Santa Teresa, Rio de Janeiro

The neighborhood originated around the Santa Teresa Convent, built in the 1750s on the Desterro hill. At the end of the 19th and early 20th century it was an upper class borough, as testified by its many opulent villas. Santa Teresa ceased being an upper-class neighbourhood long ago, but it has been revived as a fashionable hotspot. It is home to several artists and art studios and galleries. The offer of restaurants and bars is also varied.

One of Santa Teresa's most illustrious inhabitants was Raymundo Ottoni de Castro Maia, an art collector who lived in his Chácara do Céu mansion in the neighborhood. The estate was turned into a museum (Museu da Chácara do Céu) and its exhibits include works by Matisse, Jean Metzinger, Eliseu Visconti, Di Cavalcanti, and Candido Portinari. It is located near the cultural center Parque das Ruínas. In 2006, some paintings were stolen, and have not yet been recovered.

Another museum is the Museu do Bonde, which tells the history of the famous Santa Teresa Tram since its historic origins. A ride on the tram is a popular attraction among tourists. It sports crossing the old Carioca Aqueduct, going through picturesque streets of the Santa Teresa neighbourhood and wonderful views of the city downhill.

History

Santa Teresa Convent

The neighborhood arose in the 1750s on the Morro Desterro ("Right Hill"), emerging from the eponymous Catholic convent. It was one of Rio de Janeiro's first expansions out of the initial Portuguese settlement in the city center. Initially inhabited by the upper class of the time, several houses and mansions were built, inspired by French architecture of the time, many of which are standing today. All throughout its history, Santa Teresa received many European immigrants.

Around 1850 many people, fleeing the yellow fever epidemic in the city, flocked to the neighborhood. As it was at a higher altitude, Santa Teresa was less affected by the epidemic than the surrounding neighborhoods.

Santa Teresa tram

In 1872, a tram line was constructed to connect Santa Teresa to downtown Rio de Janeiro, which further advanced the access to the neighborhood. The tram ran up the streets of Rua Joaquim Murtinho (named after Joaquim Murtinho) and Rua Almirante Alexandrino, crossing the Carioca Aqueduct. Initially, the tramcars were drawn by mules, before electric tramcars replaced the mule- or horse-drawn trams in 1896. The tramcars' colours ranged from green to silver and blue, but came to be painted bright yellow after complaints from residents who said that the tram "disappeared" amid the greenery of the neighborhood. The iconic yellow trams – or bondes in Brazilian Portuguese – have become a symbol of Santa Teresa.

By means of organized demonstrations, residents were able to preserve the historic tram system by convincing the government to release funds for the streetcars. After an accident with a tram in 2011 that killed five people, all service on the tram line was suspended for four years, in order to modernize the system. Newly built, replica-vintage tramcars in the same style as the old fleet were acquired, and the line was rebuilt and reopened in stages starting in 2015. It was restored to its full length of 6 km (4 mi) in January 2019.

Revitalization

Over time, Santa Teresa lost its status as an upscale neighborhood, like many of the historic districts of Rio's South zone. In recent years however, it has become a district of cultural interest because of its architectural value and prime location. In 2009 the city council started a gentrification program to revitalize the neighborhood. Walls were built to stop the surrounding favelas from growing; and taxes were imposed on water, energy and gas supply in order to decrease the number of poor people.