black slaves. White laborers, mainly European immigrants sponsored by the government and by farmers, occupied the slots left by the slaves after the abolition.

Intense commerce between the coffee-growing region and the capital of São Paulo moved troops of mules by the Old Road of Campinas. Departing from São Paulo towards the interior of Brazil, great cities were created every 50 kilometers, and between one and another, sometimes, a temporary stopping point.

Between Jundiaí and Campinas, a landing of tropeiros was created naturally in the middle of 1620 and, for usufruct of these, a small subsistence plantation, a "rocinha". One of the first properties installed in the place would later become the well known Waterfall Farm, which would eventually transform a senzala in Quilombo decades after slavery.

Just in the valley between Fazenda Cachoeira and Estrada Velha de Campinas, already popularly called Estrada da Boiada, Rocinha became, from 1840, a small village where black slaves benefited coffee, which soon would be sold to cities and later, the capital of São Paulo. With the abolition, the former black slaves were released and, without educational instruction or free labor offers, migrated to Minas Gerais and the capital of São Paulo. Few remained in the small town that already had in its population the presence of Portuguese, Spanish, German, French, Arab, some Americans and mainly Italian immigrants. Rocinha passed to the condition of Vila and District of Peace belonging to Jundiaí on October 31, 1908, by law promulgated by the then President of the State of São Paulo, Dr. Albuquerque Lins.

Already at this time, with the arrival of more Italian immigrants to supply the lack of manpower, the culture of the grape was introduced in the then town of Rocinha like main agricultural product, since the price of the coffee of the region suffered a sensible decrease with the expansion of the production in the cities of the center-west of the state of São Paulo and the construction of the Companhia Mogiana railroad, which made easy connection between the north of the state and the port of Santos, rendering obsolete coffee production of the small rock.

The grape then becomes the basis of the local economy. Throughout the district are spread the grape plantations for the production of wines, vinegars, sweets, and what more could be explored of the vines that fill the landscape of the place. Rocinha then stops being known only as a "stop" post and enters a frank economic and political rise.

A curious fact occurs in 1916: the owner of a farm on the Estrada da Boiada, about two km from the railroad, hired a worker to enlarge a well for capturing or reserving water, approximately 25 meters deep.

During the work, an internal collapse partially buried the worker, who was trapped at the bottom of the building. For five days the ransom was tried, using all means available at the time. The fact took on a dimension, being widely reported at the time. The man did not survive, and history helped in spreading the name of the village.

In the 1920s the first industries began to arrive in the district, as an alternative to the high installation costs in the municipalities of Jundiaí and Campinas. The district no longer had aspects of a simple village, and the emancipatory movements begin. In 1948, a plebiscite officializes the emancipation of Rocinha and its detachment of the administration of Jundiaí. On April 2, 1949, Rocinha became a municipality, with names such as Parreiral, Videiral, Vines, Vinhalândia and the chosen one, Vinhedo being suggested for the new city. Its inhabitants are called Vinhedenses.

From 1950 onwards, the Festivity of the Grape of Vinhedo begins, on the initiative of Favorino Carlos Marrone (who years later became a Monsignor), the parish priest of the Sant'Ana Parish, in the region that today comprises the centre of the municipality,

Geography Vinhedo is the 101st municipality with the highest population, from the most populous state of Brazil, São Paulo, at latitude 23 ° 1'48 "south and longitude 46 ° 58'30" W. The total area of the municipality is 81,742 km2, according to the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE), being the 5289th largest in territorial extension of the Brazil, and 603th largest in extension of the state of São Paulo. Of the entire area of the municipality, 968,3248 km² are of urban areas (2000).

Vinhedo has an average altitude of 720 meters. The culminating point of the municipality is the Christ the Redeemer, being replica of Christ the Redeemer with 720 meters of altitude above the level of the sea, located in Rodovia Edenor João Taca, in the Observatory of Vineyard, where there is also the Monastery of Saint Benedict.

Metropolitan region The process of conurbation under the region has been building a metropolis whose centre is in the city of Campinas, having several municipalities, such as Sumaré, Indaiatuba, Hortolândia, Santa Bárbara d'Oeste, Valinhos, Itatiba and Paulínia, as well as Vinhedo. The Metropolitan Region of Campinas (RMC) was created by state law 870, dated June 19, 2000, and currently is by 19 municipalities, being a ninth largest urban agglomeration in Brazil, with 2,798,477 inhabitants. It is one of the most important in the Brazilian Brazilian world and accounts for 2.7% of the national gross domestic product and 7.83% of the gross domestic product of São Paulo, or about 77.7 billion reais per year.

Under the sign of "Expanded Metropolitan Complex", which exceeds 29 million inhabitants, approximately 75 percent of the population of the entire state of São Paulo. The metropolitan regions of Campinas and São Paulo have already formed a megalopolis (or macrometropole) of the southern hemisphere, totaling 65 municipalities that house more than 12% of the Brazilian population.

