<P> By 1717, Father António Corderio described a population of over 200 homes, on a plain surface, well constructed, with four roads that lead to the sea, cut by various lanes . Many of its roads were marked by iconic buildings, including the hermitage of St. Peter and main parochial church (which continued to be constructed and reconstructed into the 18th century), in addition to the hermitages of São Sebastião, Santa Catarina, and the Franciscan Convent of São Boaventura (founded in 1641 by father Inácio Coelho). </P> <P> The parochial church of Ponta Delgada resulted from the reconstruction of the old hermitage, around 1763, under the initiative of Father Francisco de Fraga e Almeida . Initially, the parish also included the areas of Ponta and Ponta Ruiva, but which were later deannexed to form the parishes of the Fajãs (in 1676) and Nossa Senhora do Pilar (in 1693), respectively . About the same time, José António de Sousa Bettencourt, a natural and property - owner from the island of Graciosa, began constructing a hermitage in the area of Caveira, that was consecrated on 22 December 1763, to the invocation of the Sainted Souls of the Flames of Purgatory (Portuguese: Almas Santas do Fogo do Purgatório). At the time, the inhabitants (numbering about 100 in 32 homes) were subject to the "spiritual and corporal convenience" of the parish of São Caetano in Lomba, since July 1757 . Unfortunately, this parish operated in the neighbouring municipality of Lajes, and the parishioners were required to trek the distance for services between valleys . This continued until 1833 and 1834, when the little settlement of Caveira was transformed into a parish, thereby obtaining the patron of Benditas Almas (Blessed Souls), from 1954 on the invocation of Nossa Senhora do Livramento (Our Lady of Freedom)). </P> <P> Santa Cruz, around 1815, had already developed into a beautiful city, all but in name . But, as the old ecclesiastical ouvidor José António Camões observed, its principal roadways (Rua das Poças, Rua do Rego, Rua de Santa Catarina, Rua do Porto, Rua Nova and Rua de São Sebastião do Moio) and various lanes were irregular, as too were its buildings . Of the 429 buildings registered by the local administration, only 113 were covered by standard shingles of the period . Of the 419 people that inhabited the areas of Ribeira dos Barqueiros, Vales, Pampilhal, Fazenda and Além da Ribeira (there were no records for the centre of town), no one person used footwear . Poverty was a general condition, and the Donatários of the island (first the Fonsecas, later the Counts of Santa Cruz and finally Pedro José Caupers) subjugated the populous as serfs . The Crown had bestowed the lands, politico - military institutions and clergy for the islanders, but neglected the socio - political institutions that relegated, as Father Camões described:...the inhabitants of the island of Flores (as the)... most poor and miserable of the universe (except for the Corvinos). </P> <P> The cornerstone of the parochial church of Caveira was placed on 13 June 1870, and its construction was completed on 11 September 1880, with the consecration of the altar . </P>

Reserva florestal natural do morro alto e pico da se