Historical heritage sheets.
By Sara González Cañete
Northern Army Colonel Francisco Zelada and Captain Nicolás Dávila had a special chapter in Argentine history. On January 12, 1817, a squadron of 350 Riojans set out as part of other expeditions that were of great importance, under a military strategy of General San Martin, to take Chile with the arrival of the six groups that faced the crossing of the Andes.
With the historical context already known, without losing the thread of the story, let’s imagine the vast Rioja territory full of enormous carob trees. A great regulator of the scorching sun and protector of arid soil. Safe shade, resistant to the climatic attacks of this geography, in addition to being a tree that supplies raw materials for various foods. The carob tree also suffered the disadvantages of the advances that took place in La Rioja; with the arrival of the railway, logging was indiscriminate. When referring to the large carob forests that in past times were part of the Chilecito landscape, I will specifically stop time in that summer of 1817, when Zelada and Dávila, commanding the patriotic fervor of 350 soldiers, committed themselves to a liberating cause, Chilecito had the shelter of a population of carob trees throughout its central area.
Men on horses and hundreds of families gathering to say goodbye with tears, hugs and emotion would have been the main center of attention. However, of those hundreds of trees that witnessed nature, only one carob tree prevailed. The heritage that nature left in the Pearl of the West, as if history were not enough to testify to the value of Rioja. Becoming aware of the importance of the native flora of each place is sometimes irrelevant, especially when talking about moments marked with a historical milestone. It is probably due to the same lack of value given to natural heritage. However, La Rioja has made it clear with places specifically attached to epic characters, such as the cave of the leader Chacho Peñaloza, located in “Los Colorados”. The Quebrada known as “La Pelea”, on the Miranda slope, or the enormous nest-shaped Rock where for long hours Dr. Joaquín V. González took refuge to write, contemplate or think, the same one that symbolizes the essence of “Samay Huasi.”
When the mining revolution came to occupy a primary place in Chilean social and work life, along with the industrial development that it implied for the time, the large number of carob trees seemed inexhaustible. However, natural resources are not infinite and of that number of trees that protected the hearts of the men who set out on an expedition, without the precise awareness of what it meant for Argentine history, only one remained standing.
Did it happen by chance? Did it happen by chance? The reflection is rhetorical, it remained safe because of the privileged location it has perhaps. On Santiago Bazán Street 348 is the school No. 189 “Emilio Alfredo Hunicken”, in the front patio of the establishment, approximately 700 years old, there is the only historical carob tree of the native natural heritage, a witness to that January of 1817. Brushing its branches on the bars of a school that not only has a commitment to education, but also with the responsibility of safeguarding the history and ancient life of the stoic carob tree.
It stands respectfully illustrated with the years that have passed on its structure and the strong trunk that holds it undefeated. A single witness who had the natural scenery of the landscape, when the expedition set out towards the successful crossing of the Andes. Under the command of Zelada and Dávila. Although this tree has special protection from the Municipality of Chilecito, due to its value and historical interest, this was not always the case. In 2018 it was about to be cut down, when a neighboring family noticed the situation. Immediately a group of neighbors who knew the meaning of this particular tree gathered in its fierce defense. Preventing it from being cut despite the instructions received, the indignation of the community was such that after the risk of disappearing, its enhancement finally gained notoriety.
Trees die standing up. History dies if it is not transmitted to future generations, the responsibility of a society consists of the commitment to the memory of those who left traces along the way, a legacy that is inadmissible to forget. Regional culture is built with the awareness of knowing that we are participants in a society that respects and replicates the greatness of its heroes, applauds the expression of its artists, celebrates the lyrics of its books, and preserves the identity of its people.
On Santiago Bazán Street, a carob tree extends its branches to the sky, and continues to strengthen its roots, sways to the sound of the wind, takes care of the birds’ nest, and jealously keeps in silence the memory of the great ones who have passed away. A carob tree, a natural historical heritage, there was no military barracks at that time that told the epics of its soldiers. But nature has always been the greatest force in the world, the faithful ally of human beings and a great inspiration at all times.
Chilecito has trees that are historical treasures, each one special and particular… they will all have a place to be read. Nature is a heritage that is part of culture. In the national, provincial and municipal legal framework, there is law 13,273/48 on protected trees. With the same importance today included in law 3263, law 12,276/99 is also the registry of historical trees.
In this way, an inconspicuous part of the culture and natural rescues that each place has is protected. The conservation and observation of trees is a human virtue that little by little has been blurring, the world has climatic emergencies and we have philosophical emergencies.
“LEARN THE CHARACTER OF TREES, THE VALUES OF THE ROOTS AND THE CHANGE OF THE LEAVES” (Tasneem Hameed).
“OLD TREES ARE BEAUTIFUL. THERE ARE FEW THINGS ON EARTH THAT HOST SUCH A RICH COMMUNITY OF LIFE WITHIN A SINGLE LIVING ORGANISM” (Sir David Attenborough).
