Igaracu

Igaraçu is a channel of the Parnaíba delta, on whose banks the settlement of Parnaíba grew around the Porto das Barcas. The river gave the port access to the Atlantic and to the cattle country of the interior. In the eighteenth century, establishments preparing dried beef brought trade and population to the waterfront. Their products were shipped to Pernambuco, Bahia, Rio de Janeiro and Pará, while warehouses and a small chapel rose beside the port.