Monrovia
Monrovia is the capital and largest city of Liberia, located on the Atlantic coast at Cape Mesurado in Montserrado County. It serves as the country's political, administrative, economic, and cultural center. According to the 2022 census, the city has a population of approximately 1.76 million, while the greater metropolitan area exceeds 2.2 million people, accounting for roughly one-third of Liberia's total population and representing the country's most densely populated region.
The city was founded in 1822 by the American Colonization Society as a settlement for formerly enslaved and freeborn African Americans and was named after James Monroe, the fifth president of the United States. Monrovia became the capital of the Republic of Liberia following the country's declaration of independence in 1847. Early settlement centered on Providence Island before expansion to the mainland, and the city developed as the primary seat of political power and administration during the 19th and 20th centuries.
Monrovia hosts Liberia's national government, major state institutions, foreign diplomatic missions, and international organizations. The Freeport of Monrovia is the country's principal seaport and a central component of its economy. Economic activity includes port operations, manufacturing, services, and a large informal sector. The city also functions as Liberia's primary hub for education, media, and cultural life.
Monrovia experienced rapid population growth during the Liberian civil wars, driven largely by internal displacement from rural areas. The conflicts caused extensive damage to infrastructure and public services. Since the end of the wars, the city has undergone gradual reconstruction and continued urban expansion, while facing ongoing challenges related to housing, sanitation, transportation, and socioeconomic inequality.
Etymology
Monrovia is named in honor of U.S. President James Monroe, a prominent supporter of the colonization of Liberia and the American Colonization Society. Along with Washington, D.C., it is one of two world capitals to be named after an American president. The original name of Monrovia was Christopolis until 1824, only two years after the city's founding.The "-via" suffix comes from either the West African Edoidi- Beninese deity Ovia who presided over peace and prosperity, or the mythological figure Ovia of the Uhen tribe, famed for her great beauty, unwavering principles, and marrying the King of the Oyo Empire.
History
Before 1816, the area around Cape Mesurado and the mouth of the Mesurado River was called Ducor. It had long been established as a crossroads and a place of trade inhabited by fishing, trading and farming communities of various ethnicities, including the Dey, Kru, Bassa, Gola, and Vai. The French cartographer and slave trader Chevalier des Marchais visited Ducor and the Cape in 1723, conducted business there and later published a map of the area.In 1821, with the aim of establishing a self-sufficient colony for free people of color from the United States, something that had already been accomplished with British Black Loyalists in Freetown, the first group of African American settlers arrived in West Africa from the United States under the auspices of the American Colonization Society and with the support of the U.S. government. They landed on Sherbro Island, part of modern-day Sierra Leone.
On 7 January 1822, a ship took these settlers to Dazoe Island at the mouth of the Mesurado River. They subsequently went ashore at Cape Mesurado, and established a settlement they called Christopolis.
In 1824, the city was renamed Monrovia after James Monroe, president of the United States at the time. Monroe was a prominent supporter of plans to create a colony of some sort as a place to relocate African Americans from the United States of America and combat the Atlantic Slave Trade. He likewise signed into law the Anti-Slave Trading Act of 1819, which funded the ACS's mission to create such a colony in West Africa.
In 1845 there was a constitutional convention in Monrovia. At this convention a document was drafted that would be adopted two years later as the constitution of the newly independent and sovereign Republic of Liberia. During World War I the city was affected by the German bombing of Monrovia.
At the beginning of the 20th century 2,500 of Monrovia's 4,000 residents were Americo-Liberian. At that time Monrovia consisted of two sectors: Monrovia proper and Krutown. The city's Americo-Liberian population resided in the former sector. Because of American settlers' influence the architectural style of its buildings was reminiscent of that of the southern United States. Krutown was inhabited mainly by ethnic Krus, but also by Bassas, Grebos and members of other ethnic groups. By 1926 ethnic groups from Liberia's interior began to migrate outwards toward Monrovia in search of jobs. By 1937 Monrovia's population had grown to 10,000. At this time the town had 30 police officers.
