After independence, immigration and population rose modestly, however the first migration wave in Buenos Aires came about in 1852 after the dictatorial Juan Manuel de Rosas was deposed [1]. As for the built form, the city’s early formation depended on two major Axes: one related to the port that was adjacent to the water, and the other being the principal road leading west. This model, as seen in figure 1, set up the framework of orthogonal planning that is seen within Buenos Aires. The city itself did not cover a large footprint. It was easy to walk from one neighborhood to the next. In the early portion of the 19th century, a majority of the population in Buenos Aires spread over an area of only 12 square kilometers, or 7.45 miles [2]. The neighborhoods, or barrios, of Buenos Aires during this period revolved around two main elements: The church and the plaza. Both of these spaces served as a communal gathering place in which religious functions happened at the church and commercial functions happened in the plaza [2].
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The manner in which Buenos Aires formed in the latter part of the 19th century was due to three factors: The port, railroads, and the federal capital[3]. The want for expansion of trade and pushed many to advocate for the port of Madero, a port that would allow for Buenos Aires to increase the exchange of their agricultural yields for manufactured goods. The yearn to move Buenos Aires up as a political power lead to the city’s harbor being located east of the Plaza de Mayo. This transformed the Plaza de Mayo to being the main hub of commerce and wealth. The plaza, which was now known as the central city, was built on a grid consisting of 6 districts. The closer in proximity to the Plaza de Mayo, the more wealthy you had to be, as shown in figure 2. The plaza also served as the main hub for political and commercial activities. The main governmental buildings were clustered in the center city to have them in close proximity due to the fact that the buildings communicated between each other[4].
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Within the architecture of the central city of Buenos Aires, in the latter part of the 19th century, Italian influences were abundant. The facade of the buildings were greatly ornamented and decorated with intricate designs. The Avenida de Mayo took influence from the grand boulevards of Paris. The architects that created these grand facades were French trained and included elements such as: grand entrances, foyers, and vestibules [5]. The ornamentation and grand design aimed to show the wealth and stature of the central city residents. This transformation of the spatial conditions of Buenos Aires during this time coincides with the “international impulse of nineteenth-century society towards material progress. The residents wished to show “the spirit, ambitions, and values of an upper class eager to parade its wealth and accomplishments and emulate the world’s most current fashions”[5].
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Toward the end of the 19th century, a transformation of the space went underway. The political ruler, Dardo Rocha (1838-1921), promised to reshape the provincial capital. This brought about La Plata, a new capital that was based on French and American influence [8]. The use of a gridded plan with large diagonals to the city center can be seen within figure 5. The large avenues were largely influenced by the french boulevards. This plan was used as a way to compete with the world’s powerhouses at the time. Buenos Aires wished to incorporate the successful plans of France and America in order to become an influencer as well. This plan reveals the progressist model that Buenos Aires begins to follow during the end of the 19th century. The streets were lined with trees and uniformly gridded. The classic grid pattern found in Spanish America was revamped to align with this progressist mode [8].
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