Colchagua Province
Encyclopedia
Colchagua Province is one of three provinces
Provinces of Chile
A province is the second largest administrative division in Chile, after a region. Each region is divided into provinces. There are 54 provinces in total....

 of the central Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...

an region of O'Higgins
O'Higgins Region
The VI O'Higgins Region is one of Chile's 15 first order administrative divisions. It is subdivided into three provinces. It is named in honour of Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme, one of Chile's founding fathers....

 (VI). Its capital is San Fernando
San Fernando, Chile
San Fernando is the capital of the province of Colchagua, in central Chile, and the second most populated urban center of the O'Higgins Region. Located close to the Tinguiririca River in a fertile valley, San Fernando sits 1,112 feet above sea level...

. It is bordered on the north by Cachapoal Province
Cachapoal Province
Cachapoal Province is one of three provinces of the central Chilean region of O'Higgins . Its capital is the city of Rancagua .-Geography and demography:...

, on the east by the Argentine Republic, on the south by Curicó Province
Curicó Province
Curicó Province is one of four provinces of the central Chilean region of Maule . Its capital is the city of Curicó. It lies between the provinces of Colchagua and Talca and extends from the Pacific to the Argentine frontier, spanning an area of...

, and on the west by Cardenal Caro Province
Cardenal Caro Province
Cardenal Caro Province is one of the three provinces of the central Chilean region of O'Higgins . The capital of Cardenal Caro is Pichilemu....

.

Geography and demography

The area of Colchagua is officially estimated at 5678 sqkm with a the population (2002 census
Census
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...

) at 196,566. Extending across the central valley
Chilean Central Valley
The Central Valley , Intermediate Depression or Longitudinal Valley is the depression between the Chilean Costal Range and the Andes Mountains. The central valley should not be confused with Central Chile that encompasses part of the valley...

 of Chile, the province has a considerable area devoted to traditional agriculture and wine-growing
Chilean wine
Chilean wine is wine made in the South American country of Chile. The region has a long viticultural history for a New World wine region dating to the 16th century when the Spanish conquistadors brought Vitis vinifera vines with them as they colonized the region. In the mid-19th century, French...

. Its principal rivers are the Rapel River
Rapel River
Rapel River is a river of Chile located in the O'Higgins Region. It begins at the confluence of the rivers Cachapoal and Tinguiririca in the area known as La Junta...

 and its tributary, the Tinguiririca
Tinguiririca River
Tinguiririca River is a river of Chile located in the O'Higgins Region. It rises in the Andes, at the confluence of the rivers Las Damas and Del Azufre. From its source, it flows northwest for about 56 km to the vicinity of the city of San Fernando. In this portion of its course, the river receives...

.

The principal towns are San Fernando
San Fernando, Chile
San Fernando is the capital of the province of Colchagua, in central Chile, and the second most populated urban center of the O'Higgins Region. Located close to the Tinguiririca River in a fertile valley, San Fernando sits 1,112 feet above sea level...

, the provincial capital, Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz, Chile
Santa Cruz is a Chilean city and commune, located in the Colchagua valley, in the O'Higgins Region, placed in the southern shore of Tinguiririca river, 110 miles from Santiago, Chile's capital city and 27 miles from San Fernando-History:...

, Chimbarongo
Chimbarongo
Chimbarongo, Chile, is a city and commune located south of Santiago in the Colchagua Province of the O'Higgins Region. Many of the people of Chimbarongo make their living weaving wickerwork, or "mimbre", baskets.-Demographics:...

, Nancagua
Nancagua
Nancagua is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Nancagua spans an area of and has 15,634 inhabitants . Of these, 9,264 lived in urban areas and 6,370 in rural areas...

 and Palmilla
Palmilla
Palmilla is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Palmilla spans an area of and has 11,200 inhabitants . Of these, 2,088 lived in urban areas and 9,112 in rural areas...

. San Fernando is one of the several towns founded in 1742 by the governor-general José Antonio Manso de Velasco
José Antonio Manso de Velasco
José Antonio Manso de Velasco y Sánchez de Samaniego, 1st Count of Superunda was a Spanish soldier and politician who served as governor of Chile and viceroy of Peru.-As Governor of Chile:...

, and it had a population of 64,000 in 2002.

Administration

As a province, Colchagua is a second-level administrative division
Administrative divisions 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....

 of Chile, governed by a provincial governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...

 who is appointed by the president
President of Chile
The President of the Republic of Chile is both the head of state and the head of government of the Republic of Chile. The President is responsible of the government and state administration...

