Nossa Senhora dos Milagres de Lajedo, was one of the first settlements on the island, camouflaged and protected from North Atlantic pirates by the ridges and rocky outcrops where the settlements began. In fact, its name ("Lajedo") means "pavement covered in slabs; place where there are many slabs; large slabs and smooth", indicating the type of geology discovered by first explorers. Its 637 hectares of fertile soils, were explained by Isatis Tinctoria as ideal conditions to shelter and support those who wanted to live in the zone.