File:Carter and Tolbert.png|thumb|Visiting US President Jimmy Carter and Liberian President William Tolbert wave from their motorcade, 1978.
In 1979, the Organisation of African Unity, chaired by the then president of Liberia, William Tolbert, held its conference near Monrovia. During his term, Tolbert improved public housing in Monrovia and slashed tuition fees at the University of Liberia in half. In 1980 a military coup led by Samuel Doe overthrew the Tolbert government and executed many of its members. Tolbert, and others who were killed in the coup, were buried in a mass grave in Palm Grove Cemetery.
The First Liberian Civil War and Second Liberian Civil War severely damaged the infrastructure of the city. Much of the damage occurred during the siege of Monrovia. Major battles included clashes between Samuel Doe's government forces and Prince Johnson's forces in 1990 and the National Patriotic Front of Liberia's assault on the city in 1992. During these wars young children and youth, deprived of resources and schooling, were forced to involve themselves in the fighting. Afterwards, many of them were left homeless.
In 2002 Leymah Gbowee organized the Women of Liberia Mass Action for Peace, a group consisting of local Monrovian women, who gathered in a fish market to pray and sing. This movement helped to end the war the following year and to bring about the election of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf as president of Liberia, which made it the first African nation to have a female president.
In 2014 Monrovia was affected by the 2014 West Africa Ebola outbreak. The Ebola virus epidemic in Liberia was declared over on 3 September 2015.
Geography
Monrovia lies along the Cape Mesurado peninsula, between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mesurado River, whose mouth forms a large natural harbor. The Saint Paul River lies directly north of the city and forms the northern boundary of Bushrod Island, which is reached by crossing the "New Bridge" from downtown Monrovia. Monrovia is located in Montserrado County and is Liberia's largest city as its administrative, commercial and financial center.Climate
Monrovia's climate is classified as a tropical monsoon climate within the Köppen climate classification. It is the wettest capital city in the world, with annual rainfall averaging. It has a wet season and a dry season but gets precipitation even during the dry season. Temperatures are fairly constant throughout the year, averaging around. The only slight variations are in the high temperatures, which are around in the winter and near in the summer. Lows are usually between year-round.Neighborhoods
Monrovia comprises several districts spread across the Mesurado peninsula; the greater metropolitan area encircles the mouth of the marshy Mesurado River. The historic downtown area, centered on Broad Street, is at the very end of the peninsula; the major market district, Waterside, immediately to its north, faces the city's large natural harbor.Northwest of Waterside is the large, low-income West Point community. To the west and southwest of the downtown area is Mamba Point, traditionally the city's principal diplomatic quarter and home to the embassies of the United States and United Kingdom, as well as the European Union delegation. South of the city center is Capitol Hill, where the major institutions of the national government, including the Temple of Justice and the Executive Mansion, are located.
Further east along the peninsula is the Sinkor section of Monrovia. Originally a suburban residential district, today Sinkor is the bustling midtown section of the city. It includes many diplomatic missions, major hotels, businesses, and residential neighborhoods, including informal communities such as Plumkor, Jorkpentown, Lakpazee and Fiamah.
Sinkor is home to the city's secondary airport, Spriggs Payne. The area immediately next to the airport, called Airfield, is a major nightlife district for the whole city. East of the Airfield is the Old Road section of Sinkor, which is predominantly residential, and includes informal settlements such as Chugbor and Gaye Town.
At the southeastern base of the peninsula is the independent township of Congo Town, and to its east is the large suburb of Paynesville. Other suburbs, such as Chocolate City, Gardnersville, Barnesville, Kaba Town, Dandawailo, and New Georgia lie to the north, across the river. On Bushrod Island, north of Monrovia, are the neighborhoods of Clara Town, Logan Town and New Kru Town. To the far east are the suburbs of Stockton Creek Bridge, Caldwell, Louisiana, and Cassava Hill.
; Other neighborhoods and suburbs of Monrovia include: