Oil and city in Argentine Patagonia, 1907-1940

Abstract

The objective of this paper is to analyze the relationship between oil industry and city in the Argentine Patagonia since the discovery of the first deposit in 1907 until the forties. For this we will take as case studies to Comodoro Rivadavia and Plaza Huincul, cities that were born and grew next to the farm. In the first place, we will briefly characterize the context of Argentina, and Patagonia in particular, to understand the reasons that led to the nationalization of the oil industry in the country. From there and based on the theory that each productive activity affects the space in a different way, we will analyze the demographic growth and changes in the composition of the population. Finally, we focus our attention on the spatial reconfiguration after the urbanization provoked by the establishment of the industry.