Lascahobas (; ; ) is a
commune located in the
Centre department of
Haiti
Haiti, officially the Republic of Haiti, is a country on the island of Hispaniola in the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and south of the Bahamas. It occupies the western three-eighths of the island, which it shares with the Dominican ...
, roughly one hour east of
Mirebalais, 10 minutes south of
Lac de Peligre, and one hour west of the border with the
Dominican Republic
The Dominican Republic is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles of the Caribbean Sea in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean. It shares a Maritime boundary, maritime border with Puerto Rico to the east and ...
.
The population is about 45,873 people, as of 2015.
History and character
Lascahobas is the market town of a rural, agricultural area. Outlying villages in the area include Cohoroes, Rantamoulie, LaHoye, and Pouly (also spelled ''Poulie'' or ''Poule''), Flande, and Pareidon. The city and villages surrounding it have been the focus of missionary work by the
Episcopal Church in the early 21st Century.
["Mission from the Cathedral: Mission Trip to Haiti: Two teams over Two Weeks: School Support: medical team," ''Swan & Elk'' (newsletter of the Cathedral of All Saints, Albany, New York), Eastertide 2013, pp. 6-7.][David J. Collum, "The Albany Mission Trip to Haiti", ''Newsletter'', ]Episcopal Diocese of Albany
The Episcopal Diocese of Albany is a diocese of the Episcopal Church (United States), Episcopal Church covering 19 County (United States), counties in northeastern New York state. It was formed in 1868 from a division of the Episcopal Diocese of ...
, May 2013, p. 18.["A Mission Team returns to Haiti", ''Albany Episcopalian'', Vol. 14, No. 1, Lent 2017, p. 11.]
It was founded as ''Las Caobas'' by Spanish colonists in 1763.
Economy
Primarily agricultural, with a bustling local market and a large
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
church, the city sits on the significant
Lascahobas River.
The wealthiest business in town are agriculture development and farming.
Lascahobas has an
Episcopal church, St. Esprit (Holy Spirit), which also has a school.
As of early 2013, the
Rector of the Church of the Holy Spirit was The Rev. Jean Milor Medela; Fr. Medela also serves as priest at the Church of the Ascension in Poulie.
they were replaced by Fr. Jean Jacques Deravil.
[
The ]2010 Haiti earthquake
The 2010 Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake that struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (departm ...
damaged some parts of Lascahobas, but didn't affect the ongoing installment of solar panel
A solar panel is a device that converts sunlight into electricity by using photovoltaic (PV) cells. PV cells are made of materials that produce excited electrons when exposed to light. These electrons flow through a circuit and produce direct ...
s for electricity. In 2011, volunteers from the United States installed solar panels to allow for Internet connections. Installation was completed in early 2013.
Tourism
Vodou festivals occur regularly throughout much of the year in the surrounding hills.
Mon Fo, located on the west edge of town is the highest elevation in the area, that at some point was used as a military fort. All that remains of the fort are crumbling ruins of walls and a large cannon with a Fleur de Lis.
Carnevale is celebrated annually in the whole town.
Transportation
Lascahobas is bisected by Route 305.
Education
There are two primary schools, one Roman Catholic and one Episcopal, in Lascahobas. Each of the four outlying villages also has a primary school operated by the Episcopal church.
References
External links
Lascahobas information
(in French Creole)
Facebook page
of Ville de Lascahobas
Solar installation in Lascahobas, Haiti
Friends of the Children of Lascahobas, Haiti website
{{Communes of Haiti
Populated places in Centre (department)
Communes of Haiti