Hatillo is a municipality of Puerto Rico. It is located on the northern coast of Puerto Rico, bordering the Atlantic Ocean; north of Lares and Utuado; east of Camuy; and west of Arecibo.

Its patron saint is Our lady of Mount Carmel. known as Virgen del Carmen. The patron saint festivities are held during first 2 weeks of July and always include the 16th of July in its day. The 16th of July is the Virgin of Carmel day, and it is celebrated with great pride and devotion still today. The day of the Virgin,,La Patrona is a very special day on our town with several all day masses starting at 5 am with lots of penitents and favoreds ones of the Patrona. Many people come every year for the High Mass at 3 pm; this mass include the special procession and carriage of the venerated statue of the virgin through all the town center streets and a special "trip" over the near ocean shore by the local fishermen on their traditional boats known as "Yolas"; because Our Lady Of Carmel is the Patron Saint of fishermen and it is a special devotion for our city. There is a Tradition each year on the 28th of December which is known as the Máscaras (Masks) of Hatillo. This Tradition dates back to 1823, when the town of Hatillo was founded. This Tradition came with settlers from the Canary Islands.the meaning of this tradition is the Holy Inocents..or Santos Inocentes..the first martyrs of Christian faith from Matthew's story in which small children were killed by Herod in an unsuccessful attempt of kill Jesus. It is a very special days with lots of fun and a a huge meeting of Mascaras or costum masked men and women of all ages that use costumes according to the tradition and run through all the town and nearby towns all day, making jokes and fun and having a huge multiple and celebrated procession through all town and nearby towns neighboors and end it at Hatillo town center. It is a multi-dynamic and wonderful experience for everyone on Hatillo and nearby towns. This special tradition came from the canary islands, the main place from Spain of the Hatillo, Camuy, and nearby towns Spanish immigrants, mainly on the 1800's. Many of the native people of Hatillo, Camuy, Arecibo and several nearby towns are proud to call themselves "isleños" or people descendants from canary islands immigrants.

Today, Hatillo is the major producer of milk on the island and produces a third of the milk consumed in Puerto Rico.

More on [ Hatillo, Puerto Rico ]

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