Libreville occupies 65 square kilometres (25 sq mi) of the northwestern province of Estuaire.

It was later an American Christian mission, and a slave resettlement site, before becoming the chief port of the colony of French Equatorial Africa.

By the time of Gabonese independence in 1960, the city was a trading post and minor administrative centre with a population of 32,000.

Various native peoples lived in or used the area that is now Libreville before colonization, including the Mpongwé tribe.

[7] In 1910, Gabon became part of French Equatorial Africa (Afrique équatoriale française, AEF).

As rapids make it impossible to navigate on the Congo River past Brazzaville, and the coastal railroad terminus site had to allow for the construction of a deep-sea port, authorities chose the site of Ponta Negra instead of Libreville as originally envisaged.

Construction of the Congo–Ocean Railway began in 1921, and Libreville was surpassed by the rapid growth of Pointe-Noire, farther down the coast.

[8] With national independence on the horizon, Léon M'ba won Libreville's first free mayoral election in 1956.

The city's port and train station on the Trans-Gabon Railway line to Franceville lie in Owendo, south of the main built-up area.

Additionally, in terms of aquatic geography, the Komo River passes through the city and empties into the ocean.

Commercial areas within Libreville are housed in the Mont-Bouët and Nombakélé districts, which feature several shopping centers and stations selling purchasable goods.

Its dry season (or summer) lasts from June through August, and is caused by the cold Benguela Current reaching its northernmost extent and suppressing rainfall.