Unraveling the legacy of estancias: Territorial development and housing transformations in Buenos Aires

Abstract

Between the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the productive Pampa cattle ranch, locally known as “estancia,” underwent three developmental stages in the process of territorialization within the northwestern province of Buenos Aires. Each of these stages covers various dimensions—social, economic, political, cultural, and environmental—that collectively define the estancia's role as a territorial agent. The research employs a methodology that combines qualitative approaches through documentary analysis, along with bibliographical and cartographic review, complemented by fieldwork. This work examines into the changes and transformations within the territory, as well as housing adaptations, which are manifested in the construction of dwellings and their environs. These changes occur in a context where urban culture intertwined with the rural productive scene. Furthermore, it postulates that the inter-century territorial dynamics covering the 19th and 20th centuries serve as an enduring legacy of identity for the 21st century.