Acapulco Bay

Acapulco Bay forms a deep, sheltered harbour on the Pacific coast of New Spain. Hills enclose its broad curve, while a comparatively narrow entrance opens to the ocean. The port became the American terminus of the long voyage to the Philippines, linking the Pacific to the overland road across Mexico. Its anchorage made it a natural gathering place for ships, merchants and goods arriving from across the sea.

After Andrés de Urdaneta demonstrated a return route from the Philippines in 1565, Acapulco emerged as the principal Mexican port for the Manila galleon. Ships brought Asian silk, porcelain and other merchandise, exchanged for American silver. At the annual fair merchants bought the cargoes and sent them inland toward Mexico City and Veracruz. The wealth of this trade drew hostile ships, and the Spanish built the fort of San Diego to protect the harbour. The galleon trade continued until 1815, making the bay a meeting point of American and Asian commerce for two and a half centuries.