First Federal Territory The first territory administered directly by the central government was the
Federal Territory of Acre and was created by Decree No. 1,181, of February 25, 1904, during the presidency of
Rodrigues Alves (1902–1906). The land that would become the Brazilian territory was acquired from
Bolivia after the
Treaty of Petropolis due to conflicts between the
Bolivian Army and
Brazilians from the northeast who migrated into Bolivian land in search of
rubber trees in the
Amazon. The
Brazilian Constitution of 1891 did not account for the existence of federal territories which lead to discussion and debate around the necessity for the creation of type of political-administrative unit in Brazil. Lawmakers who advocated for the existence of federal territories looked to how the United States handled and implemented their
territories. The creation of the Territory of Acre followed a similar trajectory to that of the territories of the United States during their
westwards expansion as it was a purchased border region with the potential for
economic development. From 1903 to 1920, the Territory of Acre was organized into the three departments of the Upper Acre (Alto Acre), the Upper Purus (Alto Purus), and the Upper Juruá (Alto Juruá). These three departments were all administered autonomously from one another by mayors appointed directly by the president of the republic. It was administered as a territory until 15 June 1962 when it was elevated to the
state of Acre during the presidency of
João Goulart (1961-1964) by Law No. 4,070. The
Federal Territory of Fernando de Noronha was dismembered from the state of
Pernambuco by Decree-Law No. 4,102 on February 9, 1942 and served as a support point for the American military during the Second World War. On September 13, 1943, Decree-Law No. 5,812 dismembered five more federal territories from various states across Brazil: Amapá,
Guaporé,
Iguaçu,
Ponta Porã, and
Rio Branco. == Notes ==