Lascahobas ( ht, Laskawobas; es, Las Caobas) is a
commune located in the
Centre department
Department may refer to:
* Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility
Government and military
*Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...
of
Haiti
Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...
, roughly one hour east of
Mirebalais, 10 minutes south of
Lac de Peligre
Lac is the resinous secretion of a number of species of lac insects, of which the most commonly cultivated is '' Kerria lacca''.
Cultivation begins when a farmer gets a stick that contains eggs ready to hatch and ties it to the tree to be infe ...
, and one hour west of the border with the
Dominican Republic.
The population is about 7,574 people, as of 2012.
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 covering 19 counties in northeastern New York state. It was created in 1868 from a division of the Episcopal Diocese of New York.
History
The Church of England arrived in 1 ...
, 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 church, the city sits on the significant
Lascahobas River
Lascahobas ( ht, Laskawobas; es, Las Caobas) is a List of communes of Haiti, commune located in the Centre (department), Centre Departments of Haiti, department of Haiti, roughly one hour east of Mirebalais, 10 minutes south of Lac de Peligre, an ...
.
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
Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to:
Style or title
*Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations
*Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...
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
A disaster, catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (department), Ouest department, a ...
damaged some parts of Lascahobas, but didn't affect the ongoing installment of solar panel
A solar cell panel, solar electric panel, photo-voltaic (PV) module, PV panel or solar panel is an assembly of photovoltaic solar cells mounted in a (usually rectangular) frame, and a neatly organised collection of PV panels is called a photo ...
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
Mon, MON or Mon. may refer to:
Places
* Mon State, a subdivision of Myanmar
* Mon, India, a town in Nagaland
* Mon district, Nagaland
* Mon, Raebareli, a village in Uttar Pradesh, India
* Mon, Switzerland, a village in the Canton of Grisons
* A ...
, 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