Willemstad

Willemstad (vil'umstät) [key], city (1992 pop. 24,235), Curaçao, capital of the Netherlands Antilles. The city is the commercial and industrial center of the Netherlands Antilles as well as a free port and tourist center. It is important as a transshipment point and refining center for petroleum sent across the Gulf of Venezuela from Maracaibo; however, the petroleum demand declined in the mid-1980s. Willemstad has a distinctive Dutch character with streets lined by narrow, gabled houses.

The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, 6th ed. Copyright © 2007, Columbia University Press. All rights reserved.

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