Located in Ubatuba, on the coast of São Paulo, the ruins of the Bom Retiro da Lagoinha Farm tell the tragic and recent history of a slave-owning Brazil. Built in the early 19th century, it was a “model farm ” for sugar, cachaça, and coffee. Maintained for years through slave labor, the farm also benefited from its proximity to the city’s port, exporting the products it produced.
Its founder, the French engineer João Agostinho Stevenné, built the model farm with the aim of teaching sugar production techniques. Around 1850, the approximately 2,400-square-meter farm fell into decline following advances in agricultural techniques. It gradually lost its importance, and part of its original structures deteriorated due to lack of use and maintenance.
The farm and the alleged glass factory
Still in the late 19th century, the farm came under new ownership. Captain Romualdo, another manufacturer and exporter of brown sugar and cachaça, his main ambition. Legend has it that Romualdo needed containers to store the product and, for that reason, planned to open Brazil’s first glass factory.
Next to the farm’s ruins, there are three stone and lime columns near the sea. According to rumors, they mark the spot where the owner began construction that was never completed. To this day, there is no confirmation of this fact, making it a rumor rooted in local folklore.
Donated by its last owners, Benedicta Corrêa Zantut and Jamil Zantut, in 1989, the property now belongs to FundArt, which works to preserve the region.
How to visit the Lagoinha ruins in Ubatuba?
If you’d like to explore it on your own, the site is open to visitors and used for photo shoots or picnics. There is no charge to access the monument. However, for commercial filming or events, authorization from FundArt must be requested .
If you’d like to visit with a guide, there are trail options offered by local tour operators. The trail is easy and takes 3 hours. The itinerary passes through the farm’s ruins, and the guide will tell you the story behind them. The tour ends at Véu da Noiva Waterfall, considered the largest in São Paulo.
