Willemstad

Willemstad (pop. 100,000), city on the Caribbean island of Curaçao, capital of the Netherlands Antilles. Arawak tribes inhabited this area before Dutch settlers arrived (1634). The island contains the Western Hemisphere's oldest Jewish cemetery (1659) and synagogue (1732). Its harbor is used for crude oil shipment. Oil refinement as well as banking are important to the economic base of Willemstad.