Online Encyclopedia

MAGALLANES (Spanish form of Magellan)

Online Encyclopedia
Originally appearing in Volume V17, Page 300 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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MAGALLANES (
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Spanish form of Magellan)
  , a territory of
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southern Chile extending from 470 S. to Cape Horn and including the mainland from the
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Argentine frontier to the Pacific coast, the islands extending along that coast, the Fuegian
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archipelago, and the western
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half of Tierra del Fuego .
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Area, about 71,127 sq. m.; pop . (1895), 5170 . It is one of the most inhospitable regions of the
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world, being exposed to cold
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westerly storms for most of the
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year . The islands are barren, but the mainland is covered with forests, practically inaccessible to exploitation because of the inclement
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climate and the wet spongy
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soil . The coast is indented with bays and fjords and affords remarkable scenery . There is little animal
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life on
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land, but the coast is frequented by the seal and sea-otter and the sheltered waters by count-less sea-fowl . The only permanent settlements are at Punta Arenas, the capital, on the Straits of Magellan, Palomares on Otway
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Water, Mina Marta on Skyring Water, and Ultima Esperanza (Last Hope) on the east
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shore of Worsley Sound . All are east of the Andean ranges and partially sheltered from the westerly storms . In this sheltered region there are open plains where sheep are grazed . A few sheep ranges have been established on Tierra del Fuego . Some nomadic tribes of Indians inhabit Tierra del Fuego and the extreme southern end of the mainland, but their numbers are small .

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Coal has been found in the vicinity of Punta Arenas, and gold occurs . See The Voyage of the Adventure and Beagle (1839) .

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