On Plaza Tamayo is the national library. Across the R o de La Paz from the Prado is Plaza Murillo. On this broad square are the huge cathedral, the Presidential Palace, and the Legislative Palace. A few blocks away is the covered Central Market. Important cultural buildings are the National Museum of Art and the National Museum of Archaeology.
Textile manufacture is the chief industry.
There are flour mills, breweries, and a match factory. Jewelry and wood carvings are made in home workshops. The Spanish conquerors founded La Paz in 1548. The name reflects the desire at the time to encourage trade along the route between the old Inca capital at Cuzco and the Potos silver mines. When railroads were constructed they also converged on La Paz.