Hostotipaquillo

Hostotipaquillo lies in the rugged country west of Guadalajara. Its earlier settlement stood at a place called La Coronilla, and the surrounding mountains became known for their mineral wealth. Before Spanish rule, several indigenous peoples inhabited the district, including groups named as Texcoquines, Coanes and Tepehuanes.

The Spanish conquest reached the area in 1530, and Hostotipaquillo became part of Nueva Galicia. Mines discovered in 1605 transformed the settlement into a mining centre; Isabel Pérez and the brothers Diego and Francisco Rodríguez Ponce were among the first to build mills for processing ore. During a bishop’s visit in 1678, nearby mines and silver-processing estates supported a number of chapels as well as the parish church. The latter was built of adobe, with bells suspended from posts beside its entrance.