| Santa Isabel | |
| Native Name: | Spanish; Castilian: Municipio Autónomo de Santa Isabel |
| Native Name Lang: | es |
| Settlement Type: | Town and Municipality |
| Nicknames: | Tierra de Campeones, La Ciudad de los Potros Capital de la Agricultura |
| Anthem: | "En un pedazo del sur estás presente" |
| Mapsize: | 300px |
| Coordinates: | 17.9661°N -66.405°W |
| Subdivision Type: | Sovereign state |
| Subdivision Name: |  United States |
| Subdivision Type1: | Commonwealth |
| Subdivision Name1: |  Puerto Rico |
| Established Title: | Founded |
| Established Date: | October 5, 1842 |
| Parts Type: | Barrios |
| Parts: | 8 barrios |
| P1: | Boca Velázquez |
| P2: | Descalabrado |
| P3: | Felicia 1 |
| P4: | Felicia 2 |
| P5: | Jauca 1 |
| P6: | Jauca 2 |
| P7: | Playa |
| P8: | Santa Isabel barrio-pueblo |
| Leader Party: | PPD |
| Leader Title: | Mayor |
| Leader Name: | Billy Burgos Santiago |
| Leader Title1: | Senatorial dist. |
| Leader Name1: | 6 - Guayama |
| Leader Title2: | Representative dist. |
| Leader Name2: | 27 |
| Unit Pref: | Imperial |
| Area Total Km2: | 88.9 |
| Population Footnotes: | [1] |
| Population Total: | 20,281 |
| Population As Of: | 2020 |
| Population Density Km2: | auto |
| Population Demonym: | Santaisabelinos |
| Timezone1: | AST |
| Utc Offset1: | -4 |
| Postal Code Type: | ZIP Code |
| Postal Code: | 00757 |
| Area Code: | 787/939 |
| Blank Name Sec1: | Major routes |
| Blank Info Sec1: | |
| Population Rank: | 60th in Puerto Rico |
Santa Isabel (pronounced as /es/) is a town and municipality of Puerto Rico located in the southern coast of the island, south of Coamo; east of Juana Díaz; and west of Salinas. Santa Isabel is spread over 7 barrios and Santa Isabel Pueblo (the downtown area and the administrative center). It is the principal city of the Santa Isabel Micropolitan Statistical Area and is part of the Ponce-Yauco-Coamo Combined Statistical Area.
Santa Isabel is known as The Capital of Agriculture, La Ciudad de los Potros ("City of Colts") due to the number of potreros (or racehorse stud farms) in the area.
Before being founded, the area where Santa Isabel is located today was part of the boundary between the cacicazgos (or Taíno regions) of Guaynia and Guayama. During the Spanish conquest and settlement of Borinquen, the area became key to the settlement and agriculture of Coamo which at the time was the second town to be founded in the southern part of the island.[2] Numerous estancias were established in the region during the time to cultivate "frutos menores" or small crops for local use such as rice, corn, beans and root vegetables. The area where Central Cortada is located was originally called Estancia Descalabrado, and was owned by Catalan settler Juan de Quintana from 1737.[3]
The municipality of Santa Isabel was officially founded on October 5, 1842, by Antonio Vélez. Vélez led a group of residents to obtain independence from the municipality of Coamo, which Santa Isabel was originally a part of.[4]
Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a territory of the United States. In 1899, the United States conducted its first census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Santa Isabel was 4,858.
On September 20, 2017 Hurricane Maria struck the island of Puerto Rico. In Santa Isabel, close to 500 people had to be rescued, the agriculture was leveled. The strong winds, 15 inches of rain, and rivers that crested, caused an estimated 12,000 homes to be completely or partially destroyed.[5]
Santa Isabel is on the southern coast.[6]
Like all municipalities of Puerto Rico, Santa Isabel is subdivided into barrios. The municipal buildings, central square and large Catholic church are located in a barrio referred to as Spanish; Castilian: "el pueblo".[7] [8] [9]
Barrios (which are like minor civil divisions)[10] and subbarrios,[11] are further subdivided into smaller areas called Spanish; Castilian: sectores (sectors in English). The types of sectores may vary, from normally sector to urbanización to reparto to barriada to residencial, among others.[12] [13]
See also: Puerto Rico Office for Socioeconomic and Community Development. Spanish; Castilian: Comunidades Especiales de Puerto Rico (Special Communities of Puerto Rico) are marginalized communities whose citizens are experiencing a certain amount of social exclusion. A map shows these communities occur in nearly every municipality of the commonwealth. Of the 742 places that were on the list in 2014, the following barrios, communities, sectors, or neighborhoods were in Santa Isabel: Playita Cortada, Sector Islote,[14] Sector Canta Sapo, Sector Descalabrado, Sector El Río, Sector Florida, Sector la Pica, Sector Villa Pote, and Sector Villa Pulga (Villa del Mar).
As of the 2020 United States Decennial Census, Santa Isabel had a population of 20,281 residents, a decrease from the 2010 Census when the population was of 23,274 residents. In 2020, the racial makeup of the municipality was 50.2% White, 33.3% Black, 13.4% two or more races, and 0.1% Native American. The majority of the population, 99.8%, are Hispanic or Latino of any race, and 0.2% are non-Hispanic White residents.[15]
There are 29 beaches in Santa Isabel.[16] Some of the main attractions of Santa Isabel are:
Santa Isabel has three listings in the United States National Register of Historic Places:
The surrounding areas produces fruits and vegetables such as mango, guineo and avocado.[17] Campo Fresco, a Puerto Rican company, owns a plant in Santa Isabel, from where they produce Jugos Lotus juice and other drink brands.[18]
Aerospace, electrical and electronic, metal products and nutritional products.
Santa Isabel celebrates its patron saint festival in July. The Spanish; Castilian: Fiestas Patronales de Santiago Apostol is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.
Other festivals and events celebrated in Santa Isabel include:
Santa Isabel is known as Tierra de Campeones (Land of Champions) because of its rich sports tradition (especially in Baseball). The city is home to the Santa Isabel Potros baseball team. The Potros won the 1992 National Championship of the Federación de Béisbol Aficionado de Puerto Rico. The team plays its home games at Estadio Municipal Luis Guillermo Moreno.
See main article: Mayoralty in Puerto Rico. All municipalities in Puerto Rico are administered by a mayor, elected every four years. Enrique "Quique" Questell (of the New Progressive Party) was elected at the 2004 general election and served from 2005. Questell lost to Rafael "Billy" Burgos Santiago in the November 2020 elections.[19]
The city belongs to the Puerto Rico Senatorial district VI, which is represented by two senators. In 2012, Miguel Pereira Castillo and Angel M. Rodríguez were elected as district senators.[20]
There are 12 bridges in Santa Isabel.[21]
The Spanish; Castilian: municipio has an official flag and coat of arms.[22]
The flag is divided horizontally into three stripes; white at the top, yellow in the center and red at the bottom, and may be decorated with sugarcane stems.[23]
The crown stands for Saint-Queen Elizabeth of Hungary (Isabel in Spanish), patroness of the Third Order of Saint Francis. The shells are a symbol of St. James the patron saint of the town, as well as for the many shells found in the beaches near the town.
