Corrientes Avenue: a colonial path that has become the great icon of Buenos Aires culture

More than 300 years ago, it was simply known as Sendero del Sol. When, in 1729, a temple was built
After his demolition, he gave his place to the Obelisk and was renamed San Nicolás. In the early nineteenth century, it took the name of Inchaurregui in tribute to the role played by the adviser of the Cabildo during the English invasions. The Avenue Corrientes, which today crosses five districts of Buenos Aires, acquired its current name only in 1822 in tribute to the province of the same name "which quickly embraced the cause of the independence of the motherland" as recalled by historical references. It is after the fervor of the May Revolution that the new and definitive change has been generated.

Today, a new milestone will be presented in the history of the avenue with
completion of pedestrian work. But in the mid-1700s, his image was different. The pulperías frequented by the parishioners who often organized bloody combats gave birth to the district of Recio where abounded houses of adobe and the streets of the earth. Over the years and
the appearance of the first theaters, the avenue began to take a cosmopolitan air although it was still a narrow street. The theaters Opera, Odeón and Politeama Argentino were inaugurated in 1872, at a time when funeral cars were frequent during the yellow fever epidemic of the early 1870s.

The discussion to widen the street was relaunched in 1910 under the Joaquin administration of Anchorena and while the living flame of the celebrations of the
Anniversary of the centenary of the May Revolution. The initial plan was to build a 26-meter lane and to achieve that goal, it was necessary to demolish buildings, a work begun in 1931 between the streets of Paraná and Uruguay. At the same time, the formations of Line B which had opened the first section of its route in 1930 between the stations of Lacroze and Callao began to flow; the second section, until Carlos Pellegrini, was opened on June 22, 1931 and the third, until Alem, on December 1 of the same year.

With popular dances and other artistic expressions on October 12, 1936, Corrientes was enlarged, which initially became an avenue located in the part from Florida to May 25. At that time, we also thought we had others
similar avenues in the streets Córdoba, Santa Fe, Belgrano and Independencia.

The Corrientes enlargement was the decisive impetus for it to become a symbol of Buenos Aires and a refuge of tango, great orchestras and singers who had their moment of glory in the 40s and 50s.
The inauguration of Luna Park (1932),
the theaters Gran Rex (1937) and San Martín (1960) and the construction of the obelisk (1936) ended up cementing its importance on the cultural scene of Buenos Aires.

Along its nine kilometers, Corrientes Avenue crosses five neighborhoods: San Nicolás, Balvanera, Almagro, Villa Crespo and Chacarita. Caja Mutua de Pensiones, in Corrientes and Pueyrredón, built in 1908; El Comega, in Corrientes 222, was considered the first skyscraper in Argentina; the hotel Jousten, at the corner of 25 de Mayo, which closed in 1980 and reopened 20 years later by the NH Hoteles chain; the Dreyfus, at the crossroads with Alem, erected in 1921; and the Vesuvius Glacier, inaugurated in 1902, is one of the oldest in the city.

Over the years, other milestones have marked the evolution of Corrientes Avenue, some related to artistic and cultural activities, others to mobility policies.
In 2007, the first edition of the Nuit des Librairies took place; In 2011, statues reminding
the Argentine capocómicos, like Javier Portales, Jorge Porcel and Alberto Olmedo; in 2013, the Microcentro plan was launched, which included the pedestrianization of several areas; and in 2015, the July 9th metrobus was inaugurated.

Today, Corrientes has 24 theaters and cinemas, 28 bookstores, 48 ​​travel agencies, 37 hotels and 58 restaurants, pizzerias and cafes, as well as other businesses. It is one of the busiest roads in the city with traffic reaching up to 1,500 vehicles per hour during the day and 800 per night. With pedestrianization starting from Monday between Callao and Libertad, he will try to look like a section of Madrid's Gran Vía, Paulista Aberta of São Paulo and Times Square in New York, where pedestrians were given priority.

Photographic edition: Enrique Villegas