From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Porto da Cruz, is a civil parish in the municipality of Machico in the northeastern corner of Madeira. The population in 2011 was 2,597, in an area of 25.22 km². The origin of the community's name came from the fact that the original discoverer affixed a steel cross at the port, in order to better identify the location to ocean travelers. During the early settlement of the northern coast, goods destined for the northern communities (such as Santo António da Serra) were offloaded in the harbor.