Therezina

Therezina, a city of Brazil, capital of the state of Piauhy, on the left bank of the Parnahyba river, about 220 m. from its mouth. Pop. (1890) 21,620; for the commune or municipio, 31,523; (1906, estimated), 25,000. It is prettily situated on an open plain and is laid out regularly with broad straight streets with seven large squares. Among its public buildings are the government palace, the legislative and municipal hall, the "Quatro de Setembro" theatre, Misericordia hospital, public market, sanitation and public works, building, courts, police headquarters, barracks, &c. The town is characteristically Portuguese in appearance, its buildings being one or two stories in height, plastered and frequently coloured outside, with large rooms, thick walls, and tile roofs to ensure coolness. There is one lyceum, or high school, with about 400 students, in addition to its primary schools. Its manufacturing industries include a cotton mill, foundry, and soap-works. A steamboat service, with three small boats, maintains regular communication with Parnahyba, near the mouth of the river, besides which there are a number of independent freight-carrying boats. Therezina was founded in 1852, its site being originally called Chapada de Corisco, and was named in honour of the empress, Dona Thereza Christina. It was made the capital of Piauhy in succession to Oeiras.