The Copiapó River Valley, Atacama Region (Chile)

Los Loros: p. 1 | p. 2

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For centuries the inhabitants of Copiapó bought almost exclusively fruit and vegetables from this sector.

The construction of the railroad to Los Loros and San Antonio in 1855 gave a great boost to the mining and agricultural industry of the sector. The journey to San Antonio, unfortunately a few years after its inauguration, was lifted, the journey to Los Loros remained in function until the seventies. Today, only a few traces of the old railroad can be seen.

In 2012 a bypass was inaugurated, which allows not all traffic to enter the village centre, especially the loading vehicles of mining projects in the mountain range sector. Signs indicate that the work is a private initiative of a mining company.

Informative Chart:
Statistics of Los Loros (ranches and village):

1,075 inhabitants (1992) (source: INE)
261 inhabitants; (Village) (1952) (source: XII. census))
438 inhabitants (1930) (source: X. census)
437 inhabitants (1920) (source: Census 1920)
534 inhabitants (1895) (source: Visión Atacama, 1986)
550 inhabitants (1875) (source: Census 1875)
more statistics of the Atacama Region

The demographic development of Los Loros (or Loros) shows the same pattern of many villages in the Atacama Region: a strong development until 1895, a decrease in population with its peak in 1952, then until today a strong recovery in numbers of people. In the case of Los Loros, in 1952 the minimum number of inhabitants reached only 261 inhabitants (see above the statistical table in detail).