Puerto la Cruz: History

Pre-20th-Century History

The coastal region here was occupied by indigenous groups prior to the arrival of the Spanish in the 16th century. In 1780, a Christian mission was established on a bay known named Pozuelos ('small wells').

The town was established on April 9, 1862 when a group of 26 families from Isla de Margarita moved over and settled by Pozuelos Bay. When the first church was built in 1868, the town was officially named Puerto de la Santa Cruz (Port of the Holy Cross).

Modern History

Puerto La Cruz was little more than an obscure mainland village close to some very pretty islands until the 1930s, when rich oil deposits were discovered to the south and port facilities were built just east of town. Before you could say 'black gold', an oil refinery was built; this became the country's principal point of oil export.

Puerto la Cruz developed rapidly and, in the 1970s, the ambitious El Morro complex was opened. A series of modern shopping malls and upmarket residential areas, cut by canals, set the city in motion.

Recent History

Today, the oil business is still booming, but Puerto La Cruz's biggest growth industry is tourism. As well as being a gateway to Isla de Margarita and Parque Nacional Mochima, the city has grown into a major water-sports center with half a dozen marinas and yacht clubs, and travel agents offering yacht rental, diving and fishing tours.

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