In , its population was around , Before , Venezuela was known to possess commercial quantities of petroleum. It was the blowout of the Barroso No. Cabimas still plays an important role in production from the nation's largest oil fields, which are located around and beneath Lake Maracaibo.
Other fields are increasing in importance, mainly in eastern Venezuela. Most refining in Venezuela takes place in refineries outside the Cabimas area. Cabimas was founded by a group of Cistercians monks in as the Mission of Saint Ambrosio of Punta de Piedra, located in the modern day "La Mision". Some archeological remains have been found, however not a single wall survives. The existence of Cabimas is stated in the chronicles of Venezuelan Archbishop Mariano Marti who visited the town in However, it was the well "Los Barrosos 2" R4 which , bpd blow out reached the world newspaper's headlines.
Many oil companies and workers from other parts of Venezuela and abroad came to Cabimas, increasing its population. Most foreign personnel were of American or Dutch origin. The development and transformation of the city followed the oil industry. The main avenues F, G, H, J, K, L, 31,32,33, among others were named following a coordinate system made by the oil company Shell to locate its wells.
Cabimas was populated by people from different regions of Venezuela, mostly people from the east, the Andes, and Falcon. Furthermore, a sector founded by Falconians was named "Corito" in Spanish small Coro, Coro is the capital of Falcon state.
Other sectors received names from nearby oil facilities like the streets R5 and R10 named after oil wells and Gasplant sector named after a natural gas facility. The city was developed with oil field camps Las 40's, Las 50's, Concordia, Hollywood, Campo Blanco, Campo Staff -modern day Las Palmas-, Las Cupulas , the newly arrived built their own houses around them, so the city development was not planned.
