San martin de los andes

When, after the campaign of the Argentinean army to expel the Indians, which went down in history as the “ Conquest of the Desert ”, these lands came under the control of the Argentine government, a territorial dispute arose between Chile and Argentina: Argentina believed that the border between the countries should be and Chile - that along the watershed line (and the Lacar Lake located here belongs to the basin of the Pacific Ocean, and not the Atlantic). Therefore, this territory remained under the control of the Argentine military for thirty years, and when a settlement was founded in 1898, then its streets received the names of military leaders.

In 1902, British arbitration recognized this territory as belonging to Argentina, and in 1907 these lands were transferred to civilian administration. In 1937, the Lanin National Park was created, and in the second half of the 20th century, tourism became the basis of the local economy.