San Pedro

Town and capital of San Pedro department in central Paraguay, 144 km/89 mi northeast of Asunción; population (1985 est) 3,600. It is a river port and capital of a department of the same name (area 20,020 sq km/7,730 sq mi), in which oranges, timber, tobacco, rice, and sugar are produced, and cattle are reared. San Pedro is the country's principal area for the cultivation of yerba maté (‘Paraguay tea’). Limestone is also quarried extensively. San Pedro was founded in 1786 and is the commercial centre for the department of the same name, with a road link to Asunción. The town's industries include sawmills and food-processing factories.

San Pedro

Harbour district of Los Angeles, situated on San Pedro Bay and the Palos Verdes Peninsula, 35 km/22 mi south of the city centre and 10 km/6 mi west-southwest of Long Beach.

Early in the 19th century, San Pedro was a shallow harbour that was difficult to navigate. However, since the 1850s, it has steadily been improved by dredging and other operations, and now constitutes one of the world's largest artificial harbours. A railway link with Los Angeles was established in 1869. Incorporated as a city in 1888, San Pedro was annexed by Los Angeles in 1909. It has shipyards, dry docks, fish canneries, and oil refineries. Terminal Island, to the east, is the site of a Coast Guard station, a Federal prison, and various facilities for the Port of Los Angeles. Wilmington lies immediately to the north.