What is Ouro Preto?
[[File:Ouro Preto 2 Minas-Gerais Brasil.jpg|thumb|300px|View of Ouro Preto]] [[Image:Flag ouro preto.svg|thumb|150px|Flag]] [[Image:Brasao ouro preto.png|thumb|90px|coat of arms]] '''Ouro Preto''' (from Portuguese, Black Gold) is a town in the state of [[Minas Gerais]], [[Brazil]]. It is at the geographic coordinates {{coord|20|17|15|S|43|30|29|W|}}. It is at an altitude of 1116 meters on the slope of a rocky hill. In 2010, there were about 70,227 people living there. == History == [[File:SFrancisOuroPreto-CCBY.jpg|thumb|right|Igreja de São Francisco de Assis (Church of Saint Francis of Assisi)]] Ouro Preto had a lot of gold in the ground. The gold was taken by Portuguese colonists, who used slave labor.<ref>Eduardo Galeano (1984). Las venas abiertas de América Latina. {{ISBN|950-895-094-3}}.</ref> Ouro Preto was founded in 1711 by combining several villages. In the same year it became the headquarters of the village council, with the appointment of Vila Rica (Villa Rica).<ref>Chambry, D. & Wagret, P. (Eds.) 1979: Brazil. Nagels Publishers, Geneva. 480p. {{ISBN|2-8263-0727-4}}</ref> In the year 1720, Ouro Preto was chosen as the new capital of Minas Gerais. In 1823, the town was upgraded to being a city as the designation of Ouro Preto. In 1839 he created the School of Pharmacy and in 1876 the School of Mines. It was the capital of the province and later the state of Minas Gerais until 1897. It was the first Brazilian city to be declared by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, Historical and Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 1980.<ref>[http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/124%20124 UNESCO: Historic Town of Ouro Preto]</ref> ==Geography== ===Important Data=== '''Population''': Data from the [[2010 United States Census|2010 Census]] ([[IBGE]]) * '''Resident population''': 70,227 (2010 Census) * '''Urban area''': 56,293 * '''Rural area''': 9,985 * '''Area of the municipality''': 1,245&nbsp;km² * '''Temperature''': between 6 and 28 degrees Celsius. In June and July the temperature can re