Towards the middle of the 18th century the lands of the current Balvanera belonged to Antonio González Varela, a Spaniard known by the nickname of Miserere.

[2] In 1799 the priest Damián Pérez, received a plot of land, where years later was built the Parish Nuestra Señora de Balvanera.

[3] During the British invasions of the River Plate, the town of Balvanera was the scene of the battles between the Spanish troops under Santiago de Liniers and the English, commanded by William Beresford.

In the late 19th century, Balvanera had a strong political tradition, identifying first with Adolfo Alsina and then with UCR leaders Leandro Alem and Hipólito Yrigoyen.

By 1900, Balvanera was associated mostly with violently contested elections—and with the brothels in the Junín y Lavalle area where, according to Borges, the tango dance acquired its notorious erotic overtones.

A number of Jewish institutions are located in Balvanera, including the Gran Templo Paso and the AMIA community center (bombed on July 18, 1994, in the bloodiest terror attack ever on Argentine soil).

The southern part of Balvanera is home to some traditional institutions of the Galician community, and features a lively furniture trade along Belgrano avenue.

Balvanera is located to the west of downtown Buenos Aires (el centro, which comprises San Nicolás and Montserrat).

The elegant northern neighbourhood of Recoleta (part of the area known as Barrio Norte) is located north of Balvanera, crossing Córdoba avenue.

The kilómetro cero reference, from which all Argentine routes count the distance to Buenos Aires, is marked by a monolith in Plaza Congreso.

The mausoleum of President Rivadavia in Plaza Miserere (Once) used to be covered in graffiti; after a fence was erected around it, its state of repair has improved markedly.

After extensive restorations, it was reopened in 2007 [2] [3], with plans to offer live tango and become a tourist landmark much like the Tortoni and Ideal cafés.

The Abasto shopping mall was the city's wholesale produce market until the late 1980s; its history is closely associated with the life and career of tango singer Carlos Gardel.

Around Plaza Once, numerous long-distance bus depots provide service to major locations in Argentina and neighboring countries.