Imagine a river twisting like a snake. That is how the Jacaré neighborhood got its name. We are standing before Morro do Jacaré now. The name Jacaré comes from the indigenous word Yacaré. It means something crooked or sinuous. It refers to the winding path of the Jacaré River.
The Jacaré River begins at Morro do Elefante. It flows through the area that once belonged to the Jesuits’ Engenho Novo. The Jesuits were expelled. The land was divided into smaller farms. Owners like Paim Pamplona and Adriano Müller developed Jacaré. They created the main streets like Dois de Maio and Lino Teixeira.
Around 1920, Jacaré started to urbanize. The Jacarezinho favela began then. It grew between the Jacaré River and the Cruzeiro factory later General Electric. In 1992, Jacarezinho became a separate administrative region from Jacaré.
In the 1960s, Governor Carlos Lacerda brought industries to Jacaré. This created the Jacaré Industrial Complex. It was located between the Jacaré River and the streets Viúva Cláudio and Bráulio Cordeiro. A passage under the Linha Auxiliar connected Jacaré to Avenida Dom Helder Câmara. Locals called it Buraco do Lacerda.
The complex had factories for shoes bags pharmaceuticals glass clothing and coffee. The economic crisis in the late 20th century hurt these industries. Many closed or reduced their operations. Today you will see many abandoned warehouses surrounded by low income communities.
The main access to Jacaré is the Linha Verde. It connects to the Noel Rosa tunnel. This route was planned in the 1960s and partially built in the 1970s. It links Jacaré to Vila Isabel and Maria da Graça.
Jacaré is an official neighborhood. However there is also a favela with the same name. Many people mistakenly believe the entire neighborhood is a favela. This is only true for the area around Rua Camboriú. The neighboring Jacarezinho is both an official neighborhood and a favela.
Jacaré is part of the Grande Méier administrative region. Other neighborhoods in this region include Abolição Água Santa and Cachambi. Also Encantado Engenho de Dentro and Engenho Novo. Additionally Lins de Vasconcelos Méier and Piedade are part of it. Pilares Riachuelo Rocha Sampaio São Francisco Xavier and Todos os Santos complete the region.
The Jacarezinho favela started a bit before the 1920s. The territory was part of the Engenho Novo district near Engenho de Dentro and Engenho da Rainha. Early settlements were on the higher parts of the hill for protection.
Before becoming a favela Jacarezinho sheltered escaped slaves. It can be considered an urban quilombo a refuge for runaway slaves. In the 1920s Jacarezinho began to solidify as a community. The Vargas family ceded land to the residents.
The area where the favela expanded housed companies like Concórdia and Fábrica Unida de Tecidos. These arose from leasing an old farm. Migration to favelas in Rio’s North Zone increased with industrial expansion. Jacarezinho grew due to factories nearby. These included the Cruzeiro match factory General Electric and Cisper glass factory. Also the railway line crossing the area contributed to its growth.
The community now known as Jacarezinho got its name from the Jacaré River. In 1961 Governor Carlos Lacerda created the Jacaré Industrial Complex. This spurred more factory construction boosting employment for local residents.
Morro do Jacaré and the surrounding areas have a rich history. They reflect Rio’s social and economic changes over time.