born May 5, 1865, Mimoso, near Cuiabá, Mato Grosso, Braz.
died Jan. 19, 1958, Rio de Janeiro
Brazilian explorer and protector of Indians.
As a young soldier, he was assigned to extend telegraph lines into the Brazilian backlands. In 191314 he and U.S. Pres. Theodore Roosevelt headed an expedition that explored a tributary of the Madeira River. In both these undertakings, Rondon came into close contact with the Indians of the interior. Appalled at their mistreatment by developers and settlers, he helped create a government agency for their protection. The state of Rondônia, created in 1982 from the former Guaporé territory, was named for him.