In the 17th century a French naval officer named Daniel de la Touche de la Ravardihre founded the city and named it after Saint Louis, in honor of King Louis XIII of France. Although it is the only city originally established by France, the Portuguese captured Sao Luis and then the Dutch followed, but it was the Portuguese that made a lasting impression making São Luis the most Portuguese city in the land of Brazil.
To the west of Sao Luis is the São Marcos Bay, to the east is the São José Bay, and to the north is the Atlantic Ocean, so in essence Sao Luis is all but an Island. São Luis is considered the main seaport of Maranhao and another state: Piaui. It principally produces and then exports, corn, cassava, rice, sugar, cotton, lumber, animal skins and hides, balsam, castor oil, and a kind of palm oil called babassu. (more…)