Travel Guide Lajes Das Flores

Initially, Lajes das Flores extended from Ribeira da Silva to Fajã Grande, but most of the localities that made it up at the time were annexed. It was the first area to be settled in the southern part of the island during the 16th century, and gained its "independence" in 1898. The town was merged with Santa Cruz for economic reasons, before regaining its status as a municipality three years later. Today, Lajes has a population of just 1,400. Its fishing port comes alive every year from July 15 to 19, during the Emigrants' Festival. The beautiful 18th-century church of Notre-Dame-des-Angoisses was built in fulfillment of a vow made by Spanish shipwreck survivors. The church of Notre-Dame-du-Rosaire houses wood carvings and a censer donated by Pope Pius X to thank the inhabitants for their devotion during the sinking of the Slavonia in July 1909.