Brasilia Before It Was Brasilia

Travelers' reports constitute a precious set of documents about the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries and, as a whole, their impressions of the natural and human landscapes have broadened the geographical understanding and historical perspective of the region of the present Federal District. 

So, who were the travelers across the Central Plateau in the 18th and 19th centuries? We must not forget that in those days, travel meant spending weeks on horseback, often on steep trails; facing adverse weather conditions; sleeping outdoors or depending on hospitality in extremely modest dwellings. 

Many of the place names and natural landmarks recorded in the area where the Cruls Quadrilateral was demarcated repeat references used by travelers who preceded the publication of the work of the Cruls Mission: Lagoa Formosa, Lagoa Feia, Rio Maranhão, Santa Luzia, Corumbá and Mestre d'Armas.

After cross-referencing satellite images, digital topography models and historical maps, it was possible to trace the stretch of the Estrada Real that cuts through the northern territory of what is now the Federal District.

An analysis of the 2006 environmental map of the Federal District leaves no doubt. It is undeniable that colonial roads ran through this region, within the limits of the present Federal District. The nature of the landscape and location of the hills influenced the direction of the paths. 

The construction of the New Capital was confronted with a traditional way of life and of production. The then inhabitants were mainly engaged in extensive livestock farming to earn their livelihoods. Agricultural activity was mainly oriented towards self-sufficiency, due to the isolation and difficult communication that hindered outside trade.

The rural houses inventoried were centennial examples, remnants of the agricultural world that existed before the construction of Brasilia. They are simply one-story, compact buildings with few rooms, constructed of adobe between wooden frames and covered with clay tiles. The houses were utilitarian and without decoration.

The backyards, an extension of the domestic space, were places for raising animals, with a small vegetable garden, fruit trees, and medicinal plants. They were a fundamentally important resource for food supply. The old dwellings were not at the edge of roads, but on the banks of streams or watercourses, to facilitate household chores.

Gama Farm House, one of the farms expropriated in 1955 to create the Federal District, housed President Juscelino Kubistchek and his entourage when they visited the Central Plateau for the first time in 1956.

Gama Farm House is 300 meters from the Catetinho Museum, designed by Oscar Niemeyer and built in ten days to house Juscelino Kubistchek and the Novacap engineers, it symbolically marks the transfer of the Federal Capital to Brasília.   

The Historic and Artistic Museum of Planaltina was the headquarters of the pioneers of the occupation of the Central Plateau. The Monteiro Guimarães family, who donated the property to the government, have been in the region since the 18th century. 

Even today, these rural houses preserve their traditional characteristics and clearly show the contrast between their vernacular heritage and the modernist architecture of Brasilia, demonstrating that the heritage of the federal capital goes beyond what was in the Pilot Plan.