Travel Reference
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developed by the Huarpe Indians, they planted
grain, vineyards and orchards to give rise to
Mendoza's agricultural economy. Silver, copper
and lead mining were also pursued, but without
success.
Despite its great promise, Mendoza's, and
indeed the entire Cuyo region's, economy went
into decline during the first half of the 19th cen-
tury. Once Argentina declared independence,
trade with Chile weakened. Formerly allies,
the two countries were competitors. Buenos
Aires became Argentina's administrative and
commercial center. Unfortunately, the high
cost and high risks associated with ox cart
freight, the only means of transportation avail-
able at the time, limited the potential for trade
between Mendoza and Buenos Aires. The wine
industry suffered with the introduction of
lower-priced imports from France, Spain and
Italy. Wealth expected from mining never came
into being. Fortunately, Mendoza's economy
would spring back to life in 1884 with the intro-
duction of the railroad.
The crowning event in Mendoza's history came
during the War of Independence from Spain,
the event commemorated by the Cerro de la
Gloria in the Parque San Martín. In 1816 Gen-
eral José de San Martín, who at that time was
also the Governor of the Cuyo, based his army,
the Ejército de los Andes, in Mendoza. He had
formed the army the previous year as part of
the war effort. The infantry was comprised pri-
marily of blacks, whose liberty had been pur-
 
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