Xapuri

Xapuri () is a municipality located in the southeast of the Brazilian state of Acre. It was the scene of an early bloodless victory during the war to make Acre independent of Bolivia. The town is known as the birthplace of the rubber tapper and environmentalist Chico Mendes and of the surgeon and professor Adib Jatene.

Geography

Xapuri is at the point where the Xapuri River meets the Acre River. Its name is said to come from the Indigenous word Chapury, meaning "river meeting".Template:Sfn Another explanation is that its name comes from the indigenous tribe of "Xapury" people.Template:Sfn The town is about northwest of the BR-317 highway which leads from Rio Branco, to the east, to Brasiléia, to the west. It has broad streets and wooden houses.Template:Sfn The area of the municipality is .Template:Sfn It is 12th largest in area in Acre. It is bounded by the municipality of Sena Madureira to the west, Rio Branco to the north, Capixaba to the east, Epitaciolândia to the south, and Brasiléia to the southwest.Template:Sfn

The municipality contains part of the Chico Mendes Extractive Reserve, a sustainable use environmental unit created in 1990.Template:Sfn The reserve is fairly well maintained apart from a few locations of deforestation, but its surroundings are quite deforested, compromising its buffer zone.Template:Sfn

History

Xapuri was born in 1883 shortly after Volta da Empreza (today's Rio Branco) was founded.Template:Sfn The first Europeans came to the region in the first rubber boom, a period of uncontrolled land grabbing and extraction of forest resources.Template:Sfn The village of Xapuri became one of Acre's main rubber trading posts, and the region was an important producer of rubber and Brazil nuts.Template:Sfn Until the Acre War of 1902–03 it was part of Bolivia, although most of the new colonists were Brazilian.Template:Sfn At the time of the Acre War the Bolivians called the post Mariscal Sucre.Template:Sfn

At the start of 1902 José Plácido de Castro accepted an invitation to lead a revolt against Bolivia.Template:Sfn Although he argued for immediately attacking the garrison of 230 troops at Puerto Alonso (now Porto Acre), Plácido de Castro was persuaded to first take the outpost at Xapuri.Template:Sfn He entered Xapuri with 33 men in the early morning of 6 August 1902 and captured the sleeping garrison without spilling blood. On 7 August 1902 he issued a manifesto proclaiming that Acre was independent.Template:Sfn After further fighting the last Bolivian forces surrender at what is now Porto Acre on 24 January 1903.Template:Sfn

The village of Xapuri was officially elevated to the status of a town on 22 March 1904 by the prefect of Alto Acre, Colonel Augusto da Cunha Matos. On 22 March 1905 it was elevated to the status of city by the interim prefect Captain Odilon Pratagi Brasiliense.Template:Sfn Xapuri was officially made a municipality on 23 October 1912. Infrastructure was soon built, including trading houses and schools. For many years Xapuri was known as the Little Princess of Acre (Princesinha do Acre) due to its great wealth from rubber.Template:Sfn

The city became famous after the 1988 assassination of the rubber tapper and environmentalist Chico Mendes, who was born in Xapuri. His house has been preserved as one of the attractions of the town.Template:Sfn

People and economy

The municipality of Xapuri has the 9th largest population in Acre.Template:Sfn As of 2010 the population was 16,091. The estimated population in 2020 was 19,596. The population density of 2010 was 3.01 people per square kilometre.Template:Sfn

The town is an important Acre tourist destination for its monuments to the Acre War and the house of Chico Mendes, and has an eco-lodge at the Seringal Waterfall. Apart from cattle ranching and subsistence farming, there is a condom factory, wood flooring factory and furniture workshops. There are several settlement projects for extraction of nuts and rubber, subsistence agriculture and forestry. The people also raise livestock, hunt and fish. The Xapuri I and II projects are trying to bring back extractors and farmers who had moved to the city and to promote recovery of areas of pasturage and slash-and-burn agriculture by replanting fruit trees and timber trees.Template:Sfn

Gallery

• Rural Gothic architecture is common in Acre state, Brazil. Photo: Downtown Xapuri, Acre
  Rural Gothic architecture is common in Acre state, Brazil. Photo: Downtown Xapuri, Acre
• St. Sebastian Church, Xapuri, Brazil
  St. Sebastian Church, Xapuri, Brazil
• Saint Sebastian Festivities, Xapuri, Brazil
  Saint Sebastian Festivities, Xapuri, Brazil
• Xapuri, Acre
  Xapuri, Acre
• Brazil nut Finishing Power Plant, Xapuri, Brazil
  Brazil nut Finishing Power Plant, Xapuri, Brazil