Negócios internos: estrutura produtiva, mercado e padrão social em uma freguesia sul mineira. Itajubá – 1785-1850

Abstract

The main theme of this research is the study about the productive structures in the freguesia de Itajubá as well as its agents, from the ending of the 18th century until the first half of the 19th. This freguesia is located on a strategic area for the flow of mineral production and for those which followed the routes through Mina Gerais until the Court in Rio de Janeiro. Itajubá was pointed as one of the most important freguesias in the south of Minas for its meanly participation in terms of population of the Campanha termo, as well as for its commercial acting. Our goal is identifying and describing the socioeconomic profile of this freguesia, from the production of agriculture and cattle raising (for family subsisting) until the linking between this properties and its owners and the importance they had to the internal market. The documental basis for this research was the inventories post-mortem found in Forum Wenceslau Braz, located in the city of Itajubá-MG. We also tried to understand the mechanisms through which the economic system of that time has consolidated itself in the south of Minas acting over a hierarchic society.