Ask the Chatbot Games & Quizzes History & Society Science & Tech Biographies Animals & Nature Geography & Travel Arts & Culture ProCon Money Videos
Baracoa
Table of Contents
Introduction References & Edit History Related Topics
Quizzes
Tower Bridge over the Thames River in London, England. Opened in 1894. Remains an Important Traffic Route with 40,000 Crossings Every Day.
Guess the City by Its River Quiz
Read Next
Three Cuban pesos bill mixing between dollar bills
Pro and Con: Cuba Embargo
Discover
Titanic infographic. The 30th anniversary of its discovery is September 1, 2015. SPOTLIGHT VERSION.
Timeline of the Titanic’s Final Hours
Battle of the Alamo from "Texas: An Epitome of Texas History from the Filibustering and Revolutionary Eras to the Independence of the Republic, 1897. Texas Revolution, Texas revolt, Texas independence, Texas history.
6 Wars of Independence
Lusitania sinking, illustration from The War of the Nations (New York), December 31, 1919. World War I, WWI. This image is one of three on the page. (See source file for the other two.)
7 of the World’s Deadliest Shipwrecks
July, 2006, Launch of Space Shuttle Discovery STS-121. See attached for full caption information.
Will Light-Speed Space Travel Ever Be Possible?
King Cobra snake in Malaysia. (reptile)
9 of the World’s Deadliest Snakes
Rural Irish landscape, Sligo, Ireland.
Why Is Ireland Two Countries?
Entrants falling and tumbling over while chasing the cheese at the 2016 'Cheese Rolling' held at Cooper's Hill, in the Cotswolds, Brockworth England
7 of the World’s Most Dangerous Festivals

Baracoa

Cuba
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Share
Share to social media
URL
https://www.britannica.com/place/Baracoa
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites
Written and fact-checked by
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.
The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
Article History

Baracoa, port city, eastern Cuba. It is situated on the extreme eastern part of the island, along a small semicircular bay on the north (Atlantic) coast. Baracoa is surrounded by rugged mountains, which isolated it from the rest of Cuba until a road was built through the mountains to connect it with Guantánamo in the 1960s.

In December 1492 Christopher Columbus stopped at what is now Baracoa. When the conquistador Diego Velázquez de Cuéllar colonized Cuba, he established the island’s first Spanish settlement at Baracoa in 1512. It was Cuba’s capital from 1518 to 1522.

Cacao, coconuts, and bananas are grown in the surrounding area and are exported from the port. The city’s industries manufacture chocolate and coconut oil. Pop. (2002) 39,190; (2011 est.) 39,500.

Tower Bridge over the Thames River in London, England. Opened in 1894. Remains an Important Traffic Route with 40,000 Crossings Every Day.
Britannica Quiz
Guess the City by Its River Quiz
This article was most recently revised and updated by Maren Goldberg.