Av. Santa Fe: Born to be walked

Avenida Santa Fe in Buenos Aires carries nearly five kilometers of history, weaving through stories of buildings, plazas, transportation, and its inhabitants. Its origins trace back to the oxcarts traveling north from the early settlement of Buenos Aires. These carts navigated the bluffs along the Rio de la Plata, eventually reaching their destinations. A small plateau, once the site of Governor Agustín de Robles's country house, El Retiro, marked an early point along this route.

Through various military events, the area near El Retiro became known as Campo de Marte (Field of Mars), Campo de la Gloria (Field of Glory), and eventually Plaza San Martín. From this central point, travelers followed the Camino del Alto (High Road), avoiding farms and estates to reach the valley of the Maldonado stream. After crossing the stream, they encountered more bluffs. Travelers could then choose to follow the lower route, known as Cañitas (present-day Luis María Campos), or the safer, higher path, the Camino Real, which is the precursor to modern Santa Fe and Cabildo avenues. A small settlement, later named Belgrano, emerged between these two routes.

The avenue's nomenclature has evolved significantly. From at least 1769, the initial section was known as calle de San Gregorio. Following the defense against the British Invasions, it was renamed Pío Rodríguez in 1808, after a military officer who famously amputated his own leg to continue fighting. After the May Revolution of 1810, the northern route became known as Estrecha (Narrow) due to its width. Finally, in 1822, Minister Bernardino Rivadavia bestowed upon it the name Santa Fe, honoring the provinces during a period of tension between Buenos Aires and the interior. The avenue's starting point is notable for its intersection with the parallel Charcas street, now Marcelo T. de Alvear, and for changing names twice within two blocks eastward to Florida and then San Martín.

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He was shot and amputated his shattered leg with his own knife!