Cartago, Costa Rica

Cartago is a city in Costa Rica, about 15 miles east of San José. It is at an elevation of about 4930 feet (some 1500 meters) above sea level on the Cartago River, at the base of the Irazú volcano. Cartago is capital of Costa Rica's Cartago Province. In 1997 the city of Cartago had a population of 122,605 people.

Cartago was founded in 1563 by Spanish conquistador Juan Vásquez de Coronado[?], and was the first permanent Spanish settlement in Costa Rica.

Cartago was the capital of Costa Rica until 1823.

The city was severely dammaged by a major earthquake in 1841.