Viana, Espírito Santo

Viana is a town and municipality in the state of Espírito Santo, Brazil. It is located 18km southwest of Vitória on the road to Minas Gerais. Its population was 59,458 (2005) and its area is 312 km². [IBGE - [http://www.ibge.gov.br/cidadesat/default.php] ] Though it is part of the Greater Vitória metropolitan area, it still maintains a much more laid-back feeling. Marked by its first church dedicated to Nossa Senhora da Conceição (built on March 22, 1817) atop a little mound in the middle of the town all those who pass it on their way to and from Minas Gerais appreciate its imposing landmark. The town also has a railway museum at the railway station inaugurated on 13th of July 1895 by the English. The municipality borders Vitória (E), Cariacica (N), Domingos Martins (W) and Guarapari (S).

History

In 1846, 39 families from North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate (then known as "Rheinpreussen" in German, or "Prússia Renana" in Portuguese) arrived at Vitória on the 21st of December to settle what is now Viana, as this was the first allotted land they received from the government. In 1857, though, most of them moved on to found Santa Isabel Colony in the 27th of January 1857.

In the 1890s, Viana was a prosperous colony of mainly Azorean immigrants. In 1891 Santa Isabel became a municipality independent from Viana in what used to be its mountainous region. In 1961, the city was made the seat of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Viana.

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