Viedma, Provincial capital in northern Patagonia, Argentina
This provincial capital sits on the southern bank of the Río Negro, roughly 30 kilometers inland from the Atlantic coast at an elevation of 12 meters (39 feet). The city spreads along the river with low-rise buildings and wide streets that extend from the waterfront toward the open steppe.
Francisco de Viedma y Narváez founded the settlement on April 22, 1779, naming it Nuestra Señora del Carmen as one of the earliest European footholds in Patagonia. The site was chosen to secure Spanish control over the river and access to the interior.
Residents here live at the edge between the fertile river valley and the Patagonian steppe. Daily life centers along the waterfront, where fishermen cast their nets and families gather at weekend barbecue spots built from brick and stone.
Two bridges connect the city to Carmen de Patagones on the north bank: the Basilio Villarino road bridge and an iron railway bridge dating from the 1930s. The river can be choppy on windy days, and the sun here is often strong.
During the 1980s, the city was designated as Argentina's future federal capital to replace Buenos Aires. The project passed through Congress but the relocation never happened, and the plan quietly faded after 1987.
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