Matagalpa is a city located 130 Km. north of Managua, Nicaragua. Its altitude is 2,500 feet over sea level. It is known for its cool weather, and cloud forest. Population of the city: 100,000 inhabitants. Population of the Province of Matagalpa: 500,000 inhab. It is located in the coffee region of the northern highlands of Nicaragua. You can get there from Managua taking Carretera Norte (North Highway). It takes 1.5 hours driving from Managua International Airport, or 2 hours from Managua.

Matagalpa is an Indian name, meaning "Lets go to the rock" (Father Guillermo Kiene, linguist), because it´s located on the side of Rio Grande, called Ucumulali (river of the golden fish) by the Matagalpa Indians.

Matagalpa was an Indian town discovered by the Spanish in 1527 when they were trying to find the passage to the North Sea. The town was settled by Dominican and Mercedarian missioners accompanied with few soldiers. Soon more Spanish, more men than women settlers arrived and started mixing with the local population.

It remained like that until gold was found in 1808, but gold was not exploited until the 1850s when some gold prospectors stopped here (Mr. Painter from England; doctor John Sigo and Mr. Williams from USA, Leopold Wassmer from Germany).

Some other interesting people stopped there while on their way to the Californian mines. For example Georges Choiseul Praslin, who is thought to be the famous Par of France Duc Theobald Choiseul Praslin who escaped from Paris in 1847 after a crime committed on Duchese Fanny Sebastiani de Porta. Another important personages were Louis Elster and his wife Katharina Braun who were the first persons to plant coffee trees in Northern Nicaragua.

Matagalpa is also known because of the many German, English, French, and American immigrants who settled here following the Elster-Braun invitation to grow coffee since the 1880s. In this city you will meet many people with last names like: Vogl, Macy, Hawkins, Kühl, Weimer, Alm, Kollerbohn, Bolt, Fley, O'Rourk, Hayn, Haar, Raitt, Richardson, Bonnerman, Pao, Kraudy, Travers, etc.

Matagalpa is the only city in the country having a Cemetery for Foreigners, it is worth visiting, it is just a few minutes walking distance south of the city.

From 1903 to 1905 a weird steam locomotive with 6 wagon transporting coffee ran from Matagalpa to the port of Corinto at the Pacific Ocean, it did not run on steel rails, it ran on dirt itself, so people called it "Terrocarril" (railess train), it was probably unique in the world. You can see photographs of the Terrocarril in Selva Negra Museum, 10 kilometers north of the city of Matagalpa on the highway to Jinotega. You can also take "La Ruta del Cafe" (Coffee Tour), visit the Coffee Musseum in the center of the city.

In Matagalpa there are many restaurants and hotels, of various prices (Hotel & Restaurants: Lomas de Saint Tomas, Caoba, Fountainblue, Campestre Barcelona. Ten kilometers on the highway to the city of Jinotega is Selva Negra Mountain Resort, where you can find bungalows, restaurant, horseback riding, coffee tours, bird watching and eco-tourism.

Unique to Matagalpa is the Indian Black Ceramic (Cerámica Negra) found in local stores. Also the last remaining Matagalpa Indian Community of "El Chile", is 12 kilometers from Matagalpa. This Indian Ethnic group known as "Matagalpan", is not a Meso-Americam race of Indians, it is of Chibcha origin (South American), they live in the central highlands of the country, linguists are trying to rescue its language from about 500 written words found in an antique document filed in Brinton´s Library and Musseum in Philadelphia, USA.

The Matagalpa Indians became famous when they saved Nicaragua from William Walker takeover in San Jacinto battle in 1856.

"Matagalpa Washed Coffee" is famous worldwide because its quality, chocolate flavor, and is shade grown to protect nature. Some Matagalpa coffee farms has established international brand names. Matagalpa is the second most populated province of the country, it has 6 representatives (diputados) to the National Congress. Matagalpa has been the cradle of some of the nation´s best known citizens like Benito Morales (1803-1890) Chief of State in 1833. Nazario Vega (1825-1911) Governor of the Province in the 1860s and leader of the construction of Matagalpa Cathedral (1874-1895). Francisco Amador (1828-1910) was the Treasurer of Ejército del Septentrion that defeated the filibusteers in 1856. Ruben Dario (1867-1916) one of the most famous poets of the Spanish language was born in the town of Metapa, Matagalpa. Bartolome Martinez, President of Nicaragua in 1923-1924. Carlos Fonseca Amador (1936-1975) founder of the Sandinista philosophy that helped ending Somoza regime.

Coffee was first planted in Matagalpa in 1852 and is now its mayor income. A woman was the first coffee producer of northern Nicaragua highlands, her name was Katharina Braun Elster (1830-1887), her tombstone can be visited in San Ramon´s Cemetery, 10 kilometers southeast from the city of Matagalpa.