Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Brazil São Paulo Vila Maria Zélia

Vila Maria Zélia

The first model village in Brazil, built in 1917 to house workers at the jute sack factory.

São Paulo, Brazil

Added By
Naomi
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Entrance of of boys’ school building   Naomi / Atlas Obscura User
Abandoned girls’ school   Naomi / Atlas Obscura User
Houses of the current inhabitants   Naomi / Atlas Obscura User
Abandoned facilities of the village   Naomi / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

This Place Is a Stub

Help improve this place with additional information or photos.

Make an Edit

About

Inaugurated in 1917, Vila Maria Zélia was the brainchild of the industrialist Jorge Street, built to house the workers of the Companhia Nacional de Tecidos da Juta, a jute sack factory. Named after his daughter, it was one of the first planned communities in all of Brazil.

The architect in charge of the project based it on early 20th-century European equivalents. Built to accommodate the 2,500 employees working at the company's secondary facility, the village was like a small city in itself, with two schools (one for boys and one for girls), a grocery store, a church and other facilities for the workers and their families.

Due to economic problems in the 1920s and 1930s, the company declared bankruptcy, and Vila Maria Zélia came under the custody of the Brazilian federal government. Since then, some of the buildings, such as the schools, have been closed down and abandoned. The church is still in use, however, and there are still 200 houses in use by some 600 people living in the village.

Administrated by the Sociedade Amigos da Vila Maria Zélia, the space now also operates as a community center, hosting various cultural and sportive events.

Related Tags

Utopias

Know Before You Go

Vila Maria Zélia is open for visitors, but some facilities are accessible to the public only on the occasion of some events. Contact Sociedade Amigos de Vila Maria Zélia for more information.

Atlas Obscura Adventures

Wild Brazil: Rivers, Dunes & the Amazon

Explore Amazon villages, fish for piranha, and cool off in lagoon-covered sand dunes.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Naomi

Edited By

Molly McBride Jacobson, lethreep

  • Molly McBride Jacobson
  • lethreep

Published

February 9, 2017

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://www.vilamariazelia.com.br
  • http://www.saopauloantiga.com.br/vilamariazelia/
Vila Maria Zélia
362 R. dos Prazeres
São Paulo
Brazil
-23.533641, -46.598992
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Immigration Museum of São Paulo

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Museu Penitenciário Paulista

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Martinelli Building

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of São Paulo

São Paulo

Brazil

Places 33

Nearby Places

Immigration Museum of São Paulo

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Museu Penitenciário Paulista

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Martinelli Building

São Paulo, Brazil

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of São Paulo

São Paulo

Brazil

Places 33

Related Places

  • Nuclear bunkers in Nowa Huta

    Krakow, Poland

    Nuclear Bunkers of Nowa Huta

    An underground city beneath Krakow's postwar socialist utopia.

  • A view of the historical marker in context.

    Humboldt, Kansas

    Sad Saga of Vegetarian Creek

    This historical marker is all that remains of Octagon City, Kansas, a failed vegetarian utopia.

  • ‘Searching for Utopia’ in Nieuwpoort

    Nieuwpoort, Belgium

    'Searching for Utopia'

    A massive, gleaming sea turtle with a rider atop its shell looks out over the horizon.

  • The Fruitlands Farmhouse.

    Harvard, Massachusetts

    Fruitlands Museum

    Utopia and nostalgia mingle at the site of Bronson Alcott's ill-fated agrarian commune.

  • Väike-Õismäe District.

    Tallinn, Estonia

    Väike-Õismäe District

    A series of concentric circles represented a bold new experiment in socialist urban planning, and it notoriously difficult to get around.

  • Aerial view of Palmanova.

    Palmanova, Italy

    Palmanova Star Fort

    A star-shaped fortress town fort built in the geometric model of the Renaissance utopian city.

  • The Oneida Community Mansion House.

    Oneida, New York

    Oneida Community Mansion House

    The shared home of a utopian commune that practiced "free love" a century before the hippies.

  • Isokon Apartments.

    London, England

    Isokon Flats

    An exercise in radical design and social living that became the epicenter of Soviet spy networks in London.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.