Campinas tourist information

The city was founded on July 14, 1774, by Barreto Leme. It was initially a simple outpost on the way to Minas Gerais and Goiás serving the "Bandeirantes" who were in search of precious minerals and Indian slaves. In the first half of the 19th century, Campinas became a growing population center, with many coffee and sugarcane farms. The construction of a railway linking it to the city of São Paulo and Santos' seaport, in 1817, was very important for its growth. In the second half of the 19th century, with the abolition of slavery, farming and industrialization attracted many foreign immigrants to replace the lost manpower, mainly from Italy. Coffee became an important export and the city became wealthy. In consequence, a large service sector was established to serve the growing population, and in the first decades of the 20th century, Campinas could already boast as having an opera house, theaters, banks, movie theaters, radio stations, a philarmonic band, two newspapers, (Correio Popular) and Diário do Povo, a good public education system (with the Escola Normal de Campinas and the Colégio Culto à Ciência), and hospitals, such as the Santa Casa de Misericórdia (a charity for poor people) and the Casa de Saúde de Campinas (for the Italian community), and the most important Brazilian research center in agricultural sciences, the Instituto Agronômico de Campinas, which was founded by Emperor Pedro II. Finally, the construction of the first Brazilian highway in 1938, between Campinas and São Paulo, the Anhanguera Highway, was a turning point in the integration of Campinas into the rest of the state.

Campinas was the birthplace of opera composer Carlos Gomes (1836—1896) and of the President of the Republic Campos Salles (1841—1913). It was home for 49 years for Hércules Florence, reputed as one of the early inventors of photography, photocopying and the mimeograph.

Campinas is a major transportation and telecommunications hub for the State of São Paulo, as it is located on the major highways that connect the capital to the Northwest and Northern parts of the State. The city is served by the a Campinas Beltway (Anel Viário) and the following main highways:

* Rodovia Anhangüera * Rodovia dos Bandeirantes * Rodovia Santos Dumont * Rodovia Dom Pedro I * Rodovia Adhemar de Barros * Rodovia General Milton Tavares de Souza * Rodovia Jornalista Francisco Aguirre Proença

All these highways are very modern and constructed according to the highest international standards. The Anel Viário José Magalhães Teixeira (SP-038) around the city currently interconnects the Anhangüera and Dom Pedro I highways.

Campinas has long been a major railway hub, too, although passenger train lines no longer operate there.

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Its international airport, Viracopos Airport, has long been the State's main air cargo terminal, and its passenger traffic is rapidly expanding.

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