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São Lourenço, Minas Gerais State (Brazil)

image by Marcio Trocado, 31 October 2008

About the Flag

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About the Flag of São Lourenço

São Lourenço Municipality, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil. The city is located in the southeast of Brazil, 387 km from Belo Horizonte, State Capital. Its area is 57 km², its altitude is 875 m, and is well known in Brazil as "The Brazilian Capital of Mineral Water sources". The economy basis is the tourism, pushed up by the Mineral Water appraisers and many people looking for calm, pure air and mountain climate. The main tourist point is the "Water Park" (Parque das águas) where we can find a lot source of Mineral Water with different characteristics and healthy properties, a large green area and a lake where we can rent a small oar boat and enjoy the free time.

Around 45,000 people live in São Lourenço (2008) and its commerce is very diversified. Many small family industries produce assorted sweets made with fruits and milk and textiles products, especially woolen clothes. As a tourism place São Lourenço has many hotels, hostels, inns and lodges, the 2nd hotel complex of State. Every year, in August, the City celebrates the São Lourenço´s Patronus Party, during almost all month, with music shows, fairs, expos and more. Actually its not like a Saint Patrick's Party in New York, but is very happy.

The first white man in São Lourenço area and its vicinities was the Explorer (Bandeirante) Lourenço Castanho Tacques in 1677. He founded the small village (Pouso) named Pouso de São Lourenço, renamed later as Pouso Alto. Untill the middle of XIX century it was a small stop for the horse travellers, coaches and horse wagons. The exploration of water sources call the attention of many business men, who started the exploration in commercial scale in the 90´s of XIX century. The Water Park was founded in 1891 and São Lourenço became a city on April 1st 1927. São Lourenço, the Saint and patronus of the city, was a Christian martyr who died burned over a grill. For this reason one of the symbols of São Lourenço, the City, is a grill which we can see on the right side of the coat of arms.

In fact I tried to contact someone in the São Lourenço Mayor Office and Town Hall, but nobody there knew how to explain the meaning of the flag colors and the coat of arms symbols.
Marcio Trocado, 31 October 2008