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History of the Area |
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The area’s name- Reloncavi or “Rulon Cahui” or “Union of valleys” was first documented by Alonso de Ercilla who, along with Garcia Hurtado de Mendoza first set foot on this land in 1558 during his southern expedition in Chile. Among the native populations living in the Cochamó territory at that time were the Cuncos, Poyas and Mapuches among others.
Colonist then living on the islands south of Puerto Montt began resettling throughout the riverside of the estuary around 1896 while Argentinean colonists settled throughout the cordillera.
The year 1897 not only marked the first surveying efforts of the area but also the beginning of a 3-year effort to link the then populated Cochamó area with “Paso el Leon” located along the Argentinean border.
Years earlier in 1846 the eruption of the Volcano Yates led to the disappearance of several families that lived in the southern Reloncavi estuary.
In 1901 the currently known church of the area-La Inmaculada Concepción de Cochamó was just being built and was initially named The Santa Filomena. The Cochamó Cattle and Forestry Company brought with it the typical economic fervor associated with industry in 1903. Telephone cables hung
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among the valleys of this mountain chain in order to link the Argentinean farmers who managed large herds of cattle between the Cochamó Valley and their homeland. The enormous volume of cattle being commercialized led to the establishment of the still existing Customs office on the Argentinean border crossing.
In 1910, the infamous Butch Cassidy and Sundance Kid are rumored to have stomped through Cochamó’s Valley route in order to avoid the law before zig zagging through Latin America.
On September 21st 1979, the County of Cochamó was created by grouping together all pre-existing localities. On that day the county was declared administratively autonomous from Puerto Montt and took on the Rio Puelo locality as its capital.
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