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Lota, Chile
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Lota, Chile | |
 |
|
| Coordinates: | |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1662 |
| Government | |
| - Founded by | Santa María de Guadalupe |
| - Mayor | Patricio Marchant Ulloa |
| Area | |
| - City | 136 km² (52.5 sq mi) |
| Population | |
| - City | 49,089 |
| - Density | 360.95/km² (934.9/sq mi) |
| Website: www.lota.cl | |
Lota is a city located in the center of the Republic of Chile on the Gulf of Arauco. Lota was founded in 1667, and grew with the coal mining industry in the mid-nineteenth century. The name Lota is a Mapuche word meaning small or insignificant settlement.
The city's coal mines were nationalized by Salvador Allende due to civil unrest and heavy Socialist support, but privatized again under Augusto Pinochet[1]. In the 1990s, after Lota's coal resources were nearly exhausted and cheaper Colombian coal came on the market, the mines were closed, plunging the residents of Lota into poverty.
Today, Lota is one of the poorest cities in Chile and is trying to turn its economy towards tourism. Tourist attractions include guided visits to the coal mines, White Beach, the Park of Lota (created by the French Cousiño family), and the Historical Museum of Lota. Lota also has Chile's oldest hydroelectric power station, the Chivilingo Hydroelectric Plant, designed by Thomas Edison and built in 1897.