San Cristóbal is the fifth largest and easternmost of the Galápagos Islands. The island is comprised of three or four extinct volcanoes and takes its name from Saint Christopher, the patron saint of seafarers. It’s older, English name, Chatham, was given in honour of William Pitt, the first Earl of Chatham.
The island is home to the oldest permanent settlement in the archipelago and was the first island that Charles Darwin set fooy on, in 1835. The primary reason for this island being chosen for the first settlement is a small lake at the top of the island, named El Junco, which is the only source of fresh water in the islands.
Today, the island’s main town of Puerto Baquerizo Moreno is the capital of the Galápagos province and is home to many government offices, an Ecuadorian Navy facility and an airport with daily flights to the mainland. The island is home to approximately 5,400 residents, making it the second largest population in the archipelago, after Santa Cruz.
SOURCES:
- https://www.galapagos.org/about_galapagos/about-galapagos/the-islands/san-cristobal/
