Historedia
AfricaEvent

American Colonization Society lands at Cape Mesurado and founds Monrovia

When
1821–1822
Where
Cape Mesurado; Dazoe Island
Episodes
3

In April 1822, the American Colonization Society established a settlement at Cape Mesurado, later named Monrovia. This followed the December 1821 acquisition of land from indigenous leaders. The site, originally called Christopolis, became the administrative capital of Liberia, founded by free people of color from the United States.

Episodes

  1. December 1821 · Cape MesuradoLand Purchase at Cape Mesurado

    ACS representatives acquired a strip of land at Cape Mesurado from indigenous ruler King Peter in December 1821.

  2. 7 January 1822 · Dazoe IslandArrival at Dazoe Island

    A ship transported settlers to Dazoe Island at the mouth of the Mesurado River in January 1822.

  3. April 1822 · Cape MesuradoFounding of Christopolis

    The settlement at Cape Mesurado was founded in April 1822 and originally named Christopolis.

Background and detail

Background. The American Colonization Society, founded in 1816, aimed to support the repatriation of free people of color to Africa. In 1819, Congress provided funding, and the first ship departed in 1820. The society sought to establish a self-sufficient colony for free people of color from the United States in West Africa, an aim pursued under its auspices with U.S. government support.

Land Acquisition. Prior to the settlement's establishment, ACS representatives negotiated the purchase of land at Cape Mesurado in December 1821. This involved acquiring a strip of land from indigenous ruler King Peter, potentially through threats of force. This acquisition laid the groundwork for the settlement that would become Monrovia.

Settlement Founding. The first group of African American settlers arrived in West Africa in 1821, with a ship taking them to Dazoe Island in January 1822. The settlement at Cape Mesurado was founded in April 1822. Originally named Christopolis, it was renamed Monrovia in 1824 after President James Monroe.

People involved

Sources

  1. Monrovia Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-29
  2. History of Liberia Wikipedia
  3. American Colonization Society Wikipedia, revision of 2026-08-06

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.