San Juan del Rio is a city south of the State of Queretaro, Mexico. Is head of the municipality of San Juan del Rio and the second largest city in economic and political status.
History
The current municipality of San Juan River was inhabited since the year 400 BCE as evidenced by the remains found at the edge of the river indicate that the remote settlement of groups of Chupícuaro Otomíes descent, who were engaged in fishing, hunting and gathering fruit.
Otomí culture is considered by investigators as one of the oldest cultures of the highlands. The Otomi, having discovered corn, beans, pumpkins and maguey, were grouped in the region around the hill Techimacit (today Barrio de la Cruz), by the creek that forms the river bed, built their houses forming the village called Iztacchichi-Mecapan meaning white earth Chichimecas whose chief was Mexici.
Don Nicolás de San Luis Mountain, Captain General of entries, led a vast army of people Xilotepec; coming to this place on the morning of June 24 of year 1531, the day of San Juan Bautista, to found a new village, "Village San Juan River, in the name of the Lord God of Heaven and Earth, was formed ", and according to the natives and their chief had the task of drawing the first street.
This was the beginning of the colonization of North and West of the New Spain. Thus, San Juan del Rio became obligatory passage for those traveling north and west of the territory of Mexico, which helped him to an important fact that all the caravans stopped here to rest and stock up on supplies; leading and bringing necessary for development of mining, agriculture and livestock in the region. This, in turn, led to the economic and social development in the area.
In the mid-sixteenth century, Blessed Fray Sebastián de Aparicio promoted the construction of a bridge at the narrowest part of the river due to the increasing difficult for the passage of caravans. However, it was until the early seventeenth century by order of the viceroy that Don Diego de Velasco was built until 1711 that work and the great bridge was built is now known as the Story Bridge.
During the War of Independence, San Juan River was an important stage for the national cause of the insurgency since it started here in front of the Imperial Army of the Three Guarantees and with the assistance of General Guadalupe Victoria, Anastasio Bustamante and General José Luis Quintanar, among others, taking the place of Querétaro. On June 29, 1821, Agustin de Iturbide in Querétaro issued a statement expressing the proper conclusion of the War of Independence.
On November 29, 1821 in the Plaza de San Juan Bautista was a popular and civic ceremony to proclaim and swear National Independence. On September 27, 1821 the rebel army made its triumphal entry to the city of Mexico.
During the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the estates were a major factor of economic and social development of San Juan del Rio. The most important were: Lira (now belonging to the municipality of Pedro Escobedo), The Key and Galindo.
On October 5, 1830 and as a result of its remarkable economic and social development, the State gave to the San Juan River as Villa.
For 1847, on April 3 and in the context of the war between Mexico and the United States, the state government gave the then District of San Juan del Rio City title.
By 1855, industry and trade were a major impetus. Among the most important companies and establishments of the period include: barbers, carpenters, fireworks manufacturing, tanneries, breweries, blacksmiths, mill wheat pailas of soap, cotton sugar mills, bakeries, silver, paint shops, tailors, hat , saddlery, weaving and wool blanket, rebozos shops, shoe shops and Fusteria.
Similarly, in this period, the urban development of San Juan del Rio is characterized by the construction and expansion of churches, bridges, streets and houses.
In 1863, Benito Juárez, in their flight to San Luis Potosi, spent in San Juan del Rio, and in 1867, Maximilian of Hapsburg launched in this city one of his latest proclamations, which urged people to defend the "independence and internal order "of the country. Later, in the Cerro de las Campanas de la Ciudad de Querétaro was shot along with the general Miramon and Mejia.
In the last decade of the nineteenth century San Juan del Rio development participated in laying the railway track and the Mexican National Railway, years later, settling in this city the "round house" for the repair of steam engines.
In 1929, San Juan del Rio acquired the status of municipality.
During the period 1960-1970, San Juan del Rio began its urban transformation, economic and social consequence of the strong momentum to the industrialization process, trade and communications; factors that have placed at present in this town as the second largest in the state Queretaro.
