Paso Mayor facts for kids

Paso Mayor is a small town in Argentina. It's about 40 kilometers (25 miles) from Punta Alta and 50 kilometers (31 miles) from the city of Bahía Blanca. It's located in the Coronel Rosales area of Buenos Aires Province.

History of Paso Mayor

Long, long ago, this spot was the only easy place for people and animals to cross the Grande River.

In the 1800s, when people started mapping the land, they named this crossing "Paso del Mayor Iturra." This means "The Pass of Mayor Iturra." Mayor Iturra was a local leader who used this crossing for his cows. Over time, the name became shorter, just "Paso Mayor," which means "Pass of the Mayor." This name is still used today. This part of the river also marks the natural border between the areas of Coronel Rosales and Coronel Pringles.

A famous place in Paso Mayor's history was the "Posta Paso Mayor." This was a stop where travelers could swap their tired horses for fresh ones. A local man named Laporte owned it. He also had a "Pulperia," which was like a general store. It mainly sold animal hides and drinks.

When the railroad arrived, it changed everything. Trains and wagons replaced horses, making travel and trade much easier. The "Pulperia" became a regular grocery store, but it eventually closed in the 1930s.

Even though Paso Mayor has very few people living there now, it once had over 200 residents. Today, fewer than 20 people live there (according to 2010 numbers).

Economy of Paso Mayor

The main activity in Paso Mayor is farming. The land is great for growing crops like wheat, soy, and sorghum. People also raise cattle and pigs here.

Famous People from Paso Mayor

One very famous person from the Paso Mayor area was Violet Jessop. She was born on October 2, 1887. Her Irish parents were part of a group of settlers who started the "English Colony of Sauce Grande" in 1868. This area was once part of Bahía Blanca but is now in Coronel Rosales.

After her father passed away in 1903, Violet's family moved to London, England, hoping for a better life.

In 1910, Violet started working as a waitress for the "White Star Line." This company owned some of the most luxurious ships of that time. Two years later, she was part of the crew on the biggest and fanciest ship, the RMS Titanic. Sadly, the Titanic sank on its very first trip. Violet was one of the few people who survived.

When World War I started, another ship, the HMHS Britannic, which was the Titanic's sister ship, became a hospital ship for the British Navy. Violet Jessop had taken a nursing course, so she joined the Britannic as a nurse. But on November 21, 1916, the ship hit a German mine and sank in less than an hour. Once again, Violet was rescued alive.

Violet retired in England. She bought a small farm and raised animals. She always remembered her childhood and the land where she was born in Argentina as "My People."

Interesting Places to Visit

Paso Mayor has several interesting places that are worth seeing and exploring:

• The Seven Bridges over the Rio Grande Sauce: These bridges were built between 1908 and 1910 by a French company for the Rosario Puerto Belgrano Railroad. It's a strong iron structure, 268 meters (879 feet) long, made of seven parts. Even though trains stopped using the bridge in the 1970s, it's still standing strong over the river, which is now a smaller stream.
• The ruins of the "Posta Paso Mayor": This building is over 150 years old. It's currently being repaired and brought back to life.
• The Shrine of Schoenstatt: This is a special religious place called the Shrine of the Mother and Queen of the Peace. It was started by a German priest named Father Joseph Kentenich on April 12, 1952.
• The abandoned Paso Mayor train station: This train station stopped operating in 1977 and is no longer in use.

Images for kids

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  Paso Mayor railway station.

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  Abandoned school at Paso Mayor.

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  The "unsinkable" Violet Jessop

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  The first and the last trip of the Titanic.

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  Fr. Joseph Kentenich

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  The Seven Bridges of Paso Mayor