MELO

city, northeastern Uruguay. It lies along the Arroyo (stream) de los Conventos, an affluent of the Tacuar River, near the Brazilian border. It was founded in 1795 by Captain Agustn de la Rosa as a Spanish military post and was named for Pedro de Melo, then viceroy of the Ro de la Plata territory. Melo serves as a distribution centre for wool, hides, textiles, meats, liquor, and dairy goods. One of the city's colonial-era buildings houses a museum dedicated to the gaucho. Pop. (1975 prelim.) 38,260.