The town was founded by
Martín Rodríguez on April 4, 1823, named
Fuerte Independencia (Fort Independence). In time the original natives became assimilated and mingled with the increasing European population. The vast majority of immigrants came from Spain and Italy, but also
Danish people settled mainly guided by the
Danish College of Missions, the latter constituting a very active community. Tandil was designated a city (although by modern standards it was a large town) in 1895 and became a popular tourist destination attracting people from
Buenos Aires and other parts of Argentina. The
Piedra Movediza fell in 1912 and split in two below. Although it is impossible after the fact to ascertain the reason it fell, it is very possible that the delicately balanced rock was thrown off balance by the common practice of placing glass bottles under it and watching them explode. This was the way the locals would prove to visitors that the rock, in fact, moved, since the movement was too subtle to be detected by the naked eye. There have been projects to restore the rock, and a replica stone was placed where the original used to be. Other similar stones like
El Centinela are also attractions, but none has the truly astonishing quality of teetering ever so slowly like the "moving rock" once did.
1872 massacre In the early morning of January 1st, 1872, a
massacre against
European immigrants took place in the city, instigated by a man known as
Gerónimo G. Solané, who was also known as
Tata Dios (
Spanish for "Grandfather God"), a
gaucho from either
Entre Ríos or
Santiago del Estero, who presented himself as a
healer and
prophet. In his name, several dozen gauchos had killed 36 immigrants. ==National University of Central Buenos Aires Province==