History
The area, a trading post started by the Dutch, was taken by the English in 1630, and in 1650 the city became the capital of the new English colony. The area changed hands often between the English and Dutch but it was in Dutch hands again in 1667 and under Dutch rule from 1815 until the independence of Suriname in 1975.
On January 1821, a fire in the city centre destroyed over 400 houses and other buildings.
A second fire in September 1832 destroyed another 46 houses on the western part of the Waterkant.
In 1943, a military plane crashed on its way to North Africa near the city, killing two FBI Agents and other 33 people that were on board. The cause of the aircraft accident was never determined and nearly no remains of the 35 people aboard were found.
The citizens are chiefly of African, East Indian, indigenous, Javanese, Chinese and Dutch descent.
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