Central Olho D'água (Water Eye) Sugarcane Factory

Located in the municipality of Camutanga, it was founded in 1928 at the site of the former banguê-soil plantation Olho D'Água, by Arthur Tavares de Melo, his father-in-law Samuel Hardman and his brother-in-law, the agriculturist José Hardman Cavalcanti.

From 1945, three sons of Arthur Tavares de Melo – Vinício, Virgílio and Murilo – took over the running of the factory, implementing various reforms in the industrial, agricultural and commercial sectors, including the installation of a distillery and enlarging the factory, which at the time produced 5,000 litres of alcohol per day.

In 1998 it had the capacity to crush 9,000 tonnes of sugarcane and produce 15,000 sacks of sugar per day.

Today, after the amicable separation of the society, the factory belongs to Murilo Tavares de Melo and children, who continue to administrate the company founded by their father.

Recife, 7 August 2003.
(Updated on 9 September 2009).
Translated by Peter Leamy, January 2012.

sources consulted

ANDRADE, Manuel Correia de. História das usinas de açúcar de Pernambuco. Recife: FJN. Ed. Massangana, 1989. 114 p. (República, v.1)

MOURA, Severino. Senhores de engenho e usineiros, a nobreza de Pernambuco. Recife: Fiam, CEHM, Sindaçúcar, 1998. 320 p. (Tempo municipal, 17).

how to quote this text

Source: GASPAR, Lúcia. Central Olho D'água (Water Eye) Sugarcane Factory. Pesquisa Escolar Online, Joaquim Nabuco Foudation, Recife. Available at:  <https://pesquisaescolar.fundaj.gov.br/en/>. Accessed: day month year. Exemple: 6 Aug. 2009