Apartament
Rio de Janeiro
HISTORY OF LEBLON
Lands of Le Blond, the blond, Leblon
To facilitate the communication
with the Cariocas (people who are born in Rio de Janeiro), the such citizen,
whose last name nobody more remembers, current land owner that extended from
the Avenue Bartolomeu Mitre til the old Leblon Hotel, located well in the
beginning of the Niemeyer Avenue - it was presented as Le Blond, whose meaning,
literally, wants to say "the blond guy". The language of the people
rolled a little here, a little there and left the name as "Leblon".
Depositions made in registers of people exist, whom if they related to the
Frenchman as a kind man, affectionate. It is, then, a certainty: the lands
of Mr. Le Blond had passed to be known as "The Good" and (or in
portuguese "o bom", and finally, "Leblon". Even because,
foreseeing its history, the people seemed to know very well that the blonds
would continue being minority for here... Until the end of the passed century,
what today it represents one the more coveted ground of the country, without
doubts, one of the most charming of the city was nothing more than an immense
areal covered of pitangueiras and devoided of drinking waters. But, history
apart, for the characteristic of the French men kindness, sympatic as someone
could be, as good Carioca who was, João Fontes decrees: - It had the
face of the Leblon. He was the certain man in the certain place...
An Island that turner into a village
Until the end of séc. XIX and beginning of séc. XX, the Leblon
practically did not exist as a village. Irony for a place that as much is
proud of its Rio City, its astral and attractive at that time was of difficult
access. Almost an island, since the waters of the Lagoon Rodrigo de Freitas
joined it the sea where it is today the Garden of Alah (jardim de Alah). There
formed the bank of the lagoon enters an ample canal of difficult passage,
even though for the adventurers more deloused of fear and with physical advantage,
and another one, of the street of Visconde de Albuquerque. Well different
of that it is today, this canal had plenty of lobsters and shrimps and its
water was clean and crystalline. In 1918 the first linking with Ipanema was
through the Avenue Delfim Moreira. The access was made by the beach. The Leblon,
for cause of this difficulty of passage or linking, as they had always made
question to emphasize the engineers of the time, was behind in relation to
its neighbors: Ipanema and Copacabana. All this was because the tram, first
pulled by donkeys, and later the electric energy, the known Light, only went
until the Ipanema neighbor. The Leblon, with certainty, wanted to regain the
lost time.
. 
And the origin of everything, if we can possibly get till there..... is telled
here from the people and the historians, researchers and professor Milton
Teixeira. All region of the coast, that is, from Leme to Leblon, belonged
to a called Portuguese Alfonso Fernandes and its woman Owner Domingas Fernandes.
Dissatisfied with the widowhood, she donated the enormous lands in 1666 for
the City council of Rio De Janeiro. These lands had been later deliver to
called farmer Sebastião Fagundes Varela, who created cattle and finished
increasing its richness - that was not small -, since he also was land proprietor
that extended from Humaitá to the Lagoon Rodrigo de Freitas. And, according
to Milton Teixeira, the revenge, came very quickly, since one of the predicates
of the such man was not his character.
. 
In 1702 the granddaughter of it inherited everything. She was on her fifties
and a single lady. It was then that a captain of 18 years old arrived and
married such woman.The lands had again been sold to the Aldonsa Da Silva Rosa,
a woman who, irony of the destiny, would be the perfect incarnation of the
girl of Ipanema. Years later, she sold lands for the such good-natured Frenchman,
charles Le Blond, in 1809. The "minino do Rio"of the time, let us
say thus for the robbing of its action and attitudes, had a company of fish
called Alliance. In 1836 he sold a large state to the notary Francisco Jose
Fialho. Fialho divided that land into parcels and sold big parcels of Copacabana
and all Ipanema, for the known baron of Ipanema. Already the corresponding
region to the Leblon, was with the Portuguese Jose de Seixas Magalhães,
admirable figure. The century already bordered and the village continued being
a species of appendix of gavea. But the courage of tamers that believe the
potential of the village had initiated the opening of streets that, even though
shy, had finished being the initial kick for the occupation