.
The province comprises eleven communes, each governed by a municipality consisting of an alcalde
Alcalde
Alcalde , or Alcalde ordinario, 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 and judge of first instance of a town...

 and municipal council
Municipal council
A municipal council is the local government of a municipality. Specifically the term can refer to the institutions of various countries that can be translated by this term...

.
  • Chépica
    Chépica
    Chépica is a Chilean town and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Chépica spans an area of and has 13,857 inhabitants . Of these, 6,949 lived in urban areas and 6,908 in rural areas...

  • Chimbarongo
    Chimbarongo
    Chimbarongo, Chile, is a city and commune located south of Santiago in the Colchagua Province of the O'Higgins Region. Many of the people of Chimbarongo make their living weaving wickerwork, or "mimbre", baskets.-Demographics:...

  • Lolol
    Lolol
    Lolol is a Chilean commune and town in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region. Lolol was founded in 1830.-History:...

  • Nancagua
    Nancagua
    Nancagua is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Nancagua spans an area of and has 15,634 inhabitants . Of these, 9,264 lived in urban areas and 6,370 in rural areas...

  • Palmilla
    Palmilla
    Palmilla is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Palmilla spans an area of and has 11,200 inhabitants . Of these, 2,088 lived in urban areas and 9,112 in rural areas...

  • Peralillo
    Peralillo
    Peralillo is a Chilean town and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Peralillo spans an area of and has 9,729 inhabitants . Of these, 5,882 lived in urban areas and 3,847 in rural areas...

  • Placilla
    Placilla
    Placilla is a Chilean town and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Placilla spans an area of and has 8,078 inhabitants . Of these, 2,114 lived in urban areas and 5,964 in rural areas...

  • Pumanque
    Pumanque
    Pumanque is a Chilean commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Pumanque spans an area of and has 3,442 inhabitants , making the commune an entirely rural area...

  • Rengo
    Rengo
    Rengo is a city and commune located in the Zona Central of Chile, situated in the Cachapoal Province of the O'Higgins Region at a distance of south of the city of Rancagua and south of the national capital Santiago...

  • San Fernando
    San Fernando, Chile
    San Fernando is the capital of the province of Colchagua, in central Chile, and the second most populated urban center of the O'Higgins Region. Located close to the Tinguiririca River in a fertile valley, San Fernando sits 1,112 feet above sea level...

  • Santa Cruz
    Santa Cruz, Chile
    Santa Cruz is a Chilean city and commune, located in the Colchagua valley, in the O'Higgins Region, placed in the southern shore of Tinguiririca river, 110 miles from Santiago, Chile's capital city and 27 miles from San Fernando-History:...



Transport

The state central railway (EFE
Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado
Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado is the national railway of Chile.The track gauge is Indian gauge in the south and metre gauge in the north.-History:...

) from Santiago
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...

 to the south crosses the province and has a regular stop in San Fernando. It used to have a branch running from San Fernando via Palmilla
Palmilla
Palmilla is a Chilean city and commune in Colchagua Province, O'Higgins Region.-Demographics:According to the 2002 census of the National Statistics Institute, Palmilla spans an area of and has 11,200 inhabitants . Of these, 2,088 lived in urban areas and 9,112 in rural areas...

 to Pichilemu
Pichilemu
Pichilemu , originally known as Pichilemo, is a beach resort city and commune in central Chile, and capital of Cardenal Caro Province. It is located southwest of Santiago, the capital of Chile, and comprises an urban center and twenty-three villages, such as Ciruelos, Cáhuil, and Espinillo...

 on the coast. This is now closed, although one section of it has recently opened a limited service aimed at the tourist
Tourism
Tourism is travel for recreational, leisure or business purposes. The World Tourism Organization defines tourists as people "traveling to and staying in places outside their usual environment for not more than one consecutive year for leisure, business and other purposes".Tourism has become a...

 trade.

The more local Metrotrén
Metrotrén
The Metrotrén , is a Chilean commuter rail system operated by Trenes Metropolitanos S.A., a subsidiary of the Empresa de los Ferrocarriles del Estado , that covers 13 communes, from Santiago de Chile to San Fernando. It is connected with Metro de Santiago in Alameda station...

service runs between Santiago and San Fernando stopping at most of the towns in between. There are frequent trains between these two points.

The Pan-American Highway
Pan-American Highway
The Pan-American Highway is a network of roads measuring about in total length. Except for an rainforest break, called the Darién Gap, the road links the mainland nations of the Americas in a connected highway system. According to Guinness World Records, the Pan-American Highway is the world's...

runs through the San Fernando commune, passing close to the east side of the town.
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