San Pedro de Macorís, Dominican Republic
| San Pedro de Macorís | |||
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| Nickname(s): Macorís del mar | |||
 San Pedro de Macorís
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| Coordinates: 18°27′36″N 69°18′36″W / 18.46000°N 69.31000°W | |||
| Country |
 Dominican Republic
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| Province | San Pedro de Macorís | ||
| Area | |||
| • Total | 152.33 km2 (58.81 sq mi) | ||
| Elevation | 4 m (13 ft) | ||
| Population (December 2010 −IX Census) | |||
| • Total | 195,037 | ||
| • Density | 1,300/km2 (3,300/sq mi) | ||
| • Urban | 185,255 | ||
| • Demonym | Petromacorisano(a) | ||
| Distance to – Santo Domingo |
70 km |
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| Municipal Districts |
0 |
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San Pedro de Macorís is a municipality (municipio) in the Dominican Republic and the capital of the San Pedro de Macorís province in the south-eastern region of the country; it is among the 5 largest cities of the Dominican Republic. The city has approximately 195,000 inhabitants, when including the metro area. As a provincial capital, it houses the Universidad Central del Este university.
San Pedro de Macoris was founded in the late 19th century by Cubans who were fleeing their country's War of Independence. They brought their extensive sugar cane farming knowledge and contributed to making the sugar industry the most important economic activity in the area. San Pedro de Macorís reached its peak during the first quarter of the 20th century, when its sugar production enjoyed high prices on the international market as a result of the First World War. Many Europeans settled here, making it a very cosmopolitan urban center. Pan American flew its seaplanes in regularly (Eastern Macorís has the privilege of being the first Dominican city to receive seaplanes, in its Higuamo River), at a time when this port enjoyed more commercial activity than the capital city of Santo Domingo. The next economic boom resulted in the recruitment of a large number of Afro-Caribbean workers from the Lesser Antilles. These workers and their descendants would soon comprise the majority of the population in the city and are known as the "Cocolos of San Pedro de Macoris."
San Pedro de Macorís pioneered many areas such as the first firefighting corps, the first national baseball championship, the first town to have telephone and telegraph centers, the first racetrack and the first boxing coliseum, among others. The first sugar factory was founded by Juan Amechazurra, milling for the first time on January 9, 1879. By 1894 there were many factories in the province that reached a high level of progress. The rapid industrial development placed the young city among the main ones of the Republic. The intellectual culture surged at the same pace with schools and the press; among the first newspapers were "Las Novedades", "Boletín", "La Locomotora" and "El Cable."
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Wikipedia