Американа: История города, основанного американскими поселенцами в Бразилии.

Place in Southeast Brazil

Americana (ameɾiˈkɐnɐ) is a municipality (município) located in the Brazilian state of São Paulo. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Campinas. The population is 229,322 (2015 est.) in an area of The original settlement developed around the local railway station, founded in 1875, and the development of a cotton weaving factory in a nearby farm. After 1866, thousands of former Confederate sympathizers from the American Civil War settled in the region. Following the Civil War, slavery was abolished in the United States. In Brazil, however, slavery was legal until 1888, making it a particularly attractive location to former Confederates, among whom was a former member of the Alabama State Senate, William Hutchinson Norris. The city was known as Vila dos Americanos ("Village of the Americans") until 1904, when it belonged to the city of Santa Bárbara d'Oeste. It became a district in 1924 and a municipality in 1953. Americana has several museums and tourist attractions, including the Pedagogic Historical Museum and the Contemporary Art Museum. Rio Branco Esporte Clube, founded in 1913, is the football (soccer) club of the city. The team plays their home matches at Estádio Décio Vitta, which has a maximum capacity of 15,000 people.

The first records on the occupation of the lands where Americana now stands date from the late 18th century, when Domingos da Costa Machado I acquired a crown property between the municipalities of Vila Nova da Constituição (now Piracicaba) and Vila de São Carlos (now Campinas). In that area several estates were created, including Salto Grande, Machadinho, and Palmeiras. A part of the property, which included the Machadinho estate, was sold by Domingos da Costa Machado II to Antônio Bueno Rangel. After Rangel's death, the estate was divided between his sons José and Basílio Bueno Rangel. A part of the property was afterwards sold to the captain of the Brazilian National Guard, Ignácio Corrêa Pacheco, who is considered the founder of Americana.

In the 1890s, the farm known as Fazenda Salto Grande was purchased by the American Clement Willmot. Willmot established the first industry in Americana under the name Clement H. Willmot & Cia. In 1889, the factory was renamed Fábrica de Tecidos Carioba (Carioba Textile Factory). The name "Carioba" derives from the Tupi words for "white cloth". The factory ran into financial trouble after the abolition of slavery in 1888, and was purchased by German immigrants who were members of the Müller family. The town of Carioba sprang up around the factory. German immigrants brought European style urbanization to Carioba which is reflected in the style of its manors, factories, hotels, and schools. Asphalt of tar was then first imported from Europe into Americana and utilized in road paving. The factory became the basis for the present day Parque Industrial de Americana (Industrial Park of Americana).

With the change in status from village to district, Americana developed rapidly. Its first police force was created, a sub prefecture was established, and three street lights – lit by kerosene and brought from Germany – were introduced. A school was also established, with the sending of the educator Silvino José de Oliveira to represent Americana's interests with the state government. All of these developments led the local inhabitants to clamor for the status of a city. In 1922, Villa Americana was one of the most progressive districts in Campinas with a population of 4,500. In this year, the fight to change its status to city began, led by Antonio Lobo and others, such as Lieutenant Antas de Abreu, Cícero Jones and Hermann Müller himself. Their efforts finally bore fruit: on November 12, 1924, the Municipality of Villa Americana was created, comprising two districts: Villa Americana and Nova Odessa, Nova Odesa later becoming its own municipality.

At the time of the beginning of the Getúlio Vargas dictatorship in Brazil in 1930, Americana was undergoing a profound economic transformation due to the rise of the textile industry there (the city was known as the "Rayon Capital"). In 1932, during the administration of Mayor Antonio Zanaga, the revolt known as the Constitutionalist Revolution erupted against Vargas' regime. Americana sent volunteers to this revolution, and three of them, Jorge Jones, Fernando de Camargo and Aristeu Valente (from Nova Odessa, then part of Americana), perished during the struggle. Their sacrifice is remembered in Americana to this day. In 1938, Mayor Zanaga changed the name of the town from Villa Americana to Americana, and due to the economic transformation of the town, the Comarca of Americana was created on December 31, 1953, during the administration of Mayor Jorge Arbix. In 1959, during the administration of Mayor Abrahim Abraham, Nova Odessa was made autonomous as its own municipality. with hot summers and chilly winters. In winter, there is much less rainfall than in summer. According to Köppen and Geiger the climate classification is Aw. The median high temperature in summer is and the median low is , comparable to Boston. In winter, the median high temperature is and the median low temperature is , comparable to Orlando, Florida. In Americana, the month with the most daily hours of sunshine is February with an average of 9.37 hours of sunshine. In total, there are 290.43 hours of sunshine in February. The month with the fewest daily hours of sunshine in Americana is January with an average of 8.87 hours of sunshine per day. In total, there are 266.09 hours of sunshine in January. About 3251.14 hours of sunshine are counted in Americana throughout the year. On average, there are 106.92 hours of sunshine per month.

Amblyomma sculptum and A. dubitatum are common here.

The population descends from a mixture of Portuguese and other immigrants, mainly Italian, Portuguese, German and Levantine. Because of its origins as a village settled by American Confederates, it received the name "Americana", referring to "cidade" or city, the feminine form of "American", which in Portuguese means any native of the Americas, although often applied only to U. S. citizens. Protestantism and evangelicalism: Americana is also home to adherents of Protestant denominations such as the Nazarene, Presbyterian, Methodist, Baptist, Assembly of God, Adventist, Pentecostal denominations such as Universal Church and Restorationist denominations such as the Jehovah's Witnesses and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter day Saints. Immigrants from the Southern United States brought with them various customs and religions, mostly of the Presbyterian and Baptist persuasions.

Named Terminal Rodoviario Francisco Luiz Bendilatti, the Americana bus station has been in operation since 1988 and is located in the Campo Limpo neighborhood. The location receives buses from more than thirty locations, which operate in the Southeast, South and Center west regions of Brazil. The main cities connected with Americana bus station are São Paulo, Goiânia, Curitiba, Araraquara, Osasco, Limeira, Santo André, Cascavel, Londrina and Maringá. The Terminal has twenty five cargo transport companies.

The main and closest airport in the area is in the neighboring city of Campinas, Campinas International Airport, and the main airport in Brazil and South America, in the city of São Paulo, São Paulo Guarulhos International Airport, is in the same state.

In football the city is represented by Rio Branco Esporte Clube, founded on August 4, 1913. Rio Branco played in series A1 of the Campeonato Paulista since 1992 and was relegated to A2 in 2009. It used to play in series C of the Campeonato Brasileiro. The team plays in Décio Vitta, with a capacity of 15,000. Americana is also the hometown of Paralympics swimmer Danilo Binda Glasser, winner of two bronze medals in the Paralympics of Sydney 2000 and at Athens 2004, and footballer Oscar, a silver medallist at the 2012 London Olympics, a 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup champion, a 2011–2012 UEFA Champions League champion Chelsea F. C. player. In 2014, the city hosted the first Pan American Korfball Championship.