Loma Plata (Menno Colony, Boquerón Department, Paraguay)
Loma Plata, Paraguay, is the administrative, economic, and social center of Menno Colony (coordinates: 22° 23′ 0″ S, 59° 50′ 0″ W). Located on non-arable land, in 1937 it became the center of such cooperative enterprises as trade and industry, as well as the offices of the colony administration. It received its name from the Mennonite expedition which explored the Chaco for settlement possibilities in 1921. When the first settlers came in 1927-1928 a large preliminary camp of settlers was located at this place.
In 1988 ca. 2,000 people (550 families) lived in Loma Plata. Originally the central school served as worship center also, but by 1988 three large church buildings served as meeting places for the Menno Colony's multi-congregation church (Mennonitengemeinde) of ca. 1,500 members. The three congregations had choirs, music groups, women's organizations, youth clubs and youth work, and volleyball and football clubs, etc. A large elementary school and a high school with full national accreditation were also located here, as was a Bible school, agricultural school and a school for special purposes. The offices of the colony administration, security services, and agricultural bureau as well as a number of private enterprises including general stores, furniture establishments, an agricultural machinery factory, and various other enterprises were found in Loma Plata.
The producer-consumer cooperative of the colony was headquartered here. This included a cotton processing plant, an oil press, a power station, a plant converting wood to gas, a meat market, and a creamery processing ca. 70,000-80,000 liters (ca. 20,000 gallons) of milk daily. Loma Plata was also the location of a hotel, telephone and radio services, and a 45-bed hospital, including five doctors and a nursing school. Daily bus service to Asunción was maintained as was occasional air service. The colony museum and historical archives were also in Loma Plata. In 1988 ca. 430 Mennonites and 80 Indigenous people were employed by the colony in these enterprises.
See also Filadelfia (Fernheim Colony, Boquerón Department, Paraguay)
Maps
Map:Loma Plata, Menno Colony, Paraguay
Bibliography
Fretz, Joseph W. Pilgrims in Paraguay: The Story of Mennonite Colonization in South America. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1953.
Friesen, M. W. Canadian Mennonites Conquer a Wilderness: The Beginning and Development of the Menno Colony, First Mennonite Settlement in South America. Translated by Christel Wiebe. Loma Plata, Paraguay: Historical Committee of the Menno Colony, 2009.
Hecht, Alfred. "Relationships and Tensions Between Mennonites and Indians in the Paraguayan Chaco." In Mennonite Images: Historical, Cultural, and Literary Essays Dealing with Mennonites Issues, edited by Harry Loewen. Winnipeg: Hyperion, 1980.
Loewen, Royden. Village among Nations: "Canadian" Mennonites in a Transnational World, 1916-2006. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 2013: 33-39, 54-65, 69-76, 110-118.
Quiring, Walter. "The Canadian Mennonite Immigration into the Paraguayan Chaco, 1926-27." Mennonite Quarterly Review 8, no. 1 (January 1934): 32-42.
Redekop, Calvin. Strangers Become Neighbors: Mennonite and Indigenous Relations in the Paraguayan Chaco. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 1980.
Stoesz, Edgar. Like a Mustard Seed: Mennonites in Paraguay. Scottdale, PA: Herald Press, 2008: 1-11.
Stoesz, Edgar and Muriel T. Stackley. Garden in the Wilderness: Mennonite Communities in the Paraguayan Chaco, 1927-1997. Winnipeg: CMBC Publications, 1999: ix-xi 1-4, 7-32.
| Author(s) | Martin W Friesen |
|---|---|
| Date Published | 1988 |
Cite This Article
MLA style
Friesen, Martin W. "Loma Plata (Menno Colony, Boquerón Department, Paraguay)." Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. 1988. Web. 19 Jan 2026. https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Loma_Plata_(Menno_Colony,_Boquer%C3%B3n_Department,_Paraguay)&oldid=180875.
APA style
Friesen, Martin W. (1988). Loma Plata (Menno Colony, Boquerón Department, Paraguay). Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. Retrieved 19 January 2026, from https://gameo.org/index.php?title=Loma_Plata_(Menno_Colony,_Boquer%C3%B3n_Department,_Paraguay)&oldid=180875.
Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Harrisonburg, Virginia, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 529. All rights reserved.
©1996-2026 by the Global Anabaptist Mennonite Encyclopedia Online. All rights reserved.