Pueblo Viejo Canton

Pueblo Viejo Canton
Canton
Location of Los Rios Province in Ecuador.
Cantons of Los Ríos Province
Country	Ecuador
Province	Los Ríos Province
Capital	Pueblo Viejo
Area
• Total	129.8 sq mi (336.3 km2)
Population  (2001)
• Total	29,420
Time zone	UTC-5 (ECT)

Pueblo Viejo Canton is a canton of Ecuador, located in the Los Ríos Province. Its capital is the town of Pueblo Viejo. Its population at the 2001 census was 29,420.

Demographics

Ethnic groups as of the Ecuadorian census of 2010:

• Montubio 51.9%
• Mestizo 37.8%
• Afro-Ecuadorian 5.6%
• White 2.7%
• Indigenous 1.9%
• Other 0.2%

Geography and climate

It is located in the center of the province of Los Ríos. It covers an area of 336.3 square kilometres.

The Rio Puebloviejo flows through the village, with a series of tributaries that feed it and a lot of estuaries and streams. The weather is warm and humid with temperatures varying between 27 and 28 degrees Celsius.

History

Puebloviejo is mentioned in early chronicles in 1616, mentioning the fork in the river. In 1693, in the period of King Juan Carlos II of Spain, Puebloviejo was part of the Territory of Guayaquil.

In 1808, Puebloviejo became one of the 14 districts of the Province of Guayaquil. On October 9, 1820, Guayaquil proclaimed their independence from Spanish rule, causing Puebloviejo to proclaim its independence on 12 October, recognized as independence day in the canton.

During the presidency of Vicente Ramón Roca, by legislative decree on February 7 of 1846, it became a canton. During the months of February and March 2008, San Francisco de Puebloviejo suffered from severe flooding in Ecuador, which affected not only crops but also houses and many families in the area.

Economy

Many of the inhabitants are employed in agriculture. Besides being the largest producer of bananas within the Province, the canton has produced cocoa since colonial times. It also produces tagua, fine woods, tropical fruits, coffee, rice, corn, soybean, passion fruit, tomato and others.