Venado Tuerto

City in Santa Fe, Argentina

33°45′S 61°58′W / 33.750°S 61.967°W / -33.750; -61.967Country

ArgentinaProvince

Santa FeDepartmentGeneral LópezFoundedApril 26, 1884Founded byEduardo CaseyGovernment

• IntendenteLeonel Chiarella (Unión Cívica Radical)Area

• Total47.05 km² (18.17 sq mi)Elevation

111 m (364 ft)Population

(2010 census)

• Total76,432 • Density1,600/km² (4,200/sq mi)DemonymVenadense/sTime zoneUTC-3 (ART)ZIP

S2600

Dialing code+54 3462Websitevenadotuerto.gob.ar

Venado Tuerto (Spanish pronunciation: [beˈnaðo ˈtweɾto]) (Spanish for One Eyed Deer) is a city in the south-west of the province of Santa Fe, Argentina, 322 km from the provincial capital. It has about 76,000 inhabitants (2010 census [INDEC]).

History

Venado Tuerto was founded on April 26, 1884 by Eduardo Casey, born in Lobos, Buenos Aires, in 1847. He was the son of two Irish immigrants who had amassed considerable wealth. Casey bought a large extension of land from where the natives had been recently expelled, to be employed for farming and horse breeding.

The name of the town literally means one-eyed deer, and its origin is unknown, though several folk legends circulate around it. In any case, it was not considered tasteful by some, and on several occasions a change was formally requested, mainly to 'Ciudad Casey' ('Casey City'), though never carried out.

The town was declared a city on December 16, 1935. As of 2008 its mayor is José Luis Freyre, of the Justicialist Party.