Catamarca Province Plata was created in 1776, Catamarca obtained the title of "Subintendencia" under the Salta intendency. In 1821, the province claimed its autonomy, and Nicolás Avellaneda y Tula (grandfather of Nicolás Avellaneda) was elected as the first governor of the province. The name is believed to come either from Quechua "cata" 'slope' and "marca" 'fortress', or from Aymara "catán" 'small' and "marca" 'town'. Catamarca remained isolated from the rest of Argentina by its mountains until 1888, when the rapidly expanding railways first appeared in the province. Attracting immigrants with its spacious, fertile valleys and dry, agreeable weather, Catamarca was soon favored
Tobacco industry in Argentina are concentrated in the north of the country. The provinces of Jujuy and Salta (in the north-west), and Misiones (in the north-eastern Mesopotamia), are the leading ones, with over 45,000 tonnes/year each. The other tobacco-producing provinces are Tucumán, Corrientes, Chaco and Catamarca. Tobacco plays an important role in the economy of the producing areas, which are comparatively poor provinces. The Argentine tobacco industry employs 500,000 people, about half of them directly involved in the planting and harvesting, only about 2% in the manufacturing of the derived products, and the rest in distribution and sales. Therefore, despite the fact that the