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Formosa (Formosa)

Formosa is a municipality located in the state of Goiás, Brazil, approximately 80 kilometers northeast of Brasília. The population was 123,684 (estimation 2020) in a total area of 5,813.637 km2. Formosa is known for its waterfalls and natural environment. It is a large producer of cattle and grains and is one of the fastest-growing cities in the state.

Arraial dos Couros was the first name of Formosa, which was founded in the second half of the eighteenth century on an uncertain date. For lack of documentation the early history is fragmented and historians can only speculate about the real facts.

What is known is that problems connected to the area of health were the motive for the transfer of the old settlement which was founded and built by black slaves, located on the banks of the Itiquira River and the Paranã in the tropical Paranã valley. At the time a devastating fever swept the place, probably caused by the unhealthy climate of the river location, and the population was afflicted by a degenerative malaria. For fear of getting the disease the move was made very quickly.

Even today it is not known who was responsible for the move or the date in which it occurred. The historians register the existence of a new settlement called Couros. It is believed that the name Arraial dos Couros comes from the improvised houses which were covered with the leather of the loads of the tradesmen. The first huts were set up in the old Street of the Crioulos which has been transformed into the present-day Alves de Castro Street. Another theory is that the name could have come from the existence in the site of an artisan who made saddlebags and rawhides for transporting small loads such as hard molasses, salt, rice and other food items.

On August 1, 1843, the settlement was elevated to the category of Vila (town), and received the name of Vila Formosa da Imperatriz, chosen for the beauty of the area and to pay homage to the Empress Teresa Cristina.

The municipality of Formosa was only created on February 22, 1844.

Other important dates are:

* 1910 - founding of Colégio São José, the Catholic school

* 1913 - the weather station was established

* 1920 - arrival of the first automobile in Formosa