Curepto is a

town A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than city, cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world. Origin and use The word "town" shares ...

and commune in the

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

an Province of Talca, located in the VII

Maule Region The Maule Region ( es, Región del Maule, ) is one of Chile's 16 first order administrative divisions. Its capital is Talca. The region derives its name from the Maule River which, running westward from the Andes, bisects the region and spans a ...

. The commune spans an area of .

Culture

The town has many examples of Chilean

rural In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are descri ...

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 a ...

architecture. Its

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activitie ...

is a quintessential example of a traditional religious building in the

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: ** Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Ca ...

Latin American Latin Americans ( es, Latinoamericanos; pt, Latino-americanos; ) are the citizens of Latin American countries (or people with cultural, ancestral or national origins in Latin America). Latin American countries and their diasporas are multi-et ...

style. The town itself exemplifies the works of the Chilean government in remote rural regions and the diversity of cultures that resulted from Spanish colonialism in the region. Known locally as ''El Festival de la Camelia'' and named for a flower common to areas south of Santiago, this annual festival has been an example of Curepto's outgoing influence in the country. It consists of a collective concert that usually includes many Chilean musicians, and receives national radio and television coverage. The Maule Activa initiative brought Curepto and the entire Maule Region improved internet connectivity. Rodeo is a popular sport the country, and during the summer months Curepto's rodeo arena is often open.

Demographics

According to data from the 2002

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses in ...

by the National Statistics Institute, Curepto had 10,812 inhabitants; of these, 3,157 (29.2%) lived in

urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities, ...

s and 7,655 (70.8%) in

rural area In general, a rural area or a countryside is a geographic area that is located outside towns and cities. Typical rural areas have a low population density and small settlements. Agricultural areas and areas with forestry typically are des ...

s. At that time, there were 5,784 men and 5,028 women. The population fell by 12.0% (1,473 persons) between the 1992 and 2002 censuses.

Administration

As a commune, Curepto is a third-level

administrative division of Chile The administrative division or territorial organization of Chile exemplifies characteristics of a unitary state. State administration is functionally and geographically decentralized, as appropriate for each authority in accordance with the law. ...

administered by a communal council, headed by an

alcalde Alcalde (; ) is the traditional Spanish municipal magistrate, who had both judicial and administrative functions. An ''alcalde'' was, in the absence of a corregidor, the presiding officer of the Castilian '' cabildo'' (the municipal council) ...

who is directly elected every four years. The 2008-2012 alcalde is Luis Armando González Aguilar ( RN), and the

municipal council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural coun ...

has the following

councilor A councillor is an elected representative for a local government council in some countries. Canada Due to the control that the provinces have over their municipal governments, terms that councillors serve vary from province to province. Unl ...

s: * Juan Eduardo Valdés ( UDI) * Mario Gómez (

PDC PDC may refer to: In science and technology Chemistry, biology and medicine * Phosducin, a human protein and gene in the retina * Pyridinium dichromate (Cornforth reagent), a chromium-based oxidant * Pyruvate dehydrogenase complex, an enzyme ...

) * Francisco Núñez Ramírez ( PRSD) * Dorys Sepúlveda Contreras ( PS) * Guillermo Reyes * Aníbal Muñoz Díaz Within the

electoral divisions of Chile Chile has two distinct electoral division systems: * To elect members of the Chamber of Deputies and of the Senate, Chile is divided into several electoral divisions, namely electoral districts and senatorial constituencies. * To elect members of t ...

, Curepto (along with Constitución, Empedrado, Pencahue, Maule,

San Clemente San Clemente (; Spanish for " St. Clement") is a city in Orange County, California. Located in the Orange Coast region of the South Coast of California, San Clemente's population was 64,293 in at the 2020 census. Situated roughly midway betwe ...

, Pelarco,

Río Claro Río Claro is a commune of the Talca Province in Chile's Maule Region. The municipal seat is the town of Cumpeo. Demographics According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Río Claro spans an area of and has 12,698 inhabit ...

and

San Rafael San Rafael may refer to: Places Argentina * San Rafael, Mendoza * San Rafael Department, Mendoza Bolivia * San Rafael de Velasco, capital of San Rafael Municipality * San Rafael Municipality, Santa Cruz Chile * San Rafael, Chile, Maule ...

) is represented in the

Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourbon ...

as part of the 38th electoral district. The commune is represented in the

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the e ...

as part of the 10th senatorial constituency (Maule-North).

''El Oriflama''

On approximately July 27, 1770 off the coast of the commune, the

brig A brig is a type of sailing vessel defined by its rig: two masts which are both square-rigged. Brigs originated in the second half of the 18th century and were a common type of smaller merchant vessel or warship from then until the latter part ...

"Nuestra Señora del Buen Consejo y San Leopoldo" (Spanish for "Our Lady of the Good Council and San Leopoldo"), better known as " El Oriflama", sank off the cost of the commune near the beach named "La Trinchera" ("The Trench"). The ship was built by the French, captured by the

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national id ...

, and eventually sold to

Charles III of Spain it, Carlo Sebastiano di Borbone e Farnese , house = Bourbon-Anjou , father = Philip V of Spain , mother = Elisabeth Farnese , birth_date = 20 January 1716 , birth_place = Royal Alcazar of Madrid, Spain , death_d ...

. It sailed from the port of Cadiz, bound the port of

Callao Callao () is a Peruvian seaside city and region on the Pacific Ocean in the Lima metropolitan area. Callao is Peru's chief seaport and home to its main airport, Jorge Chávez International Airport. Callao municipality consists of the whole Call ...

in the

Viceroyalty of Peru The Viceroyalty of Peru ( es, Virreinato del Perú, links=no) was a Spanish imperial provincial administrative district, created in 1542, that originally contained modern-day Peru and most of the Spanish Empire in South America, governed fro ...

, loaded with huge fortunes of silver and gold pieces, stamps, fine cutlery, glassware manufactured by the "Granja de San Ildefonso", and luxurious furniture decorated with gold, costume seeds and precious fabrics. The company
Oriflama S.A.
' cordoned off the area where the ill-fated ship remains and made a search, but the ship has not been rescued and the company is in legal disputes with th
National Monuments Council

References

External links

*
Municipality of Curepto
*
Curepto On Line
*
Radio Poesía FM de Curepto
{{Communes in Maule Region Communes of Chile Populated places in Talca Province Populated places established in 1790 1790 establishments in the Spanish Empire