Trelew | ||
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City | ||
Trelew city centre
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Location of Trelew in Argentina | ||
Coordinates: 43°15′S 65°18′W / 43.250°S 65.300°WCoordinates: 43°15′S 65°18′W / 43.250°S 65.300°W | ||
Country | Argentina | |
Province | Chubut | |
Department | Rawson | |
Founded | October 20, 1886 | |
Founded by | Lewis Jones | |
Government | ||
• Mayor | Adrián Maderna | |
Area | ||
• Total | 249 km2 (96 sq mi) | |
Elevation | 11 m (36 ft) | |
Population (2012) | ||
• Total | 98,602 | |
• Density | 400/km2 (1,000/sq mi) | |
Demonym(s) | Trelewense | |
Time zone | ART (UTC-3) | |
CPA base | U9100 | |
Dialing code | +54 280 | |
Climate | BWk |
Trelew (Spanish pronunciation: [treˈleu], from Welsh: tre "town" and the name of the founder) is a city in the Chubut Province of Argentina. Located in Patagonia, the city is the largest and most populous in the low valley of the Chubut River, with an estimated 100,000 inhabitants as of 2010. The Trelew municipality is part of the Rawson Department, whose capital, Rawson, is also the provincial capital.
Trelew is an important commercial and industrial centre for the region and is the main hub for wool processing, accounting for 90 percent of activity in Argentina. The produce of this industry is mainly shipped and exported through Puerto Madryn and Puerto Deseado.
Trelew is home to the Museum of Paleontology Egidio Feruglio, showcasing the paleontological heritage of the Patagonic region, and considered one of the most important of its kind in South America and the Astronomic and Planetary Observatory.
The city is served by the Almirante Marcos A. Zar Airport, of both civilian and military use. The airport's runway is shared with the Almirante Zar Naval Base, home of the Lockheed P-3 Orion squadron of the Argentine Naval Aviation.
Trelew's foundation is linked with Welsh settlement in Argentina, the leaders of which were Captain Sir Love Jones-Parry of Madryn and Lewis (Luis) Jones, who acted as spokesmen to deal with the Argentine government in the beginning of the 1860s. The town was named Trelew in honour of Jones, tre meaning "town" in Welsh and Lew being an apocope for Lewis.