Adjacent municipalities and metropolitan region Vinhedo limits with the municipalities of Itupeva, Itatiba, Valinhos, Louveira and Jundiaí.

Ecology and environment Most of the original vegetation that it had in the city, the Atlantic Forest, was devastated. Like other 13 municipalities in the Metropolitan Region of Campinas, the municipality suffers severe environmental stress. Vinhedo, together with Campinas and Artur Nogueira, is considered one of the areas most subject to floods and silting and accounts for less than 5% of vegetal cover.

To try to reverse this picture, several projects have been and are being carried out and planned, such as the construction of ecological corridors. There are also several environmental projects to combat the destruction of riparian forests located on the banks of the Cachoeira, Capivari and Pinheirinho rivers, which have a high pollution index of their waters. Presently, it is important to preserve the Jayme Ferragut Municipal Park in Vinhedo. The park has an area of 877 m2, being one of the main parks of the RMC.

In the vinhedense original flora, there is a predominance of trees such as the pink jequitibá (Cariniana legalis), the pink peroba (Aspidosperma polyneuron) and the jatobá (Hymenaea courbaril), which reach 25 meters in height. There is an arboreal stratum of 15 to 18 meters high, composed of several species such as the white jequitibá (Cariniana estrellensis), the cedar-rose (Cedrela fissilis), the ivory (Balfourodendron riedellianum) and the fig trees (Ficus ennormis, Ficus glabra and Ficus guaranítica).

Fauna include the great-toed woodworm (Habia rubica), the rendeira (Manacus manacus) and the tangara (Chiroxiphia caudata); howler monkeys (Alouatta fusca) and prey monkeys (Cebus apella); the white ear possum (Didelphis albiventris), the black-ear possum (Didelphis marsupialis), the thick-tailed opossum (Lutreolina crassicaudata) and the quartz (Gracilinanus microtarsus); (Sylvilagus brasiliensis), the cingling (Sciurus ingrami), the hedgehog (Coendou villosus), myocastor coypus, the capybara (Hydrochaeris hydrochaeris), prea (Cavea aperea) and teiú (Tupinambis merianae). There is also the wild dog (Cerdocyon thous), the mallard (Felis yagouaroundi), the hand-peeled (Procyon cancrivorous), the feron, the jararaca (Bothrops jararaca) and the poppy (Dipsas indica).

Culture The responsible for the cultural sector of Vinhedo is the Municipal Secretary of Culture, which aims to plan and implement the cultural policy of the municipality through the development of programs, projects and activities aimed at cultural development. The city is one of the cultural centres in the State of São Paulo. Vineyard has a theater house, cultural centres, coral groups, municipal library, art galleries, museum, among others.

Grape Party The event began even before the emancipation of the municipality, around 1948, when the farmers gathered to celebrate the harvest of the fruits to the sound of music and much joy. It was a magical moment, when the producers celebrated with the local community the fruit of their work.

Officially, the first Grape Festival took place in Piazza Sant'Anna in 1948. With the advancement of the times and also as the city prospered, the Grape Festival - as it could not fail to be - increased its proportions. In 2009 the Grape Festival added the Wine Festival, which was incorporated into the calendar of events to also enhance the cultivation and production of juice and wine from the Vinhedo families.

At present, the festivities take place in Jayme Ferragut Municipal Park and receive thousands of people, both locals and tourists. Attractions include exhibition and sale of fruits, award-winning fruit auction, various handicrafts, amusement park, great concerts with nationally renowned artists, dance performances, regional bands in various musical styles, varied performances, food court, parade of riders, ride of motorcyclists.

The events also annually elect their promoters. Women from the age of 18 to 35, who dream of representing Vinhedo during these two festivities, the most traditional of the city, can apply for the function.

Sport Vinhedo houses football clubs known regionally, which are largely shipowners' teams. It is present in the county clubs of volleyball, rugby among others. The Municipality of Vinhedo together with the Government of the State of São Paulo has been investing so that the whole population has access to the sport, thus offering gyms in the open air. This investment has attracted more investments to the municipality and thus arousing the interest of the residents with the practice of the sport.

Government The municipal administration is given by the executive and legislative branches. Executive power is exercised by the mayor, aided by his cabinet of secretaries, and elected by direct vote for a four-year term. Vinhedo had as first mayor Abrahão Aun, who remained in the position between 1949 and 1953. The current mayor is Jaime César da Cruz, deputy mayor who was sworn in after the removal of former President Milton Álvaro Serafim and elected in the first round of the 2016 elections, with Claudineia Vendemiatti Serafim, both of the Partido da Social Democracia Brasileira (PSDB). The legislative power is represented by the municipal council, made up of 16 councilors.