Pachyohcan

Pachyohcan, later Pachuca, lies in the highlands north of the Basin of Mexico. Otomí communities inhabited this region before it came under the influence of the powers of central Mexico. The surrounding mountains contain rich mineral veins, and silver mining would transform the settlement after the Spanish conquest.

In the sixteenth century the discovery and working of mines brought Spanish settlers to the district. Pachuca became associated with several nearby mining centres, including Real del Monte and Atotonilco el Chico. The exploitation of silver linked these highland valleys to the economy of New Spain, drawing labour and supplies to the mines. By the beginning of the seventeenth century the mining settlement at Tlahuelilpan had acquired the name Real de Minas de Pachuca.