Maricao barrio-pueblo is a barrio and the administrative center (seat) of Maricao, a municipality of Puerto Rico. Its population in 2010 was 716.[1][4][5][6]
As was customary in Spain, in Puerto Rico, the municipality has a barrio called pueblo which contains a central plaza, the municipal buildings (city hall), and a Catholic church. Fiestas patronales (patron saint festivals) are held in the central plaza every year.[7][8]
The central plaza and its church
The central plaza, or square, is a place for official and unofficial recreational events and a place where people can gather and socialize from dusk to dawn. The Laws of the Indies, Spanish law, which regulated life in Puerto Rico in the early 19th century, stated the plaza's purpose was for "the parties" (celebrations, festivities) (Spanish: a propósito para las fiestas), and that the square should be proportionally large enough for the number of neighbors (Spanish: grandeza proporcionada al
número de vecinos). These Spanish regulations also stated that the streets nearby should be comfortable portals for passersby, protecting them from the elements: sun and rain.[7]
There was a church made of wood in Maricao pueblo by 1864. The current church, Parroquia San Juan Bautista[9] in the central plaza was built between 1890 and 1898. Renovations were made to the church in 1960 and in 1984.[10]
U.S. Decennial Census 1899 (shown as 1900)[13] 1910-1930[14] 1930-1950[15] 1960[16]
1980-2000[17] 2010[18]
Festivals and events
Maricao has only one annual festival, the End of the Coffee Harvest festival, known locally as the Acabe de Café. It celebrates the traditional harvest festival wherein the Hacienda owners would feed their workers at the end of the harvest. It is held on President's Day weekend in February. It was founded in 1977 by then mayor, Vicente Byron, and has been held yearly for over thirty years.
Gallery
Parroquia San Juan Bautista in the central plaza of Maricao
Vegetable display at festival Fiesta Acabe del Café in Maricao