Santa Cruz (cove, harbour, quay and stream)
Original title: Santa Cruz (Enseada, Porto, Cais e Ribeira de)
Describes the bay and harbour of Santa Cruz, its successive landing stages and quay (1845, 1870, 1908–1909), and the stream that crosses the town.
The landing place of Santa Cruz (‘Holy Cross’) is formed by a cove of some size, which Frutuoso called a ‘beautiful cove’. It is partly lined by a stony beach where, in calm weather, small boats can easily come in. At the point in the bay where a reef (restinga) lies close to the shore, the reef was used to build a small landing place in 1845, which was improved in 1870. The present quay, larger and better suited to handling the traffic of the port, was built on the orders of the District General Council (Junta Geral do Distrito) in 1908-1909, making use of the works that had already been carried out earlier.
The town (vila) of Santa Cruz is crossed by the stream of the same name, which rises in the parish (freguesia) of Santo da Serra (‘the saint of the uplands’) and flows into the ocean.
In this article
Time
Years mentioned · 03Place
Places mentioned · 05
- Cais de Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz. Quay built by the Junta Geral in 1908–1909 on the site of earlier landing stages.
Cais de Santa Cruz is the quay built by the Junta Geral in 1908–09 on the site of earlier landing stages. The Elucidário traces the history of the town's landing places (1845, c. 1870, 1908–09) and of the Porto Novo landing stage (1904–08).
- Porto de Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz. The bay and harbour that is the subject of the entry.
The bay and harbour that is the subject of the entry.
- Ribeira de Santa Cruz
Santa Cruz. Stream rising in Santo da Serra and flowing through Santa Cruz to the sea.
Ribeira de Santa Cruz is a stream that rises at Santo António da Serra and flows through Santa Cruz to the sea. Its chief tributary is the Ribeira da Serra de Água, and it has the Madre de Água waterfall. The name also denotes a locality of the parish.
- Santa Cruz
Town crossed by the Ribeira de Santa Cruz.
Santa Cruz is a parish and one of Madeira's oldest settlements, named after a cross Zarco had raised there at the discovery. The Elucidário covers its early ecclesiastical history, collegiate church, chapels, noble settlers and localities.
- Santo António da Serra
Machico. Parish where the Ribeira de Santa Cruz has its source.
An upland parish on a plateau above Santa Cruz and Machico, divided between those two municipalities. The Elucidário covers its settlement, church and Protestant troubles, and the short-lived Aldeia da Rainha colony of Porto Santo settlers. It also records its quintas, its lagoon, Burnay's dairy factory and the exile of a bishop there.
People
People mentioned · 01- Gaspar Frutuoso1522–1591
Sixteenth-century chronicler of the Atlantic islands who called the Santa Cruz bay a 'formosa angra'.