The Río Savegre establishes the canton's boundaries on the northwest, the Río Guabo and a series of coastal mountain ranges on the southwest and south, and the peaks of the highest mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca (Talamanca Mountain Range) on the east. In the middle of the canton, the Río General, from which the canton's capital city takes its name, runs north to south.
History
Pérez Zeledón was created on 9 October 1931 by decree 31.[2] Originally with four initial districts: Ureña, El General, Daniel Flores, and Rivas, with Ureña being the capital.[3]
Early Costa Rican Settlements
Near the end of the 19th century, between 1870 and 1899, quite a few families lived in El General valley. The hamlets(Spanish: Caseríos) of El General, Palmares, Rivas, and Ureña were further populated from 1900 onward.[3]
The Caserío area of Ureña grew significantly. By 1911, during Ricardo Jiménez Oreamuno's administration, the Refuges of Ojo de Agua, El Cerro de la Muerte, and División were established. These refuges would further advance the growth of the region known today as Pérez Zeledón and El General Valley.[3]
Costa Rican Civil War
San Isidro de El General, Pérez Zeledón's capital, was awarded the recognition of Ciudad Mártir, regarding the civil war of 1948, as established by Decree Nº274.[4] This decree established official legal recognition of the city's participation in the civil war of 1948. A section of the decree states (in Spanish):
la Junta Fundadora de la Segunda República, apreciando el noble esfuerzo y la valiosa contribución de San Isidro de El General, se siente obligada a hacer un público y oficial reconocimiento de tan loable conducta para que de ninguna manera quede ella relegada al olvido, sino que constantemente sea exaltada como merecen los grandes hechos dignos de vida eterna en los fastos nacionales.
In English, this would loosely translate into:
The Founding Junta of the Second Republic, appreciating the noble effort and valuable contribution of San Isidro de El General, feels compelled to make a public and official recognition of such praiseworthy conduct that by no means be it relegated to oblivion, but rather constantly be exalted as great deeds merit worth of eternal life in the national splendor.
Pérez Zeledón was also the location of significant battles during the Costa Rican Civil War. The most notable battle was the Battle of San Isidro de El General. This battle was carried out at around 6:30 a.m. when 200 government forces engaged the revolutionaries at the city's central plaza. The fight was won by José Figueres Ferrer and his revolutionary forces, which secured the southern Pacific region of Costa Rica in rebel hands.[5]
Geography
Pérez Zeledón has an area of 1,901.08 km2 (734.01 sq mi)[6] and a mean elevation of 690 m (2,260 ft).[1]
Government
Mayor
According to Costa Rica's Municipal Code, the canton's mayors are elected every four years.[7] As of the latest municipal elections in 2024, the Social Christian Unity Party candidate, Emmanuel Ceciliano Alfaro, was elected mayor of the canton with 28.99% of the votes, with Rosibel Ramos Madrigal and Mario Esteban Saenz Mena as first and second vice mayors, respectively.[8]
Like the mayor and vice mayors, members of the Municipal Council (called regidores) are elected every four years. Pérez Zeledón's Municipal Council has 9 seats for regidores and their substitutes, who can participate in meetings but not vote unless the owning regidor (regidor propietario) is absent.[7] The current president of the Municipal Council is the Broad Front member, Andrea Herrera Chaves, with the National Liberation Party regidor, Edgar Mena Rodríguez, as vice president.[10] The Municipal Council's composition for the 2024–2028 period is as follows:
The canton of Pérez Zeledón's economic development has been characterized mainly through agriculture, livestock, trade, industry, and tourism. One factor that has driven this economic development is the canton's unique geographic positioning, which makes it a sort of 'bridge' between Costa Rica's capital (San José) and the southern areas of the country, especially those that border [[[Panama|Panamá]].
The first two products are the most important in the region.
Livestock activities are also economically relevant, with pigs and cattle being the most important. The latter is used for fattening and dairy.
Commercial activities have boomed in recent decades, mainly due to the establishment of credit unions, banks, local companies, media, and various other companies of the Central Valley (San José) setting up operations in the canton.
Tourism
The area's main attraction is its ecological diversity. Tourist sites in the area include the Chirripó National Park, one of the highest peaks in Central America and the Caribbean, at 3,820 meters above sea level.
Among other attractions are the journeys along the rapids.
12 de Marzo School, San Isidro de El General, Pérez Zeledón
The first elementary school in Pérez Zeledón was established during Ascensión Esquivel Ibarra's government (1902-1906). It was called Escuela Mixta de Ureña. It was in the Ureña district, south of San Isidro de El General's central park. After the Costa Rican Civil War, the school was moved to a new building 100 meters past San Isidro de El General's main entrance. It currently serves under the name "Escuela 12 de Marzo", in honor of the start of the Costa Rican Civil War (which had just ended when the school was re-inaugurated at its current location).[17]
