The São José neighborhood, one of the oldest and most traditional neighborhoods of Recife, has an area of 178 hectares and a population of 8,653 inhabitants (2000 Census, IBGE - Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics).
In its early days, it corresponded, together with the Santo Antônio neighborhood, to what was once the island of André de Albuquerque.
The Provincial Law No. 132, of May 2, 1844 sectioned the neighborhood from the parish of the Santíssimo Sacramento de Santo Antônio (Blessed Sacrament of St Anthony). It was called Campina do Taborda for a certain period (Taborda Plain - thus named for a fisherman - Manuel Taborda - in whose house the Dutch capitulation was signed in January 26, 1654).
First inhabited by fishermen, the area contains the famous “Cacimbas de Ambrosio Machado” (Ambrosio Machado Waterholes), near which the Dutch built, in 1630, the Frederico Henrique fort, now called Forte das Cinco Pontas (Five Point Fort).
Situated in the central and most urban part of the city, the reference points of the neighborhood are the São José Market; the Pina Estuary; the old Detention House, nowadays a Culture House; the Central Station, in which one finds the Train Museum; the Sergio Loreto Square and, its backbone, the Concordia and Imperial streets.
Where the São José Market Square is currently located, there was, in 1787, a small vegetable and fruit trade known as Ribeira de São José.
It was in São José that, in 1825, Antonio José de Miranda Falcão set up a printing house and founded the Diário de Pernambuco (Pernambuco Daily News), the oldest Latin America newspaper in circulation.
In the 1930s, merchants, civil servants, traders, dockers, and other representatives of the middle class of Recife inhabited the area. However, the neighborhood has long ceased to be an eminently residential area. Few are the families living there and backyards and vegetable gardens are no longer to be found there. Calçadas street has become a busy commerce area in the city.
The Recife carnival has many of its traditions linked to the neighborhood. In addition to the Batutas de São José, Donzelos, Traquinas de São José, Prato Misterioso, and Pão Duro, among other carnival blocks, many important carnival clubs had their headquarters there, such as the Clube das Pás Douradas, Vasculhadores, and Clube Vassourinhas, affectionately nicknamed “Camelo de São José” (St Joseph’s Camel), in addition to the Estudantes de São José samba school, which, as the name implies, was created by neighborhood students.
Prior to Carnival, these associations rehearsed on the streets, bringing crowds to the streets of the neighborhood to dance frevo (a mixture of marches, polka, capoeira and other musical styles) and sing the current hits with great liveliness.
It is also from São José that, since 1977, “the largest carnival block in the world”, O Galo da Madrugada (The Dawn Rooster) marches the streets announcing Momus’ arrival (derived from the Greek personification of mockery and satire), on Zé Pereira’s Saturday (a form of parade, influenced by the Portuguese, in which participants play bass drums and sing).
There are several churches in the neighborhood, such as the Basílica da Penha, built by French Capuchins in 1656; the Basílica de São José, built in 1864, its patron saint lent his name to the neighborhood; the Church of Our Lady of the Rosary; and the Igreja de São José de Ribamar, located near the Santa Rita pier. In the past, the neighborhood also had the Igreja dos Martírios, demolished in the name of urban development.
The neighborhood had four cinemas, the Moderno, at Praça Joaquim Nabuco, the São José, on Calçadas streets, the Ideal, on Vidal de Negreiros, and the Glória, at the São José Market square, the only one that still resists, though it only shows adult movies.
Before the Avenue Engenheiro José Estelita was built, facing the Pina estuary, there was only a dirt or beach sand road, on which circulated – and sometimes got stuck – horse-drawn cars, chariots, and bale wagons. People also played soccer and flew kites in the area. Once the tide subsided, much of it turned into a mangrove, to which many people went, with their hooks and cans, to catch crustaceans.
In the past, the Corrida da Fogueira (Bonfire Race) was held in the streets of the neighborhood. It would begin at the Largo da Paz, in Afogados, cross the whole Imperial street, turning left at the Sérgio Loreto square, down Concordia and Rua do Sol streets and end on Avenue Rosa e Silva, at the headquarters of the Clube Náutico Capibaribe (Capibaribe Nautical Club), the promoter of the event. Throughout the track, many bystanders and fans would applaud, kid, and curse at the competitors from the sidewalks.
Nowadays, the old São José neighborhood is disfigured; it faces properties are in ruins, social and urban hygiene problems, and traffic. As a heritage of the city of Recife and its inhabitants, it deserves to be restored and preserved.
Recife, June 29, 2004.
sources consulted
CAVALCANTI, Carlos Bezerra. O Recife e seus bairros. Recife: Câmara Municipal, 1998. 166p.
IBGE. Censo demográfico 2000. Brasília, DF, 2000.
MATOS, Almícar Dória. Bairro de São José: um itinerário de saudade. Recife: Comunigraf; Prefeitura da Cidade do Recife, 1997.
RECIFE. Prefeitura. Perfil municipal: histórico e evolução urbana. Recife, 1989.
SILVA, Leonardo Dantas. Carnaval Do Recife. Recife: Fundação de Cultura da Cidade do Recife, 2000. 321p.
how to quote this text
GASPAR, Lúcia. São José (Neighborhood, Recife). In: PESQUISA Escolar. Recife: Fundação Joaquim Nabuco, 2004. Available at: https://pesquisaescolar.fundaj.gov.br/en/artigo/sao-jose-neighborhood-recife/. Accessed on: month day year. (Ex.: Aug. 6 2009.)