PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti . The capital, main port, and commercial center of the West Indian republic of Haiti, Port-au-Prince is also the political Center for Haiti's Western County, located on the magnificent bay of the Gulf of Gonâve, the city is surrounded with natural beauty. 

   There are textile, cottonseed oil, flour, and sugar mills in or near the city. In 1959 the government established a stock-feeding station to encourage cattle and horse breeding. The city's popularity with tourists varies, depending on political conditions. There are several luxury hotels, and air transportation connects the city with the main Caribbean islands, Canada, the United States, and Switzerland. 

   The city has many different types of architecture, ranging from ordinary office buildings to Victorian-style "gingerbread" houses to modern homes. At the center of Port-au-Prince near the Champ-de-Mars is the National Palace, the army barracks, and a statue of Jean-Jacques Dessalines, who was the hero of the wars of independence. The most picturesque site is the bustling Iron Market. Other notable landmarks include the Cathedral of Notre Dame (with the adjacent colonial cathedral), the National Archives, National Library, and National Museum. Port-au-Prince is the center of the political and intellectual life of the nation. The University of Haiti was established in 1944. 

   Most of the elite live in the city, where they have access to cultural activities and public utilities. Port-au- Prince has the only sewer system in Haiti. There is almost no middle class. The black urban working class is very poor; they are even worse off than the farmers who barely manage to raise enough to eat. The house of the local voodoo priest is the center of life for the urban poor community. A constant flow of people migrating from the countryside into the city makes conditions even worse. The city was overrun by violence in 1987 while Haiti was preparing for its first free election in 30 years. Hundreds died. Port-au-Prince was laid out in 1749 by the French and called L'Hôpital. It was damaged by earthquakes in 1751 and 1770. In 1770 it replaced Cap-Haïtien as capital of the old French colony of St-Domingue. Its port was opened to foreign trade in 1807. Population (1986 estimate), 457,600. 

Click here for more about  Haiti