Ciego de Ávilais a city in the central part ofCubaand the capital ofCiego de Ávila Province.It was founded by 1840, having at the time 263 inhabitants. In 1877, its municipal government was created and the city became independent of the city ofMorón. Ciego de Ávila gained importance when the Spanish army built a fortifiedmilitaryline, known asTrocha de Júcaro a Morón, to impede the pass of insurrectionist forces to the western part of theislandduring the1st War of Independence (1868–1878). This "trocha", which made this region famous, was thought to be strong enough to stop the Cuban forces, but was not able to stop the pass of GeneralMáximo Gómezand several hundred men. Many of the oldSpanishcolonial buildings in Ciego de Ávila (such as the Teatro Principal) were commissioned under Angela Hernández, viuda de Jiménez, a rich socialite who battled to create a cultural mecca in her hometown.
Ciego de Ávila
