Ceiba, Puerto Rico

Ceiba (sai-EE-bah) is a small town in northeast Puerto Rico. It is named after the famous Ceiba tree. Ceiba is located in the east coast of the island, bordering the Atlantic Ocean, north of Naguabo, south of Fajardo, and east of Río Grande. Ceiba is spread over 7 wards and Ceiba Pueblo (The downtown area and the administrative center of the city)

Driving Time from San Juan: 1 hour.

Ceiba, situated near Fajardo, used to be home of an American military air-base, the Roosevelt Roads Naval Station. Most of the units there were relocated and the base was closed in 2004. Ex-governor Sila María Calderón suggested turning the property into a major international airport, to serve as a relief to Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport in San Juan, and to increase the number of international airlines that operate into Puerto Rico. She has met with skepticism about these plans from such groups as environmentalists, economists and others, and the situation as far as what will be done with Ceiba's old air base is still being debated.

Locals are commonly known as "Los Come Sopa" (Soup Eaters). Even though there is no official reason as to why they were called this, a few stories have been suggested. Among the tales is the belief that since the town did not have a local meat market people had to travel long distances in order to buy some meat and therefore mostly ate soup.

Ceiba is also known as "La Ciudad del Marlin" (the town of the Marlin).

History

Ceiba was founded on April 7, 1838 by Luis de la Cruz. Ceiba derives its name from an Indian word Seyba, which is the name for a famous tree that grows in the island, the Ceiba pentandra,(Kapok).

Flag

Ceiba's flag derives its design and colors from the municipal coat of arms. This maintains the same symbolism given to the coat of arms. It is made of two vertical lines of the same width, red in the left side and green on the right. The red side depicts a yellow cross.

Coat of Arms

It depicts a shield with golden field with a Ceiba tree in the middle. In the upper part of the shield it has a red horizontal line with a golden cross in the middle and two golden flowers in each side. The cross symbolizes the Christian faith as well as a recognition to Don Luis de la Cruz who founded the town. The golden flowers represent sugar cane flowers. Above the shield there is a golden Spanish fort.

Demographics

Barrios (Districts/Wards)

Ceiba Pueblo Chupacallos Daguao Guayacán

Machos Quebrada Seca Río Abajo Saco

Geo/Topography

Ceiba is home of the Ceiba Forest (787) which extends along the coastline between Ceiba and Fajardo. 95% of the forest is classified as mangrove. Various species of birds can be seen as well as turtles and manatees.

Its rivers includes; Daguao, Demajaguas and Fajardo

Ravines are Aguas Claras and Sacos.

Anthem

Lirics Carmen E. Pérez
Arrangement Lito Peña

Ceiba... bello rincón de mi tierra
de tí se nutre mi vida
y la savia de mis venas
por tí la esperanza mía
florece en mi pensamiento.

Y por tí lanzo orgulloso
mi voz a los cuatro vientos
No cambio tus arboledas
ni campos ni riachuelos
ni este sol que vivifica
ni este pedazo de cielo
porque sería quitar
a Dios de mi pensamiento.

Y por tí Ceiba querida
ofrezco mi vida entera
resguardado por tu escudo
y abrazo a tu bandera.

Economic

Industrial

Manufacturing (plywood, apparell, hardware products).

Tourism

Landmarks and places of interest

Ceiba Historic Mural Los Machos Beach Medio Mundo Beach Roosevelt Roads Base

Festivals and events

• Enamorado (Lovers) Marathon - February
• Marlin Festival - May - June
• Fiestas Patronales (Patron Saint Festivities) - June
• Fiesta Nacional de la Raza (Race) - October
• Marathon Del Pavo - November

Sports

Former IBF world Jr. Middleweight boxing champion Carlos Santos hails from Ceiba.

Notable "Ceibeños"

• Felisa Rincón de Gautier - former San Juan Mayor
• Luis Vigoreaux - Actor, producer & animator

References

Additional Information

Religious outlook: As in most towns of Puerto Rico it was founded on the Christian ideas and faith statements of the Catholic church which prevailed in previous centuries through spaniard tradition. The town still maintains a central Catholic church which can be found in the town square. Today, protestants make up most of the proclaimed christians in the town with almost a 100 small churches scattered among the different wards.

Patron Saint: San Antonio de Padua Traditional Catholic Church: Parroquia San Antonio de Padua Apartado 77 Ceiba, P.R. 00735 Tel. (787) 885-2530