Abangares
Encyclopedia
Abangares is the seventh canton
in the province of Guanacaste
in Costa Rica
. The canton covers an area of 675.76 km² , and has a population of 17,289. Its capital city is Las Juntas.
The canton begins on the coastline of the Gulf of Nicoya
north of the mouth of the Río Abangares. It widens between the Río Lajas on the northwest and Río Lagartos on the east as it reaches up into the Cordillera de Tilarán.
(distritos):
tradition in Costa Rica, dating back over a century. The first major mining operation was Abangares Mining Company
, founded in the Tilarán mountains by U.S.
railroad, fruit, and shipping magnate Minor C. Keith
.
One of the canton's major modern producers of gold, with silver as a by-product, has been the Tres Hermanos mine, which for many years was operated by El Valiente Ascari S.A., a subsidiary of Ariel Resources Ltd. of Vancouver
, Canada
. That company filed for insolvency in 2001 and abandoned the operation while still owing its workers two months worth of wages. More than 300 families continue to earn a meager living working through an independent local collective that now operates the mine.
A mining museum at La Sierra de Abangares with artifacts from the boom times of Costa Rican gold mining is a major tourist attraction of the canton.
Cantons of Costa Rica
This is a list of the cantons of Costa Rica.Cantons are the second-level administrative division of Costa Rica. The country's seven provinces are subdivided into 81 cantons , and these are further subdivided into districts .A unique feature of the cantons is that they are the only administrative...
in the province of Guanacaste
Guanacaste Province
Guanacaste is a province of Costa Rica located in the northwestern part of the country, along the coast of the Pacific Ocean. To the north it borders Nicaragua. To the east is the Alajuela Province, and to the southeast is the Puntarenas Province. It is the most sparsely populated of all the...
in Costa Rica
Costa Rica
Costa Rica , officially the Republic of Costa Rica is a multilingual, multiethnic and multicultural country in Central America, bordered by Nicaragua to the north, Panama to the southeast, the Pacific Ocean to the west and the Caribbean Sea to the east....
. The canton covers an area of 675.76 km² , and has a population of 17,289. Its capital city is Las Juntas.
The canton begins on the coastline of the Gulf of Nicoya
Gulf of Nicoya
The Gulf of Nicoya is an inlet of the Pacific Ocean. It separates the Nicoya Peninsula from the mainland of Costa Rica, and encompasses a marine and coastal landscape of wetlands, rocky islands and cliffs.-Islands:*Chira Island*Venado Island*Isla Caballo...
north of the mouth of the Río Abangares. It widens between the Río Lajas on the northwest and Río Lagartos on the east as it reaches up into the Cordillera de Tilarán.
Districts
The canton of Abangares is subdivided into four districtsDistricts of Costa Rica
| The cantons of Costa Rica are subdivided into 473 districts .-References:...
(distritos):
- Juntas
- Sierra
- San Juan
- Colorado
Gold mines
The Abangares canton is home to the oldest gold miningGold mining
Gold mining is the removal of gold from the ground. There are several techniques and processes by which gold may be extracted from the earth.-History:...
tradition in Costa Rica, dating back over a century. The first major mining operation was Abangares Mining Company
Abangares Mining Company
The Abangares Mining Company was a gold mining company in the Tilarán mountains, located in the Abangares district of the province of Guanacaste in Costa Rica. Founded by U.S. railroad, fruit, and shipping magnate Minor C. Keith, it established one of the earliest major commercial gold mining...
, founded in the Tilarán mountains by U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
railroad, fruit, and shipping magnate Minor C. Keith
Minor C. Keith
Minor Cooper Keith was a U.S. railroad, fruit, and shipping magnate whose business activities had a profound impact in Central America and in Colombia.- Early life :...
.
One of the canton's major modern producers of gold, with silver as a by-product, has been the Tres Hermanos mine, which for many years was operated by El Valiente Ascari S.A., a subsidiary of Ariel Resources Ltd. of Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. That company filed for insolvency in 2001 and abandoned the operation while still owing its workers two months worth of wages. More than 300 families continue to earn a meager living working through an independent local collective that now operates the mine.
A mining museum at La Sierra de Abangares with artifacts from the boom times of Costa Rican gold mining is a major tourist attraction of the canton.