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Monrovia

Capital of LiberiaOn Liberia's Atlantic coast, Monrovia stretches along the Cape Mesurado peninsula, between the ocean and the mouth of the Mesurado River, which forms a large natural harbour. The Saint Paul River lies just to the north.

Why it's the capital

Monrovia was founded in 1822 by the American Colonization Society as a settlement for free Black people from the United States. In 1845 a convention in the city drafted the constitution that Liberia adopted when it declared independence in 1847.

Fun facts

  1. The town was first called Christopolis. In 1824 it was renamed after US President James Monroe, and with Washington, D.C., it is one of only two capitals named after an American president.
  2. The first settlers landed on an island at the mouth of the Mesurado River, now called Providence Island, before going ashore at the cape.
  3. It gets about 4,600 mm of rain a year on average, and it is often called the wettest capital city in the world.

Finding it on the globe

Follow the West African coast southeast from Freetown. The next capital on the shore is Monrovia, in the northwestern part of Liberia's coast.

Sources: Wikipedia: Monrovia, Wikipedia: Liberia