Pérez Zeledón is the nineteenth canton of the province of San José in Costa Rica, located in the Brunca region. The capital city of the canton is San Isidro de El General. The canton's boundaries are established by the Río Savegre on the northwest, the Río Guabo and a series of coastal mountain ranges on the southwest and south, and the peaks of the highest mountains of the Cordillera de Talamanca (Talamanca Mountain Range) on the east. In the middle of the canton, the Río General, from which the canton's capital city takes its name, runs north to south. History Pérez Zeledón was created on 9 October 1931 by decree 31. Originally with four initial districts: Ureña, El General, Daniel Flores, and Rivas, with Ureña being the capital. Early Costa Rican Settlements Near the end of the 19th century, between 1870 and 1899, there were quite a few families living in El General valley. The hamlets (Spanish: Caseríos) of El General, Palmares, Rivas, and Ureña were further populated from 1900 onward. The Caserío area of Ureña grew significantly, and by 1911, during Ricardo Jiménez Oreamuno's administration, the Refuges of Ojo de Agua, El Cerro de la Muerte, and División were established. These refuges would further advance the growth of the region known today as Pérez Zeledón and El General Valley. Costa Rican Civil War San Isidro de El General, Pérez Zeledón's capital, was awarded the recognition of Ciudad Mártir, regarding the civil war of 1948, as established by Decree Nº274. This decree established official legal recognition of the city's participation in the civil war of 1948. A section of the decree states (in Spanish): la Junta Fundadora de la Segunda República, apreciando el noble esfuerzo y la valiosa contribución de San Isidro de El General, se siente obligada a hacer un público y oficial reconocimiento de tan loable conducta para que de ninguna manera quede ella relegada al olvido, sino que constantemente sea exaltada como merecen los grandes hechos dignos de vida eterna en los fastos nacionales. In English this would loosely translate into: The Founding Junta of the Second Republic, appreciating the noble effort and valuable contribution of San Isidro de El General, feels compelled to make a public and official recognition of such praiseworthy conduct that by no means be it relegated to oblivion, but rather constantly be exalted as great deeds merit worth of eternal life in