Barbacena

Barbacena stands in the high country of Minas Gerais, near the routes between Rio de Janeiro and the mining districts. Settlement grew in the eighteenth century around the Rio das Mortes, the Borda do Campo estate and the Caminho Novo. Formerly called Igreja Nova de Campolide, the community became the town of Barbacena in 1791, taking its name from the governor of Minas Gerais.