Caguas (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈkaɣwas], locally [ˈkawaʔ]) is a city and municipality in central eastern Puerto Rico.

Located in the eponymous Caguas Valley between the Sierra de Cayey and Sierra de Luquillo of the Central Mountain Range, it is bordered by San Juan and Trujillo Alto to the north, Gurabo and San Lorenzo to the west, Aguas Buenas, Cidra and Cayey to the east, and Patillas to the south.

Since 2009, Caguas is the only municipality in Puerto Rico recognized as a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation.

Findings from the Cagüitas archaeological site (CS-2) indicate that the area was later inhabited by various pre-Taíno (Ostionoid) cultures which first developed agriculture in the valley, primarily the cultivation of cassava, and hunted now extinct species such as hutias.

Caguas was officially founded on January 1, 1775, as San Sebastián del Piñal de Caguax, with the name later being shortened and modernized to its current form.

The Carretera Central, which is the first paved road to cross Puerto Rico from north to south connecting San Juan to Ponce, was built during the last two decades of the 19th century,[12] made Caguas more accessible therefore causing the population of the town to grow even more.Puerto Rico was ceded by Spain in the aftermath of the Spanish–American War under the terms of the Treaty of Paris of 1898 and became a territory of the United States.

In 1899, the United States Department of War conducted a census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Caguas was 19,857.

Pharmaceutical companies originally came to Puerto Rico in the late 1960s and 1970s to take advantage of the now-expired federal tax incentive known as Section 936.

On August 7, 2002, Caguas was the site of the 2002 USAF Hercules air disaster, where all 10 military personnel on board lost their lives after an airplane carrying them struck a mountain in the south of the municipality.

[21] The city and municipality of Caguas are located approximately 30 minutes from the coastline both on the east (Humacao) and the north (San Juan).

It is east of Aguas Buenas and Cidra, north of Cayey, south of San Juan, and west of Gurabo and Trujillo Alto.

At this point there are two tall antennas which provide signal to Puerto Rico's principal TV stations such as WKAQ-TV and WAPA-TV.

The municipality is located along the Great Northern Puerto Rico fault zone (GNPRfz) and in recent times the region experienced moderate size earthquakes in 1990[24] and 2010.

del Carmen is a religious and cultural celebration that generally features parades, games, artisans, amusement rides, regional food, and live entertainment.

In 2006, the team won its first BSN national basketball championship, defeating Flor Melendez and his Santurce Crabbers in five games.

Caguas is home to the Bairoa Gym, one of the most important boxing gyms in all Puerto Rico and a place where many local and visiting champions and otherwise notable boxers have trained at; such as boxing Welterweight Champion Miguel Cotto, his brother Jose Miguel, Alberto Mercado, Juan Carazo, Alfredo Escalera and others.

The Criollas de Caguas women's volleyball team has won 9 national Puerto Rico titles and has made it to the finals more than 15 times.

During the early part of the 20th century, Caguas hosted one of Puerto Rico's most important sugar manufacturers, which gave employment to thousands of Cagüeños.

[42] There are also several shopping centers: In 1899, the United States conducted its first census of Puerto Rico finding that the population of Caguas was 19,857.

Above the cross is a crown which represents Caguax, cacique of the Turabo Valley region at the time of the arrival of the Spanish conquerors.

[52] Public transportation in Caguas, as in most of Puerto Rico, is limited to small "guaguas públicas" (Mini Bus).

A "light interurban rail" system connecting Caguas to San Juan was in the planning stages and discarded due to lack of funding.

Puerto Rico Highway 52 connects Caguas to the north (San Juan) and south (Cayey, Ponce).