The neighborhoods of Glória, Santa Teresa, Catete and Lapa are part of the early history of the city of Rio de Janeiro.

· The region formed by these neighborhoods still contains many important examples of the architecture that marked Rio’s history, in many styles, from colonial Churches to Brazilian baroque, neoclassical, art neuveaux and neo-Gothic homes.

· In general the antique constructions have lateral masonry walls that support huge weight: thick wood beams holding up roofs of molded clay tiles, with shuttered windows and stucco exteriors.

· Starting in the eighteenth century, following the old Indian trails in search of potable water from the Carioca River (now running underground), the city of Rio de Janeiro began expanding from what is now Downtown towards Catete.

· The Carioca River was the first to be used for drinking water, and this was the reason for building the Lapa Arches in 1750, to support the Carioca Aqueduct.

· Glória and Santa Teresa are currently part of the 4th Administrative Region of Rio de Janeiro, which also includes Catete, Cosme Velho, Flamengo, Humaitá and Urca. These are some of the city’s most traditional and charming neighborhoods.

· In the nineteenth century, the most important buildings were designed in Portugal or in Brazil by European engineers and architects. During this period many neoclassic edifices were built in the region, such as the building that is today the Museum of the Republic (formerly the Presidential Palace until the capital was moved to Brasília) and the building that now houses Baixo Santa do Alto Gloria (BSAG) itself.

· Between 1940 and 1950, the population of Glória grew by ten thousand. During the Second World War the region received many European immigrants, particularly Portuguese, Italians and Swiss. They chose the area because of its amenable climate, near to the European climes they were used to. Still, the greater part of the population is descended to one degree or another from Africans. The nearby hillsides were traditionally refuges for escaped slaves, and later, after freeing of the slaves, for poor people in general. Over one hundred years after the end of slavery in Brazil, slave descendents still make up a disproportionate share of the disadvantaged population. This is still a characteristic of Rio’s hillside shantytowns, called favelas.

· In the early 1960s Brazil’s capital was moved from Rio de Janeiro to Brasília and many wealthy and influential families had to move out of Rio to work there. As a result the area, specifically Glória, started to decline socially and economically: there were fewer investments and little interest in the area’s preservation and development. Many houses and buildings were neglected falling into disrepair.

· Today the region’s population is composed of descendants of Africans, Portuguese, Italians, Swiss, Germans and other groups, often in a complex mix that is characteristic of Brazil’s population at large. Some of this background is still evident today, in the Casa Suíça (House of Switzerland) and Clube Alemão (German Club). There are still a few Portuguese proprietors of small businesses (small markets, restaurants and bars, for example).

· Currently the area known as Alto Glória (“Upper Gloria”, because of its location on the lower reaches of the hillsides rising up to Santa Teresa) is in large part abandoned. The stately old houses that once were the neighborhood’s pride were carved up into small living units as the neighborhood declined. Many were taken over by drug dealer( negrito. Other social problems proliferated as all but the poor fled, fearful of living near the shantytowns higher up the hillside.

· The lack of demand for middle-class housing in the neighborhood is the main reason today so many of the original constructions have survived. The houses which were preserved besides their architecture value are also precious for the understanding of Rio de Janeiro population´s (carioca´s) everyday life. These big houses were built sturdily, with broad verandas, high ceilings, solid wood floors and carved doors, intended to house the large families typical of the time. Although many are now abandoned and decrepit, they still stand proudly, harking back to their former glory.

Today, partly due to the region’s nearness to downtown in the face of chaotic traffic making commuting hectic, and to the general revivalist spirit, there is growing awareness of the importance and advantages of the Glória neighborhood. The lack of care for the region does not allow for the development of a receptive tourism. There has been a growing awareness over the need to break this degradation trend with its huge social and economic burden together with the loss of Rio de Janeiro´s important cultural heritage. BSAG has been one of the pioneers in this effort at restoration. But this refurbishing spirit in the case of BSAG does not seek making push out the poor as often happens with gentrification, but instead to better their lives.

Restoration of BSAG

Restoration of Hotel 69

Services

Travessa Cassiano