In the time before the arrival of the Spanish, Santa Marta was populated by the
Gaira indigenous people. Taganga was inhabited by the
Taganga, under the leadership of a
cacique. In those ages the population of Taganga was substantial. The first European sighting of the mainland of
South America was by
Christopher Columbus at his third voyage to the
Americas in August 1498 when he sailed through the
Gulf of Paria separating the island of
Trinidad with mainland present-day
Venezuela. Although Colombia is named after Columbus, he never saw the lands of current Colombia. The furtherst south Columbus went was in present-day Panama, that until 1903 was part of
(Gran) Colombia. One of Columbus's competitors,
Alonso de Ojeda, was the first
conquistador who set foot on mainland Colombia in 1499. In 1502, the Colombian Caribbean coast stretching from the
Needle Cape (
Cabo de la Aguja) until the
Gulf of Urabá, was explored for the first time. Chronicler
Juan de Castellanos visited Taganga in 1534. In the 17th century, at the time of the
encomiendas, the area from Santa Marta to
Riohacha was ruled by governor Diego Fernández de Argote y Córdoba. The church of Taganga was built after the
hermitage made of clay was destroyed in the
earthquake of May 22, 1834. The earthquake was the result of
tectonic movements of the Oca Fault.
Modern history Until the 1950s, Taganga was an isolated fishing village due to the lack of road access from Santa Marta. Pollution of the sea and projects for water treatment have gotten the attention of the authorities in the 21st century. Taganga, located on the southern edge of the Tayrona National Park, suffers from
illegal construction in the park area, designated protected land. The village has a cultural center organizing festivities for the local residents. The center was established in 2004. West of the football pitch of Taganga, since 2015 a park is under construction. In 2017, the hotel became increasingly known for providing drugs and prostitutes to its customers, as well as organizing orgy-like parties. Some of the prostitutes were minors. At the end of 2017, the owner was summoned to a migration office in Santa Marta, arrested and deported after presenting a risk to "public safety and social tranquillity". Following the arrest, locals found that the security has improved. == Economy ==