Dajabón

Dajabón
Monument to the Dominican War of Restoration
Dajabón
Coordinates: 19°34′0″N 71°42′36″W / 19.56667°N 71.71000°W / 19.56667; -71.71000
Country	Dominican Republic
Province	Dajabón
Founded	1776
Municipality	1864
Named for	Dajabón River
Area	253.41 km2 (97.84 sq mi)
Elevation	35 m (115 ft)
Population (2012)	25,983
• Density	100/km2 (270/sq mi)
• Urban	18,725
	Including population of Cañongo.
Climate	Aw

Dajabón is the capital city of the Dajabón province in the Dominican Republic, located on the border with Haiti. It is a market town with a population of about 40,000, north of the Cordillera Central mountain range.

The city was initially founded between 1771 and 1776 but was soon after abandoned during the War of Independence. It was settled again shortly after the Restoration War in 1865.

Dajabón is located on the Dajabón River, also known as the Massacre River due to the massacre of Afro-Haitians by the Dominican dictator Trujillo in 1937 where are many as 30,000 Haitians were murdered.

A battle that took place here between the Spanish and the French in 1690. At the time of this battle, the governor of the French colony, Mr. Cussy, was killed in the Battle of the Sabana Real de la Limonada, near modern-day Limonade in northern Haiti. The bridge across the river connects Dajabón to its larger Haitian sister city of Ouanaminthe. On Mondays and Fridays, Haitians are permitted to temporarily cross the bridge to sell their goods. Most of the goods are used clothes, shoes, bulk dry goods, and housewares. On these days, an area of several acres on the Western edge of the city becomes a crowded business place. In addition to the Haitians, Dominicans go to the market to sell food (vegetables grown in their part of the country).