Jequitinhonha

The settlement later called Jequitinhonha began as São Miguel, a military post on the river. Indigenous communities already occupied the valley. Portuguese expansion sought to secure a route between Minas Gerais and the Atlantic coast, amid expectations of mineral wealth and demands for farmland. Garrisons brought armed pressure against people whom colonial sources called Botocudos.

On 29 September 1811 Ensign Julião Fernandes Leão arrived at a tributary mouth, naming it São Miguel for the saint's feast day. The Seventh Military Division of São Miguel gave its name to the settlement. Farming and cattle followed the military advance, while posts extended towards the coast. When Saint-Hilaire visited in 1817, São Miguel was still essentially a camp. Its origins joined river communication and settlement to Indigenous dispossession.