Liberia, its name derived from the Latin liber, meaning "free," was founded by freed American slaves in the early nineteenth century. The most important city is Monrovia and was named in honor of President Monroe, who held office at the time the Republic was officially established. Red, white, and blue mailboxes, American currency, and the widespread use of English bespeak the American influence, and it is not unlike visiting part of the U.S. in the summertime.

As a political nation, Liberia was founded by the American Colonization Society in an attempt to return freed slaves to Africa. Motives behind the society ranged from getting rid of "the negro problem" in America, to spreading religions, to sincerely returning blacks back to their native land. As a result, Liberia was heavily influenced by American culture. As you can see, the Liberian flag is very similar to the American flag. The capital city, Monrovia, was named after the fifth American President James Monroe who was a major supporter of the society. Even the Monrovia City police uniforms were modeled after ones used by the NYPD. Now Liberia is a mix of Liberians with a background in America, Americo-Liberians, and other peoples composing of many different tribal/kinship groups. Liberia has been disrupted by war that has lasted for about six years now.

information from: http://groove.mit.edu/LiberiaPages/index.htm