CHIHUAHUA, a city of Mexico, capital of the state of the same name, lies in a beautiful valley opening towards the north, and hemmed in on the other sides by arms of the Sierra Madre, 4640 feet above the level of the sea, in 28° 38' N. lat. and 106° 30' W. long. The town is regularly built, and the streets are wide and clean, with many handsome and convenient houses, plentifully supplied with water, which is brought to the town by an aqueduct three miles in length. The grand square, three sides of which are occupied by public edifices and stores, and the fourth by the cathedral, an imposing building of the 18th century, has its spacious area adorned with fountains, walks, and benches, and with pillars of white porphyry. The principal buildings, besides the cathedral, are the mint, the prison, which was formerly a Jesuit convent, the house of correction, two hospitals, and the military school. In the square in front of the Jesuit chapel of San Felipe, is a simple monument in memory of the three martyrs of Mexican independence, Hidalgo, Allende, and Ilmenez, who were shot on the spot by the Spaniards. The town was founded in 1691, and in the 18th century was the seat of the captain-general of the Inner Provinces. At the time of its greatest prosperity it had about 70,000 inhabitants; but its present population does not exceed 14,000.