THE WEST OF SANTA CATARINA SEEN BY LETTERS OF THEIR HABITANTS

Abstract

This article aims to make a few brief comments on the occupation of western Santa Catarina, observed, through the analysis of letters addressed to the federal representative of that state, Nereu Ramos, during the period of 1937-1945. The goal is to understand how its society was formed; the struggles over land tenure, the secluding and exploiting of the native cabocla population, the entry of settlement companies such as loggers' and large landowners into the territory. Thus are revealed strategies of survival and resistance against the absence and neglect of the public power.