The origins of São José dos Campos go back to the end of the 16th century, when Aldeia do Rio Comprido was formed, a Jesuit farm that used livestock to avoid raids by bandeirantes. However, on September 10, 1611, the law that regulated the indigenous settlements by the religious caused the expulsion of the Jesuits and the dispersal of the locals.
The Jesuits returned years later, settling on a plain 15 kilometers away, where the Igreja Matriz de São José is located today, in the center. This nucleus, which gave rise to the city, had a pleasant climate and was in a strategic position in case of invasions. Once again, the mission was seen by the outside world as a cattle ranch. During this period, the town had serious economic difficulties due to the large flow of labor to work in the mines.
In 1759, the Jesuits were expelled from Brazil, and Portugal confiscated all of the order's possessions. One of the first measures was to elevate several towns to the category of towns, including São José, with the aim of increasing provincial revenues.
Even before becoming a parish, the villa was transformed into a village on July 27, 1767 under the name of São José do Paraíba. The pillory and the Town Hall were erected, symbols that characterized the new condition. However, political emancipation did not bring great benefits until the mid-19th century, when the municipality began to show signs of economic growth, thanks to the significant production of cotton, exported to the English textile industry.
After occupying a peripheral position in the coffee heyday in the Paraíba Valley, São José dos Campos gained national prominence in the so-called sanatorium phase, when countless patients sought the city's climate in search of a cure for tuberculosis. Little by little a service structure was created, with pensions and republics.
In 1924, the Vicentina Aranha Sanatorium, the largest in the country, was inaugurated. It was not until 1935, with investments from the Getúlio Vargas government and the transformation of the municipality into a climatic and hydromineral spa, that the municipality was able to invest in infrastructure, mainly in the area of basic sanitation, which in the future would become an additional asset for the attraction investment for industrial development.
Between 1935 and 1958, the city was administered by sanitary mayors, appointed by the state government. The autonomy to elect the mayor was lost in 1967, during the military regime, and was recovered in 1978.
The industrialization process of São José dos Campos took off after the installation, in 1950, of the then Aerospace Technical Center (CTA) - now the Department of Aerospace Science and Technology (DCTA) - and the opening of Via Dutra, in 1951. In the Following decades, with the consolidation of the industrial economy, the city experienced significant population growth, which also accelerated the urbanization process.
In the 1990s and early 21st century, São José dos Campos experienced a significant increase in the tertiary sector. The city is a regional shopping and service center, serving approximately 2 million residents of Vale do Paraíba and southern Minas Gerais.
Fountain
Sao Jose dos Campos (SP). City hall. 2013. Available at: http://www.sjc.sp.gov.br. Consulted on: July. 2013.
