History of Filandia

It is thought that by 1870 settlers from the department of Antioquia in the northwest of Colombia were already settled in modern day Filandia. On August 20, 1878, Filandia was founded as a settlement of Colombians escaping the misfortune faced by the rest of the nation at the time. The Antioqueños came to Quindío attracted by the rumors of massive gold and emerald deposits in the area.

In the early years of the 20th century, Filandia was a prosperous community - trade and industry had grown to the point that by 1900 there were estimated to be 250,000 coffee bushes in Filandia. As a response to the increased coffee production, many processing plants were created and the coffee culture now synonymous with the town was born.

By 1930, however, Filandia was in decline. The road the first settlers used to populate the town lost its importance due to the construction of a highway to the east connecting the capital of Risaralda and the capital of Quindío, isolating the town and providing a more direct alternate route to goods and services that previously were obliged to pass through Filandia